Presidential Scandals and Issues 1970-2000

• Watergate


  Nixon sent burglars to the Watergate Building where the Democratic Party headquarters was housed. They wiretapped phones and stole documents. Two years of investigation pointed to Nixon's involvement so he resigned.
• Teapot Dome


  A scandal in the 1920s during the presidency of Warren G. Harding. It involved government officials accepting bribes from oil companies in exchange for leasing public oil fields.
• Watergate


  A scandal in the 1970s during the presidency of Richard Nixon. It started with a break-in at the Democratic National Committee headquarters in the Watergate building in Washington, D.C. It was later revealed that Nixon's administration was involved in covering up their involvement in the break-in.
• Iran Contra


  A scandal during the presidency of Ronald Reagan in the 1980s. It involved secretly selling weapons to Iran, which was under an arms embargo, and using the money to fund rebel groups in Nicaragua, known as the Contras.
• Clinton Affair


  A scandal involving President Bill Clinton in the 1990s. It started with allegations of Clinton having a sexual relationship with a White House intern, Monica Lewinsky, and lying about it under oath.
• Arab Oil Embargo


  During Jimmy Carter's presidency, some countries in the Middle East, like Saudi Arabia, stopped selling oil to the United States and other countries that supported Israel during a war. This caused a big problem because it made the price of oil go up a lot.
• Panama Canal


  Jimmy Carter helped negotiate an agreement called the Panama Canal Treaties. These treaties said that the United States would give control of the Panama Canal, an important canal, back to Panama.
• Camp David Accords


  Carter brought together the leaders of Israel and Egypt to talk and eventually sign a peace treaty.
• Hostage Crisis


  This was the most difficult time of Jimmy Carter's presidency when Iranian revolutionaries took over the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, Iran, and held 52 Americans hostage for 444 days.
• Stagflation


  When prices for things go up a lot (inflation) but the economy is not growing well and many people don't have jobs (stagnation).
• MAD (Mutually Assured Destruction)


  A concept during the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union. It meant that if one country launched a nuclear attack, the other country would retaliate with its own nuclear weapons, leading to the total destruction of both countries.
• Detente


  A period of improved relations between the United States and the Soviet Union during the 1970s. It was a time of reduced tension and increased cooperation, especially in areas like arms control and trade.
• SALT Treaty (Strategic Arms Limitation Talks Treaty)


  An agreement between the United States and the Soviet Union to limit the number of nuclear weapons each country could have. The treaty aimed to reduce the risk of nuclear war by limiting the arms race between the two superpowers.
• Perestroika


  A policy introduced by Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev in the 1980s. It involved restructuring and reforming the Soviet economy and political system to make it more efficient and open.
• Glasnost


  A policy introduced by Gorbachev in the 1980s. It means "openness" and involved greater freedom of speech and transparency in the Soviet government. It allowed for more public discussion and criticism of government policies.
• Reaganomics (aka Supply Side Economics or Trickle Down Economics)

  A set of economic policies that aimed to reduce the role of the federal government, cut federal programs, lower taxes for businesses, and reduce federal regulations. The idea was that this would allow businesses to have more money, expand their operations, and hire more people, which would increase employment.
• Peace through Strength


  A foreign policy approach that aimed not only to contain communism but also to push it back. This involved increasing military spending and taking actions like sending troops to Grenada to overthrow a communist government, as well as providing support to anti-communist groups in Nicaragua (Contras) and Afghanistan (during the Soviet-Afghan War).
• Strategic Defense Initiative (Star Wars)

  A proposed missile defense system intended to protect the United States from nuclear attacks. It was sometimes called "Star Wars" because it was seen as a space-based defense system, like something from a science fiction movie.
• Iran-Contra Affair


  A scandal during the Reagan administration where officials secretly sold weapons to Iran in exchange for the release of American hostages. They then used the proceeds from these sales to fund the Contras, a rebel group in Nicaragua, which was against U.S. policy and laws.
• Truman Doctrine vs. Reagan Doctrine

  The Truman Doctrine aimed to contain the spread of communism, while the Reagan Doctrine aimed to "roll back" communism, meaning to actively work to reduce communist influence in other countries.
• George HW Bush continued Reagan's policies. The Soviet Union couldn't afford to keep up with the US arms race so they went bankrupt and collapsed.
• Panama Invasion


  A military operation in which the U.S. overthrew Panamanian dictator General Manuel Noriega, who was also involved in drug smuggling.
• Desert Shield


  A military operation aimed at defending Saudi Arabia from possible aggression by Iraq, in response to Iraq's invasion of Kuwait.
• Desert Storm (First Persian Gulf War)


  A military conflict in which a U.S.-led coalition invaded Kuwait to liberate it from Iraqi occupation, following Iraq's invasion of Kuwait.
• Impeachment


  Clinton had an extramarital affair with Monica Lewinski a White House intern. Clinton lied to Congress about it.
• NAFTA


  North Atlantic Free-Trade Association. Economic partnership between Canada, MX, & the United States.
• 9/11 Terrorist Attack


  Terrorists from Saudi Arabia, based in Afghanistan under the Taliban government, hijacked and crashed commercial airplanes into the World Trade Center in New York City, destroying the Twin Towers. The terrorist group responsible was Al-Qaeda, led by Osama bin Laden.
• Afghan War (Invasion of Afghanistan) 2001-2021


  American troops invaded Afghanistan to overthrow the Taliban government, which harbored Al-Qaeda terrorists responsible for the 9/11 attacks.
• Iraq War (Second Persian Gulf War) 2003


  American troops invaded Iraq and overthrew Saddam Hussein's government, based on the belief that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction. No such weapons were found.
• War on Terror 2001


  After 9/11, the U.S. declared a "War on Terror," which meant launching attacks on any country that harbored or supported terrorists. The speech included a message that countries had to choose sides in the fight against terrorism.
• Munich Speech (2007) Russian president Vladimir Putin criticized and accused the United States uncontained hyper use of force in international relations for global domination. Not in STAAR.
• USA Patriot Act (2001)

  A law enacted after 9/11 that allowed law enforcement to monitor private communications without a warrant and detain individuals indefinitely without trial, in an effort to prevent future terrorist attacks. It expired in 2015 and was replaced by the Freedom Act, which required a wiretap warrant.
• DHS & TSA

  The Department of Homeland Security was created to coordinate efforts to protect the United States from terrorism. The Transportation Security Administration is a part of DHS responsible for security in transportation, including airports.
• No Child Left Behind

  A law that required all states to test students in math and English from 3rd to 8th grade, aiming to improve education by ensuring all students meet certain standards.
• Affordable Care Act - ACA (Obamacare) 2010


  A law passed during the Obama administration that aimed to provide more Americans with access to affordable health insurance.
• Sonia Sotomayor

  The first Hispanic to be appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court, nominated by President Obama.
• Donald J. Trump


  Lowered taxes, increased military spending, renegotiated trade agreements and withdrew from NAFTA, changed US immigration policy.