32 An Age of Limits QUIT CHAPTER OBJECTIVE INTERACT WITH HISTORY INTERACT WITH HISTORY TIME LINE VISUAL SUMMARY SECTION The Nixon Administration 1 SECTION

32 An Age of Limits

QUIT

CHAPTER OBJECTIVECHAPTER OBJECTIVE

INTERACT WITH HISTORYINTERACT WITH HISTORY

TIME LINETIME LINE

VISUAL SUMMARYVISUAL SUMMARY

SECTION The Nixon Administration 1

SECTION Watergate: Nixon’s Downfall 2

SECTION The Ford and Carter Years 3

SECTION Environmental Activism 4

MAP

GRAPH

32 An Age of Limits

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CHAPTER OBJECTIVE

To understand the political, social, and economic events of the 1970s and the Nixon Administration

32W I T H H I S T O R Y

I N T E R A C T

In what ways can a president misuse power?

Examine the Issues

The date is August 9, 1974. You are serving your country as an honor guard at the White House. As a member of the military, you’ve always felt patriotic pride in your government. Now the highest officer of that government, President Richard M. Nixon, is stepping down in disgrace. The trust you once placed in your leaders has been broken.

• What systems exist to protect against abuse of power?

• What are some powers granted to the president?

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• How can a president lose or restore the nation’s trust?

An Age of Limits

32

The United States The World

1968 Richard M. Nixon is elected president.

1969 Astronaut Neil Armstrong becomes the first person to walk on the moon.

1970 America celebrates the first Earth Day.

1972 Nixon visits China and the Soviet Union. Nixon is reelected.

1972 China gives the U.S. two pandas. Terrorists kill eleven Israeli athletes at the XX Olympiad in Munich.

1973 Energy crisis begins, and gasoline prices soar.

1973 War breaks out in the Middle East when seven Arab states attack Israel on Yom Kippur.

1974 Vice President Gerald R. Ford becomes president after the Watergate scandal forces President Nixon to resign.

TIME LINE

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1976 President Jimmy Carter is elected president. Americans celebrate the nation’s bicentennial. continued . . .

An Age of Limits

32

The United States The World

1977 The movie Saturday Night Fever inspires disco fashion.

1978 Egyptian and Israeli leaders meet and sign the Camp David Accords with President Carter.

1979 A nuclear power accident occurs at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania.

1979 Ayatollah Khomeini seizes power in Iran.

TIME LINE

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An Age of Limits

1The Nixon Administration

President Richard M. Nixon attempts to move the country in a more conservative direction and to ease Cold War tensions throughout the world.

OVERVIEWOVERVIEW ASSESSMENTASSESSMENT

KEY IDEA

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OVERVIEW

President Richard M. Nixon tried to steer the country in a conservative direction and away from federal control.

American leaders of the early 1970s laid the foundations for the broad conservative base today.

MAIN IDEAMAIN IDEA WHY IT MATTERS NOWWHY IT MATTERS NOW

TERMS & NAMESTERMS & NAMES

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• Richard M. Nixon

• New Federalism

• revenue sharing

• Southern strategy

• OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries)

• Family Assistance Plan

• SALT I Treaty

• stagflation

• realpolitik

• détente

ASSESSMENTASSESSMENT

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1. List the policies of Richard Nixon that promoted change and those that slowed it down.

continued . . .

Promoted Change

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ASSESSMENT

Slowed Change

Impounded federal funds

Abolished Office of Economic Opportunity

Opposed school busing

Appointed conservatives to the Supreme Court

Revenue sharing program

Family Assistance Plan

China visit

Soviet Union visit

SALT I Treaty

Policies: Policies:

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2. What were the effects of the Arab OPEC oil embargo on the United States?

ANSWERANSWER

Increased fuel prices, fuel conservation, inflation, factories and businesses closed

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ASSESSMENT

continued . . .

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3. Why was the timing of Nixon’s foreign policy achievements particularly important? Relate his achievements to other events.

ANSWERANSWER

Nixon’s achievements helped him win reelection in 1972.

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ASSESSMENT

continued . . .

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4. In your opinion, did Nixon’s policy of détente help solve the country’s major foreign policy problems? Think About:

ANSWERANSWER

Yes: improved relations between the Soviet Union and China; enhanced Nixon’s world image; opened up diplomatic and economic relations with the Chinese

No: did nothing to help the situation in Vietnam

• the definition and origin of détente • the effect of détente on U.S. dealings with Communist countries

• the effect of détente on the American public

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ASSESSMENT

End of Section 1

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2Watergate: Nixon’s Downfall

Richard Nixon’s involvement in the cover-up of a campaign burglary forces him to resign from office—the only president to do so.


KEY IDEA

HOMEGRAPH


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OVERVIEW

President Richard Nixon’s involvement in the Watergate scandal forced him to resign from office.

The Watergate scandal raised questions of public trust that still affect how the public and media skeptically view politicians.




• H. R. Haldeman

• John Ehrlichman

• John Mitchell

• Committee to Reelect the President

• Saturday Night Massacre

• impeachment

• John Sirica

• Watergate

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2

1. Look at the graphic to help organize your thoughts. List the key events of the Watergate scandal.

continued . . .

May 1973 Senate

investigates

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ASSESSMENT

June 1972 Watergate

break-in

Watergate: Nixon’s Downfall

October 1973Saturday Night

Massacre

August 1974 President Nixon

resigns.

June 1973 John Dean

testifies before Senate.

July 1974 Judiciary

committee votes to impeach Nixon.

August1974

Event

Event

Event Event

Event Event

June1972

GRAPH


2. If Nixon had admitted to and apologized for the Watergate break-in, how might subsequent events have been different? Think About:

ANSWERANSWER

Nixon’s public image would not have been as badly damaged; Americans might have respected him for his honesty; he probably would have lost some of the American people’s trust.

• the extent of the cover-up • the impact of the cover-up • Nixon’s public image

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ASSESSMENT

continued . . .

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3. How did the Watergate scandal create a constitutional crisis?

ANSWERANSWER

During the scandal, Nixon abused his power and obstructed justice. The crisis centered on the issue of how the nation would handle a president’s alleged criminal misconduct.

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ASSESSMENT

continued . . .

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4. Do you think that Nixon would have been forced to resign if the tapes had not existed?

ANSWERANSWER

Yes: There may have been other ways of bringing the pertinent information to light.

No: Nixon could have continued to maintain his innocence, and without proper evidence, he would not have been impeached.

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ASSESSMENT

End of Section 2

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3The Ford and Carter Years

In the wake of Watergate, Presidents Ford and Carter try to restore faith in America’s leadership as they battle the worst economic crisis in decades.


KEY IDEA

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• National Energy Act

• Gerald R. Ford

• Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini

• Camp David Accords

• Jimmy Carter

• human rights


OVERVIEW

The Ford and Carter administrations attempted to remedy the nation’s worst economic crisis in decades.

Maintaining a stable national economy has remained a top priority for every president since Ford and Carter.


3

1. Look at the graphic to help organize your thoughts. Identify the major events of the Ford and Carter administrations.

continued . . .

1975 Helsinki

Accords signed.

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ASSESSMENT

1974 Ford pardons

Nixon.

The Ford and Carter Years

March 1979 Anwar el-Sadat and Begin sign peace treaty.

Dec. 1979 Soviets invade Afghanistan.

1977 U.S. and

Panama sign canal treaties.

Nov. 4, 1979 Iranians seize U.S. hostages.

1980 Almost 14

percent inflation.

Event Two

Event One

Event Four Event Six

Event Three Event Five Event Seven


2. Do you think that Ford made a good decision in pardoning Nixon? Explain why or why not.

ANSWERANSWER

Good Decision: Ford needed to prevent the country from enduring a trial and restore confidence in the presidency.

Bad Decision: Nixon should have been held accountable; he never publicly admitted guilt.

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ASSESSMENT

continued . . .


3. How were the actions taken by Presidents Ford and Carter to address the country’s economic downturn similar? How did they differ?

ANSWERANSWER

Both emphasized energy conservation and battled Congress; Ford put more emphasis on voluntary citizen action, whereas Carter emphasized government action.

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ASSESSMENT

continued . . .


4. Do you agree with President Carter that human rights concerns should steer U.S. foreign policy? Think About:

ANSWERANSWER

Agree: U.S. has a duty to stand up for human rights.

Disagree: Too strict a policy might alienate allies.

• the responsibility of promoting human rights

• the loss of good relations with certain countries

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ASSESSMENT

• the collapse of détente with the Soviet Union

End of Section 3

4Environmental Activism

Americans, struck by their sense of limitations, begin to address a growing number of environmental concerns.

KEY IDEA


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• Rachel Carson

• Three Mile Island

• Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

• Earth Day

• environmentalist


OVERVIEW

During the 1970s, Americans strengthened their efforts to address the nation’s environmental problems.

The nation today continues to struggle to balance environmental concerns with industrial growth.



1. Look at the graphic to help organize your thoughts. List five events that describe how concern for the environment grew in the United States.

continued . . .

Concern for the environment grew in the

United States.

Rachel Carson publishes Silent Spring, 1962.

People struggle to balance environmental

with economic concerns.

Nixon creates the EPA in 1970.

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ASSESSMENT

In 1970, the first Earth Day is held. Three Mile Island

accident in 1979 raises concerns about nuclear

power.


2. How much should the United States rely on nuclear power as a source of energy? Think About:

ANSWERANSWER

Supporters may say that nuclear power should be used, since it is cleaner than coal or oil and is plentiful and cheap.

Opponents may say that nuclear power is dangerous, nuclear waste is difficult to contain, and the risks outweigh the benefits.

• the safety of nuclear power • the alternatives to nuclear power • U.S. energy demands

End of Section 4

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ASSESSMENT

Documents

32 An Age of Limits QUIT CHAPTER OBJECTIVE INTERACT WITH HISTORY INTERACT WITH HISTORY TIME LINE VISUAL SUMMARY SECTION The Nixon Administration 1 SECTION