Political Change in the 1960-70s (WJEC Eduqas GCSE History): Revision Note

Summary

When John F Kennedy became President in 1961, he seemed to represent a new, youthful and optimistic era. He planned to improve American society through a program of change that he called the New Frontier. This would focus on the problems of poverty, education, health and civil rights. Some progress was made in these areas, but Kennedy’s death in 1963 means that we will never know how successful the New Frontier would have been.

Richard Nixon lost the 1960 election to Kennedy but was eventually elected President in 1968. His second term as president became bogged down in a scandal that became known as Watergate. The scandal centred around a break-in of the offices of Nixon’s political opponents and how much Nixon knew about the break-in. The discovery that Nixon had secretly taped conversations in the White House provided evidence that indicated that Nixon did know about the break-in and eventually caused him to resign in disgrace before he could be impeached. 

The Domestic Policies of Kennedy

• John F Kennedy became President of the United States in 1961

• During his acceptance speech for the Democratic nomination in 1960, he outlined the policy of the New Frontier

  • Kennedy wanted to make the USA a better, fairer place for all Americans. 

• The New Frontier policy focused on: 

  • Economic growth

  • The removal of racial discrimination

  • The improvement of public programs through the use of federal aid 

• Kennedy described the New Frontier as a set of challenges and issues that the American people faced and had to overcome. These problems included: 

  • Poverty

  • Education

  • Health

  • Civil rights

Kennedy and Poverty

• In 1961, when Kennedy became President, the US was in a recession, and unemployment had risen to around 7.1% in 1961 

• Kennedy’s New Frontier focused on:

  • Economic growth 

  • Reducing unemployment

Achievements

• The Housing Act of 1961 gave $4.9 billion in cheap loans to redevelop inner- cities

• The minimum wage was increased from $1 per hour to $1.25

• The Commission on Equal Employment Opportunity (CEEO) was created to make sure government employees had equal opportunities

Failures

• The Housing Act focused on the poorest people who could not pay back their loans

• Kennedy’s minimum wage reform only benefited the unemployed 

• The CEEO focused on those who already had a government job, and not the unemployed in other industries 

Kennedy and Education

• Kennedy wanted to increase spending on education and improve educational programs 

  • He believed that education helped to uphold the economic strength of America 

• Achievements: 

  • In 1961, Kennedy wanted to increase federal aid to schools

  • Kennedy created the Peace Corps in 1961, sending volunteers abroad to help people in poorer countries work as teachers, doctors, and technical advisors

    • Many Americans joined the Peace Corps, and it still exists today

• Failures: 

  • Congress blocked Kennedy's attempts to provide Federal funds for schools over fears of desegregation in schools 

  • Many Southern politicians disagreed with Kennedy over civil rights and therefore refused to support his other reforms

Kennedy and Health

• In the 1960s, Americans had to pay for their medical treatment due to the private healthcare system 

• This was expensive and often resulted in many Americans being unable to access medical care 

• Kennedy wanted to make health care more accessible to all Americans

• Achievements: 

  • In 1961, Kennedy planned to introduce a new, cheap health insurance system for the elderly called Medicare 

  • The Social Security Act of 1962 increased benefits for the elderly and unemployed

• Failures: 

  • Congress refused to support Kennedy’s plans for Medicare 

Kennedy and the Civil Rights Movement

• Kennedy wanted to make the USA a fairer and better place

• He planned to do this by giving equal rights to all black Americans, supporting them to receive a quality education

• Achievements: 

  • Kennedy introduced the Civil Rights Bill to Congress in February 1963

    • This aimed to provide blackAmericans with equality in housing and education

  • Kennedy created more jobs for black Americans than any other US President before him

  • Kennedy threatened legal action against the state of Louisiana 

    • Which refused to fund schools that were desegregated

  • In October 1962, Kennedy sent 23,000 government troops to the University of Mississippi to ensure that one black student, James Meredith, could study there

  • Kennedy put pressure on individuals such as Governor George Wallace in 1963 to release protestors who were jailed in the Birmingham marches

• Failures: 

  • Kennedy failed to get the Civil Rights Bill passed during his presidency; it was later passed by President Johnson in 1964

  • Kennedy’s support of the civil rights movement affected his relationship with Congress, which resulted in Congress refusing to support his other programs and reforms 

Kennedy’s Assassination

• Kennedy was assassinated on 22nd November 1963

  • His early death meant many of his programs and reforms remained incomplete

    • However, his assassination created sympathy, which helped President Johnson pass civil rights laws

Nixon & Watergate

• Richard Nixon had lost the presidential election against John F. Kennedy in 1960, but won in 1968 

  • He was reelected as president in 1972, but the scandal that became known as Watergate led to his resignation in 1974

What was the Watergate Scandal?

• In 1972, five members of the Committee to Re-elect the President, a ‘dirty tricks’ department set up by Nixon, were arrested

  • They had been caught breaking into the offices of the rival Democratic Party in the Watergate Building

  • They were attempting to install secret listening devices or “bugs”

• Two journalists at the Washington Post reported that all five burglars worked for Nixon, but the President denied any knowledge or involvement

  • All five of the burglars were convicted at a trial in 1973, and one claimed the White House was trying to cover up the plot

    • Nixon denied this, but two of his closest advisors resigned

• The US Senate set up a committee to investigate the claims of a cover-up by the president, and its questioning of White House officials was televised

  • One of Nixon’s aides claimed there had been a cover-up by the president

  • Another told the committee that Nixon had installed secret listening devices in the White House and that all of his conversations had been taped

    • Nixon refused to hand over the tapes

• Eventually, Nixon was forced to hand over the unedited tapes, and they proved that he had been involved in the plot to break into the Watergate Building

  • They also proved that he had repeatedly lied to the committee and the American people

• The US Congress decided to impeach Nixon

  • This meant he would have been put on trial for his role in the break-in in and the Senate would have acted as the jury and decided his guilt

  • To avoid this, Nixon resigned on 8 August 1974

The Impact of Watergate

• Nixon was forced to resign with his reputation in ruins

  • He was nicknamed ‘Tricky Dicky’ by the newspapers and TV

• The scandal damaged the reputation of American politicians in general 

  • The reputation of the USA was also severely damaged

• However, the Watergate scandal seemed to prove that the American Constitution and political system worked

  • The President had been found out, held to account and forced to resign

  • It also led to a series of measures that limited the powers of the government 

    • Such as the War Powers Act, the Election Campaign Act and the Privacy Act