1980s Outline
I. Politics
A. The Election of 1980
1. Jimmy Carter
a. lost the 1980 election as a result of his mismanagement of two national crises: raging inflation and the seizure of US hostages in Tehran, Iran...provided an opening for Reagan
& the New Right
2. Ronald Reagan
a. impassioned rhetoric supporting limited government, low taxation, and law and order won broad support among citizens of the most populous states
b. appealed to religious and free-market conservatives and traditional anticommunists who attacked welfare state liberalism, social permissiveness, and an allegedly weak and defensive foreign policy
c. appealed to the many Americans who felt financially insecure by emphasized the hardships facing working and middle-class Americans in an era of “stagflation”
d. hinted that he would take strong action to win the hostages’ return, declared his opposition to affirmative action, promised to get “the government off our backs”
3. Results
a. Reagan won 51% of popular vote
b. Republicans elected 33 new members of the House of
Representatives and 12 new senators, giving them control of the Senate for the first time since 1954
c. Reagan’s victory resulted in the revival of right-wing conservative activism and broad dissatisfaction with liberal Democrats
B. The Election of 1984
1. Ronald Reagan
a. won a landslide victory, losing only Minnesota &
Washington DC
b. 525 electoral votes
2. Walter Mondale
a. former Vice President from Minnesota
b. 13 electoral votes
3. Results
a. Reagan won
b. Democrats retained their majority in the House
rights
c. regained control of the Senate (due to midterm elections)
C. Reagan Republicanism
1. Supporters
a. middle-class suburbanites and migrants to the Sunbelt states i. endorsed the conservative agenda of combating crime and limiting social welfare spending
b. affluent Protestant whites
i. supported balanced budgets, opposed government activism, feared crime and communism, and
A. The Election of 1980
1. Jimmy Carter
a. lost the 1980 election as a result of his mismanagement of two national crises: raging inflation and the seizure of US hostages in Tehran, Iran...provided an opening for Reagan
& the New Right
2. Ronald Reagan
a. impassioned rhetoric supporting limited government, low taxation, and law and order won broad support among citizens of the most populous states
b. appealed to religious and free-market conservatives and traditional anticommunists who attacked welfare state liberalism, social permissiveness, and an allegedly weak and defensive foreign policy
c. appealed to the many Americans who felt financially insecure by emphasized the hardships facing working and middle-class Americans in an era of “stagflation”
d. hinted that he would take strong action to win the hostages’ return, declared his opposition to affirmative action, promised to get “the government off our backs”
3. Results
a. Reagan won 51% of popular vote
b. Republicans elected 33 new members of the House of
Representatives and 12 new senators, giving them control of the Senate for the first time since 1954
c. Reagan’s victory resulted in the revival of right-wing conservative activism and broad dissatisfaction with liberal Democrats
B. The Election of 1984
1. Ronald Reagan
a. won a landslide victory, losing only Minnesota &
Washington DC
b. 525 electoral votes
2. Walter Mondale
a. former Vice President from Minnesota
b. 13 electoral votes
3. Results
a. Reagan won
b. Democrats retained their majority in the House
rights
c. regained control of the Senate (due to midterm elections)
C. Reagan Republicanism
1. Supporters
a. middle-class suburbanites and migrants to the Sunbelt states i. endorsed the conservative agenda of combating crime and limiting social welfare spending
b. affluent Protestant whites
i. supported balanced budgets, opposed government activism, feared crime and communism, and