Reagan+Carter+Election+1980

1.) Election date: November 4, 1980 2.) Democrat Jimmy Carter was in office during the election 3.) 4.)
 * Although Carter was popular early on, he soon became unpopular when world events took a turn for the worse because of such double digit inflation during his presidency.
 * On September 17, 1978, Prime Minister Menachem Begin of Israel and President Anwar Sadat of Egypt signed peace accords at Camp David. Carter mediated this event, and it was a great success. Egypt would respect Israel's territories as long as Israel withdrew from territory gained in the 1967 war.
 * Carter tried to help the falling economy by getting Congress to pass an $18 billion tax cut in 1978. This plan did not work though, and the economy continued to worsen. Inflation kept rising, and by 1979, it was at a rate of 13%. He believed our problem was our heavy dependency on foreign oil. He called on legislation to improve energy conservation, but did not get much public support for this idea. On July 15, 1979, Carter addressed the American people for their obsessions of material goods and said "If it's cold, turn down the thermostat and put on a sweater". This statement stunned the country, and left many people to support Carter. Also, Iran was becoming very opposed to Western customs, and refused to sell oil. This led to OPEC raising oil prices, and causing an oil crisis.
 * Troubles with the Iran government were occuring in 1979. The former dictator, Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlevi who had rulled since 1953 was being overthrown by Ayatollah Rouhollah Khomeini. On November 4, 1979, a group on anti-American Muslim militants broke into the U.D embassy in Tehran and took hostages, and would not release them without America returned the exiled Shah who went to the U.S two weeks earlier for cancer treatments. During this crisis, known as the Iran Hostage Crisis, the hostages had to live in cruel captivity while the news showed disturbing images of Iranian mobs burning the American flag and spitting on effiges of Uncle Sam. Carter's original plan to capture the hostages failed because of two military planes crashing into each other, and caused huge humilitaion for America. The hostages would be released on January 20, 1981-the inauguration day of Ronald Reagan.
 * In 1979, President Carter singned the SALT II agreement with Soviet Premier Leonid Brezhnev, but the U.S senate did not want to sign because of the hatred of the USSR at the time. Because the USSR invaded Afghanistan, and this posed a threat on oil supplies in America. This influenced president Carter to boycott the Olympic Games in Moscow. He also proposed the "Rapid Deployment Force" that would assemble a force quickly in respond to a crisis.
 * President Carter seemed to not be able to control the failing economy or handle foreign affairs. He also refused to get rid of hampering regulatory controls from major industries, like airlines.
 * 1) Democratic Party: Edward Kennedy, Jimmy Carter
 * 2) Republican Party: Ronald Reagan
 * 3) Independent Party: John Anderson

5.) i. Late in 1979, __Edward Kennedy__ ("Ted") declared his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for the **election of 1980**. His popularity sputtered and died when the suspicious 1969 accident in which a young female passenger drowned arose. ii. To the parties discontent Jimmy Carter- befuddled that Carter couldn’t control the economy or foreign affairs the Democratic party had the “ABC” movement (Anybody But Carter) 6.) i. New groups that later spearheaded the "**new right**"**movement** included **Moral Majority** and other conservative Christian groups. 7.) Regan received 51% of the popular vote – 489 electoral Carter received 41%- 49 (six states including D.C.) Anderson 7%-0
 * 1) Democrats:
 * 1) Republicans, realizing that the average American was older and more mature than during the stormy sixties and was therefore more likely to favor the right, chose conservative and former actor __Ronald Reagan__, signaling the return of conservatism.
 * 2) Although a Republican John Anderson didn’t agree with the Republican Platform and chose to run against Reagan as an Independent
 * Republicans: Ronald Reagan backed a political philosophy that condemned federal intervention in local affairs, favoritism for minorities, and the elitism of arrogant bureaucrats. He drew on the ideas of the "neoconservatives"-free-market capitalism, questioning liberal welfare programs and affirmative-action policies, and calling for reassertion of traditional values of individualism and the centrality of family.Reagan believed “The government did not fix problems, the government was the problem”.
 * 1) More concern for cultural concerns (abortion, pornography, homosexuality, feminism
 * 2) Racial issues:
 * 3) "**White flight**"pitted the poorest whites and blacks against each other, often with explosively violent results.
 * 4) **Affirmative action** was another burning issue, but some whites used this to argue "reverse discrimination."
 * 5) Carter failed to convince the people that Reagan would push the country into nuclear war

8.) We’ll do in class