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Session Length
~18 min
Adaptive Checks
16 questions
Transfer Probes
8
Explore the transformation of American politics, economy, and society from the Reagan Revolution through the War on Terror and into the era of partisan polarization.
This topic covers the conservative ascendancy, the end of the Cold War, globalization and technological revolution, culture wars, the 2008 financial crisis, and contemporary debates over inequality, immigration, and the role of government.
Aligned to AP US History Period 9.
One step at a time.
The broad conservative political realignment beginning with Reagan's 1980 election, combining supply-side economics, deregulation, anti-communism, and social conservatism into a governing coalition that reshaped American politics for decades.
Example: Reagan cut the top marginal tax rate from 70% to 28%, fired striking PATCO workers, increased military spending, and allied with the Moral Majority, fundamentally shifting the terms of American political debate.
The period from 1989-1991 during which communist governments fell across Eastern Europe, the Berlin Wall was torn down, and the Soviet Union dissolved, leaving the United States as the sole global superpower.
Example: The fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991 ended nearly half a century of superpower rivalry and nuclear brinksmanship.
The increasing integration of economies, cultures, and populations worldwide through trade, investment, technology, and migration. In the American context, globalization accelerated after the Cold War through free-trade agreements and the digital revolution.
Example: NAFTA eliminated trade barriers with Mexico and Canada, while the internet enabled companies to outsource service-sector jobs overseas, transforming the American workforce.
The broad military, intelligence, and policy campaign launched after September 11, 2001, encompassing wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, expanded domestic surveillance, and new institutional structures like the Department of Homeland Security.
Example: The Patriot Act expanded surveillance powers, the Iraq War was justified by claims about WMDs that proved false, and Guantanamo Bay raised questions about due process and international law.
The worst economic downturn since the Great Depression, triggered by the collapse of the housing bubble, subprime mortgage defaults, and the failure of major financial institutions, leading to massive government bailouts and stimulus spending.
Example: Lehman Brothers collapsed in September 2008, the government passed a $700 billion bank bailout (TARP), and unemployment peaked at 10%, reigniting debates about financial regulation and government's role in the economy.
The intense political conflicts over social, moral, and cultural issues -- including abortion, gun rights, immigration, LGBTQ rights, and the role of religion in public life -- that have increasingly defined the divide between conservatives and liberals since the 1980s.
Example: The Moral Majority mobilized evangelical voters around abortion and school prayer in the 1980s, while battles over same-sex marriage, immigration policy, and Confederate monuments intensified partisan divisions in subsequent decades.
The inability of Congress to pass major legislation due to deep ideological divisions between the parties, increased use of procedural obstructions like the filibuster, and the disappearance of moderate cross-over legislators.
Example: Government shutdowns in 1995-96, 2013, and 2018-19 demonstrated how partisan polarization could paralyze basic government functions like passing budgets.
The 1996 legislation that replaced open-ended cash assistance (AFDC) with time-limited, work-required benefits (TANF), reflecting a bipartisan shift toward personal responsibility and away from entitlement-based social programs.
Example: President Clinton, a Democrat, signed the Republican-authored welfare reform bill, declaring 'the era of big government is over' and illustrating how far rightward the political center had moved since the New Deal.
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