America Screeches to a Halt

THE STAGNANT SEVENTIES

JFK’s younger brother, Bobby, ran for the Democratic Party’s Presidential nomination.

At a campaign rally in Indianapolis, Bobby had the unfortunate duty to inform the crowd of the assassination of MLK

Two months later, he too would be fatally shot after winning the CA primary.

ELECTION OF 1968

ABRAHAM, MARTIN, AND JOHN - DION

The “Checkers Speech”:  Senator Nixon was accused of misusing funds establ ished by his backers to reimburse him for his pol i t ical expenses. He del ivered a half-hour television address in which he defended himself and attacked his opponents in hopes of remaining on the t icket for VP. During the speech, he stated that regardless of what anyone said, he intended to keep one gi ft: a black-and-white dog who had been named Checkers by the Nixon chi ldren, thus giving the address its popular name.

The Kitchen Debate  was an intense discussion between VP Nixon and Nikita Khrushchev at the opening of the American National Exhibit ion in Moscow in 1959. For the exhibit ion, an entire house was bui l t that the American exhibitors cla imed anyone in America could afford. I t was fil led with labor-saving and recreational devices meant to represent the fruits of the capital ist American consumer market. The debate was recorded on color videotape, a new technology pioneered in the U.S., and Nixon made reference to this fact; i t was subsequently rebroadcast in both countries.

“TRICKY DICK” BEFORE THE WHITE HOUSE

Détente – a lessening of tensions between the US, China, and the USSR

Promoted by national security adviser, Henry Kissinger

Nixon was the first American to visit China in 25 years

“We want the Chinese with us when we sit down and negotiate with the Russians.”

DÉTENTE

Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT) – a series of arms-reduction negotiations between the US and USSR Nixon and Brezhnev signed the

SALT I Treaty – a five year agreement that limited the number of missiles each country could have.

Under President Nixon and Ford, U.S., China, and the Soviet Union had better relations

However, Congress refused to sign the SALT II treaty after the Soviets invaded Afghanistan

Tensions arose as many countries began stock pil ing nuclear weapons

DÉTENTE

Soviet-backed Syrians and Egyptians attacked Israel for land lost in the Six-Day War

Nixon approves of $2 billion in war materials to protect Israel

In response, Arab nations placed an embargo on oil to the United States, causing an energy crisis Alaska Pipeline Drive 55 Gas rotation

OIL EMBARGO

The Scandal was the result of a June 1972 break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C.

It was revealed that President Nixon had a tape-recording system in his offices and he had recorded many conversations. Recordings from these tapes implicated the president, revealing he had attempted to cover up the break-in.

After a protracted series of bitter court battles, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the president had to hand over the tapes to government investigators; he ult imately complied, though with a suspicious 18 minute blank spot.

The scandal eventually led to the resignation of Richard Nixon, who would later be pardoned by his replacement, Gerald Ford

WATERGATE

WATERGATE INFOGRAPHIC

Finishes Nixon’s TermNickname: Mr. Nice Guy,

the Accidental PresidentMajor Events:Ford grants Nixon an

unconditional pardonHelsinki Agreement –

declaration signed by the US and most European states in an attempt to improve relations between the Communist bloc and the West.

GERALD FORD

Stagflation: A combination of stagnation and inflation, is a term used to describe a situation where an inflation rate is high, the economic growth rate slows down, and unemployment remains steadily high .

STAGFLATION IN THE SEVENTIES

Ran on the pitch that he was a Washington outsider, and thus not tied down to “playing the game”; came into trouble when faced with the Washington insiders.

Camp David Accords – Carter invited the leaders of Egypt and Israel to a conference at Camp David, in which he persuaded them to sign a peace accord.

Panama Canal Treaty – vowed to give full control of the Panama Canal over by the year 2000.

PEANUTS, NOT POLITICS

Fifty-two Americans were held hostage for 444 days (November 4, 1979 to January 20, 1981), after a group of Is lamist students and mil itants support ing the Iranian Revolution took over the American Embassy in Tehran.

After fai led attempts to negotiate a release, the United States mi l i tary attempted a rescue operat ion off the USS Nimitz . The mission was a fai lure and resulted in the deaths of eight American servicemen, one Iranian civi l ian, and the destruct ion of two aircraft.

After the death of the former Shah, and an invasion by Iraq, Iran entered negotiations with the U.S., with Algeria acting as a mediator. The hostages were formal ly released into United States custody the day after the signing of the Algiers Accords, just minutes after the new American president Ronald Reagan was sworn into office.

IRAN HOSTAGE CRISIS

SUPPER POWERS FACE OF IN AFGHANISTAN

1950’s Soviet influenced increased

By 1970, Muslim revolt threatened Afghanistan’s Communist regime

Revolt led to a Soviet invasion in 1979

Expected to withdraw after boosting Communism

SUPPER POWERS FACE OF IN AFGHANISTAN

Rebel forces outmaneuvered Soviet forces

U.S. armed rebels due to oil interests

President Carter warned against the invasion of Persian Gulf-stopped grain shipments to U.S.S.R. and ordered U.S. boycott of 1980 Olympics in Moscow

RESULTS OF AFGHANISTAN

Late 1980s saw a new Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev

Acknowledged war’s devastating cost and withdrew all Soviet troops by 1989

Internal unrest and economic problems tore the Soviet Union apart

Also led to issues with the United States and terrorist groups, former rebels armed by the U.S.