The 1970s National Pessimism A Transformative Decade Ford’s Stewardship Ford as President Personal traits Pardoning Nixon The Economy and Energy Economic troubles Dealing with a Democratic Congress Energy policy Foreign Affairs The Soviet Union SALT II Helsinki accords The Middle East Asia Vietnam the Mayaguez episode The Election of 1976 The candidates The campaign The Economy and Technology A Faltering Economy Economic indicators The "rust belt" Reasons Downward mobility Signs of worker alienation General pessimism Environment and Public Health Predictions of limited resources Growing fears of technology Nuclear power The hazards of genetics Innovation and Renewal Concerns About American Innovation The Birth of Biotechnology Genentech The patent issue Computers for the People: The PC Factors contributing to development Countercultural origins Emergence of an industry Carter: A Presidency of Limits Carter’s Style and Political Philosophy A Touch of Liberalism Pardoning draft evaders Appointments Civil rights Environmental legislation New cabinet-level departments A Shift to Economic Conservatism Deregulation Increasing federal budget for R&D Energy and Inflation The energy challenge Carter’s energy policy Impact on oil consumption and inflation Carter and the World Reviving Idealism Contradictions in Carter’s foreign policy Commitment to human rights The Panama Canal The Middle East The Camp David accords The Iranian Revolution and hostage crisis The Soviets Early dealings SALT II human rights U.S. recognition of China Soviet invasion of Afghanistan background U.S. response Embracing a hard line stepped-up defense spending first-strike capability A Divided Society African Americans Signs of progress Growing pessimism The urban underclass Hispanics Official recognition as a minority group Bilingual education Continuing poverty Asian Americans Post-1965 immigration Economic divides Native Americans Red Power and AIM Federal policies and Supreme Court decisions Majority Resistance Busing and desegregation Bilingualism Affirmative action Fault Lines: Sexual and Cultural Women Feminism’s expanding scope Backlash Gay Liberation Gay liberation and gay culture Backlash Searching for Self-Fulfillment Television Music Drugs Pop psychology The fitness craze Religion The "me decade" Bid for Power The Christian Right The Reverend Jerry Falwell Views of fundamentalist Protestants The Moral Majority A Conservative Coalition Economic conservatives Tax rebellion Sagebrush rebellion Opposition to affirmative action Neoconservatives Social and economic conservatives: an uneasy alliance The Election of 1980 Carter’s sagging popularity The challengers Edward M. Kennedy Ronald Reagan John Anderson Election results assessed