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American Liberty League Founded
The American Liberty League was an American political organization formed in 1934 by conservative Democrats to oppose the New Deal of Franklin D. Roosevelt. It was active for just two years. Following the landslide re-election of Roosevelt in 1936, it sharply reduced its activities and disbanded in 1940. -
Roosevelt Attempts To "Pack" Supreme Court
In 1937, an attempt by Roosevelt to “pack” the Supreme Court by adding new justices caused a backlash. Conservatives in both major political parties formed a coalition that opposed further New Deal legislation. Nevertheless, Republicans struggled to overcome Roosevelt's enduring popularity as President. Led by Roosevelt and later by Harry S Truman, the Democrats kept control of the White House for twenty years. -
Dwight Eisenhower Elected As A Moderate Republican
The election of Dwight D. Eisenhower as President in 1952 began eight years of Republican rule. Eisenhower called his approach to government “modern Republicanism.” He accepted the basic outlines of the New Deal and never attempted to dismantle the federal bureaucracy. The federal bureaucracy even expanded, as it did in 1953 with the creation of a Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, headed by Oveta Culp Hobby. -
Barry Goldwater Runs on a Conservative Platform and Loses to LBJ in a Landslide
The Republican candidate for President, Senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona, ran on a staunchly conservative platform. Facing Democrat Lyndon B. Johnson, Goldwater opposed government activism, including social security, federal civil rights laws and antipoverty programs. He also demanded a military buildup against a possible Soviet attack. -
Supreme Court Angers Social Conservatives with Decision to Legalize Abortion
The U.S. Supreme Court issues its ruling in Roe v. Wade, finding that a "right of privacy" it had earlier discovered was "broad enough to encompass" a right to abortion and adopting a trimester scheme of pregnancy. In the first trimester, a state could enact virtually no regulation. In the second trimester, the state could enact some regulation, but only for the purpose of protecting maternal "health." -
Conservative Republicans Sweep the Historic 1980 Election
On a platform that was originally seen as "too conservative", republicans swept the elections of 1980. They got their first majority in house since Eisenhower's first time and won the presdential election.
