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**Theme:** Politics **Topic:** Landslide Presidential Victories **Free Response Question**: "Landslide presidential victories do not ensure continued political effectiveness or legislative success." Analyze the validity of this statement by comparing the following presidential administrations: Franklin Roosevelt (1936), Lyndon Johnson (1964), Richard Nixon (1972), Ronald Reagan (1984). Introductory Paragraph **Setting:** The twentieth century in the United States brought many landslide presidential victories where nearly 60% of the popular vote and over 500 electoral votes went to the winning candidate. **Basis for Analysis**: In determining the whether landslide victories ensure political effectiveness and successes, one must asses both the successes and failures of the administrations of those originally popular presidents. **Partitions**: The presidents Franklin Roosevelt, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, and Ronald Reagan all beat their opponent by a landslide and had political and legislative successes during the duration of their presidencies. However, although these presidents of the United States won by a great amount and were popular in some aspects of their administrations and at some times, in the end they became unpopular and were no longer looked at in the same way by the public, ultimately leading to the end of their presidential careers. **Thesis:** Thus, landslide presidential victories do not always confirm there will be continued success in the political or legislative affairs of their administrations. **Partition 1:** Franklin Roosevelt (1936) __Public:__ Very popular with the people (fireside chats) and used the Second New Deal to help the people of the United States on many different aspects of everyday life __Economic/Foreign:__ Lend-Lease Act with allied countries and Cash & Carry, Peacetime draft and Keynesian Economics
 * Successes During Presidency:**

__WWII:__ countries in Europe start turning to Fascism (Hitler, Mussolini), Munich Conference and giving in to Nazi Germany __Domestic:__ Court packing issues, economic collapse when unemployment rose and production declined.
 * Political Ineffectiveness:**

FDR lost popularity by the end of his presidential reign and died suddenly while in office **Partition 2:** Lyndon Johnson (1964) __Vietnam War:__ Showed the presidential ability to expand the war, bombed North Vietnam (1965), Gulf of Tonkin Resolution __Great Society:__ War on Poverty, Civil Rights, and bettering society for the young and old (education and Medicare)
 * Political and Legislative Successes:**

__Backlash:__ Race riots and the Black Power movement, antiwar protests all over college campuses and throughout society, and MLKJ being assassinated. __Unpopularity:__ Sent too many troops to Vietnam (antiwar protests), Tet Offensive made people skeptical, started to back off of his ideas of the Great Society, became very unpopular and ratings declined, and decided not to run again in 1968.
 * Political Ineffectiveness:**

Unpopular at the end of Presidency and did not run again ** Partition 3: ** Richard Nixon (1972) __Cold War:__ Detente with USSR and SALT I limiting tensions between the countries, Anti-Ballistic Missiles Treaty __Vietnam War:__ Vietnamization to start pulling out
 * Successes During Presidency:**

__Scandals:__ Watergate Scandal and Cover up (trying to make opponent look bad), Resignation of VP after his own scandals - leading to skeptical public __Economic Issues:__ Stagflation, Arab Oil Embargo leading to increasing prices on everything
 * Political Ineffectiveness:**

Resigned after impeachment process was started. Partition 4: Ronald Reagan (1984) Decrease in taxes, and a very popular president (actor before & "Teflon President") __Cold War:__ Summit meetings with Gorbachev and towards end of presidency wanted peace with the USSR
 * Successes During Presidency:**

__Economic:__ very large gap between the rich and the poor and was getting larger, USA turned into a debtor nation (spending a lot and collecting little in taxes) __Foreign:__ Iran-Contra Scandal
 * Political Ineffectiveness:**

When presidential rule ended public was skeptical of him (getting old) and not as popular as he used to be <span style="background-color: #800080; color: #ffffff; display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 23px; text-align: left;">General Information: <span style="background-color: #ffffff; display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 15px; text-align: left;">Fireside Chats: Radio shows done by the president that the public could listen to - made the public feel close with him <span style="background-color: #ffffff; display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 15px; text-align: left;">Black Power Movement: African Americans experienced a dramatic increase in pride in themselves and wanted various changes politically and socially. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 15px; text-align: left;">Vietnamization: training the South Vietnamese forces so they could fight their war on their own (so we could pull out) <span style="background-color: #ffffff; display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 15px; text-align: left;">Stagflation: high unemployment and high inflation <span style="background-color: #ffffff; display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 15px; text-align: left;">Iran-Contra Scandal: the selling of weapons to Iran to get money to give to the Contras (illegal)