lyndon johnson’s vision for a better america the great society
TRANSCRIPT
Lyndon Johnson’s Vision for A Better America
The Great Society
Johnson’s Idea of a “Great Society”
• 1964 wins election
• Plans a program of economic and social reforms “Great Society."
White Board: What party was LBJ and how did he become President?
Elements of the Great Society
•unfinished goals of New Deal – universal health care & civil rights
•American culture through Federal aid to the arts, sciences, and humanities.
•Show the world “American Way” was superior to the ideas of “world socialism-USSR”
•COLD WAR
Civil Rights was key part of the Great Society
64 Civil Rights Act65 Voting Rights
Act Both pushed by the
grassroots of the civil rights movement
Expanding Voting Rights1965, Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act,
•He pushed it through Congress.
• The act outlawed literacy tests as a way of limiting the right to vote. It also provided Federal resources to investigate actions to prevent people from voting
DiscussHow does Civil Rights fit in the Great
Society Agenda?
War on Poverty1964 State of the Union
Johnson "today, here and now, declares
unconditional war on poverty in America, and I urge this Congress and all Americans to join with me in that effort.“
Program Focused"chronically distressed areas"
of the country, a youth employment ("job
corps") plan, expansion of the food stamp
and unemployment relief systems
special aid to schools, libraries, hospitals, and nursing homes.
Problems with the War on PovertyWar on poverty was greatly underfundedPoverty continued and today gap between
rich and poor is greater than before1960’s America was spending on another
major eventWhite Board question “What was draining
American money and taking away from the war on poverty?”
1965: Title XVIII and XIX of the Social Security Act
Medicare (Title XVIII) established to provide health insurance coverage to persons over age 65
Medicaid (Title XIX) established to provide health insurance coverage to low income women and children (also, aged, blind and disabled)
MEDICAREMedicare is a government service that
helps provide health care for senior citizens and disabled U.S. citizens.
Medicare part A: helps with hospital costs Medicare part B: requires a monthly fee
and helps pay for medical costsMedicare part D: pays for prescription
drugs
White BoardWhat is one benefit and one problems in
this system
1966: Highway Safety Act and the National
Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act Authorized the
federal government to set and regulate standards for motor vehicles and highways
Vehicles were built with new safety features, including head rests, energy-absorbing steering wheels, shatter-resistant windshields, and safety belts
By 1970, motor-vehicle-related death rates were decreasing
1968: School Lunch and Child Nutrition Act Expanded
In 1968, Congress expanded the School Lunch and Child Nutrition Act.
A program was created to provide food for
school-age children during the summer. Additionally, a year-round program was
initiated to provide food to low-income children, as well as children in day-care centers and Head Start programs.
Head Start-free low income pre-school
DiscussCan all these programs make a “Great
Society” ?Would you call the “Great Society a success
or failure
Money for Culture
Johnson also supported bills to establish the National Endowment for Humanities and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Both the NEA and the NEH, created in 1965,
DiscussWhich party supports increased funding for
these programs and who is in favor of reducing funding? Why do you think that is?
Impact of the Great Society
•Most of the Great Society programs remain intact in some way.
• Funding for each program, however, has varied according to holds power in the Federal government and in each of the state governments.
•the programs have always been part of the ongoing debates over “American values.”
•Programs have run costly and pushed our debt.
•Social Security and Medicare take largest part of the us Budget.