America in the 21st Century

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America in the 21st Century

• Is the U.S. Master of its own Fate?

2
2000

• Y2K Crisis doesnt materialize
• Dot Com boom ends
• Global economy a reality
• Federal government in surplus
• Hope for Israeli/Palestinian reconciliation

3
2000 Election

• Bush/Cheney vs Gore/Lieberman
• Gore won popular vote by half million votes
• Bush won electoral vote after dispute and
  litigation to the Supreme Court over 537 votes in
  Florida
• Supreme Court Case Bush v. Gore, decided on a
  5-4 vote

4
Bush II First Term Agenda

• Reordering Clinton foreign policy
• By allowing the Israeli Palestinian talks to
  lapse
• Offensives on the axis of evil Iran, Iraq, N.
  Korea
• Rejects Kyoto Treaty on global warming
• No Child Left Behind Education Reform
• Create tests to measure school effectiveness
• Funding not provided to implement completely
• Tax Cuts over 10 years
• Deficits to be plugged with spending cuts

5
September 11

• Terrorist attacks on World Trade Center,
  Pentagon, and possibly White House (4th plane
  crashes in Pennsylvania) kill 3000 people.
• October 2001 War in Afghanistan to remove the
  Taliban regime which harbored Al Qaeda and Osama
  bin Laden
• December 2001 New government installed in
  Afghanistan bin Laden escapes
• Prisoners brought to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba for
  interrogation and declared enemy combatants
  (Jan 2002).

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War on Terror

• Greatly increased security concerns in US,
  particularly in travel
• Airport Security federalized
• Restricted entry to U.S. for travelers
• Patriot Act (October 2001)
• Department of Homeland Security proposed, created
  with the Homeland Security Act of 2002 and opened
  in January 2003.

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Homeland Security Agencies

• U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
• Transportation Security Administration
• U.S. Customs and Border Protection
• U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
• United States Secret Service
• Federal Law Enforcement Training Center
• United States Coast Guard
• Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

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Homeland Security Advisory System
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Iraq War

• Summer 2002 Bush Administration claims that
  Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction
  and was supporting terrorists
• October 2002 Congress provides president with
  authorization for military action
• US proposes U.N. demand Iraq dismantle WMDs UN
  Security Council provides authorization for
  inspections in November 2002

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Iraq War

• February 2003 Colin Power makes case for
  military action at UN
• UN inspectors request more time, saying they have
  not found WMDs
• March 19, 2003 US and coalition of the
  willing invade Iraq without UN authorization
• April 8, 2003 Coalition takes Baghdad and
  Hussein disappears April 14 Bush declares was
  is over

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May 2, 2003 Bush declares Mission Accomplished
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Iraq War

• Summer 2003 Continued effort to find WMDs none
  found
• Insurgency against coalition occupation begins
• Fall 2003 US soldiers begin Abu Ghraib prison
  interrogations to find source of insurgency and
  WMDs
• December 2003 Hussein captured

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Iraq War

• April 2004 Prisoner abuse photographs from Abu
  Ghraib Prison broadcast on 60 Minutes
• April 2004 Fallujah becomes battle ground
  between US forces and insurgency after
  contractors killed

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Fallujah violence
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2004 Election Season

• John Kerry v. George Bush
• Bush cautions that elections in Iraq will calm
  violence
• June 2004 sovereignty transferred
• Jan 2005 constitutional election
• December 2005 legislative election
• Bush wins in November 2004 claims mandate

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Bush, Second Term Agenda

• Complete mission in Iraq continued focus on the
  axis of evil
• Replace social security system with individual
  retirement accounts
• But..events again intervene
• Hurricane season Katrina and the destruction of
  New Orleans (August-September 2005)

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Hurricane Katrina
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New Orleans and Matairie, Louisiana after
Hurricane Katrina
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Gulfport, Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina
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War in Iraq continues
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US Deaths in Iraq
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US Deaths in Iraq Trend
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2006 Off Year Elections as Mandate on Bush
Administration

• Democrats propose moderate candidates in states
  like Virginia
• Antiwar movement tackles Democratic supporters of
  Iraq War Lieberman targeted in Connecticut
• Grass roots organizing by both parties

26
Electoral Turnout
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The Strength of Party Turnout
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Wisconsin Turnout is Higher than National Average

• Presidential Elections, 1980 2004

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Voter Turnout, U.S. and Wisconsin, 1980-2006
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What next?

• How will the Iraq War end?
• Who will be the major party candidates for the
  2008 presidential election?
• How will Democrats run Congress?
• How will a Republican President and Democratic
  Congress function?
• And locally.?

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Turnout, Off Year and Presidential, US and WI