nixon and ford’s presidency

Nixon and Ford’s Presidency:

o WHAT: Explain: Nixon’s approach to foreign policy and the Cold War and how it differed from other presidents.

o WHAT: Explain: Nixon’s domestic policies.

o WHAT: Explain: The Watergate scandal and how it forced Nixon to resign as president and cause many not to respect the office as they once did.

o WHAT: Explain: The presidency of Gerald Ford and what he did in the Post-Watergate era.

o WHY:11.11(4) Explain the constitutional crisis originating from the Watergate scandal.

o WHY:11.9(5) Analyze the role of the Reagan administration and other factors in the victory of the West in the Cold War.

Pro_11:18 The wicked worketh

a deceitful work: but to him that

soweth righteousness shall be a

sure reward.

Cold War Ideology Before Nixon:

o A conflict between Democratic Capitalist Nations versus Totalitarian Communist ones.

o The world is divided into “us” versus “them.”

o “The enemy of my enemy is my friend.”

o Any nation that opposed Communism was a friend to the U.S.

Nixon and the Cold War:

• Henry Kissinger was Nixon’s leading

adviser on national security and

international affairs.

• Nixon and Kissinger altered this cold

war approach.

• They introduced a concept called

Realpolitik.

Realpolitik:

o The political goals should be defined by concrete national interests, instead of abstract ideologies.

o Involved U.S. global interests, not in black and white terms but in shades of gray.

o China and the Soviet Union could become excellent trading partners.

o West Germany and Japan could be economic rivals.

o Nixon insisted on flexible, pragmatic foreign policy that avoided ideological absolutes.

Nixon Reaches Out To China

o Nixon was known as a staunch anti-

Communist.

o He shocked the world by reaching out to the

People’s Republic of China.

o Nixon was a political realist.

WHY NIXON REACHES OUT TO CHINA:

o Nixon thought a relationship with China

would benefit trade with the U.S.

o Better relations with China would drive a

wedge with the Soviet Union.

o The Soviet Union now saw China as a

rival in influence of other nations.

o Henry Kissinger and Premier Zhou Enlai

worked together to plan Nixon’s visit to

China.

Nixon Reaches Out To China

o Nixon visited China in 1971 visiting

Chinese leaders including Communist

Party Chairman Mao Zedong.

o It was a great success.

o American tourists began to visit China.

o American companies set up trade with

China.

o The United States officially recognized

the People’s Republic of China as a

nation.

Nixon visits the Soviet Union

o Soviet leader Lenoid Brezhnev invited Nixon to Moscow.

o The Soviets did not want to be isolated by better relations between the U.S. and China.

o In May, 1972, Nixon visited the Soviet Union.

o A treaty between the two nations was signed in freezing development of (ICBM) nuclear missiles.

o And limits on ballistic missiles (SALT I).

Détente with the Soviet Union

o Replacing diplomatic efforts based on suspicion and distrust with one easing Cold War tensions.

o Nixon relaxed the nation’s inflexible stance towards Communism that dramatically altered America’s global strategy.

o Applied a more pragmatic approach to foreign policy.

o In the short term, it helped end U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War.

o In the long term, it helped start steps to end the Cold War.

Domestic Policies: The Silent Majority:

• Nixon targeted Middle Americans or the silent majority to support his presidency.

• Those who believed in traditional American values and were not protestors.

• Nixon believed that America was tired of “big” government of Johnson’s Great Society.

• But also believed that the people wanted government to address various problems.

• Such as crime, pollution, and public safety.

New Federalism: o Nixon’s domestic policy.

o Where the Federal Government gave

States money to fund social programs.

o The State would control these

programs rather than the Federal

Government.

o Giving States more freedom to use

funds more freely for their unique

needs.

Nixon Established: o Drug Enforcement Administration

(DEA) Agency that oversaw the

Federal war on illicit drugs.

o The Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA) enforces the federal

environmental standards.

o The Clean Air Act gave the EPA

power to set air quality standards.

The Economy Struggles:

o The U.S. began to experience both

inflation (increase in prices).

o And recession (the downward turn

of the economy at the same time).

o This is called stagflation.

o This was caused by expanding

Federal budget deficits on

spending for the Vietnam War.

The Economy Struggles: o Rising foreign competition in

steel and auto industry caused the loss of thousands of American jobs.

o Oil and gasoline prices skyrocketed.

o When Arab OPEC oil producers placed an embargo against the U.S. for supporting Israel.

Southern Strategy

• Nixon barely won the 1968 election.

• Nixon sought to extend his political support by appealing to blue collar workers and Southern Whites.

• Both groups traditionally voted for Democrats.

• By winning the support of Southern Whites, Nixon hoped to make the Republican Party a powerful force in the South.

Southern Strategy

• Nixon appointed more Southern judges.

• Nixon also verbally opposed busing

desegregation of schools.

• Nixon was reelected by a large majority in

1972.

• He became the first Republican to win the

majority of votes in all the Southern States.

Watergate Scandal:

• Burglars' attempted to break into the

Democratic Party headquarters at

the Watergate complex (June 1972).

• Investigators began to find that these

burglars were connected to the

President.

• One of the accused (James McCord)

said during his trial that officials in the

White House were involved.

• This led to a Senate investigation.

Uncovering The Watergate Scandal:

• Two Washington Post journalists, (Bob Woodard and Carl Bernstein found a source).

• Called “Deep Throat” who told them that the burglars were part of Nixon’s re-election campaign.

• Nixon claimed his innocence.

• While forcing his top aides to resign as evidence showed they maybe involved in the break in.

GROUP DISCUSSION:

• Why do you think that the Watergate

burglary was such a huge issue?

Watergate Scandal: Constitutional Crisis

o This scandal created a historic showdown between the three branches of government.

o How far would Congress go to investigate the President?

o Would the courts demand that the President turn over information that might implicate him?

o If the courts sided with Congress, would the President comply with its decision?


• Nixon’s Vice President Spiro

Agnew was forced to resign

for an unrelated scandal.

• Gerald Ford became Vice

President.


o In the summer of 1973, it was revealed that Nixon was secretly recording taped conversations at the White House Oval Office.

o Many commentators speculated that these tapes would show that the President played a role in the cover up.

o Nixon refused to turn over the tapes to the Special Prosecutor investigating the scandal.

o Nixon claimed executive privilege.

Executive Privilege:

• Is the principle that the President

has the right to keep certain

information confidential.

• It took almost a year to sort out the

issue of the tapes.

Saturday Evening Massacre: 1973-10-20

o Nixon ordered Attorney General Elliot Richardson and Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus to fire Special Prosecutor Archibald Cox.

o Cox was investigating the Watergate scandal under the Justice Department.

o Richardson and Ruckelshaus resigned their posts in protest.

o The new Attorney General Robert Bork, reluctantly complied with Nixon’s request to dismiss Cox.

Saturday Evening Massacre: 1973-10-20

o Less than a half hour later, the White House dispatched FBI agents.

o The agents were ordered to close off the offices of the Special Prosecutor, Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General.

o This led to 21 members of Congress that called for Nixon’s impeachment.

o Citing that it was an abuse of executive power.

United States v. Nixon,

• On June 24, 1974, the Supreme Court disagreed on the issue of executive privilege, and ordered Nixon to turn over the tapes to the special prosecutor.

• The investigators discovered that parts of the tapes were deleted.

• Nixon claimed that his secretary accidently deleted them.

• The tapes still revealed enough evidence that Nixon helped cover up the scandal.

• This led the Judiciary Committee of the House of Representatives to vote to impeach the president.

• Let us hear the conclusion of the

whole matter: Fear God, and

keep his commandments: for

this is the whole duty of man.

For God shall bring every work

into judgment, with every secret

thing, whether it be good, or

whether it be evil. Ecc 12:13-14.

Watergate Scandal Brings Nixon Down

• Nixon recognized that the House of

Representatives would vote in favor

to impeach him.

• Many Republican Senators would

vote to convict him in a trial in the

Senate.

• Nixon resigned in August 8, 1974,

the first president to do so.

President Nixon’s Abuse of Power:

• Nixon was found to have committed

other abuses of presidential power.

• His reelection team had engaged in

dirty tricks to secure his election.

• Nixon developed an enemies list and

had the FBI place wiretaps on them.

• The American people distrusted the

President and Federal Government.

Congressional Reforms:

• Established a procedure to name an independent counsel to investigate charges against the White House.

• Federal Election Campaign Act (1974) limited the amount of money individuals can give candidates.

• To prevent corruption of the political process.

• This was to restore public confidence in government and to prevent abuse of power in the future.

Discussion Question:

• Why do you think its almost always the

case when someone tries to hide

something they did wrong, that they will

ultimately be caught for their wrongdoing?

o Pro_28:13 He that covereth his

sins shall not prosper: but whoso

confesseth and forsaketh them

shall have mercy.

o (1Jn 1:9) If we confess our sins,

he is faithful and just to forgive

us our sins, and to cleanse us

from all unrighteousness.

GUILTY OR NOT GUILTY?

o Each Row is a jury. Jury attempts to vote

guilty and not guilty. Unanimous needed

for guilty.

o Do you think Richard Nixon was guilty or

not guilty in attempting to interfere in the

1972 election?

Ford Takes Over

o Gerald Ford, Nixon’s Vice President became President.

o Ford was a congressman from Michigan.

o Who had a reputation of dependability and integrity.

o Ford officially (pardoned) forgave any crimes Nixon committed as president.

o This was highly controversial and led Ford to lose the presidency to Jimmy Carter.

ACTIVITY:

• Richard Nixon sought to appeal to the

silent majority (White Protestant Voters)

and wanted to keep America first. He also

was involved in an election scandal. Does

he remind you of any other president?

Ford, Carter, and Reagan

o WHAT: Explain the presidencies of Ford and Carter in the post-Nixon era.

o WHAT: Explain the rise of Ronald Reagan and examine his conservative domestic policies.

o WHAT: Explain Reagan’s foreign policy and how it led to the end of the Cold War and the fulfillment of Bible prophecy.

o WHY: 11.9(5) Analyze the role of the Reagan administration and other factors in the victory of the West in the Cold War.

o WHY: 11.9(6) Describe U. S. Middle East policy and its strategic, political, and economic interests, including those related to the Gulf War.

(Dan 11:40) And at the time of the

end shall the king of the south

push at him: and the king of the

north shall come against him like a

whirlwind, with chariots, and with

horsemen, and with many ships;

and he shall enter into the

countries, and shall overflow and

pass over.

After Ford, Carter

• Ford lost the 1976 election to Jimmy Carter.

• A political outsider from Georgia with no real ties to Washington D.C.

• Carter was inexperienced with the Federal Government and many of his bills did not pass.

• Fulfilled one of his campaign pledges by granting amnesty to Americans who evaded the draft during the Vietnam War.

• The economy still struggled like it did under Nixon and Ford.

Carter Foreign Policy

• Relations with the Soviet Union cooled.

• The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan to help a struggling Communist government (1979).

• Carter responded by withdrawing from the SALT II treaty from Senate’s consideration for ratification.

• Imposed sanctions/penalties against the Soviet Union.

Carter Foreign Policy: o Believed that relationships with the

developing world should be based on how a nation treats its citizens.

o Emphasized human rights that altered the relationship the U.S. had with a number of dictators.

o Carter also signed the treaty to give the Panama Canal Zone to Panama.

o Carter helped negotiate a peace treaty between Israel and Egypt called the Camp David Accords.

o Egypt was the first Arab nation to recognize Israel as a nation.

Iran Hostage Crisis

• The Iranian people overthrew their long

ruling dictator, the Shah whom the U.S.

supported.

• The Shah was given permission to

receive cancer treatment in the U.S.

• This enraged the Iranians who were led

by Muslim cleric Ayatollah Khomeini.

• Radical Iranian students raided the U.S.

embassy and took 66 American

hostages.

Iran Hostage Crisis

• A special operations rescue mission ordered by Carter failed when a helicopter crashed into a transport plane (8 servicemen were killed).

• Carter failed to win the hostages release.

• It was evidence to many of America’s weakness and need for a strong leader.

• Carter would not be reelected as president.

Iran Hostage Crisis

• On January 20, 1981, twenty

minutes after Carter left the

presidency, Iran released all 52

American hostages.

• The Middle East would now

become America’s greatest foreign

policy challenge.

Clear Party Lines Forming

• Politically, America was beginning to be divided.

• On one side were liberals (Democrats), those who favored government intervention to help the needy

• The conservatives (Republicans) favored allowing the free market and private organizations and individuals to help the needy.

Clear Party Lines Forming

o Conservatives advanced an new agenda against liberal government policies.

o The difference between the two major parties grew more pronounced.

o A resurgent conservative movement called the New Right grew rapidly.

o Evangelical Christians led by Jerry Falwell began to be involved in politics supporting the Republican Party.

Ronald Reagan

• Was a former Hollywood actor and former governor of California.

• He was elected president in 1980.

• The election was close but Reagan won.

• But in the electoral college, Reagan won handily because of the winner take all provision.

• He was known as the “great communicator,” whose charm, whit, and public speaking skills attracted voters.

Reaganomics

• Advocated supply side economics.

• That if taxes are reduced, people will work

more and thus have more money to spend.

• Causing the economy to grow.

• The government will then collect more taxes.

• Reagan cut up to $40 billion from social

programs.

• Reduced government’s role in the economy

by calling for the removal of government

control over industry (deregulation) .

Reaganomics

• After struggling with recession

the economy did rebound.

• Inflation fell dramatically.

• Gross National Product and

annual income increased.

• But the number of poor including

the worker poor increased.

• Meanwhile the rich grew richer.

Reaganomics

o Reagan increased defense spending.

o But failed to win huge cuts in

government spending in other areas.

o This is caused a federal budget deficit.

o The government spent more money

than it received in taxes.

o This national debt increased to $2.5

trillion.

Supreme Court:

o Reagan appointed Sandra Day

O’Conner, the first woman to

serve in the Supreme Court.

o He also appointed Anthony Scalia

and Anthony Kennedy.

o And elevated William Rehnquist a

well known conservative to chief

justice.

80s Pop Culture

o One of flash, glamor commercialization.

o The theme was the greatness of America.

o For Children, Toy companies funded Cartoons to sell their products such as Transformers and G.I. Joe.

o Movies dealing with the Cold War like Top Gun was popular.

80s Pop Culture

o Coin operated arcade video games

became popular such as Pac Man

and Space Invaders.

o Atari, Colecovision, and Nintendo

produced video game counsels.

AIDS and Drugs:

• The AIDS Virus began to appear in 1981.

• The Virus first spread mainly to homosexual men and intravenous drug users.

• It then spread to heterosexuals.

• America was also engaged in a war against narcotics.

• Cocaine was the drug of choice for the upper class.

• A cheap highly addictive form of Cocaine (Crack) devastated the inner cities with addictions and gang violence.

Terrorism in the Middle East:

• Reagan sent 800 U.S. Marines to bring peace to Lebanon’s Civil War.

• The American embassy in Lebanon was bombed in April 18, 1983 by Terrorists.

• 241 Marines were killed at their barracks by a terrorist bomb.

• Regan withdrew the remaining Marines fearing Vietnam backlash.


• Muamar al-Quaddafi and his Libyan government supported terrorist groups.

• These terrorists groups attacked and killed American citizens and servicemen in Europe attacking night clubs and airports.

• In response, U.S. warplanes bombed Libya.

• Quadaffi’s infant daughter was killed after Reagan believed that Libya was responsible.


• In 1988 Pam Am Flight 103 exploded over Scotland killing 270, many being Americans.

• Libyan agents were responsible.

• Mr. Carpenter’s professor from college was scheduled to fly on that flight.

• Dr. Michael Hasel missed the flight and today is a great pillar of religious professors for the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

Iran/Contra Affair (1985)

• The U.S. sold weapons to Iran.

• In exchange, Iran’s promised to pressure terrorist groups in Lebanon to release American hostages.

• The money from the sale of weapons were then given to support the Contra rebels.

• Fighting the Marxist government of Nicaragua.

• Congress banned sending funds to the Contra rebels in Nicaragua.

Iran/Contra Affair

• The plan didn’t work.

• It contradicted the administration’s policy of refusing to negotiate with terrorists.

• This scandal was exposed in 1986.

• President Reagan accepted responsibility for the action of his administration.

• But he never admitted to ordering his aides to support the Contras.

• Top aides included Oliver North were convicted of charges but were later overturned in technicalities.

Defeating Communism:

o Reagan believed that Communism

needed to be challenged as much

as possible without provoking war.

o In order to weaken it as much as

possible, he devised policies

toward toppling Communist

nations.


o Building new nuclear missile

systems

o Fund covert operations against

Soviet troops and allies.

o Reagan committed the U.S. to the

largest peacetime military buildup

in its history.


• Reagan believed that the Soviet Union could not afford to spend as much on defense as the U.S.

• He outspent the Soviet Union in building weapons.

• Reagan also introduced the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) or Star Wars.

• A proposed system in which land and space-based lasers would destroy any missile aimed at the U.S.

Reagan Aids Anticommunists

• Also supported anticommunist rebellions around the globe.

• The U.S. funded and trained the mujahedeen, anti-Soviet rebels in Afghanistan.

• Taliban members were part of this group.

• These guerrilla fighters forced the Soviets to withdraw in 1988.


• How do you feel about the fact that the

U.S. once supported rebel groups in

Afghanistan that ended up becoming

terrorist groups?


• Reagan also supported the Contra Rebels.

• Anticommunist counterrevolutionaries in Nicaragua to topple the Sandinista government that was supported by the Soviets.

• Reagan also sought to support the government of El Salvador.

• Against Communist rebels even though the government was poor on human rights.


• Reagan also invaded

Grenada in October 25,

1983.

• To prevent the Caribbean

island nation from becoming

a communist outpost and to

protect the lives of American

medical school students.

Reagan works with the Pope

• “Yes. I firmly believe that President Reagan and Pope John Paul II are most responsible for the fall of the Soviet empire, which had enslaved 300 million people prior to its surrender and dissolution. The two men shared the belief that atheistic communism lived a lie that, when fully understood, must ultimately fail.” William P. Clark former National Security Advisor to President Reagan.

Years later, former Soviet

leader Mikhail Gorbachev

reflected on the changes

that occurred behind the

Iron Curtain. "It would have

been impossible without the

pope," he said. CBC News

Online.

• “For nearly 140 years after America won its independence, presidents didn’t look at a meeting with the pope as a hot ticket. The dominance of Protestants in the new nation, persistent questions about who really led the Catholic Church and from where, to say nothing of the difficulties of travel, all made such summits impossible.” Oliver Knox, Yahoo News, “When the president meets the pope,” March 26, 2014

• “In homage to the Papacy the

United States will not be alone.

The influence of Rome in the

countries that once

acknowledged her dominion, is

still far from being destroyed.”

{Ellen White: Maranatha, p.

188.2}

It has been shown that the United States is the power represented by the beast with lamblike horns, and that this prophecy will be fulfilled when the United States shall enforce Sunday observance, which Rome claims as the special acknowledgment of her supremacy. Great Controversy page 579.

• In Revelation 13:11-15 the Bible describes the lamb like beast to deceiving the whole world to worship the first beast (The Papacy).

• "[America is] the planet's sole remaining superpower." "The U.N. Obsession," Time, May 9, 1994, p. 86.

• "America's power will now determine all major global events." Jim Hoagland, "Of Heroes ...", The Washington Post, August 21, 1991, p. A-23.

• Until the Twentieth Century, America was reluctant to be involved in foreign affairs especially in Europe.

• They tended to be isolationists.

• In 1938, The American military was the 17th largest Army in the world, smaller than Romania and almost 2/3rd of American troops never fired a rifle. “America Enters WWII.” History.com

• By the evidence so far, we can conclude that this lamb like beast represents the United States of America.


• Do you think it is a good or bad thing that

the Pope was actively involved with the

United States to defeat Communism?

Soviet Union Opens:

• In 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev became leader of the Soviet Union.

• Ushered in a new era of Glasnost (Openness).

• (Perestroika) a reforming of the Soviet system.

• It was a shift from a socialist or state controlled economy.

Soviet Union Opens:

o The Soviet economy was in shambles.

o It faced regular food shortages.

o Its factories could not compete with the West.

o A huge chunk of the Soviet Economy went toward paying for the military.

o The War in Afghanistan had drained Soviet resources.

o Gorbachev realized that his nation could not match the military buildup by Reagan and the West.

The Two Leaders Meet:

• Gorbachev’s policies and personality helped soften the Soviet Union’s international image.

• Reagan responded by becoming more moderate towards the Soviets.

• The two leaders met four times between 1985 and 1989.

• Negotiations also began on the START I treaty.

• Which would reduce the number of nuclear weapons in the world.

The Cold War Ends • In November 1989, the East German

communist government fell.

• East German authorities opened the Berlin Wall.

• Within a year, East and West Germany reunited as one single nation.

• Communists also lost power in Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, and Romania (1989).

• In Albania in 1990 and Yugoslavia in 1991.

The Cold War Ends

• In August 1991, military hard-liners in

the Soviet Union attempted to stage a

coup to stop Gorbachev and his

reforms.

• In a last-gasp attempt to maintain

Communist rule.

• But when millions of Russians, led by

Boris Yeltsin rallied in the streets of

Moscow.

• In support of Gorbachev, the coup fell

apart.

The Cold War Ends

• Not long afterwards the

Communist Party lost power.

• The Soviet Union separated into

15 independent republics.

• Boris Yeltsin became leader of

the largest new Republic, the

Russian Federation.

The Cold War Ends

• Reagan’s successor, George Bush Sr. signed agreements with Gorbachev and later Yeltsin.

• To scale down and even eliminate certain nuclear weapons.

• Bush and Yeltsin issued a joint statement in pledging friendship and cooperation (1992).

• The Cold War that began in 1945 was finally over.

• America becomes the sole superpower nation in the world.


• Do you think the world is a safer place with

the end of the cold war?

George W. Bush to 2020

o WHAT: Explain the domestic and foreign policy issues of the presidency of George H.W. Bush.

o WHAT: Explain the economy and culture of the 1990s.

o WHAT: Explain the domestic and foreign policy issues of Bill Clinton.

o WHAT: Explain George W. Bush’s presidency and the War on Terrorism and the economic crisis of 2008.

o WHAT: Explain the election of President Obama

o WHAT: Explain the election of President Trump.

o WHAT: Explain the recurrent themes of United States History.

o WHY: 11.9(6) Describe U. S. Middle East policy and its strategic, political, and economic interests, including those related to the Gulf War.

(Rev 13:11) And I beheld

another beast coming up out of

the earth; and he had two horns

like a lamb, and he spake as a

dragon.

The Bush Years

• George HW Bush was elected president in 1988.

• He was Reagan’s Vice President.

• Bush continued the War on Drugs.

• Sent 12,000 troops to invade Panama in December 1989 and arrested dictator Manuel Noriega.

• Noriega stood trials for trafficking drugs to the U.S. and sentenced to 40 years in prison.

Tiananmen Square:

• In Spring, 1989, the Chinese

military killed hundreds of

protestors.

• Imprisoned prodemocracy

activists in Tiananmen Square.

• Bush cut off arms sales and

condemned the Chinese actions.

• But maintained economic and

diplomatic ties with China.

The Persian Gulf War:

• On August 2, 1990, Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait.

• Kuwait had large oil deposits.

• The U.S. feared that Hussein would threaten Saudi Arabia.

• The U.S. got a UN resolution demanding Hussein to withdraw his forces.

The Persian Gulf War:

o The U.S. led a coalition of nations to free Kuwait.

o The military effort was led by General(s) Colin Powell and Norman Schwarzkopf

o Led by superior air power and a ground invasion, the Iraqi military was quickly defeated.

o However, the coalition forces did not go to Baghdad (Capital of Iraq) to topple Hussein’s government.

Bush Loses

o However, the American economy was in recession.

o In April 29, 1992, Los Angeles suffered the most deadly urban riot in history.

o The riot was triggered by anger from a trial where several police officers were found not guilty of beating an African American motorist.

o Bush lost to William Jefferson Clinton, the governor of Arkansas.

o He would be the first Democrat to be president in 12 years.


• How do you think we can solve the

problems of police brutality and high crime

in our inner cities?

Rise of Hip Hop and Alternative Music

o The rise of hip hop music came from the era of gang violence and the drug war.

o The music was initially very political.

o Describing everyday experiences in the inner cities, gang life, and Black Nationalism.

o Some said that the music foreshadowed the Los Angeles Riots.

o However by the 90s, the music became more commercial and party oriented.

Rise of Hip Hop and Alternative Music

• Alternative music also became

popular.

• Capturing the angst and

emptiness of 80’s material culture

and the uncertainty of the future.

Clinton Years: Technology Boom

o The development of the microchip in the

1960s led to video game counsels, cell

phones, and other gadgets.

o Steve Job’s (Apple) and Bill Gates

(Microsoft) made personal computers

affordable to millions of Americans.

o Jeff Bezos Amazon.com ushered in buying

and selling products by a computer.

o The internet and world wide web became

public by the mid-1990s along with emails

and instant messaging.

Globalization:

o Technology led to economies, politics, and

culture to become integrated with other

nations around the world.

o The service economy became central to the

American economy.

o More Americans became lawyers, sales

people, doctors, research analysts,

entertainers, professional athletes rather

than factory workers.

o This became the diverse service economy.

ACTIVITY

• Do you think Globalization is a good thing

or bad thing?

Rise in High Profile Violence

o Confrontation between the Branch Davidian Cult and Federal ATF agents resulted in 76 deaths.

o Timothy McVeigh, a White extremist bombed the Oklahoma City Federal Building killing 168 people and injuring 800.

o Two students armed with heavy weapons killed 12 fellow students in Columbine High School in Colorado.

DEBATE:

• Do you think America should ban guns

from private citizens?

Domestic Issues:

• Clinton would clash with Republicans in much of his first term.

• Republican controlled congress even forced a government shutdown.

• Clinton also was impeached for lying under oath of having an affair.

• He was not removed from office because the senate did not have a two-thirds majority.

Clinton Foreign Policy

o Sent American Special Forces to Somalia to help stabilize the nation.

o But pulled them out after American troops were killed in a vicious attack by Somali War Lords (1992)

o Sent troops to Haiti to restore popularly elected president Jean Aristide back to power from a military coup.

o Clinton also brokered a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians that led to greater Palestinian self-rule.

Clinton Foreign Policy

o Also worked with NATO to stop ethnic

cleansing in the disintegrated Yugoslavia.

o Ethnic cleansing was state sanctioned mass

murder and violence.

o Eastern Orthodox Serbs were battling

Catholic Croats and Bosnian Muslims.

o Clinton and NATO sent bombers to Serbia

and troops to the region to end the ethnic

cleansing.

o It is the first time NATO had actually gone into

combat.

Al Qaeda Terrorism:

o Saudi businessman Osama Bin Laden fought Afghanistan against the Soviets in the 1980s and wanted U.S. troops to leave Muslim countries.

o U.S. had a military presence in Saudi Arabia.

o He formed the Al Qaeda Terrorist Network.

o They bombed the World Trade Center killing six people and injuring more than a thousand others.

o Five years later, the embassies in Kenya and Tanzania were bombed killing 225 people and injuring 5,500 others.

o In 2000, Al Queda bombed the U.S.S. Cole where 17 American sailors were killed.

Bush Jr Becomes President

• Clinton left office with a healthy and strong economy and a budget surplus.

• In 2000, George W. Bush son of George HW Bush won the presidential election.

• Bush defeated Al Gore, Clinton’s Vice President in controversial fashion.

• It took the act of the Supreme Court to have Bush officially elected.

9-11

• On September 11, 2001 terrorists high jacked four commercial airliners.

• Two were intentionally crashed into the World Trade Center in NYC.

• Another crashed in the Pentagon (Headquarters of the U.S. Military) in North Virginia.

• A fourth plane crashed in a Pennsylvania field after passengers rushed the hijackers.

• Bin Laden claimed responsibility.

War on Terrorism Begins:

• U.S. invaded Afghanistan.

• The Taliban gave refuge to Bin Laden and his terrorist group.

• The U.S. continues to have troops in Afghanistan fighting the Taliban today although there is take of a peace agreement.

Patriot Act:

• Law passed by Congress to give law enforcement broader powers to monitor suspected terrorists.

• Law enforcement can monitor suspected terrorists without a warrant.

• Concerned critics see it as a violation of liberty.

• But many Americans were willing to give up some freedom in return for improving security.

• The Department of Homeland Security was created to better defend the nation from terrorism.

GROUP ACTIVITY/Discussion Question

• In groups trace other instances in U.S. History of laws or actions passed by the U.S. Government that are similar to the Patriot Act.

• What do you think of the Patriot Act and how would you balance personal liberty with the need to protect the nation from terrorist threats?

Invasion of Iraq

• In March 2003, U.S. troops invaded

Iraq.

• Bush asserted that Saddam Hussein

was building weapons of mass

destruction.

• The Iraqi government quickly

collapsed.

• Saddam was later found from hiding

and placed on trial.

• He was executed by the new Iraqi

government.

Invasion of Iraq • Saddam’s brutal rule unified the three major

groups of Iraq (Sunnis, Shi’a, and Kurds).

• Who were forced together to form Iraq after WWI.

• With Saddam gone, Iraq fell into a bloody power struggle between the three groups.

• In December of 2011, most American troops left Iraq.

• Iraq’s fragile democracy was in danger.

• It was invaded by foreign Sunni fighters called ISIS.

• Today, the Iraqi government forces, after extreme bloodshed, have defeated most of ISIS.


• Do you think America should have invaded

Iraq when President George W. Bush

claimed the nation had weapons of mass

destruction?

Trouble At Home

• Slow response from the government to aid victims of Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf Coast brought criticism towards Bush’s administration.

• In fall of 2008, the U.S. fell into the greatest economic crisis since the Great Depression.

• Many homes were foreclosed when low-income borrowers could not pay their mortgages.

• Several large investment firms including Washington Mutual and Merril Lynch collapsed.

• The Federal Government gave a $700 billion dollars to banks to recover from this crisis.

• Bush would serve two terms in office but was blamed for war and a weak economy.

Obama becomes President

• In 2008, Barack Obama became the first African American president of the United States.

• Obama got elected with energized young people who came out in droves to vote for him.

• Obama immediately sought to address the financial crisis by continuing Federal Aid to the economy.

• Lending money to the troubled U.S. auto industry and public works projects to provide more jobs.

Obama Years:

• Passed Affordable Care Act (Obama Care) that extended insurance coverage to people who before could not afford medical insurance.

• Passed laws regulating the financial industry to prevent misinformation on investments.

• Promoted LGBT rights and legalizing same sex marriage.

• Religious liberty of Conservative Christians were challenged.

• Clashed with a Republican Congress during his second term who sought to block his legislative agenda.

Obama Years (Middle East):

• In August 2010, Obama began a pull

out of American troops from Iraq.

• More than 4,000 were killed and

31,000 wounded during the war.

• In May 2011, NAVY SEALS managed

to kill Bin Laden in Pakistan.

THE RISE OF TRUMP: • In the 2016 election, billionaire Donald J.

Trump won the presidential election.

• Trump appealed to those alienated from the 8 years of the Obama administration.

• Trump is strongly backed by Nativists and the Christian Religious Right.

• Trump has promised to make America great again and undo many of Obama’s policies.

• The American economy was showing record gains.

• COVID-19 crisis has placed civil liberties and the economy in uncertainty.

Daniel 11:8-9. Spiritual Egypt

(Exodus 5:2, Hebrews 11:24-

25). Licentiousness Secular

humanism.

Daniel 11:36. Papacy:

Merger of church and

state: (Daniel 7:25, 2

Thessalonians 2:3-4).


• Do you think the United States is better

today than it was in the past? Or do you

see it declining?

Patterns in American History

o The question between the strength of the Federal Government as oppose to State government.

o Question whether the Federal Government should be actively involved in the economy or should the government leave the economy alone.

o Question whether the government should be the ones responsible for the welfare of its citizens (Housing, Medical Care, Employment).


o Question of how involved America should be in the international community or focus on domestic issues.

o Question to balance personal liberty with national and domestic security.

o Question of the rights of minorities and immigrants.

o Questions on religious liberty and the separation of church and state.


• (Ecc 1:9) The thing that hath

been, it is that which shall be;

and that which is done is that

which shall be done: and

there is no new thing under

the sun.


• The history which the great I AM has marked out in His word, uniting link after link in the prophetic chain, from eternity in the past to eternity in the future, tells us where we are today in the procession of the ages, and what may be expected in the time to come. All that prophecy has foretold as coming to pass, until the present time, has been traced on the pages of history, and we may be assured that all which is yet to come will be fulfilled in its order. {Ed 178.3}

The Next Superpower:

• Dan_2:21 And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding:

• (Dan 2:44) And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.

The Next Superpower:

o (Rev 21:4) And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

o (Rev 21:5) And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.

nixon and ford’s presidency

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