America in the 21 st Century Is the U.S. Master of its own Fate?
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Transcript of America in the 21 st Century Is the U.S. Master of its own Fate?
America in the 21st Century
Is the U.S. Master of its own Fate?
2000
• Y2K Crisis doesn’t materialize
• Dot Com boom ends
• Global economy a reality
• Federal government in surplus
• Hope for Israeli/Palestinian reconciliation
2000 Election
• Bush/Cheney vs Gore/Lieberman– Gore won popular vote by half million votes– Bush won electoral vote after dispute and
litigation to the Supreme Court over 537 votes in Florida
– Supreme Court Case: Bush v. Gore, decided on a 5-4 vote
Bush II – First Term Agenda
• Reordering Clinton foreign policy– By allowing the Israeli Palestinian talks to lapse– Offensives on the “axis of evil” – Iran, Iraq, N. Korea– Rejects Kyoto Treaty on global warming
• No Child Left Behind Education Reform– Create tests to measure school effectiveness – Funding not provided to implement completely
• Tax Cuts over 10 years– Deficits to be plugged with spending cuts
September 11
• Terrorist attacks on World Trade Center, Pentagon, and possibly White House (4th plane crashes in Pennsylvania) kill 3000 people.
• October 2001: War in Afghanistan to remove the Taliban regime which harbored Al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden
• December 2001: New government installed in Afghanistan; bin Laden escapes
• Prisoners brought to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba for interrogation and declared “enemy combatants” (Jan 2002).
War on Terror
• Greatly increased security concerns in US, particularly in travel:– Airport Security federalized
• Restricted entry to U.S. for travelers• Patriot Act (October 2001) • Department of Homeland Security proposed,
created with the Homeland Security Act of 2002 and opened in January 2003.
Homeland Security Agencies
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement • Transportation Security Administration • U.S. Customs and Border Protection • U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services • United States Secret Service • Federal Law Enforcement Training Center • United States Coast Guard• Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
Homeland Security Advisory System
Iraq War
• Summer 2002: Bush Administration claims that Saddam Hussein had “weapons of mass destruction” and was supporting terrorists
• October 2002: Congress provides president with authorization for military action
• US proposes U.N. demand Iraq dismantle WMDs; UN Security Council provides authorization for inspections in November 2002
Iraq War
• February 2003: Colin Power makes case for military action at UN
• UN inspectors request more time, saying they have not found WMDs
• March 19, 2003: US and “coalition of the willing” invade Iraq without UN authorization
• April 8, 2003: Coalition takes Baghdad and Hussein disappears; April 14: Bush declares was is over
May 2, 2003: Bush declares “Mission Accomplished”
Iraq War
• Summer 2003: Continued effort to find WMDs; none found
• Insurgency against coalition occupation begins
• Fall 2003: US soldiers begin Abu Ghraib prison interrogations to find source of insurgency and WMDs
• December 2003: Hussein captured
Iraq War
• April 2004: Prisoner abuse photographs from Abu Ghraib Prison broadcast on 60 Minutes
• April 2004: Fallujah becomes battle ground between US forces and insurgency after contractors killed
Fallujah violence
2004 Election Season
• John Kerry v. George Bush• Bush cautions that elections in Iraq will
calm violence– June 2004: sovereignty transferred– Jan 2005: constitutional election– December 2005: legislative election
• Bush wins in November 2004: claims mandate
Bush, Second Term Agenda
• Complete mission in Iraq; continued focus on the “axis of evil”
• Replace social security system with individual retirement accounts
• But…..events again intervene• Hurricane season: Katrina and the
destruction of New Orleans (August-September 2005)
Hurricane Katrina
New Orleans and
Matairie, Louisiana
after Hurricane
Katrina
Gulfport, Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina
War in Iraq continues…
US Deaths in Iraq
US Deaths in Iraq: Trend
2006 Off Year Elections as Mandate on Bush Administration
• Democrats propose moderate candidates in states like Virginia
• Antiwar movement tackles Democratic supporters of Iraq War: Lieberman targeted in Connecticut
• Grass roots organizing by both parties
Electoral Turnout
The Strength of Party Turnout
Wisconsin Turnout is Higher than National Average
• Presidential Elections, 1980 – 2004
Voter Turnout, U.S. and Wisconsin, 1980-2006
1978 1988 1998 2008YEAR
30
40
50
60
70
80
TURNOUT
WisconsinUS
STATE
What next?
• How will the Iraq War end?
• Who will be the major party candidates for the 2008 presidential election?
• How will Democrats run Congress?
• How will a Republican President and Democratic Congress function?
• And locally….?
Turnout, Off Year and
Presidential, US and WI