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 __**THE ELECTION OF 1988**__


 * The Democrats found more than half a dozen candidates who were eager to challenge bush:Massachusetts governor Micheal Dukakis and Reverend Jesse Jackson led the qroup.


 * Bush and Dukakis competed for the best coverage on the short "sound-bites" of evening news programs.


 * Voters responded to the Republican pledge to continue the peace and prosperity of the Reagan Era


 * The democrats continued to hold a majority in both houses of congress.

**__THE NEW PRESIDENT__**
 * Bush was a pilot in World War 2, he won a medal for bravery.after the war he left his home state of Connecticut to start a successful oil business in Texas


 * Served as a member of Congress, ambassador, and as the director of the central Intelligence Agency.


 * He Hinted that he would not simply follow the old ideas and attitudes of the Reagan Era. "A new breeze is blowing"


 * Bush promised a "better nation"

__**DRUGS, EDUCATION,AND THE ENVIROMENT**__
 * George Bush appointed William Bennett to be a special "drug czar to oversee the nation's war on drugs.
 * warned that the large federal deficit would rule out expensive new anti drug programs.
 * Bennett signed in 1990 claiming that drug use had begun drop, at least among some populations : the flow of drugs into the country continued.
 * Bob Martinez the former governor of Florida took over ; replaced him
 * promised to a chart a new course for the environment and education
 * appointed a strong defender of the environment, William Reilly to head the (EPA)
 * nuclear waste threatened the environment.

__**THE SAVINGS AND LOAN CRISIS**__
 * had long financed mortgages or loans for Americans buying homes.Reagan administration had led a campaign to deregulate S&L's that would allow more freedom from government controls. it offered higher interest rates and choose where invest their money.able to make huge profits.many S&L's went bankrupt b/c of the loans they made were not paid back. it ran over $600 billion over 10 years. Reagan was blamed for the collapse, it weakened the nations banking system in general.

__**REDUCING THE DEFICIT**__
 * the deficit grew in the federal budget. congress and the president needed to cut spending or raise more money.The president struggled over a budget that lowered the deficit. if failed to pass the budget by 0ct.1 the automatic budget cits called for the Gramm - Rudman- Hollings act would go into effect.The president reached an agreement that would cut deficit by $500 billion over five years. it increased taxes on cigarettes, alcohol, and gasoline. also in spending in many areas.

__**FLAGS AND THE SUPREME COURT**__
 * In 1989 the court struck down a Texas law that had made burning the American flag a crime.justices ruled that burning the flag in protest was a freedom of speech. which is protected by the first amendment to the constitution. it was one of many controversial issues facing the supreme court.Justice William Brennan announced his retirement. 84-year old Brennan had been the leader of the court's liberal wing.

__**THE END OF THE COLD WAR?**__  __//**NEW DIRECTIONS IN LATIN AMERICA **//__ //* In February 1990 Nicaragua held an election most observers thought that the Daniel Ortega and his Sandinista party would win. Violeta Chamorro won handily. Ortega agreed to abide by the results. Bush saw the election as a victory for democracy. future relations between Nicaragua and the United States remained uncertain.INVASION OF PANAMA- Panamanian dictator was Manuel Noriega was considered a friend to the U.S. he helped funnel American support to the contras in Nicaragua. eh became involved in the drug smuggling. Panama was a banking center and shipping point for major drug dealers. the federal court indicted him on drug smuggling charges, he became defiant. he declared a state of emergency and openly corrupted Panama's elections. Dec. 20 1989 Bush sent military forces into Panama. Manuel surrendered and was taken to the U.S. to stand trial. The U.S. installed a new gov. in Panama and offered to rebuild. the nation's shattered economy.
 * "Freedom fighters" of Hungary in 1956 were harshly put down.In 1989-1990 the Eastern bloc changed radically. One after another communist governments collapsed. 1981 the polish gov. had outlawed Solidarity, an independent labor union. founder was Lech Walsea. 1989 th communist gove. allowed Solidarity candidates to run for the Polish parliament. all of them had won. replaced a communist as gov. it was the start of a flood of changes in Eastern Europe capped by the election of Walsea as the president of Poland in 1990. the **Berlin Wall ** was built by communist in East Germany in 1961 to prevent its citizens from fleeing to the West.the wall's cinder blocks and barbed wire symbolized cold hostility. Nov. 1989 East German gov. both NATO and the soviet union agreed on a timetable. Oct. 4 Germany dived for 45 years by the cold war --became one nation again.**MOVING TOWARD DEMOCRACY- ** The Rumania dictator Nicolae Ceausescu resisted the tide of change and had protesters shot.his wife and him were captured, tried, and executed on Dec.1989.Soviet President Gorbachev accepted the movement toward democratic reform in Eastern Europe the soviet gov. announced that it would allow private ownership of land and business. the end of communism in the soviet union. **__THE AMERICAN RESPONSE__** - The Americans responded enthusiastically to the democratic reforms in Eastern Europe. Promised the rise of democracy in the Soviet bloc and promised some economic support. Cold War was coming to an end many members of the congress talked about "peace dividend". His 1990 budget called for only a small reduction in defense spending.

__**UNREST IN CHINA**__
 * The wave reform that swept communist Europe sent shock waves through China. In the spring of 1989 Chinese students began to campaign for democratic reforms.the Americans watched the demostrations, hoping that one of the world's most rigid communist regimes would begin its own reforms. Army tanks rumbled into Tiananmen Square. Thousands of protesters were arrested or killed. Many fled the country and one prominent reformer took refuge in the United States embassy.Bush disaproved of the return to repression. he refuse to take strong action against the Chinese government. He argued that the United States could better the influence CHinese Behavior by keeping diplomatic channels open.

__**A POLICY TOWARD SOUTH AFRICA**__
 * South African government had continued to pursue the policy of apartheid or separation of the races. Reagan had opposed apartheid he argued that economic actions taken against South Africa would hurt the black majority by destroying jobs. Reagan administrated the policy known as :constructive engagement" they called for economic sanctions. which limits on trade and investment. Americans universities and some state governments sold their stock in companies that operated in south Africa which became known as the divestiture.

__**WAR CLOUDS IN THE MIDDLE EAST**__
 * Saddam Hussein rebuilt his troop so tha they can invade Kuwait because it is one of the richest oil producing nations in the middle east. he threaten them by trying to take over 80% of the oil in the region.the worlds response was that the U.S. and the Soviet Union approved total trade boycott of Iraq.

__**FUGITIVES IN A DESERT DRAMA**__
 * America and Iraq and Kuwait went to war and Saddam was trying to take over their country . it was hectic and unreasonable.

__**WAT IN THE PERSIAN GULF**__
 * Americans and hundreds of others waited to see if they were to be able to leave Kuwait and Iraq. The United nations members, including Saudi Arabia and Britain launched an air attack on Iraq on January 16 which started a war in the Persian Gulf.//