The 1990s

Chapter 32

George H. W. Bush

George H. W. Bush• A New World Order

– Bush calls for a “new world order” as the Soviet Union begins its

decline

– Malta Conference

• Bush and Gorbachev discuss superpower cooperation

– Reduction of troop deployments

– Reduction of arms

– Settling regional disputes

– Stimulating East/West trade

– German reunification was seen as a part of this new world order

– START I treaty (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty)

• Marked the beginning of an era of cooperation between the U.S. and Soviets

George H. W. Bush

• Domestic Issues

– Tax reform: “Read my lips, no new taxes!”

• Sounded good in principle, but his administration struggled with

the enormous deficit from the Reagan years

• Bush gives in to Democrats and raises taxes

– Ruins his credibility and his approval rating

– Other domestic reform

• Americans with Disabilities ACT of 1990 (ADA)

• Clean Air Act

• Both were fairly progressive for a conservative president

George H. W. Bush• The Persian Gulf War (Gulf War I)

– Bush intervenes when Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein invades

Kuwait in 1990

• First international crisis since the end of the Cold War

– Bush identifies the Gulf War as the first step to create a world

based on democracy and global free trade

• Manifest Destiny continuing into another century

– Bush launches 4,000 bombing runs and a successful ground

offensive

• His ratings skyrocket as a result

• The 1992 election looked promising for him

William “Bill” Jefferson Clinton

The Clinton Years

• Election of 1992

– Initially, the election looked promising for incumbent

George H. W. Bush

• Successful offensive in the Gulf War

• Economy was relatively stable

– However, the economy began to recess as the election

season started

– Clinton wins the election with 43 %

• Texas billionaire (and independent populist) Ross Perot split

some of the vote between Clinton and Bush

The Clinton Years

• Domestic Policies

– FLMA Act (Family and Medical Leave Act)

– Brady Bill

• Five day waiting period on handgun purchases

• Assault weapons ban

– First White House website launched in 1994

– Gays’ rights in the military

• Clinton argued for this in his campaign

• The public was hostile to the issue

• Settled on the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy

The Clinton Years

• NAFTA (North Atlantic Free Trade Agreement)

– Agreement that would greatly reduce and/or eliminate the majority of

tariffs for products traded between the United States, Canada, and

Mexico

• Essentially a free-trade zone for the United States, Mexico, and Canada

– Democrats charge it caused the loss of jobs (no labor provisions)

• Some say our deficit has ballooned 11 times over what it was before NAFTA

– However, the American economy has grown 54% since its inception

– Overall, more time is needed to judge its successes and failures

The Family Unit in the 1990s• Decline of the traditional family

– After 1970, fewer American families had a father who was the sole

breadwinner

– Cohabitation without marriage became common

– Divorce rates doubled

– More unmarried women (especially teenagers) having children

– Quality of public education declines after the 1980s

– Movement to return to “traditional family values” began

• Nostalgic return to the 1950s begins as a result of the Christian Right

movement

– Others gravitate toward alternative lifestyles

Women in the 1990s

• More married women entered the workplace

– Some achieved remarkable success

• Most were relegated to low paying jobs or “female”

jobs

– Women on average made around 75% of men’s salaries

throughout the 1990s

• NOW (National Organization for Women) push for

another Equal Rights Amendment for women, but

ultimately fail

Election of 1996

• Clinton easily defeated Republican Bob Dole

– Becomes the first Democrat elected to two terms since FDR

– Ross Perot runs again as a Reform Independent

• Only garners 8.4% of the popular vote

• Clinton embraced the most popular Republican

policies like welfare reform

– Left Dole with extreme positions that were unpopular

among suburban middle-class voters

• Hostility to abortion rights and environmental protection

The Computer Revolution

• The rise of the computer industry and the

Internet produced a new economy

– Steve Jobs (Apple) and Bill Gates (Microsoft) quickly

became guiding forces for the future of computer-

based technology

• The Internet expanded the flow of information

and communications more radically than any

invention since the printing press

Globalization

• Globalization became the new concept of the

1990s

– The process by which economies, cultures, and

societies are linked through a global network of

communication, transportation, and trade

– Term is typically used to refer to economic globalization

• Integration of national economies through trade, foreign

investment, capital flow, technological integration, and

migration

The Clinton Scandals• In the 1980s and 1990s scrutiny of politicians’ private lives became

far more intense than in the past

• Whitewater Scandal

– Real estate controversy involving Bill and Hillary Clinton

– The Clintons partnered with James and Susan McDougal to purchase 220

acres of land in Arkansas to become the Whitewater Development Corp.

– The venture failed, the McDougals entered the banking industry, and began

another real estate investment that caught the attention of federal

regulators

– After Clinton took the presidency, an independent investigation found that

Clinton pressured a supporter, David Hale, into making a loan that

benefitted Clinton and the McDougal’s Savings and Loan

The Clinton Scandals• Whitewater Scandal

– Initially, the Clintons were cleared of wrongdoing, but Kenneth Starr

(President of Baylor U.) took over and used David Hale as a key

witness against the Clintons

• Alleged that Clinton pressured Hale to illegally loan $300,000 of federally-

backed money to Susan McDougal

• Hale was convicted of numerous felonies and the allegation lost its

credibility

– However, Starr’s investigation led to the numerous sex scandals

involving Bill Clinton

• Paula Jones (former government employee in Arkansas)

• Monica Lewinsky (White House intern)

Clinton’s Impeachment• After Whitewater, Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr

conducted an investigation of Clinton that included abuses of:

– Improper firing of White House travel agents

– Alleged misuse of FBI files

– Sexual harassment claims from Paula Jones

– Perjury statements dealing with his sexual relationship with Monica

Lewinsky

• Overall, Starr’s report indicated that impeachment

proceedings should proceed

• Clinton was charged with perjury and obstruction of justice

Clinton’s Impeachment• After a month of deliberation, the Senate acquitted

Clinton of both charges

• In April 1999, Clinton was cited for contempt of court

regarding his “willful failure” to tell the truth in the Paula

Jones lawsuit

– He was assessed a $90,000 fine, had his Arkansas law license

suspended for 5 years, and resigned from the United States

Supreme Court bar

– Out of court, he settled with Paula Jones for $850,000 in

damages

Clinton’s Impeachment• Publically, 50% of Americans supported Clinton’s impeachment and

42% disapproved of Clinton’s acquittal

• Clinton’s job approval rating rose during the impeachment scandal, but

his poll numbers regarding honesty, integrity, and moral character

sharply declined

• As a result, “moral character” was a significant issue in the 2000

election

– Post-election results from the 2000 election indicated that the single most

significant reason people voted for George W. Bush was for his moral

character and his image as a “compassionate conservative”

– The association between Clinton and Al Gore (Clinton’s Vice President) greatly

impacted Gore’s campaign

The 2000 Presidential Election

Al Gore (D) George W. Bush (R)

The 2000 Presidential Election

• This election proved to be one of the closest in the

nation’s history

– Second to the election of 1877

• The election was notable because of the controversial

voting recount in Florida

– Gore requested hand recounts in 4 counties

– Results indicated Bush won Florida and Gore appealed to

the Florida Supreme Court

– The Florida Supreme Court ordered a total state recount

The 2000 Presidential Election• The U.S. Supreme Court immediately struck down the Florida

Supreme Court’s recount

• In December 2000, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled:

– 7 to 2 that the Florida Supreme Court’s ruling for a complete recount

was unconstitutional

– 5 to 4 that the Florida recounts could not be done before a “safe

harbor” deadline and should cease

• Subsequently, the previously certified total (that indicated Bush won

Florida) should hold.

• Overall, like in 1877, the U.S. Supreme Court had to decide the

outcome of the presidential election

Results of the Election• One of the more remarkable things about the election was

not so much its controversial ending, but the even division of

the country it revealed

• Democrats blamed the Supreme Court, Ralph Nader, and

sheer bad luck for Bush’s narrow victory

• The election also revealed a broad disengagement from

public life

– Primarily, low voter turn-out

– Roughly 100 million show up to vote

– Over 280 million people in the U.S. (2000 Census)

Source: http://www.slideshare.net/rfair07/ch-27-the-1990s