Please turn to your neighbors and answer the following questions:

• What do you feel the requirements should be for a President?– Think about age, experience, background….

• Should a President have served in the military? Explain

• Compare and contrast the domestic agendas of Truman and Eisenhower…be specific

Dwight D. Eisenhower

“IKE”

Profile

• Born 10/14/80 in Texas• Family was poor, ended up joining the military and went

to West Point• Married in 1916 to Mamie an extremely wealthy woman

from Iowa. She was a very popular first lady• Wasn’t Baptized until in office

– Instrumental in adding “under God” and “In God We Trust”

• Served in a variety of military capacities in WWI and WWII, including Supreme Commander and Chief of Staff

• Was in the military for 35 years and was quoted during the D-Day invasion as saying:

• “You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you. The hopes and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you…I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty and skill in battle. We will accept nothing less than full victory”

• He became a 5-star general and helped to liberate Europe

• Served until 1948

The Road to the Presidency

• Appointed by Truman as Supreme Commander of NATO in 1949 until 1952

• Courted by both parties, accepted the Republican nomination with Nixon…– the “Draft Eisenhower” campaign of the Republicans

won out• “I LIKE IKE”—defeated Adlai Stevenson in 1952

by a wide margin• Promised to end Korea, maintain a corruption

free Presidency and stay strong against Communism

His Presidency• Supported the Brown v. Board of Education-1954

– Instituted Civil Rights Acts of 1957 and 1960– Helped to insure Civil Rights improvement

• The Eisenhower Interstate System-1956– Dealt with evacuation if needed– Every 5 miles, one needs to be strait – Would benefit the military and encourage economic growth

• Continued major New Deal endeavors– Created the Department of Health, Education and Welfare– Social Security was continued and furthered

• McCarthyism ended during his time…although did not take a tough stance (covered in Cold War section)

• The “Little Rock Nine” incident in 1957- refusal to integrate • Served a second term even though he had suffered a heart attack

His Legacy

• The Eisenhower Doctrine– Basically, the United States has the right to

support any nation that is threatened by communist aggression

– The “Domino Theory”-belief that communism could topple other areas

– May 1, 1960—U-2 spy plane incident

• Seen as the “do-nothing” President• Ranks in the top 10 continually

Legacy Continued

• Probably hurt Nixon’s own run for the President..– “If you give me a week, I might think of one”

• Response when asked what Nixon had done during his VP

• The country saw unprecedented wealth and prosperity– Per capita increased…

• Several Supreme Court appointees including Earl Warren and John Marshall

• Continued all major New Deal/Fair Deal programs…such as:– Social Security– Department of Health and Welfare was created

• An absolute military hero– West Point statue of Eisenhower..