-
Period: to
Events
-
High Unemployment
Domestic: Reagan President Ronald Reagan faced an unemploment rate of 10.4%. To combat this dismal number, he lowered federal income taxes, signed the Economic Recovery Tax Act, and signed the Job Training Partnership Act, which was a major part of job creation at the time.
President's approval rating: 42%
Congress' approval rating: 31% -
Iran-Contra Affair
Controversial: Reagan The Iran-Contra Affair scandal exposed the Reagan administration's covert arms sales to Iran in the hopes of securing the release of hostages. The profit from the sales was also used to fun the Nicaraguan Contras. This scandal resulted in 14 indictments and 11 convictions withing the administration.
President's approval rating: 46%
Congress' approval rating: unknown -
Libya Bombing
Foreign: Reagan In response to the 1986 Berlin discotheque bombing, the United States Air Force, Marines, and Navy carried out an airstrike against Libya
President's approval rating: 67%
Congress approval rating: unknown -
Immigration Reform and Control Act
Legislative: Regan In 1986, Preasident Reagan signed the Immigration Reform and Control Act. This act prohibited employers from knowingly hiring illegal immigrants and also gave amnest to any illegal immigrant who had enetered the country before January 1st, 1982.
President's approval rating: 54%
Congress' approval rating: unknown -
Americans with Disabilities Act
Domestic: Bush The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 was passed by President George H. W. Bush. The bill prohibits discrimination against those with a disability in most cases. It defines the term disability as "a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity."
President's approval rating: 62%
Congress' approval rating: 40% -
START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty)
Legislation: Bush The START was a treaty between the USA and the USSR barring each respctively from deploying over 6,000 nuclear warheads. The two main signatories include George H. W. Bush and Mikhail Gorbachev.
President's approval rating: 70%
Congress' approval rating: 30% -
NAFTA signed into agreement
Foreign: Bush This agreement between the United States, Canada, and Mexico created a trilateral trade bloc in North America. The agreement also phased out many tariffs regarding agricultural trade.
President's approval rate: 42%
Congress' approval rate: Unknown -
Israel-Palestinian Conflict
Foreign: Clinton President Clinton signed a peace treaty stating that limited Palestinian control was allowed on the Israel-occupied Gaza Strip and West Bank.
President's approval rating: 46%
Congress' approval rating: 23% -
Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy instated
Leg.: Clinton As passed by President Bill Clinton, this policy was created to prohibit discrimination and harrassment of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered service memebers. It also barred any openly gay individuals from joining the military under the premis that they "would create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion that are the essence of military capability."
President's approval rating: 52%
Congress' approval rating: 27% -
The Welfare Reform Act of 1996
Domestic: Clinton This bill was signed by President Bill Clinton and added a working requirement to those on welfare. It was said to be a "reassertation of the US work force" by the Chamber of Commerce.
President's approval rating: 50%
Congress; approval rating: 32% -
Monica Lewinsky Scandal
Controversial: Clinton President Clinton faced allegations of sleeping with Monica Lewinsky, a Lewis and Clark College graduate and an intern at the white house. The scandal was leaked to the public in January of 1998 and lead to the legal impeachment of the President under perjury charges.
President's approval rating: 59%
Congress' approval rating: 48% -
War in Afghanistan
Foreign: Bush The war in Afghanistan began shortly after the 9/11 attacks, with then President George W. Bush having the intentions of removing the Taliban regime from power and dismantling the terrorist group al-Qaeda.
President's approval rating: 87%
Congress' approval rating: 67% -
Signing of USA PATRIOT Act
Controversial: Bush Another by-product of the September 11th attacks, the USA PATRIOT Act was signed by President George W. Bush. It greatly reduced freedoms of Americans, subjected them to invasion of privacy, and gave lots of free room for law enforcement to abuse power under the premise of "suspected terroristic activities."
President's approval rating: 87%
Congress' approval rating: 67% -
No Child Left Behind Act
Domestic: Bush This education reform act was proposed at the start of President George W. Bush's presidency and was pount into act on January 8th, 2002. The bill's aim was to set a higher standard for education in America and requires schools to administer standardized testing to receive federal funding.
President's approval rating: 82%
Congress' approval rating: 47% -
Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act
Legislative: Bush This act, signed into law in July of 2006 by President George Bush, made a requirement that all sex offenders must register themselves within a national registry and tells the states to post the offender's data on the internet. It was enacted after Adam Walsh, a young boy abducted at a Florida shopping mall and later found murdered.
President's approval rating: 40%
Congress' approval rating: 28% -
American Recovery and Restoration Act of 2009
Domestic: Obama Newly elected President Barack Obama signed off on a $787 billion economic stimulus program in an effort to turn around a fast-growing recession. The plan increased spending on healthcare and education as well as bailing out many coorperations.
President's approval rate: 62%
Congress' aproval rate: 26% -
End of Iraq Combat Mission
Foreign: Obama President Obama announced that the combat mission in Irag was officially over. All combat troops were then taken out of Iraq by August 19th, 2010, and the remaining troops were brought home in time for the holidays the next year.
President's approval rate: 45%
Congress' approval rate: 19% -
Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repealed
Legislative: Obama The president fulfilled a key campaign promise by repealing the DADT bill passed by President Clinton in 1993. Reports within the service reassured politicians that there was no high risk of disruption due to the repeal of the bill.
President's approval rating: 47%
Congress' approval rating: 13% -
Contraceptive Requirements
Controversial: Obama A mandate requiring those who are insurrers to Catholic hospitals to provide contraceptives such as birth control to women have many of the male counterparts in this religion up in arms, saying that this infringes upon their religious freedoms.
President's approval rating: 45%
Congress' approval rating: 12%
