Section outline

  • Graffiti from the Berlin Wall (modified), now housed in the Newseum in Washington, DC names the ACT UP organization.Image from Chapter 31 of U.S. History (opens in new window) from OpenStax, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution License v4.0 with the image information: This striking piece of graffiti from the Berlin Wall (modified), now housed in the Newseum in Washington, DC, contains the name of the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP), a group formed in 1987 in New York City to combat the spread of AIDS and the perception that AIDS was the product of immoral behavior.

    This module explores the United States from 1980 to the present. After decades of liberalism and social reform, Ronald Reagan changed the face of American politics by riding a groundswell of conservatism into the White House. The political conservatism of the 1980s and 1990s was matched by the social conservatism of the period. Conservative politicians wished to limit the size and curb the power of the federal government. While Ronald Reagan worked to restrict the influence of the federal government in people’s lives, he simultaneously pursued interventionist policies abroad as part of a global Cold War strategy. 

    Bill Clinton’s presidency and efforts at remaking the Democratic Party reflect the long-term effects of the Reagan Revolution that preceded him. George W. Bush’s first term in office began with al-Qaeda’s deadly attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001 and, when he took office, he cut tax rates for the rich and tried to limit the role of government in people’s lives. The nation’s increasing diversity—and with it, the fact that White Caucasians will soon be a demographic minority—prompted a conservative backlash that continues to manifest itself in debates about immigration. 

    Despite Republican resistance and political gridlock in Washington during his first term in office, President Barack Obama oversaw the distribution of the TARP program’s $7.77 trillion to help shore up the nation’s banking system, and Congress authorized $80 billion to help Chrysler and General Motors. The goals of Obama’s Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) were to provide all Americans with access to affordable health insurance, to require that everyone in the United States had some form of health insurance, and to lower the costs of healthcare. During his second term, the nation struggled to grow modestly, the percentage of the population living in poverty remained around 15 percent, and unemployment was still high in some areas. Acceptance of same-sex marriage grew, and the United States sharply reduced its military commitments in Iraq and Afghanistan.
    Upon completion of this module, you will be able to:

    From Cold War to Culture Wars, 1980-2000

    1. Explain Ronald Reagan’s attitude towards government (CO 1-5)
    2. Discuss the Reagan administration’s economic policies and their effects on the nation (CO 1-5)
    3. Discuss the culture wars and political conflicts of the Reagan era (CO 1-7)
    4. Describe the Religious Right’s response to the issues of the Reagan era (CO 1-5)
    5. Describe the successes and failures of Ronald Reagan’s foreign policy (CO 1-5)
    6. Compare the policies of Ronald Reagan with those of George H. W. Bush (CO 1-5)
    7. Explain the causes and results of the Persian Gulf War (CO 1-5)
    8. Discuss the events that constituted the end of the Cold War (CO 1-5)
    9. Explain political partisanship, anti-government movements, and economic developments during the Clinton administration (CO 1-7)
    10. Discuss President Clinton’s foreign policy (CO 1-5)
    11. Explain how George W. Bush won the election of 2000 (CO 1-5)

    The Challenges of the Twenty-First Century

    1. Discuss how the United States responded to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 (CO 1-5)
    2. Explain why the United States went to war against Afghanistan and Iraq (CO 1-7)
    3. Describe the treatment of suspected terrorists by U.S. law enforcement agencies and the U.S. military (CO 1-5)
    4. Discuss the Bush administration’s economic theories and tax policies, and their effects on the American economy (CO 1-5)
    5. Explain how the federal government attempted to improve the American public education system (CO 1-5)
    6. Describe the federal government’s response to Hurricane Katrina (CO 1-5)
    7. Identify the causes of the Great Recession of 2008 and its effect on the average citizen (CO 1-5)
    8. Describe the efforts to reduce the influence of immigrants on American culture (CO 1-7)
    9. Describe the evolution of twenty-first-century American attitudes towards same-sex marriage (CO 1-3)
    10. Explain the clash over climate change (CO 1-5)
    11. Describe how Barack Obama’s domestic policies differed from those of George W. Bush (CO 1-5)
    12. Discuss the important events of the war on terror during Obama’s two administrations (CO 1-5)
    13. Discuss some of the specific challenges facing the United States as Obama’s second term draws to a close (CO 1-7)

    To achieve these objectives:

    1. Read the Module 15 Introduction above.
    2. Read and view the materials in Module 15 (click below)
    3. View the Module 15 PowerPoints below.
    4. Complete Module 15 quizzes/assignments/discussion boards based on chapter/document reading.

    Module Pressbooks Resources and Activities

    You will find the following resources and activities in this module at the Pressbooks website. Click on the links below to access or complete each item.

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