1. 1960s Politics & Cold War

2. 1960 Election  The 1960 Presidential election marked the first time the major candidates had debated each other on national TV.  Winner?  TV= Kennedy  Radio = Nixon  Kennedy looked Younger, Relaxed  John Kennedy (JFK) narrowly defeated Richard Nixon and became the youngest President.  JFK challenged Americans to “ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.”  JFK’s speech ignited the spirit of American idealism.

3. New Frontier  JFK’s domestic policy was called the ‘New Frontier’  JFK wanted to use the power of the federal government to solve the nation’s problems.  Increased  Education  Especially science & math  Equal Pay for women  Dept. of Urban Affairs  Stimulating the Economy: country was in a recession, so they used deficit spending on defense systems to boost the economy  Peace Corps: program of volunteer assistance to developing nations; became a huge success  Alliance for Progress: offered economic and technical assistance to Latin American Countries; over 8 years, the U.S. invested $12 billion  Race to the Moon: Kennedy set goal of putting first man on the moon after the Soviets had the first man in space

4. November 22, 1963  President Kennedy was assassinated while riding in the back of an open-air limousine in Dallas  His assassination and the assassination of his “killer” sparked conspiracy theories  Death shocked Americans when Americans were starting to trust government again  LBJ swears in aboard Air Force One shortly after JFK is killed

5. 1964 Economic Opportunity Act  Congress approved nearly $1 billion in funding for youth programs, antipoverty measures, small business loans, and job training  Job Corps Youth Training Program  VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America)  Project Head Start, an education program for underprivileged preschoolers  Community Action Program, which encouraged poor people to participate in public-works programs

6. 1964 Election  Lyndon Johnson (D)  Said that sending U.S. troops to Vietnam would ‘offer no real solution to the real problem of Vietnam’  Barry Goldwater (R)  Believed the federal government had no business trying to right social and economic wrongs such as poverty, discrimination, and lack of opportunity  Attacked long-established federal programs like Social Security and Tennessee Valley Authority  Advocated for intervention in Vietnam; Frightened many Americans by threatening to use nuclear weapons on Cuba and North Vietnam  Most people were in tune with Johnson – believed that the government could and should help solve the nation’s problems  LBJ won in a landslide - 61% (486-52 electoral votes)  Democrats increased their majority in Congress – no longer dependent on the Dixicrats votes to get laws passed

7. Great Society  LBJ’s domesticate agenda was called the ‘Great Society’.  LBJ’s goal of the Great Society was to open up opportunities and improve the quality of life for all Americans; expand upon Kennedy’s New Frontier  LBJ declared war on poverty, wanted to expand education, health care for the elderly, and improve Civil Rights.  Despite LBJ’s efforts the Great Society failed because of the cost of the Vietnam War.

8. Health & WelfareHousingEducationImmigrationConsumer & Environmental Protection Medicare-Health insurance for the elderly Medicaid-health care insurance for low income families Department of Housing and Urban Development Gave money to build 240k units of low- rent public housing and help low-income families pay for better housing Head Start – Preschool for disadvantaged & low income families Elementary and Secondary Education Act -- $1 billion for schools to purchase textbooks and library materials Immigration Act of 1965 – opened the door for many non-European immigrants to settle in the U.S. by ending quotas based on nationality Highway Safety Act – required states to set up highway safety programs Water Quality Act – required states to clean up rivers and ordered government to search out the worst chemical polluters Fair Packaging & Labeling – set standards for labeling consumer products

12. Warren Court  Reapportionment  Congressional districts should be equal in population  Shifted political power from rural areas to urban areas  Baker v. Carr: “one person, one vote”  told states to redivide their districts for more equal population = equal representation in federal elections  Reynolds v. Sims: extended on Baker v. Carr to reapportion districts for state elections  Hernandez v. Texas (1954)  Mexican-American defendant had right to be tried by a jury that did not exclude other members of his ethnicity  Mapp v Ohio (1961)  Evidence seized illegally could not be used in state courts (exclusionary rule)  Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)  Defendants had the right to an attorney even if they had no money to pay for one.  Escobedo v. Illinois (1964)  An accused person has a right to have a lawyer present during police questioning  Miranda v. Arizona (1966)  Police must inform suspects of their rights during the arrest process  MIRANDA RIGHTS

13. Democratic Party  President Johnson (D) announced his intent NOT to run for re- election in 1968  Robert Kennedy (D)  About to win the Democratic nomination for president  Assassinated on June 5, 1968  R. Kennedy’s assassination left democrat party leaderless.  Democrat Convention (Chicago)  Eugene McCarty vs. Hubert Humphrey  Party met to determine which candidate would represent them in the election  secretly, Humphrey’s nomination had already been decided  10,000 protesters arrived to pressure the Democrats into adopting an antiwar platform and to protest Humphrey’s nomination  Police moved into the croud of protesters and sprayed them with Mace and beat them with nightsticks  protesters retaliated by pelting the police with rocks and bottles  EVERYTHING televised  democrat party looked weak and chaotic

14. 1968 Election  Hubert Humphrey (D)  Richard Nixon (R) wins election, benefits from chaos of Dem party  George Wallace  Former governor of Alabama  Ran as a third-party candidate (American Independent Party)  Captured 5 Southern states and a high number of Northern white working-class voters disgusted with inner-city riots

15. Nixon’s Presidential Platform  Richard Nixon campaigned for President in 1968, promising to bring an end to the war in Vietnam and restore order at home  promised “peace with honor” in ending the war  Strongly influenced by his Secretary of State Henry Kissinger  Expert on international relations; shaped Nixon’s foreign policies  Southern Strategy: Nixon’s attempt to win over voters who supported segregation during his campaign  Promise to overturn civil rights legislation

16. 1960s Cold War

17. Kennedy Military Policy JFK opposed communism, pledging to contain it as previous Presidents had. Policy of Flexible Response Did not like the idea of relying on the threat of using of nuclear arms over minor conflicts  decided to broaden the range of options by strengthening and modernizing the military’s ability to fight a nonnuclear war Increased defense spending to boost conventional military forces (troops, ships, artillery) and created an elite branch of the army called the Special Forces (Green Berets) He tripled the overall nuclear capabilities of the U.S. Vietnam Supported the Domino theory like Eisenhower Sent aid and military advisors Funded and trained South Vietnamese army

18. Fidel Castro  Cuban Revolution  Fidel Castro begins a revolt in 1953 to overthrow General Batista.  Jan 1 1959 Batista ousted and  Castro take control in Cuba, installs a communist government  Castro soon aligned Cuba with Russia and became communist  Under JFK, the U.S.A. would break off relations with Communist Cuba that have lasted to this very day.

19. Bay of Pigs 1961  In the 1950s, Pres. Eisenhower planned an overthrow of Cuba’s dictator Fidel Castro.  The plan included secretly training Cuban exiles on how to invade Cuba.  Pres. Kennedy continued with the plan, but he refused to provide air support for an invasion that might tie the U.S. to the plan.  The planned invasion sight was called the ‘Bay of Pigs’.  Cuban exiles and CIA landed in Cuba  attempted to overthrow and kill Castro  invasion was a disaster, were defeated by the Cuban military.  Made Kennedy and the US look weak and unorganized.

21. Cuban Missile Crisis 1962  U.S. U2 spy planes discovered that the Soviets were secretly building bases in Cuba to house nuclear missiles aimed at the US (in retaliation to US bases in Turkey and the U.S. failed attempt to invade Cuba)  Soviet nukes were 90 miles away  President Kennedy imposed a naval blockade around Cuba to stop Soviet weapons from entering Cuba  During the 13 day crisis, both sides threatened each other with nuclear war.  Khrushchev finally withdrew the Soviet missiles in return for a promise never to invade Cuba; USA removed missiles from Turkey  A special ‘hotline’ was set up by the two nations to avoid further such confrontations.

23. Berlin Wall  German city of Berlin had been divided after WWII and many East Germans had fled to West Berlin looking for a better life in the democratic West.  1961—the Soviets built a wall to separate Communist and non-Communist Berlin  Khrushchev wanted to stop East Germans from escaping to the West (not to keep those in the West from entering East Berlin)  Khrushchev also wanted all democratic nations out of Germany  Was a visible symbol of Cold War division; became physical barrier representing the ‘Iron Curtain’

24. Berlin Wall: East Communist & West Democratic

25. FOREIGN Vietnam DOMESTIC New Frontier Civil Rights Assassination FOREIGN Vietnam Cold War Space Race Arms Race DOMESTIC Great Society Civil Rights FOREIGN Cuba Soviet Union Vietnam Space Race Arms Race DOMESTIC New Frontier Civil Rights Assassination 60-63 Kennedy 63-69 Johnson 69-74 Nixon KENNEDY – JOHNSON – NIXON Overview