Transcript Ford and Carter PPT

The “Lean Years”
The Presidencies of
Ford & Carter
Essential Question:
Why did the economic & foreign policies of
Ford & Carter fail to meet the needs of
America in the late 1970s?

Confidence

The “Overextended Society” of the 1970s was defined by:




Low economic growth, high prices, & rising unemployment
Distrust of the government due to the Watergate scandal
“Passionless presidents” who failed to project clear leadership
An end of Nixon-era détente & resumption of Cold War rivalries
In the 1920s, the economy was
so good that the decade was
referred to as the “Roaring 20s”
In the 1950s, the economy was so
good that the decade was referred
to as the “Affluent Society”
The economy & mood in America were
so bad in the 1970s that the decade was
called the “Overextended Society”
The U.S. Economy
in the 1970s
Energy
the
Economy
To punishand
Israel’s
allies
when Egypt
& Syria
attacked
The fuel
shortage
led toagainst
a 200%Israel
increase
pricerecession
of gas &since
homeDepression
heating
Ledintothe
worst

In the 1970s, 2 great oil shocks hurt the U.S. economy:


In 1973, the Arab members of OPEC initiated a 5% cut on production
& an embargo against the U.S.
The Iranian Revolution in 1979 cut off oil & led to another gasshortage & soaring interest rates
Price Increases
of
Crude
Oil
&
In 2008; Remember when
Gasoline
gas prices hit $4.00?
The
Iranian
OPECRevolution
oil embargo
The Search for an Energy
Policy
Mandated gas mileage
requirements, speed
limits, & price controls
on
domestic
oil
Nuclear
plants
&
These oil shocks forced the U.S. to realize its dependency on other
Alaskan
nations foroil
oil &pipeline
led to action:




Nixon formed the EPA to oversee industry’s environmental impact
The new Dept of Energy (1977) emphasized conservation & domestic
energy production
Still…U.S. oil imports rose 50% from 1973 to 1979
A Troubled
American
Workers’
wages didEconomy
not
keep up with rising prices
The 1970s economy grew stagnant:
Unemployment
grew
to
9%
Milk
&
hamburger
prices
rose
200%
High
A stagnant STAGFLATION
Heavy industry jobs fellinflation
due400%
to
economy
Car
prices
rose 72% Bread prices rose
outsourcing & foreign competition
1970s experienced huge inflation:
Due to Vietnam deficit spending,
global food shortage, oil shocks
Massive
price
ledstop
to a
Neither Ford
norincreases
Carter could
5.5% decrease
in “real
income”
for
“stagflation;”
Carter’s
policies
actually
drove
interest
rates up as high as 20%
average
Americans

The Ford Administration

Gerald Ford failed to restore public confidence after Watergate:



Ford pardoned Nixon for any crimes he may have committed
He revealed a number of past CIA assassination attempts &
appointed George Bush to reorganize the CIA
Vetoed 39 Great Society-style bills initiated by Congress
The 1976 Campaign


In 1976, dark-horse Jimmy Carter won the Democratic
nomination & campaigned as an outsider, an honest man, with
fresh leadership
Carter won a narrow victory due to social class & racial factors:


Affluent, well-educated, suburban voters chose Ford
Socially & economically disadvantaged voted for Carter
during the TV debates in 1976:
“There is no Soviet domination of
Eastern Europe”
In 1979, Carter gave the “national malaise”
speech in which he discussed the importance
of conserving energy but seemed to blame
Carter entered
with no clear
political in
philosophy
or vision:
Americans
foroffice
creating
a “crisis
confidence”




Deregulated the airline industry which lowered prices
But…his attempts to reform welfare & Social Security failed
He had no remedy for soaring inflation, interest rates, & bank
failures that hurt the economy
Disenchantment with
Carter
Carter’s Human
Rights Foreign Policy
A Declining Superpower

America’s international dominance declined sharply in 1970s due
to:



Americans’ increasing desires to avoid “another Vietnam”
The War Powers Act forced the president to consult with Congress
before sending troops
The escalating military costs & deficit spending made sustaining the
Cold War impossible
Foreign Policy & Human
Rights

Carter focused his foreign policy on a commitment to human
rights:



Spoke out against repressive regimes in Latin America & apartheid
in South Africa
Reformed the CIA to operate “within the law” (but only briefly)
Negotiated the return of the Panama Canal to Panamanians
Foreign Policy & Human
Rights
In Nov 1977, Egyptian leader Sadat made an appeal with Israel to
settle the October War of 1973
 Carter invited Egyptian leader Sadat & Israeli leader Begin to the
U.S. to negotiate terms
 The Camp David accords in 1979 led to a peace treaty between
Egypt & Israel, but alienated other Arab nations

Celebrating the Camp David Accords:
Menachem Begin, Jimmy Carter, & Anwar Sadat
The Cold War Resumes

During the Carter years, the Cold War rivalry between the U.S.
& USSR grew due to:



A new arms race as the U.S. adopted new MX missiles & Trident
submarines
SALT II failed to make lasting arms reduction
Increased U.S.-Sino relations put the USSR on the defensive
The Cold War Resumes


Détente ended when the USSR invaded Afghanistan in 1979
The U.S. interpreted the attack as a move to take the Middle East
& responded with:



Economic embargo of the USSR
Boycott of the Moscow Olympics
Aid to the Afghani resistance
Carter hoped to limit nuclear arms
& advance human rights, but found
himself in a heightened Cold War
Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan, 1979
The Iranian Hostage Crisis

The Camp David victory was offset by the 1979 Iranian hostage
crisis:


Exiled Islamic fundamentalist Ayatollah Khomeini led a coup against
U.S.-backed the shah
When Carter allowed the shah to enter the U.S. for medical aid, irate
mobs in Tehran took 52 hostages from the U.S. embassy
Middle East

Carter’s attempts at diplomatic, military, & economic threats
failed to bring a return of the hostages


In 1980, Carter approved a rescue mission that was aborted after 2
helicopters crashed
The perceived blunders & inability of Carter to end the hostage crisis
hurt Carter in his re-election bid in 1980
Conclusions:
A Failed Presidency