90’s and 2000’s Notes

. President Bush, Reagan’s VP, wins the 1988 election against Dukakis o Promised no new taxes o Dirty Politics . Gorbachev is still the leader in the USSR o Perestroika - restructuring of the economy…allowed private enterprise and profit making o Glasnost - openness of personal freedoms…granted freedom of religion and speech amongst other things . Communist countries turned to democracy which eventually brought down the Berlin wall. o Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Romania, Bulgaria, and East Germany o East and West Germany will reunite . A coup to overthrow Gorbachev failed o Then in 1991 the Soviet Union officially collapsed . Tiananmen Square o Though China eased on economic capabilities they did not allow personal freedoms. o While citizens were protesting for democracy soldiers opened fire. Around 3,000 plus were killed. . Manuel Noriega of Panama stopped cooperating with the US, aided drug traffickers, stopped opposition, and attacked US military personnel. o Bush authorized the invasion of Panama and captured Noriega o Free elections and a new government were set up in Panama . Persian Gulf War was in 1991 o Started with Operation Desert Storm o Plan to defeat Saddam Hussein in Iraq after he invaded Kuwait . Planned on attacking Saudi Arabia afterwards . Had used Poison Gas on his own people . Was thought to be a world threat o The war was fought mostly through bombing and only 300 US soldiers were lost. . Bush inherited Reagan’s deficit problem and a slowing economy o The US would go into a recession and high unemployment . A lot of this was due to the downsizing of the military after the cold war victory. . The government had to continuously borrow money which hurt the economy. . Bush would have to increase taxes which were against what he had promised.

. This would lead to the 1992 campaign of Bush, Clinton, and Perot. o Clinton would win the election . Clinton tried to fix the economy by raising taxes and lowering interest rates; the opposite of Reaganomics. o would have the longest sustained period of economic growth in US History . The success of the economy as well as successful legislation led Clinton to be reelected in 1996. . Will lead the US and UN through the Balkan Crisis; Bosnia and Kosovo ethnic cleansing . NAFTA . Clinton gets caught up in an affair scandal o Had been accused earlier on in his political career but had paid money to have it disappear. o Accused of having an extra marital affair with Monica Lewinsky o Lied under oath when asked by congress o Will come close to being impeached from office but will finish his term . George Bush, former governor of Texas, will become President over Al Gore o Came down to the State of Florida and the Supreme Court ruling. “The Hanging Chad” . September 11, 2001 . US Civilian planes heading for the west coast were high jacked on the east coast. These planes were used as bombs to blow up US buildings at strategic points. 2 Hit the world trade centers, 1 hit the Pentagon, 1 went down in Shanksville, PA. The terrorist act was done by radical Islamic extremists known as Al Qaeda and led by Osama Bin Laden. This was the most severe attack on US soil in our history. . The US will wage war in Afghanistan, against the Taliban, and in Iraq, to seize weapons of mass destruction. This war is known as the War on Terror. . Creation of the USA Patriot Act o Allowed secret searches, wiretapping, email and voicemail tracking amongst other things. . Pres. Bush will be re elected in 2004 over John Kerry . Pres. Bush will have to deal with the natural disaster Hurricane Katrina in 2005 o Devastated New Orleans o Estimated 81 billion dollars worth of damage . President Obama will be elected in 2008 o First president of African American descent