The 1990s: A Historical Overview

The 1990s
George H.W. Bush
and the fall of the Soviet Union
• Bush elected (1988) on Reagan’s record
• Communism crumbles in Europe, 198991
• Consumer goods, personal freedom, rock ‘n’
roll
• Berlin Wall falls, Dec. 1989
• Soviet Union disintegrates, 1990-91
• Economic decline, Afghanistan war
• Mikhail Gorbachev: reform, not
repression
• Russia becomes a fragile democracy
The Gulf War
• Iraq (Saddam Hussein) invades Kuwait, 1990
• Bush organizes worldwide opposition
• Decisive military victory
• Massive air strikes, then 3-day ground war
• Bush approval ratings near 90%
• Limited objective: liberate Kuwait (not occupy
Iraq)
• “New World Order”: U.S. as sole superpower
Bill Clinton
• Few Democrats willing to challenge Bush
in 1992
• Clinton: strong communicator
• Avoids social issues
• Middle class prosperity
• Bush: hurt by recession and tax increase
• Clinton wins (1992) and governs as a
moderate
• Scales back Reagan’s tax cuts for wealthy
• Cuts spending
Clinton attempts universal
health coverage
• Efficiency
• Health costs consume 15% of U.S. wealth
versus around 10% in other countries
• Reduce drug costs, redundant jobs, etc.
• Strong support for reform
• Political failure
• Appoints wife Hillary Clinton to manage
proposal
• Lobbying from insurance companies
• Lack of consultation
Clinton as moderate
• Works with Republicans
• Welfare reform
• 15 million to 3 million recipients
• Maximum 5 years of benefits
• Must seek job
• Greater state control
• North American Free Trade
Agreement (NAFTA)
• Free trade deals: U.S. as hub of global
economy
• But local economic difficulty
Tech boom, climate change,
and “the end of history”
• Tech: medical, electronics
• Internet
• Most benefit to top earners, best-educated
• Climate change becomes major national
issue
• Better computerized climate modeling 
wide scientific consensus
• Oil company opposition
• Alarmists hurt credibility
• Kyoto Conference: U.S. and poorer countries
cannot agree to limit emissions
Race / “End of history”
• L.A. riots (1992) & O.J. Simpson
• Gangsta rap
• Growth of black middle class
• Latinos become largest minority group in 1990s
• Reagan: amnesty for 3 million illegal immigrants
• But growing opposition to immigration
• “End of history”
• Communism defeated
• Triumphant American model: democratic
government, personal freedom, free markets
Sept. 11 2001 and after
Bush vs. Gore
• Clinton leaves office with high popularity
• Al Gore (Clinton vice president)
vs.
• George W. Bush (Texas governor)
• Centrist vs. centrist
• Too close to call in Florida
• Punch-card ballots
• Florida officials end recount
• Supreme Court decides to end recount
• 5 in favor, 4 opposed
Sept. 11, 2001
• Bush/FBI/CIA miss early hints of possible
attack
• 19 hijackers
• 4 airliners
• 2 hit World Trade Center towers
• 1 hits Pentagon
• 1 crashes in rural Pennsylvania after passenger
resistance
• Bush attacks Taliban regime in Afghanistan
• Pursuit of Osama bin Laden
Iraq War and after
• Bush administration targets Iraq, 2003
• Alleged support for terrorism
…and “weapons of mass destruction”
• Bush declares victory after capture of Hussein
…but uncovers no evidence of anti-U.S. plans or terror
weapons
• Most U.S. deaths after declaration of victory
• Bush barely defeats John Kerry, 2004
• Bush supporters question Kerry’s Vietnam record
• By 2008, Bush very unpopular
• Barack Obama as “change candidate” & symbol of racial
progress