Chapter 30: Twenty-First-Century America, 2000–Present
Analyze the following map of the 2016 election. What does the map suggest about the popular and electoral votes?
Whereas Clinton attracted more voters from the West Coast and northeastern states, Trump attracted more voters from rural, less densely populated states. Although nearly 3 million more people voted for Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump won around 70 more electoral votes to clinch the presidency.
Place these landmark events from the Biden administration's first 100 days in chronological order.
Biden signs the American Relief Plan, a COVID-19 recovery package. Biden announces the withdrawal of the last 3,500 American troops from Afghanistan. The Senate passes a bipartisan $1 trillion infrastructure bill. The Afghanistan government falls to the Taliban as the last American troops leave the country.
By signing the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), Bush restored confidence in both the economy and his presidency.
False
In 2018, Donald Trump refused to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un because his secretary of defense warned of the unlikelihood that North Korea would take steps to denuclearize.
False
Obama's Affordable Care Act (ACA) created a system through which uninsured Americans with low income could buy health insurance from the federal government.
False
The United States invaded Iraq with the full support of all its allies to remove Saddam Hussein from power and limit the threat posed by his chemical and biological weapons.
False
What was the main complaint from the Occupy Wall Street protesters?
Financial institutions were letting the rich control too large a percentage of wealth in the United States.
June of 2020 witnessed huge demonstrations in cities and towns all over the United States. Millions of Americans of different races participated. What was the immediate cause of this protest movement?
The killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police.
What do the images suggest about the public's response to the Trump presidency?
Trump's presidency sparked a grassroots opposition among some of the public. Immigration policy was one of the issues that inspired protests.
Bush remained popular among conservatives during his second term despite strong criticism from liberals.
False
By 2019, the Latino population was only growing in the five states along the Mexican border, which limited Hispanics' political power.
False
Identify the examples of Obama's successes in achieving his counterterrorism goals.
Obama used Navy SEALs to kill Osama bin Laden. Obama achieved many of his counterterrorism goals in Afghanistan by narrowing the focus of the U.S. mission and providing extra soldiers to finish the job.
How did the United States pursue the Obama Doctrine in Afghanistan and Iraq?
Obama used troops in Afghanistan to eliminate terrorists rather than continue nation-building. Obama withdrew combat forces from Iraq.
Why did Obama withdraw U.S. forces from Iraq?
Obama was following the agreement reached between the Iraqi government and the Bush administration in 2008.
What effect did the invasion of Iraq have on the "war on terror"?
The invasion destabilized Iraq and created an opportunity for terrorists to gain a stronghold.
Identify the following laws Obama supported and their intended effect.
Affordable Care Act (ACA): The act, dubbed "Obamacare" by critics, was intended to make health care and health insurance more accessible to everyone. Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA): The act offered temporary relief from deportation ("deferred action") to undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as children. Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act (DREAM): The act allowed undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as children (under the age of sixteen) to stay as residents and pursue formal citizenship. American Recovery and Reinvestment Act: The act provided funds for states to spend on infrastructure development projects. Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP): The act provided bailouts to financial institutions during the Great Recession.
Complete the passage to describe how Obama applied the Obama Doctrine in Libya.
As the civil war in Libya destabilized the country, Obama did not deploy troops to occupy the country. Obama appealed to the international community and launched airstrikes to support rebel fighters. America's European allies provided air support.
How were American politics influenced by increases in the number of minorities living in the United States?
As the population became more radically and ethnically diverse, politicians could no longer ignore them, as had often happened in the past, and as a result they become a major factor in the shifting social and political life of the twenty-first century.
Which population groups grew the fastest at the end of the twentieth century?
Asian Americans multiracial Americans Latinos
How did the rights of gay Americans evolve during Obama's presidency? Place the events in chronological order.
Congress repeals the "don't ask, don't tell" policy. Obama endorses same-sex marriage. The Supreme Court overturns the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).
How did the election of 2010 change President Obama's ability to pursue his policy goals?
Democrats and moderate Republicans lost their congressional seats to more conservative candidates. The Tea Party, which disliked President Obama's "big government," became a powerful force in American politics.
Which of the following are examples of Trump's activist presidential strategy to generate momentum for his agenda?
He signed numerous executive orders removing protections for consumers, food safety, internet privacy, transgender Americans, and victims of sexual abuse. He declared a freeze on most federal hiring.
A number of events added to the unpredictability of the 2016 election. Place the events in chronological order.
Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are declared the Democratic and Republican party candidates for the presidency. The press releases a 2005 recording of Trump bragging about using his popularity and power to kiss and grope women without their consent. FBI director James Comey announces his decision to reopen his investigation into Hillary Clinton's use of an unsecure email server while secretary of state. Trump wins a surprise victory in the presidential election.
Which statements accurately describe immigration to the United States in the twenty-first century?
Immigration from Asia, Latin America, and Africa means that the majority of new arrivals are no longer from Europe. In the first decade of the twenty-first century, Asian Americans were the fastest-growing ethnic group as a result of Chinese immigration.
Complete the passage describing how the threat of global terrorism influenced Bush's foreign policy.
In the fall of 2002, Bush decided to use preemptive military action to confront terrorism throughout the world. The Bush Doctrine declared that the United States would respond to terrorist threats even without allies to neutralize them before they became too big. As the Second Iraq War grew more imminent, Bush's advisers—including Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, and Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz—urged Bush to create a new world order by sponsoring "regime change" in authoritarian nations lacking "political and economic freedom."
Identify the causes of the Great Recession.
Irresponsible lenders gave unqualified borrowers home mortgages they could not afford. The housing bubble burst, leading to a rapid decline in home prices.
Select the locations in the United States that were directly attacked during Bush's presidency as a result of the rise of global terrorism.
NY PA DC
To what extent was Obama successful in his goal of uniting the country?
Obama could not bridge the bitter divide between Republicans and Democrats.
Complete the passage that places the COVID-19 pandemic in the larger context of historical global disease outbreaks.
Pandemics have played an important role in human history. As many as two-thirds of Europeans died as a result of the bubonic plague during the fourteenth century. The Spanish flu epidemic following the First World War may have led to as many as 100 million deaths. The impact of COVID-19 was not as severe as these earlier pandemics, thanks largely to improved medical knowledge. Still, it had a profound impact on lives all over the world.
Complete the passage to describe how political polarization affected politics in America.
Republicans and Democrats refused to work together to solve the nation's problems. Both parties disagreed with each other on how the government should address major issues. There were far fewer moderates, and Congress was unable to compromise, making it difficult to pass legislation.
Place the events of the Great Recession in chronological order.
Rising home prices encourage consumers to buy houses they cannot afford. Housing prices fall dramatically. Huge numbers of mortgage borrowers default on their payments. Banks lose billions on bad mortgages and other debts, while reduced spending plunges the country into a recession. Bush signs the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP).
Complete the passage to describe the factors that contributed to the rise of global terrorist organizations during the 1990s.
Terrorist organizations became popular in poor nations with weak governments. Islamic militants opposed the globalization of U.S. culture. Islamic militants found support from the Taliban in Afghanistan and used the country as a base to launch attacks on the West.
Which are examples of the effects of Latino/a demographic trends on American politics?
The Latino share of the electorate has drastically increased over time. The rapid growth of the Latino population has resulted in a large number of potential Latino voters. The number of Latinos serving as elected representatives in Congress has grown.
What made the election of 2000 controversial?
The Supreme Court intervened to decide the election.
What factors hampered the successful implementation of the Affordable Care Act?
The government website did not work properly. Insurance providers canceled the policies of many Americans.
Identify how the invasion of Iraq affected the American budget and economy.
The rebuilding process in Iraq cost nearly a trillion dollars. America faced massive budget deficits because of the enormous costs of the war.
Identify the roles of the following policies or agencies during the "war on terror" after the terrorist attacks of 9/11.
Transportation Security Administration: This was designed to ensure airline passengers did not bring weapons and bombs on planes. Office of Homeland Security: This was created to protect Americans from terrorists at home, to use its authority to spy on Americans when deemed necessary, and to respond to terrorist threats abroad. Bush Doctrine: This dramatic new national security policy promised to "extend the benefits of freedom across the globe," declaring that the United States must use preemptive military action against terrorist groups or unstable nations with "weapons of mass destruction." USA Patriot Act: This allowed the government to try suspected terrorists in secret military courts and gave government agencies the right to eavesdrop on confidential conversations between prison inmates and their lawyers.
Match the Trump White House executive actions with their short-term outcomes.
ban citizens of seven countries with largely Muslim populations from entering the United States: Federal courts deem the executive order as discriminatory, but the Supreme Court later upholds a modified version by a 5-4 vote. introduce the American Health Care Act, featuring repeals of many key features of the Affordable Care Act: Polls reveal that the bill is extremely unpopular. Republican legislators withdraw it before a vote. ban transgender people from serving in the military: A federal district court issues an injunction against the ban, ruling that there is no basis for its claim that transgender soldiers harm the military.
Which of the following represent unfulfilled campaign promises during Trump's early presidency?
disentangling the United States from foreign conflicts replacing the Affordable Care Act with "Trumpcare," or the American Health Care Act building a massive wall on America's southern border with Mexico and persuading Mexico to pay for it
Identify the policies Obama sought to implement in his first term.
economic stimuli in order to create jobs health-insurance reform to expand access to the uninsured setting in motion the end of the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan continued government support of large banks and other financial institutions
Which of the following were major factors that led to Donald Trump's victory in the 2016 presidential election?
feelings of being left behind by the economic recovery and political resentment among working-class Whites polarized and angry politics Trump's positioning of himself as an "outsider" candidate
In 2015, Republican Jeb Bush remarked, "Donald, you know, is great at the one-liners. But he's a chaos candidate. And he'd be a chaos president." Which of the following are examples of the so-called chaos that undermined Trump's early efforts to implement his "America First" agenda?
rapid and frequent turnover in the White House aides and cabinet members an FBI investigation into whether the Trump campaign colluded with foreign agents to win the election nontraditional selections for senior government roles
What was President Obama's primary foreign policy goal?
to end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan
