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In this first phase of fighting, which lasted from 1946 to 1954, Ho Chi Minh led Viet Minh insurgents in the struggle to end French rule in Vietnam.
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Kennedy’s New Frontier focused on reviving the economy, winning the space race, building the nation’s defenses, and aiding developing countries.
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In 1961, Kennedy pledged to put an American on the moon by the end of the decade. In 1969, NASA achieved this bold goal.
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Regular troops of the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) joined forces with Viet Cong insurgents. The United States trained the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) to defend South Vietnam.
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Kennedy’s first foreign policy initiative, the Bay of Pigs invasion, was an attempt to remove Fidel Castro from power in Cuba. It failed miserably.
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Kennedy’s Peace Corps gave thousands of American volunteers the chance to help people in developing nations improve their lives.
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This influential book sparked a new interest in environmentalism. As a result, Congress passed several environmental laws.
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One of the most frightening confrontations of the Cold War occurred when the United States discovered Soviet nuclear missile sites in Cuba. The crisis ended peacefully, partly due to Kennedy’s measured response and a willingness to take the nation to the brink of war.
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Kennedy and Khrushchev, both determined to reduce Cold War tensions, signed a treaty banning nuclear weapons tests in the atmosphere.
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During his brief time as president, John F. Kennedy faced many domestic and foreign challenges. His presidency began with great optimism and ended in tragedy, leaving many of his goals unfulfilled.
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Johnson’s Great Society grew out of the liberal tradition of the Progressive and New Deal eras. Its centerpiece was an ambitious War on Poverty.
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This measure ended the national origins quota system begun in the 1920s. Entry to the United States was now based on criteria such as skills and family ties.
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The Supreme Court found that Ernesto Arturo Miranda's rights had been infringed upon. Te Supreme Court then set guidlies for police to use to read their rights to the person they are arresting and make sure they understand them. These became known as Miranda Rights, or the Miranda Warning, and are still in use today.
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The first Earth Day celebration in 1970 signaled the emergence of a new environmental movement. Followers worked to clean up and protect the environment locally and globally. Congress passed antipollution laws such as the Clean Water Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act.
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The invasion of Cambodia in April 1970 sparked an increase in antiwar protests. The most violent one occurred the following month at Kent State University in Ohio, where National Guard troops fired into an angry crowd, killing four students.
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Another new agency, the EPA, was created to protect Americans’ health and the natural environment.
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Despite his promise to shrink the federal government, Nixon created OSHA, which works to improve health and safety in the workplace.
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In 1971, Daniel Ellsberg leaked to the press a top-secret study of the U.S. role in Indochina. This study, the Pentagon Papers, revealed secrecy and deceit on the part of U.S. presidents.
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In 1972, burglars broke into Democratic headquarters in the Watergate building. The scandal over the cover-up that followed the break-in led to Richard Nixon’s resignation in 1974.
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Congress reacted to Nixon’s activities in Cambodia by passing the War Powers Resolution. This resolution limits a president’s ability to send armed forces into combat.
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An accident at the Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station in 1978 highlighted the potential dangers of nuclear energy.
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Reagan helped spark a conservative revolution in American politics. He worked to shrink government, promote free enterprise, and reduce spending on social programs. He also called for fewer regulations related to business and the environment.
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The president backed anticommunist movements around the world as part of the Reagan Doctrine. He gave aid to rebels like the Contras, who were fighting to overthrow the Sandinista government of Nicaragua.
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The Reagan administration faced a scandal over arms sales to Iran and the diversion of funds to the Contras. Several top officials were convicted of illegal actions in the Iran-Contra Affair.
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Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev signed the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, reducing nuclear missiles in Europe. U.S. pressure, along with economic and political problems at home, eventually caused the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War.
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In 1961, the concrete barrier dividing communist East Berlin from noncommunist West Berlin was a symbol of the deepening Cold War divide.
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The United States fought alongside other nations to force Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein out of Kuwait.
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The United States promoted free trade as part of a growing trend toward economic globalization. The North American Free Trade Agreement linked Mexico, Canada, and the United States.
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In the 1994 midterm elections, Republicans won control of Congress with their 10-point Contract with America.
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As a moderate New Democrat, Clinton breathed new life into the Democratic coalition. One of his main legacies is welfare reform. Clinton failed to enact universal health care, however. In his second term, Clinton was impeached but not removed from office.
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In the 2000 election, Al Gore led George W. Bush in the popular vote by a very thin margin. The Supreme Court decided the outcome, denying Gore’s demand for a recount in Florida.
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As a candidate, Bush reached out to moderates with his compassionate conservatism. One of his main legacies is education reform. However, Bush failed to reform the Social Security system.
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The al Qaeda terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, prompted the United States to declare a war on terror in Afghanistan and Iraq.
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Congress enacted the Patriot Act after 9/11 to help government agencies track down terrorists. The act sparked a long debate over what some saw as assaults on privacy rights.
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Congress created the Department of Homeland Security to improve the ability of U.S. security agencies to keep the country safe from terrorists. DHS worked to improve communication among its agencies and the public and otherwise secure Americans’ liberty.
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Faced with a slow-growing economy and high unemployment, Obama pushed an economic stimulus package through Congress. However, his jobs bill faced tough Republican opposition, as did his comprehensive health-care reform law.
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After 9/11, Americans debated these questions: Should all airline passengers be treated equally? Or should those fitting the profile of the 9/11 terrorists face special scrutiny? The nation chose equality over racial profiling, but racial profiling persists. The Occupy Wall Street protests pointed out another equality issue—the income gap between rich and poor.
