American History: A Survey 10/e   Alan Brinkley
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Summary

As president, Gerald Ford worked to heal the wounds of Watergate and restore respect for the presidency. His pardon of Richard Nixon was probably the most controversial act of his caretaker period in office. Jimmy Carter turned out to be a more effective campaigner than president. His administration was marked by an inability to set a tone of leadership. He made no significant strides toward solving the energy crisis and took only halting steps toward his goal of making the federal government more efficient. His last year in office was dominated by the Iranian hostage crisis, which at first boosted his popularity but later may have cost him another term. An upsurge in conservativism came from demographic shifts to the Sunbelt, the activism of the Christian right, the ideology of the neoconservatives, and effective tactics by right-wing organizers. Ronald Reagan won the 1980 election by riding this conservative crest and by exploiting deep-seated feelings of resentment over America's seeming weakness abroad. Congress quickly passed his supply-side economics plan of tax reductions and spending cuts, but a year later, the nation was mired in recession. However, the downturn proved brief and with the return of prosperity, Reagan won easy reelection.

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