APUSH Period 8 (1945-1980) Lecture Notes

Overview

• Time period: End of World War II (1945) to the election of Ronald Reagan (1980)
• Constitutes about 15% of the APUSH exam

Post World War II Changes

• US Involvement in International Affairs
  • Contrast with post-WWI: US joins the United Nations (1945)
  • Similar ideas in the Atlantic Charter (Roosevelt & Churchill)

The Cold War

• Ideological, Political, and Military Struggle
  • Between the US and the Soviet Union (1946-1991)
• US Policy of Containment
  • Articulated by George Kennan
  • Methods include military and financial support to resist communism
  • Examples:
    • Truman Doctrine: $400 million to Greece and Turkey
    • Marshall Plan: Billions to Western Europe
    • Chinese Civil War: Financial support to Nationalists (unsuccessful)

Collective Security Agreements

• United Nations and NATO
  • NATO: First permanent peacetime military alliance

CIA and Indirect Military Conflict

• CIA Operations
  • Under Eisenhower: Regime changes in Guatemala and Iran
  • "Nixon Doctrine": Countries to handle own conflicts with US support

Military Buildup and Arms Race

• Policies and Strategies
  • Truman: Military buildup during Korean War (NSC 68)
  • Eisenhower's "New Look" Policy: Reliance on nuclear weapons
    • "Massive Retaliation"
  • Kennedy's "Flexible Response"

Space Race

• US-Soviet Competition in Space
  • Post-Sputnik (1957): Funding for NASA and education
  • 1969: US lands on the moon

Direct Military Engagements

• Korean War (1950): Containment strategy successful
• Vietnam War: Escalated after Gulf of Tonkin resolution
  • Operation Rolling Thunder
  • Tet Offensive (1968): Controversy and anti-war movement

Detente Periods

• Relaxation of Tensions
  • Eisenhower's "Atoms for Peace"
  • Post-Cuban Missile Crisis (Hotline between US and USSR)
  • Nixon and Kissinger: Sino-Soviet split
    • SALT talks (Strategic Arms Limitation)

Domestic Impact of Cold War Policies

• Debate over Federal Power and Civil Liberties

• Nuclear Arsenal and Military-Industrial Complex

  • Eisenhower's farewell address warning

• Executive Power and Presidential Authority

  • Truman vs. MacArthur
  • Gulf of Tonkin Resolution: Increased presidential power
  • War Powers Act (1973): Limit presidential war-making

• Domestic Opposition

  • Limited debate over Korean War
  • Vietnam War: Hawks vs. Doves
  • Anti-war protests (Kent State, 1970)

Second Red Scare

• Fear of Communist Infiltration
  • McCarthyism and HUAC investigations
  • Federal Employee Loyalty Program

Decolonization and Global Competition

• US and Soviet Influence in Former Colonies
  • Vietnam, Middle East, Latin America

Middle East Involvement

• US Interests: Ideological, Economic, Strategic
  • Operation Ajax in Iran (1953)
  • Suez Crisis and Eisenhower Doctrine
  • OPEC and oil embargo
  • Camp David Accords (1978)

Latin America Involvement

• US Support for Non-Communist Regimes
  • Guatemala coup (1954)
  • Cuban Revolution (1959) and subsequent embargo
  • Cuban Missile Crisis (1962)

Conclusion

• Check other resources for more detailed information
• Remember the significance of these events for the APUSH exam
• Aim for success on the exam