Transcript THE 1990`s and the 21st Century

In 1989, several Eastern
European nations ousted their
communist regimes.
• Czechoslovakia
• Germany
• Bulgaria
• Poland
• Hungary
• Romania
The fall of the Berlin Wall
in Germany symbolized the end of
communism in Europe.
The Soviet Union broke apart in 1991.
Newly elected President
George H.W. Bush signed
agreements with
Gorbachev and his
successor, President Boris
Yeltsin.
They pledged friendship,
cooperation, and reduction
in the buildup of nuclear
weapons.
The Cold War, which had lasted more than
45 years, was finally over.
Bush sent 12,000 U.S. troops to
invade Panama. Dictator
Manuel Noriega was deposed
and convicted of drug trafficking.
In China, a pro-democracy
protest in Tiananmen Square
was crushed by Chinese tanks.
In South Africa, democracy replaced
segregation
•
Nelson Mandela, imprisoned since
1962 for leading the antiapartheid
movement, was released from
prison in 1990.
Nelson Mandela was elected President
of South Africa in 1994
The Bush administration adopted the role of international
peacekeeper, but chose its battles carefully.
But in 1992, he sent
Marines to Somalia to establish a
cease-fire between rival warlords
and to deliver food to starving
people.
In 1990, Iraq’s ruthless dictator, Saddam Hussein, invaded
neighboring Kuwait, determined to take over its significant oil
deposits.
Diplomacy and sanctions failed to make Hussein withdraw.
The Persian Gulf War began.
Operation Desert Storm, the American-led attack on Iraq,
began on January 16, 1991.
Coalition ground troops stormed into Kuwait on February 23.
Within five days, Iraq agreed to a UN cease-fire and withdrew
from Kuwait.
President George H.W. Bush
could not sustain his popularity
after the Gulf War.
•The
American economy had gone
into recession.
•The
federal deficit rose.
•Bush
broke his promise to not
increase taxes.
•Saddam
Hussein was still in power
and threatening the Middle East.
During the 1992
election, voters
responded by choosing
a centrist candidate,
Democrat William
Jefferson Clinton.
When Clinton took office, the Democrats also controlled
both houses of Congress
One of his first acts was to sign the Family Medical Leave Act,
guaranteeing employees unpaid leave in the event of a health crisis.
He also increased the minimum wage, made college loans easier to
obtain, and expanded tax credits for higher education.
Clinton addressed the issue of gun violence by signing the
Brady Bill in 1993.
But violence still shook the
nation, with the Oklahoma
City bombing in 1995 and
the Columbine High School
shootings in 1999.
Clinton also attempted to reform healthcare.
A task force, led by First Lady Hillary Clinton, was formed to
develop a program that would guarantee
health care for all Americans.
The healthcare reform bill was widely criticized, and it was
dropped after a year of debate
This setback, two years into Clinton’s term, signaled a turning point
in his popularity, and Republicans responded
Led by Congressman Newt Gingrich, the Republicans set forth a
plan called the Contract With America.
For the first time in 40
years, the Republicans
won control of the House
and the Senate.
But Clinton’s presidency was also marred by scandal.
In 1994, Clinton was investigated by a special federal
prosecutor, Kenneth Starr, regarding an Arkansas real
estate investment.
In 1998, Clinton was investigated again regarding his
relationship with a White House intern. Under oath, he denied
that the two had an affair. Later, he admitted he had lied. The
House impeached him in 1998.
After a Senate trial in early 1999, Clinton was acquitted on both
counts.
A world economic leader, the U.S. supported free trade
blocs and promoted globalization.
•Under Clinton’s watch, the United States agreed to the North
American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the North
American response to Europe’s European Union (EU), in 1994.
•But many groups opposed NAFTA, saying it would take jobs
away from the United States and hurt the environment
Conflict in the Middle East increased in the 1990s.
Fighting between the Israelis and Palestinians became more violent,
threatening to destabilize the entire region
In 2000, Clinton
brought Palestinian
leader Yasir Arafat and
Israeli leader Ehud
Barak to Camp David
to broker a peace
agreement between
them. It was not
successful.
The United States became a target of
Middle Eastern extremists.
A terrorist group called al Qaeda exploded a bomb in the World
Trade Center in New York City in 1993.
The group also set off bombs, killing more than 225 people at
American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania
In 2000, they attacked the USS Cole, a warship anchored off
Yemen, killing 17 American sailors
American leaders learned that
fighting terrorism would be
extremely difficult
As Clinton’s second term neared its end in 2000, his Vice
President, Democrat Al Gore, ran for President against
Republican George W. Bush.
Although Gore won more popular votes than Bush, the electoral vote
margin was too close to call.
The election depended on Florida’s 25 electoral votes.
Because the vote in Florida was so
close, state law mandated an
automatic recount
The Supreme Court case of
Bush v. Gore
ended the recount. Bush was
declared President
Bush pursued an aggressive
conservative agenda when he took
office.
•He passed a series of tax cuts.
•Bush promoted the 2002 No Child
Left Behind Act to raise national
academic standards.
•In 2003, despite criticism, Bush
worked with Congress to extend
Medicare to cover prescription drugs
for seniors
September 11, 2001
Then something happened that
challenged the new President and led
to a shift in U.S. foreign policy.
On September 11, 2001, terrorists
hijacked and crashed four airplanes.
Two planes hit the World Trade
Center in New York City. More than
3,000 people died as the twin towers
collapsed.
In response, the United States began a “war on terror.”
Bush first focused on the terrorists who perpetrated 9/11
Osama bin Laden, leader of the al Qaeda network, was thought
to be hiding in Afghanistan, where the Taliban allowed him to
operate.
The United States and its
allies sent forces to
Afghanistan and
overthrew the Taliban
Bin Laden escaped capture
until 2011 when he was
killed in Pakistan
President Bush worked to prevent future terrorist
attacks.
Congress passed the Patriot Act. Critics claimed it violated civil
liberties.
The new Department of Homeland Security coordinated security
matters among federal, state, and local agencies
Bush then turned his attention to Iraq, where many feared Saddam
Hussein was stockpiling Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDs).
In 2003, American and British forces
invaded Iraq.
Saddam and many of his supporters
were captured.
Many Americans were troubled by the
war, terrorism, and the budget as
they cast their votes in the 2004
election
The Iraq war continued in Bush’s second term.
Although Saddam was overthrown, fighting broke out among
three rival groups in Iraq. The country was consumed by chaos.
In 2008, a Senate Intelligence
Committee report determined that
there was no credible evidence to
support claims that Iraq was
developing WMDs or had ties to
terrorist groups.
Critics of Bush said he had misled
Congress and the American
people.
Meanwhile, President Bush faced domestic challenges.
In 2005, Hurricane Katrina devastated the U.S. Gulf Coast
Federal response to the disaster was slow. Discontent with the
administration grew
In 2008, Americans faced an economic crisis centered on
the financial industry.
The American
economy
entered a
recession in
2007.
Unemployed
Americans who
couldn’t pay
their mortgages
faced
foreclosure
Housing prices
fell, and
mortgage-related
investments lost
value. Several
investment firms
collapsed or were
sold.
In September
2008, the
stock market
plunged
The Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) was implemented to
bail out the banks and prevent financial meltdown.
The 2008 presidential election
broke new ground in American
politics
Democratic senator
Barack Obama of
Illinois was a graduate
of Harvard Law School.
He had been a
community organizer
in Chicago and a state
senator in Illinois.
Republican senator
John McCain of
Arizona served as a
pilot in Vietnam, and
had been a prisoner
of war. He was first
elected to Congress
in 1982.
Barack Obama won the election, becoming the first African
American President of the United States.
Upon entering office, President Obama addressed domestic
issues.
• The American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act was a stimulus
package designed to pump money
into the economy.
• In 2009, legislation was passed
overhauling the nation’s healthcare
system. It included coverage for
the 46 million uninsured Americans,
and prevented denial of coverage
for pre-existing conditions.
Some opposed the healthcare plan,
saying it cost too much and gave the
federal government too much power.
Obama also addressed the war in Iraq.
• In August 2010 the President announced that the American
mission in Iraq had ended.
• More than 4,000 troops had been killed in the war and over
31,000 wounded.
• 50,000 American troops stayed behind in support roles.
• Thanks to a troop surge, Iraq was significantly more stable,
although acts of terrorism continued.
At the same time, Obama increased the American military
presence in Afghanistan.
As the 2010 elections approached, the nation seemed
increasingly divided.
Many Americans supported Obama, while others were angered
by his actions.
Republicans won control of the House and Senate in the 2010
congressional elections. In the 2012 Presidential election Obama
won re-election running against Republican Mitt Romney
The Tea Party Movement wanted to
reduce the size and scope of the
federal government. They ran as
Republicans but also criticized
Republicans as big spenders
Despite opposition from Republicans and
the right wing Tea Party, President
Obama won re-election in 20012