APUSH CH 39: Lecture Name: Hour: Chapter 39: The Stalemated Seventies, 1968-1980 I. Nixon s First Administration A. Vietnam 1. When Nixon took office more than half a million U.S. troops were in Vietnam a. Vietnamization: Nixon s plan for ending U.S. involvement in Vietnam i. A gradual withdrawal and the turning over military duties to the South Vietnamese 2. By August 1969 250,000 troops had returned from Vietnam a. At the same time, Nixon had ordered secret bombing campaigns on North Vietnam (as well as Laos and Cambodia) 3. Nixon asked for the support of the silent majority in a November 1969 speech with regard to Vietnam a. This was believed to be the majority of Americans: those who did not speak out against Vietnam, were not a part of the counterculture, and were overshadowed by the rest of society who chose to speak out publically 4. Nixon also announced the Nixon Doctrine, which stated that the U.S. would honor all current defense commitments but would not extent its troops anywhere else a. Many were shocked by this policy since it seemed to reverse the U.S. commitment to fighting communism abroad that had been followed by many of Nixon s predecessors 5. My Lai Massacre a. On March 16, 1968 a platoon commanded by Lt. William Calley, Jr. entered My Lai in search of Vietcong rebels b. This search and destroy mission resulted in the death of over 300 unarmed civilians i. Word of this mass killing did not reach the American public until November 1969 ii. Americans were shocked when they learned of what happened iii. Lt. Calley was convicted and sent to prison for the My Lai Massacre (later he was released) B. Cambodia 1. On April 30, 1970, Nixon appeared on TV and announced that the U.S. had invaded Cambodia a. Nixon claimed this was to cut off supplies to the North Vietnamese and the Vietcong b. Congress was not consulted as troops were sent here or as bombing raids were carried out a. On December 31, 1970, Congress repealed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution as it tried to restrain Nixon when it came to Vietnam C. Kent State 1. In response to Nixon s announcement of the invasion of Cambodia, he also stated the nation needed to draft more soldiers to continue the war effort in Vietnam a. this led to protests across college campuses, including Kent State University in Ohio i. Students set fire to the ROTC building ii. The National Guard was called in to control the unrest (May 4, 1970; there fired into a crowd of protestors and 4 students were killed 1
D. Pentagon Papers 1. The situation became worse when the Pentagon Papers were leaked to the public a. These papers stated how Johnson had plans to enter Vietnam when he told the public he would not sent troops to Vietnam; it also exposed there were no plans to end the war as long as the North Vietnamese kept fighting b. Also mentioned the covert actions that several presidents had authorized in Vietnam E. Relations with China and the USSR 1. Nixon made a historic visit to China in 1972 a. This was the first time the U.S. recognized the People s Republic of China b. Nixon met with Mao Zedong; by 1979 the U.S. recognized the communist government in China 2. Nixon also met with Brezhnev in the Soviet Union a. He advocated a policy of détente to ease or relax tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union b. They agreed on some missile limitations and easing trade restrictions c. The Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT I) of 1972 was also an achievement for Nixon i. This was the first step for both nations to ease tensions and to reduce the threat of a nuclear war by limiting weapons F. Nixon: Domestic Highlights 1. Increased funding for entitlement programs such as Aid to Families with Dependent Children and for cost of living increases for Social Security 2. Philadelphia Plan: Nixon s effort to enforce affirmative action and required hiring quotas to be met in certain industries when it came to minority groups 3. Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) was created in 1970 4. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was established in 1970 5. 26 th Amendment (1971): gave 18 year olds the right to vote 6. The Environmental Protection Agency was created in 1970 a. Rachel Carson wrote Silent Spring, a book that discussed the dangers of pesticides G. Problems in the 1970s 1. In 1969, Nixon cut spending and raised taxes a. Encouraged the Fed to raise interest rates and the economy grew worse b. The result was stagflation: high inflation and unemployment i. Nixon tried to cut government spending but this led to a recession coupled with unemployment (later, he practiced Keynesian economics) ii. In 1971, Nixon announced a 90-day price and wage freeze iii. He also took the nation off of the gold standard iv. Unemployment hit 6% v. The cost of living more than tripled from 1969 to 1981 c. The economy also stagnated due to federal deficits compiled during the Great Society and the Vietnam War II. Nixon s Second Administration (1973-1974) A. Reelected: 1972 1. Nixon was reelected by a landslide (520 electoral votes to 17 for McGovern) a. Focused his campaign on the silent majority 2
B. Ending the War in Vietnam 1. In March 1972, the North Vietnamese launched a major attack against South Vietnam a. This led Nixon to order heavy bombing campaigns against North Vietnam 2. Secretary of State Kissinger worked to negotiate an end to the war a. Finally on January 27, 1973 the U.S. signed the Treaty of Paris to end the war b. The provisions included: i. The release of all American prisoners of war from North Vietnam ii. The withdrawal of all U.S. forces from South Vietnam iii. The end of all foreign military operations in Laos and Cambodia iv. A cease-fire between North and South Vietnam 3. On March 29, 1973 the last U.S. troops left Vietnam C. Watergate and Nixon s Resignation 1. Nixon sought to secretly attack his political opponents and gathered lists of those that were against him 2. Watergate: name of the Washington, D.C. hotel and apartment complex in which the Democratic National Committee (DNC) located its campaign headquarters for the 1972 election 3. On June 16, 1972, several men working for the president broke into the Watergate complex to plant illegal wiretaps in the Democratic offices a. On June 17 five men were arrested; it was reported they were working for CREEP (The Committee to Re-Elect the President) 4. In the mist of this, Vice President Spiro Agnew resigned (October 1973) a. He had taken bribes while governor and vice president b. This allowed Nixon to invoke the 25 th Amendment and nominate a candidate for the vice presidency i. Gerald Ford was chosen and approved by Congress 5. The investigation of Watergate took place between 1973-1974, via a Senate committee a. Nixon repeatedly claimed he was not involved; others said he was involved and had recorded conversations in the Oval Office 6. Nixon initially refused to turn over his taped conversations and claimed executive privilege 7. On October 20, 1973 the Saturday Night Massacre occurred: Nixon fired the special prosecutor investigating the scandal, his attorney general, and deputy attorney general 8. In the spring of 1974 Nixon finally turned over parts of his recorded conversations a. In July 1974 the Supreme Court ruled that Nixon had to turn over all of his tapes so that criminal activity could be investigated b. The smoking gun tape implicated Nixon in Watergate and led to the House Judiciary Committee to look into Nixon s impeachment i. Three articles of impeachment were adopted and were going to be considered by the entire House ii. The first article accused Nixon of obstructing justice iii. The second article accused him of abusing presidential powers iv. The third article charged him with illegally withholding evidence from the Judiciary Committee 9. Nixon resigned from office on August 9, 1974 to avoid impeachment 3
10. Many high-level government officials had been involved and were forced to resign, were convicted of crimes, and were tried for them a. 40 people were convicted of crimes including former Attorney General John N. Mitchell; two of Nixon's top aides: John D. Ehrlichman and H. R. Haldeman; and Attorney General Richard Kleindienst D. War Powers Act 1. The end of the war led to the passage of the War Powers Act in November 1973 a. This stated that a president had to inform Congress within 48 hours if U.S. forces are sent into a hostile area without a declaration of war b. It also limited the amount of time troops could remain in an area to 90 days unless Congress approved the president s actions or declared war E. The 1973 Energy Crisis 1. Arab nations were upset that the U.S. supported Israel in the Yom Kippur War of 1973 a. The Arab states established an oil boycott (to push the Western nations into forcing Israel to withdraw from lands controlled since the Six Day War of 1967) 2. OPEC raised the price of oil from about $3 to $11.65 a. U.S. gas prices doubled and inflation shot above 10% 3. In 1974 the Federal Energy Administration was created to deal with the energy shortage III. Gerald Ford Becomes President A. Gerald Ford (born as Leslie Lynch King, Jr.) 1. Appointed Vice President, Gerald Ford, became president a. Former House Minority Leader; known as a loyal Republican 2. Nominated Nelson Rockefeller as VP and he was confirmed by Congress 3. The economy/inflation was a big concern during his administration a. Came up with a program called WIN: Whip Inflation Now i. This called for citizens to cut back on their use of oil and gas ii. When this failed, he cut government spending and encouraged the restriction of credit aa. This led to an economic recession b. March 1975: Ford and signed an income tax rebate bill into law to help boost the economy i. The economy began to recover but unemployment was around 9% and it dropped slowly 4. In 1975 he participated in the Helsinki Accords, a series of agreements to promote cooperation between Eastern and Western nations as well as human rights and greater freedoms 5. Visited both China and the Soviet Union and also became the first president to visit Japan 6. Southeast Asia faced continued problems a. Saigon (South Vietnam) fell to communism b. The U.S. supported government in Cambodia feel to the Khmer Rouge IV. Carter s Presidency A. The Election of 1976: The Candidates 1. Ford narrowly defeated Ronald Reagan for the Republican nomination in 1976 2. The Democrats nominated Jimmy Carter (former Governor of Georgia) 3. Carter defeated Ford (297 to 240 electoral votes; 51% of the popular vote) 4
B. Domestic Affairs 1. Carter was considered an outsider a. Many voted for him because he was not seen as a symbol of Washington s interest groups; they hoped he would bring morality back to the presidency 2. Created the Department of Education 3. Created the Department of Energy (in light of recent energy crisis) a. 1979 OPEC announced a major price hike causing a fuel shortage in the U.S. i. Caused inflation to rise again to over 11% ii. Carter s response: wage and price freezes and cutting government spending b. Carter recognized the nation s unhealthy dependence on foreign oil 4. Convinced Congress to pass an $18 billion tax cut in 1978 5. By 1980 inflation reached 14% and unemployment reached 7.5% a. Carter was very unpopular with the people based on these figures C. Foreign Affairs 1. Carter initiated the Camp David Accords (September 17, 1978) his biggest foreign policy success a. He invited President Anwar Sadat of Egypt and Prime Minister Menachem Begin of Israel to a summit conference b. After 13 days, Carter persuaded them to sign an accord that seemed to place the two countries on a solid road toward peace 2. Iran Hostage Crisis: biggest crisis of Carter's presidency (cost him the election of 1980) a. In 1979, a revolution forced the Shah (Mohammed Reza Pahlevi) of Iran to flee the country b. Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, a religious leader, became Iran s leader c. Carter allowed the Shah to come to the U.S. for medical treatment in October 1979 after the Shah was in exile i. In response on November 4, Iranian militants broke into the U.S. embassy in Tehran taking the occupants captive ii. They demanded that the Shah be returned to Iran for trial d. As a result, Carter froze Iranian assets in the U.S. and instituted a trade embargo against Iran e. After extensive negotiations with Iran, Carter released Iranian assets and the hostages were freed on January 20, 1980 after 444 days; one day after Carter left office i. This ongoing crisis severely hurt Carter in the 1980 election ii. The hostages were not released until after Ronald Reagan was inaugurated 3. In 1979, Carter signed SALT II with the Soviets but it was never ratified due to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979 a. The U.S. also recognized the People s Republic of China V. The Feminist Movement A. Equal Rights Amendment 1. The Equal Rights Amendment stated: Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any state on account of sex" 5
2. Supporters of the ERA argued that the amendment would provide specific constitutional guarantees of equal treatment under the law, regardless of sex 3. Opponents argued that passage of the ERA would require women to serve in the military and would deprive them of the right to financial support from their husbands a. Not all women supported the ERA including political activist Phyllis Schlafly (who favored the traditional role of a woman as a wife and mother) 4. The amendment fell three states short of ratification and officially died in 1982 B. Title IX 1. Passed by Congress in 1973 2. Prohibited sex discrimination in federally funded educational programs or activities a. Created opportunities for girls/women in high school and college athletics C. Roe v. Wade (1973) 1. The case came about when Norma McCorvey was denied an abortion in 1969 because Texas law prohibited an abortion unless the woman s life was in danger a. She sued Henry Wade, the district attorney in Dallas, in an attempt to prove that the law was unconstitutional b. She was referred to as Jane Roe to protect her true identity 2. The Supreme Court divided the 9 months of pregnancy into three trimesters and set forth the following criteria: a. A state cannot regulate abortions in the first trimester, except for requiring that the doctor be licensed by the state b. During the second trimester, the state may prevent a woman from having an abortion, but only to protect the woman's health c. During the third trimester, the state may prohibit abortions entirely, except when an abortion is needed to save the woman's life 3. This was considered a landmark case because it gave women broad powers to choose whether or not to carry a pregnancy to term VI. Rights for Minorities A. The American Indian Movement (AIM) 1. In the 1950s, the Eisenhower administration unsuccessfully encouraged American Indians to leave reservations and assimilate 2. AIM was founded in 1968 3. Congress passed the Indian Self Determination Act of 1975 that gave reservations and tribal lands greater control over internal programs and education B. Gay Liberation Movement 1. In 1969 a police raid on the Stonewall Inn sparked a riot and the gay rights movement (Stonewall Riots) 6