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Above is a picture of Bush that had came into office after President Ronald Reagan.
 * The Election of 1988 In this election the candidates were George H.W. Bush and Micheal Dukakis. George H.W. Bush had won by receiving 53% of the popular vote to 46% for Dukakis. Bush had taken 426 and Dukakis had 111.



Bush had brought world wide experiences to the white house. Bush was a pilot in WWII and he was awarded a medal for bravery. He then moved to Texas so he can start a oil business there. He had tried to maintain a balance of continuing the policies of the Reagan years and working more closely with the Democratic-controlled Congress. William Bennett was appointed to be a special "drug czar" to oversee the nation's war on drugs. In 1990 Bennett had resigned because he had said that he thought that drug use had begun to drop, but the flow of drugs coming into our country continued. Bob Martinez had replaced Bennett. Also, William Reilly was appointed to the head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). When Bush got into office, 17 military plants that manufactured nuclear weapons were closed.
 * The New President
 * Drugs, Education, and the Environment

Savings and loan institutions were known as S&Ls which had long financed mortgages, or loans, for Americans buying homes. Once the interest rates soared in late 1970s, savings banks were such with low interest, long-term mortgages. The Reagan administration had led a campaign to deregulate S&Ls - that is, to allow them more freedom from government control. Government economists estimated that the cost of bailing out the S&Ls would probably run more that $600 billion over 10 years.
 * The Savings and Loan Crisis

To reduce it, congress and the President needed either to cut spending or raise more money. During the election Bush had firmly pledged not to raise taxes. If they failed to pass a budget by Oct. 1, then the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act woud go into effect. Bush insisted on a tax cut for investors who sold their stocks and bonds at a profit. "Capital gains" tax cut would stimulate the economy. The president finally reached a budget agreement that would cut the deficit by nearly $500 billion over 5 years.
 * Reducing the Deficit

Americans saw the Congress unwilling to make difficult choices on raising taxes or cutting programs. They saw Bush who seemed unable to direct a solution to the budget crisis. In voters reelected most members of Congress, but with little enthusiasm. With the economy heading into a recession, political leaders faced an angry public.
 * The Elections of 1990

1989 the Court struck down a Texas law that had made burning the American flag a crime. Justices ruled that burning the flag in protest was protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution. July 1990, Justice William Brennan announced his retirement. Bush nominated a little known New Hampshire judge, David Souter, to take Brennan's place. He took his seat on the Supreme Court in October 1990.
 * Flags and the Supreme Court

The Soviet-dominated governments had controlled the nations of Eastern Europe. "Freedom Fighters" were people who revolted in Hungary in 1956, they were harshly put down. Communist governments had collapsed one by one, one after another. Dissenters once treated as enemies of the state, began to come into power. 1981, the Polish government had outlawed Solidarity, and independent labor union.
 * The End of the Cold War?
 * 1) A wall comes down-Communist East Germany had built the wall in 1961 to prevent its citizens from fleeing to the West. East German border guards prevented anyone from crossing into West Berlin, shooting many who tried to escape. November 9, 1989, hundreds of East Berliners streamed through the gates to visit the West. Summer of 1990, East and West Germany had charted a course toward reunion. October 4, 1990, Germany-divided for 45 years by the the cold war-became one nation again.
 * 2) Moving toward democracy- In Czechoslovakia, the communist government was forced to resign in 1989. New president Vaclav Havel, a playwright who had been jailed several times by the communist government.