Historical
Overview
The traumatic events of the 1970s—Watergate, stagflation, the energy crisis, the defeat of South Vietnam, and the Iranian hostage crisis—produced a severe loss of confidence among the American people. Americans were deeply troubled by the relative decline of American strength in the world; the decline of the productivity and innovation in American industry; and the dramatic growth of lobbies and special-interest groups that seemed to have paralyzed the legislative process. Republican Ronald Reagan capitalized on this frustration. In 1980 he won a landslide victory, carrying 43 states, drawing support from white Southerners, suburban Roman Catholics, and evangelical Christians.
To strengthen the nation’s defenses, the Reagan administration doubled the defense budget. To stimulate the economy, he persuaded Congress to slash tax rates and expanded the Carter administration’s efforts to decontrol and deregulate the economy. He also dismissed 15,000 striking air traffic controllers. In foreign affairs, the Reagan Doctrine pledged support for anti-Communist revolutions, and the United States provided aid to anti-Soviet forces in Afghanistan and opponents of Nicaragua’s Sandanista government.
The most significant event of the late 1980s was the collapse of eastern European and Soviet Communism. In 1991, the Soviet Union ended its existence, leaving the United States as the world’s sole superpower.
