Eisenhower in the White House How do new ideas change the way people live?

Eisenhower 1952 – Eisenhower elected president – serves 2 terms Middle-of-the-road domestic policy; policies were safe and not extreme Favored free enterprise and letting businesses and people make economic decision with little government interference Cut government spending; $300 million surplus at the end of his second term

Federal Highway Act of 1956 – built over 40,000 miles of highways helping economy to grow – especially the automobile and oil industries

Rivalry with the Soviet Union Arms Race – competition for military supremacy Both sides built more and more nuclear weapons which used energy stored in its atoms Each side had the power to destroy each other many times over Mid-1950s: superpowers want to ease tensions July, 1955: Summit held in Switzerland

Eisenhower, NATO members and Soviet Union attend; tensions remained

Problems in 1956 Egypt – took over Suez Canal which was controlled by Europe Britain, France, and Israel send soldiers Soviet Union threatens to send soldiers but doesn’t All armies pulled out of Egypt

Hungary New government told Soviet Army to leave Soviet leader Khrushchev refused; had soldiers stop the revolt Eisenhower criticized this, but did not take further action

Space Race Competition to explore space Soviet launch first satellite, Sputnik, in 1957 US set up space program headed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Summary and Activity How did the interstate highway system help the economy of the United States? Explain the two areas in which the United States and the Soviet Union competed. Activity: illustrate one of the areas of competition or how the highway system helped the economy