Chapter 32: Stumbling into the Twenty-first Century Intro: Pearl Harbor- Dec.

- Dec. 7, 1941 Al Qaeda terrorist attack- Sept. 11, 2001 Osama bin Laden calls for a jiihad (holy war) in 1998. [1998: American embassies bombed in Kenya and Tanzania; 2000: bombed USS Cole, American warship visiting Yemen] Al Qaeda becomes an existential threat. (On par with 1941 Nazis, 1950 Soviets) Americas global mission: War on Terror Cost: wars in Afghanistan/Iraq, $500 billion expended, American/Iraqi casualties, soiled image of America US enters 21st century ill-equipped

The Advent of George W. Bush The Contested Election of 2000 George Bush v. Al Gore George Bush unsuccessfully tried to become Texas oil man + Senator. After father became president, George W. finally became managing partner of Texas Rangers baseball franchise. 1994- elected governor of Texas (with Karl Rove, his future political guru) Bush presented himself as a regular guy. Ran as an outsider, deploring Washington partisanship. Domestic policy: stood for compassionate conservatism. Always on message Al Gore was vice president of previous president Clinton. Never settled on a message so gave impression that he had no fixed principles. Ralph Nader (Green Party) took away votes from Gore. Eventually, Gore won popular vote: 50.9 mil to 50.4 mil. However, Bush won electoral vote: 271 to 267 Democrats challenged tally in Florida, demanded recounts in several counties. However, Supreme Court intervened and stopped the recounts and let Bushs victory stand (Recounting ballots in only selected counties violated rights on other Floridians under 14th amendment Equal Protection clause) Supreme Court ruled that Bush v. Gore was a one shot deal and was not to be regarded as precedent. But by making a transparently political decision, Justice John Paul warned that the conservative majority undermined the Nations confidence in the judge as an impartial guardian of the rule of law Bushs Agenda VP: Richard Cheney- uncompromising, conservative Republican Cheney became virtually a co-president with Bushs consent. Karl Rove- Bushs campaign advisor Rove argued that a permanent Republican majority could be built on the partys conservative base. Tom DeLay- House majority leader (Gingrichs second in command in 95) DeLay had declared all out war on democrats. Masterminded the K Street Project- achieved a Republican lock on the big money lobbying firms. DeLay had a safe House majority 2002- Republicans in control of both Congress and White House, no more bipartisan lawmaking. Bushs compassionate conservatism+Roves political calculations and exceptionally combative allies= hybrid brand of conservatism not easily classified Reverend Billy Graham- George Bush became a born again Christian, Evangelical leaders had an ally in the Whole House, a true believer in their moral agenda. Bushs campaign free of Republican race baiting, General Colin Powell (former Joint Chief of Staff, later became secretary of state) and Condoleezza Rice (national security advisor then Powells successor) Mexican Americans also figured prominently, middle ground, illegal immigration Civil rights: No Child Left Behind (2000) increased federal funding for primary, secondary education, allowed students to transfer in underporfming schools to better ones. NCLB overrode local control, imposed federal standards for student performance (means of disciplining a lagging educational system.) people complained program was underfunded, and may have unintended consequences (i.e., school districts encouraging low scoring students to drop out) Congressional reauthorization of NCLB failed in 2007 and programs future became more problematic. Health Care Crisis: Medicare increased ~$200 billion during Bushs first five years. Bush administration passed a budget-busting drug-benefit bill (2003). [1. No negotiating by Medicare for bulk purchases, 2. Private insurers would compete for customers, 3. Copayments would be substantial.]

Taxes: Economic Growth and Tax Relief Act (2001) slashed income rates, extended earned income credit for poor and phased out the estate tax of 2010. Second round of cuts targeted dividend income and capital gains. Signature cutes favored big estates and well to do owners od stocks and bonds. Critics warned that the tax cuts would plunge the government into debt. Bush ignored ans in 2006, federal expenditures had jumped by 33%. As a candidate in 2000, Bush had little to say about foreign policy. He had assumed him administration would rise or fall on his domestic program. However, this was not the case as the scene of 9/11 unfolded. American Hegemony Challenged Hegemony: predominant influence exercised by one state over others. (This was the US in 2001) Bush said to be modest in relations with other states though his true bent was aggressively muscular. Bush was seconded by his VP, a Cold Warrior. Cheneys key ally was new secretary of defense, Donald Rumsfield. Rumsfield had brought in the neoconservatives- championed benevolent hegemony: the untrammeled use of Americas power, military power if need be, to fashion a better, more democratic world. Display of unilateralism- new administration walked away from an array of complete or pending diplomatic agreements: International Criminal Court, UN convention banning biological weapons, cancelled nuclear test bans, weapons reduction, and antiballistic missile treaty, and withdrawal from the Kyoto Protocol on global warming. US Rep. instructed not to participate in Bonn, Germany to refine the protocol. September 11, 2001 19 Al Qaeda terrorists hijacked four commercial jets: flew two on them into NYCs World Trade Center, one into the Pentagon, and one supposedly heading toward the White House (passengers fought back.) Sept 14, Bush headed for ground zero and WTC and stirred the nation. As an outburst of patriotism swept the US, Bush proclaimed a War on Terror and vowed to carry the battle to Al Qaeda. Al Qaeda was operating out of Afghanistan harbored by the fundamentalist Taliban regime (clear target.) US attacked by deploying military advisors and supplies to bolster anti-Taliban rebel forces. While Afghani allies carried out the ground work, American planes rained down destruction. By early 2002, this combination had ousted the Taliban regime, destroyed Al Qaedas training camps, and killed/captured many of its operatives. However, Osama Bin Laden retreated and US Special Op. failed to press the attack. Bin Laden bought off local war lords and escaped over the border to Pakistan. I. The War on Terror: Iraq A. USA PATRIOT act 1. Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism 2. Granted government authority to monitor citizens and apprehend suspected terrorists B. Iraq invasion 1. anticipatory self-defense; justification for U.S. War on Terror 2. Iran, North Korea, Iraq = axis of evil i. Iraq seemed like the easiest one to defeat ii. Iraq regarded as unfinished business from Gulf War of 1991 3. U.S. wanted to start a movement to democratize the world beginning in Iraq 4. U.S. wanted to control oil supply in the area 5. U.S. claimed that there were WMDs (Weapons of Mass Destruction) in Iraq 6. UN Security Council approved Resolution 1441 i. UN weapons inspectors sent to Iraq to search for WMDs ii. No WMDs found in Iraq 7. Despite failure in legitimizing U.S. claims, U.S. invaded anyways in March 2003 i. US found allies in Great Britain, but others opposed war. Ex: France, Germany, Mexico, Canada, Turkey 8. Three weeks after invasion, Baghdad was captured and the regime collapsed i. Bush declared Mission Accomplished on May 1 C. Post-conflict operations in Iraq 1. Pentagon failed to account for post-conflict operations 2. Fedayeen Iraqi paramilitary group started attacking American troops 3. Iraqi civil authorities and police force dissolved and widespread looting began 4. Insurgency began, involving both Shiite(majority in Iraq) and Sunni(held power under Saddams regime) Muslims 5. Al Qaeda flocked to Iraq, bringing suicide bombers 6. U.S. would need to send many more soldiers to control the insurgency 7. By 2004, $100 billion had been spent on the war, 1000 US soldiers were killed, and 10,000 were wounded. 8. Bush said that US needed to stay the course II. 2004 Presidential Election A. Senator John Kerry(D) of Massachusetts vs. President Bush

1. Kerry was a Vietnam war hero, decorated for his bravery B. Ratings for Bush began dropping because of bad situation in Iraq C. Both Democrats and Republicans worked to mobilize voters 1. Democrats used Internet-driven methods to raise money and reach activists 2. Republicans were able to outdo Democrats thanks especially to church networks. 3. Kerry lost his advantage as a war hero once TV ads produced by Swift Boat Veterans for Truth falsely charged that Kerry lied to obtain his medals 4. Kerry was also tagged as a flip-flopper when his inconsistent Senate voting record was discovered 5. Safely Democratic and Republican states were barely targeted by campaigning; most efforts were focused on contested states. 6. Republicans gained huge advantage when they were able to motivate socially conservatives on the basis of denouncing the decision made by the Supreme Court of Massachusetts that allowed gay marriage 7. Bush won 286 electoral votes to 252 III. Unfinished Business A. War in Iraq 1. Civil War broke out in 2006 between Sunni and Shiites 2. A race between insurgent civil war and American efforts at establishing stable government 3. In April 2006, 6 retired generals called for Secretary of Defense Rumsfelds resignation; By that time 2,300 troops had died, $300 billion had been spent, and 57% of Americans thought that the war was a mistake. B. Falling public opinion 4. Bush was pummeled from all sides; conservatives complained of Bushs inactivity towards gay marriage amendments and right-wingers complained about his policy for illegal immigrants. 5. Slow response to Hurricane Katrina further lowered public opinion 6. Major Republicans encountered scandals and black marked the Republican majority in Congress 7. Midterm elections erased the GOP majority in the Senate and took Republicans out of 6 governorships and the majority in ten state legislatures 8. Democrats had taken control and Bush started to give way. Bush retired the phrase stay the course. Secretary Rumsfeld resigned the day after the election. 9. Bushs legacy: lots of unfinished business