1. The Presidency of RONALD REAGAN

2. Background & Fun Facts Movie Star, Broadcaster
Leader of Screen Actors Guild
Gov. of CA
Only president to have been divorced (this was prior to his presidency)
Wife- Nancy Reagan (Big supporter of the “Just Say No” to drugs program)
Nicknamed “The Great Communicator” because of his outstanding public speaking abilities
Always kept a jar of jelly beans on his desk

3. Election of 1980 Carter (D) vs. Reagan (R) Reagan’s campaign
“Make America strong again”
“Are you better off than you were four years ago?”
Promised strong national defense, federal spending cuts, get govt. “off the backs of the people”
Many “Reagan Democrats” crossed party lines to support him, giving him the ability to pass a lot through Congress (esp. if it related to economy or military)
Also got large amount of support by the New Right (political conservatives) and the Moral Majority (Christian fundamentalists active in politics)

4. Reagan won 51% to 41%, and a huge electoral majority (489 to 49)
He was the oldest person to ever be elected president (69)

5. Assassination Attempt
The Reagan presidency almost ended before it got started. Two months after taking office, Reagan was the victim of an assassination attempt by John Hinckley, Jr while leaving a speaking engagement at the Washington Hilton Hotel.
Reagan assured America he was ok, joking from his hospital bed (though he had come much closer to death than he ever let on).
Reagan is the only president to be shot while in office and survive

6. Reaganomics
In economics, Reagan believed that government was not the solution- it was the problem
He supported Supply-Side Economics (aka Reaganomics). It essentially believes in the “Trickle-Down” theory.
He lowered taxes (especially on the wealthy) to spur economic growth and increase the tax base
Congress reduced federal taxes 25%- they cut inheritance taxes, gift taxes, corporate taxes, and income taxes.
This Economic Recovery Act of 1981 was the largest income tax cut in US history

7. Reagan also reduced government regulation of industries like airlines, banking, TV, and trucking in hopes that reducing restrictions would help increase profits and overall employment
By 1983, the economy was in full swing and would continue to grow steadily for years
There were plenty of jobs, inflation virtually disappeared, and consumer spending was way up
Critics, however, argued that the tax cuts hurt legitimate social programs that assisted the poor (like social security & food stamps). They also argued that increased military spending would continue to hurt the budget and run up the debt (not to mention much of the military spending was wasteful).

8. FOREIGN POLICY Iranian Hostage Situation
Carter had continued unsuccessfully to get the Iranian hostages freed
Ironically enough, they were finally released on the day Reagan was sworn in.
Iran may have realized that he would not hesitate to use serious force
There have been allegations that Reagan’s people made a deal w/ the Iranians to help him win, but no solid proof has ever been presented

10. Cold War
Reagan played hardball with the Soviets, who he dubbed the “Evil Empire”.
He dramatically increased military spending and pursued a program called SDI (Strategic Defense Initiative), which was meant to be able to use a satellite to shoot nukes out of the air from space. Critics said it wasn’t feasible and nicknamed the program “Star Wars”.
Reagan placed nuclear missiles in the UK and Germany to send a strong message, causing arms-control talks to break down and the Soviets to boycott the 1984 Summer Olympics in L.A.
Reagan believed that we had to always approach the Soviets from a position of strength

12. Gorbachev
Relations with the Soviets improved substantially when Mikhail Gorbachev became the new Soviet leader in Gorbachev supported perestroika (restructuring of the Soviet economy & govt.) and glasnost (openness to outside ideas and more freedom of expression within the USSR). He withdrew troops from many “Iron Curtain” countries, and the Soviets began to get a taste of freedom.
Reagan & Gorbachev worked together to sign the I.N.F. Treaty (Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces), which eliminated mid-range nukes from Europe.

13. Latin America
Reagan feared the spread of communism in Latin America, so he offered military advisors and economic aid to rebel groups who were friendly to U.S. interests (especially in El Salvador & Nicaragua)
When the Sandinistas (a communist-supported group) took control of the Nicaraguan government, Reagan & the CIA funneled support to the Contras, a rebel group that Reagan called “freedom fighters”. Congress was worried about dragging us into another Vietnam-type situation, and banned further support of the Contras.
The White House would continue to fund them secretly however, which would lead to a scandal in Reagan’s 2nd term (stay tuned)
Reagan also sent U.S. forces to the Caribbean island of Grenada to defeat a rebel group that had overthrown the govt. there. Confidence in our military soared.

14. Terrorism in the 80's
During the ‘80’s, several radical Islamic groups, like Islamic Jihad and the PLO (Palestine Liberation Organization), believed that the Western world was a danger to the Islamic world, and that America was “the Great Satan”.
They sought to drive western influence out of the Middle East, as well as to eliminate Israel. Because they could not do this by going head to head against our armed forces, they chose to strike fear into the hearts of the people by attacking “soft” targets like buses, cruise ships, and airliners.
The terrorists often took hostages and laid out a list of demands. Other times they did these things merely for the scare value.
This was the first large-scale wave of terrorist activity. We are seeing this playing out again currently, but the terrorists today are more interested in killing than in taking hostages.
The brutal hijacking of a TWA jet 847, in which 4 terrorists controlled a passenger plane for 17 days. The hijackers brutally tortured and trampled (off duty) American Navy Diver Robert Dean Stethem to death. They then hurled his body from the plane onto the tarmac. The end result? Over 700 terrorists were released and the hijackers went free.

15. Some notable incidents include:
Beirut (1983) Suicide truck bombs were used in 2 incidents to attack our embassy and a marine barracks, killing hundreds. Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility.

16. Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi was a supporter of international terrorism
We bombed Libya in 1986 following a Gaddafi-authorized bombing of a nightclub in Berlin.
Gaddafi later supported the bombing of Pan American Airlines Flight 103 (December 21, 1988). It was blown up over Lockerbie, Scotland, by a bomb believed to have been placed on the aircraft in Frankfurt, West Germany, by Libyan terrorists. All 259 people on board were killed.

17. Election of 1984
The Democrats hoped Carter’s VP, Walter Mondale, could defeat Reagan.
Mondale hoped to draw feminist support by selecting Geraldine Ferraro as the first female VP candidate for a major party.
Plenty of women, however, found comfort in Reagan’s conservatism. Once again, the Republicans dominated Election Day.

18. Domestic Issues
Reagan appointed more conservative judges to the Supreme Court, including the first female justice (Sandra Day O’Conner)
There was a stock market crash in (Black Monday- Oct 19, 1987)
It was the product of a growing deficit, illegal trading on the stock market, and a collapse of the savings and loan (S&L) industry
The S&L crisis concerned many Americans about the economy.

19. The Iran-Contra Scandal
Several people within the Reagan administration (especially Lt. Col. Oliver North) were found to have sold arms to the Iranians in exchange for money to help fund the Contra rebels in Nicaragua. While Reagan was cleared of any direct involvement, it was a blemish to his presidency.

20. REAGAN TRUE/FALSE Before becoming president, Reagan had been an actor.
Read the following sentences. If the sentence is true, write “T” next to it. If it is false, write “F” next to it and then change a word/phrase to make it true.
EX- Reagan was a Communist (FALSE!) Correction- Reagan was a Republican
Before becoming president, Reagan had been an actor.
Reagan got elected with support from The New Left as well as The Radical Liberals.
Reagan was assassinated by John Hinckley Jr.
Reaganomics advocated spending cuts and tax reductions
Reagan wanted to create a defense system that could shoot down enemy missiles from space.
Reagan’s economic policies were widely supported by the wealthy as well as the poor.
Our hostages in Iraq were released when Reagan took office.
Reagan called the Soviet Union an “Evil Empire”
Mikhail Gorbachev’s programs of perestroika and glasnost involved reinforcing communism and deterring interaction with the western world.
Sandra Day O’Conner was the first female vice presidential candidate for a major party.
The Contras were a rebel group we funded because they were against the pro-communist Sandinistas.
The Iran-Contra Scandal involved exchanging weapons for $ to secretly fund the Contras.
Muammar Gaddafi was a Lebanese leader who supported communism.