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**The Election of 1988:**
George H. W. Bush, who was Ronald Reagan's loyal Vice President for 8 years, ran for Presidency. His running mate was J. Danforth Quayle, who was a young Indiana Senator. The Democratic candidate to run against Bush was Michael Dukakis, with his Texas running mate, Lloyd Bentsen. After much campaigning and competition, the Republicans found victory. George Bush won the election by 53% of the popular vote. []

**The New President:**
Bush promised our country a "kinder, gentler nation". He would not follow Reagan's old plans and ideas but he used caution to maintain a balance.

**Drugs, Education, and the Environment:**
Bush appointed William Bennett to oversee the nation's war on drugs. After he resigned, Bob Martinez took his place. Bush set goals for education throughout the country. Bush appointed William Reilly to head the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency). Bush signed laws to reduce air pollution and he also helped reduce nuclear waste.

The Savings and Loan Crisis:
The savings and loan institutions financed mortgages for people buying homes. But many S&L's were on the verge of closing or going bancrupt becuase of interest rates and falling real estate prices. Although Bush bailed them out, many people blamed Reagan for this problem. This greatly weakened the banking system.

Reducing the Deficit:
To reduce the deficit on the federal budget, Congress and Bush felt they had to cut spending or raise more money. Bush increased taxes on cigarettes, alcohol, and gasoline and also cut spending in some areas. Also to reduce the deficit, Bush introduced "capital gains" tax cuts which cut taxes for investors who sold their stocks and bonds at profit.

The Elections of 1990:
The Americans during the election of 1990 were very sceptical of their political leaders. Not many people voted due to their views on the way Washington was running. Many people that were elected were from a different party than was in office before.

Flags and the Supreme Court:
The Supreme Court decided that burning the American flag was not a crime because of the protection of the First Amendment, it was a "freedom of speech". Bush firmly disagreed and he wanted to form a new amendment that would outlaw the defacing of the flag, it was shot down. An old William Bennan retired from the Supreme Court and President Bush appointed David Souter to take his chair. []

The End of the Cold War?:
During this time, communistic governements began to collapse and dissenters came into power. It began in Poland, where Solidarity leaders replaced communists in government. **A Wall Comes Down:** The Berlin Wall that Germany had built to separate East and West Berlin was opened in 1989 after months of protest. After meetings between NATO and the Soviet Union, Germany became one nation again. **Moving Toward Democracy:** Demonstrations against communism spread rapidly across Europe in coutries such as Czechoslovakia and Rumania. Also, an end to communism was a possibility for the Soviet Union. **The American response:** Americans responsed enthusiastically to the democratic reforms in Europe. When their leaders came to visit, we greeted them with kindness but Bush used caution. He reduced defense spending minorly but discouraged too much optimism about the matter.

New Directions in Latin America:
Bush took a less militant approach to affairs in Nicaragua, he provided the contras with food, clothing, and medical supplies. Although a new leader was elected and it was a "victory for democracy", the same man retained control of its military so future relations between the US and Nicaragua remained uncertain. **Invasion of Panama:** Although Manuel Noriega, the Panamanian dictator, was considered a friend of the US, he was involved in a lot drug smuggling. When tried for the drugs, he ran. Bush sent forces into Panama and he soon surrendered to stand trial. We offered to rebuild the nations economy, but Noriega was no longer considered a "friend".

Unrest in China:
Thousand of Chinese students gathered in Tiananmen Square in the capital city of Beijing to campaign for democratic reforms. Reforms were not made and many protesters were killed and arrested. []

A Policy Toward South Africa:
Democracy was spreading in South Africa although they used apartheid. Because of South Africa's policy, Congress wanted to used economic sanctions (limits on trade ad investment) to persuade them to end apartheid. US universities and state government used divestiture (removal of investments in business and companies who operated in South Africa) and businesses closed their factories in South Africa. A new president was elected, F. W. de Klerk, who announced reforms that were to be made to ease racial tensions. He freed Nelson Mandela from prison who was first jailed because he opposed apartheid.

**War Clouds in the Middle East:**
The Middle East remained threat to world peace. After the Iran-Iraq war ended, the Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein rebuilt his military and they invaded Kuwait. [] <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 255);">**A complex threat:** If Saddam conquered Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, he would control more than 80% of the oil in the region, and that could possibly cripple the economies of the western world. <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 255);">**The World Responds:** Bush sent forces to Saudi Arabia to protect them against Iraqi forces. The UN approved a trade boycott of Iraq as a movement to try to stop their aggression. In response, Saddam held many people hostage and used them to his advantage.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; color: rgb(128, 0, 128);">Fugitives in a Desert Drama:
Iraq invaded Kuwait and began to torture them. Iraqi forces closed off the city and no one could get in or out. Americans in Kuwait were at risk too, so they hid from Iraqi forces and fought back when they could. People began to set up shelters in case air strikes came over the city.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; color: rgb(107, 246, 14);">**War in the Persian Gulf:**
The threat of war increased because Iraq would not leave Kuwait. Bush sent forces to the Middle East and would attack if felt necessary. Saddam released hostages but on January 16, the US and other UN countries launched air attacks on Iraq. Iraq was defeated in 6 weeks.