Transcript A Changing Society

Unit 9
A CHANGING SOCIETY
Ford and Carter
Chapter 28 Section 3
POLITICS AND ECONOMICS
The Economic Crisis of the
1970s
 President Johnson increased federal deficit
spending
 Fund Vietnam War and Great Society programs
 Did this all without raising Taxes
 Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries
(OPEC)
 Decided to use oil as a political weapon
 1973 a war broke out between Israel and its Arab
neighbors and OPEC said if anyone helped Israel than an
embargo was going to be placed on that country
 Price of a barrel of crude oil was rising
 1973 –$ 3 for a barrel
 1980 - $30 for a barrel
The Economic Crisis of the
1970s
 A Stagnant Economy
 Manufacturing was on the decline in the 70s
 The US imported more than it exported
 Stagflation – combination of inflation and a
stagnant economy with high unemployment
 Increased spending might help end the recession
but it would cause inflation
 Raising taxes would slow inflation but the
economy would stay in a recession
The Economic Crisis of the
1970s
 A Stagnant Economy
 Nixon decided to concentrate on controlling
inflation
 Moved to cut taxes and raise taxes
 Most people opposed a tax increase
 Imposed a 90 day freeze on wages and prices
Ford and Carter Battle the
Economic Crisis
 Ford Tries to “Whip” Inflation
 1975 – America is in the worst recession since the
Great Depression
 WIN – whip inflation now
 Reduce their use of oil and gas
 Cut government spending
 Balance the budget and keep taxes low
 None of this helped the economy
Ford and Carter Battle the
Economic Crisis
 Ford’s Foreign Policy
 Continued to pursue détente
 Helsinki Accords
 Recognized the borders of Eastern Europe
established at the end of world war II
 Soviets agreed to uphold certain human rights
 Move across national border – did not last
Ford and Carter Battle the
Economic Crisis
 The Election of 1976
 Gerald Ford vs. Jimmy Carter
 Carter
 Had no political experience in Washington
 Promised to restore morality and new programs: tax
reforms, welfare reform, and national health care
 Carter’s image of as a moral upstanding individual
helped him win the presidency
Ford and Carter Battle the
Economic Crisis
 Carter’s Economic Policies
 Tried to ease inflation by reducing the money
supply and raising interest rates (did not work)
 Department of Energy
 Asked Americans to reduce their energy
consumption
 His difficulties in solving our economic problems
was because of his inexperience and inability to
work with Congress
 Public Opinion of Carter dropped lower than
Nixon’s did during the Watergate scandal
Carter’s Foreign Policy
 Morality in Foreign Policy
 Latin America
 Agreed to give Panama control of the Panama
Canal
 Soviet Union
 Singled out the Soviet practice of imprisoning
people who protested against the government
Triumph and Failure in the
Middle East
 Camp David Accords
 Historic peace treaty with Israel and Egypt
 Crisis in Iran - 1979
 The US supported Iran’s Monarch but he was
unpopular with the people of Iran
 Ayatollah Khomeini led the new regime in Iran
 His supporters attacked the US Embassy and took
52 Americans as hostages threatened to kill them
Triumph and Failure in the
Middle East
 Carter tried to negotiate for the release
 Carter tried to swoop in and rescue the
people but. . .
 Several helicopters malfunctioned and crashed
 January 20, 1981
 Iran released the hostages
 444 days in captivity