Chapter Thirty One: To a New Conservatism, 1969-1988

Practice Quiz:

1. Which statement best characterizes Reagan’s two terms as governor of California?
a. He bullied the Democratic legislature to implement his conservative policies.
b. He lacked natural abilities as a political leader.
c. He was flexible instead of trying to implement all of his conservative beliefs.
d. He allowed the Moral Majorty to set his entire the agenda.

2. Nixon’s program to improve relations with the Soviet Union was known as
a. stolichnaya
b. détente
c. perestroika
d. dénouement

3. Which component was NOT part of Nixon’s plan to end the war in Vietnam?
a. a gradual withdrawal of American troops
b. training South Vietnamese forces to take over combat
c. increased military spending
d. renewed bombing

4. What was most important about the SALT I agreements?
a. They revealed the extent of the secret Soviet nuclear-weapon stockpiling
b. They demonstrated that the United States would not compromise on its weapons program
c. They demonstrated that the Soviet Union would not compromise on its weapons program
d. They were a symbolic first step in a peaceful resolution of the tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union

5. Why did the Nixon administration decide to resume relations with China?
a. China had cautiously inquired about resuming normal diplomatic relations
b. The United States believed it would force better relations with the Soviet Union
c. The United States wanted to thwart the growing economic power of Japan
d. The suffering U.S. economy forced Nixon to make an economic arrangement with China

6. What was the Watergate Scandal?
a. President Nixon’s 1972 affair with a young intern at the Republican National Committee.
b. President Nixon’s involvement in ordering an attack on unarmed civilians in Vietnam
c.. President Nixon’s attempts to bribe the North Vietnamese to agree to end the Vietnam War
d. President Nixon’s attempts to hide his involvement in a break-in at the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee

7. How does the Watergate Scandal compare to previous presidential scandals?
a. Unlike previous presidential scandals, Watergate was about power rather than money
b. Unlike previous presidential scandals, Watergate was about money rather than power
c. Like previous presidential scandals, Watergate was effectively covered up and never fully revealed to the public
d. Like previous presidential scandals, Watergate demonstrated how ineffective investigative journalism was in America at the time

8. Why did Saudi Arabia cut off oil shipments to the United States in 1973?
a. The United States had sent emergency aid to Israel during the October War.
b. Saudi Arabia feared Soviet retaliation if it continued to supply the U.S. with oil.
c. President Carter was refusing to pay full price for Saudi oil shipments.
d. To help the United States deal with the problem of rampant inflation

9. The most encouraging economic development for women in the late twentieth century was that
a. women’s wages largely closed the gap with men’s wages
b. the Equal Rights Amendment was ratified in 1982
c. the number of female business owners increased greatly
d. the number of women serving on corporate boards grew rapidly

10. The court decision in Roe v. Wade guaranteed women’s right to
a. attend traditionally all-male schools.
b. earn equal pay for equal work.
c. serve in the military.
d. obtain an abortion.

11. President Gerald Ford’s brief “honeymoon” with the American public ended when he
a. granted disgraced President Richard Nixon a full pardon b. suppressed about-to-be-declassified files pertaining to the Kennedy assassination
c. appointed liberal Republican Nelson Rockefeller as his vice president
d. confessed to taking steroids during his college football days as a Michigan Wolverine

12. Why did militants take 53 Americans prisoner from the U.S. embassy in Tehran in 1979?
a. Carter had threatened war if the oil embargo wasn’t lifted immediately.
b. The Carter administration refused to end American involvement in Nicaragua.
c. President Carter publicly denounced their Ayatollah’s revolution.
d. Carter had allowed the exiled shah to seek medical treatment in the United States.

13. The Camp David Accords provided a framework for peace negotiations between
a. the United States and the Soviet Union.
b. North Vietnam and South Vietnam.
c. Israel and Egypt.
d. Iran and the United States.

14. The results of President Reagan’s economic policies were
a. overwhelmingly positive—unemployment declined and the budget was balanced.
b. fairly positive—unemployment declined but the economy overall did not improve.
c. mixed—there were record federal deficits but the economy overall improved.
d. decidedly negative—inflation increased and the economy declined dramatically.

15. The Iran-Contra affair was
a. a covert operation through which the Reagan administration planned to topple the Iranian government
b. a failed attempt by President Carter to rescue the American hostages held in Iran
c. a crisis between Iran and Nicaragua that nearly resulted in nuclear war
d. a scandal in which the government planned to sell weapons to Iran in order to finance exiles fighting in Nicaragua.

16. How did President Reagan’s policies toward the Soviet Union change in his second term?
a. He was more willing to cooperate with the Soviet Union in his second term
b. He focused on destroying the Soviet Union’s economy rather than focusing on the arms race
c. He trusted the Soviet Union less in his second term and refused to negotiate with its leaders
d. He was more eager to break up the Soviet Union in his second term