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Credit Sprint's Guide to U.S. History, Period 9: Modern America, 1980 to the Present

AP® weight 4–6%CLEP® Exam II

The conservative movement gained power under Reagan, the Cold War ended, and the United States faced new challenges: globalization, terrorism, economic crises, technological change and sharp political polarization.

The nine periods of U.S. history11491–160721607–175431754–180041800–184851844–187761865–189871890–194581945–198091980–nowAP® periods run in overlapping blocks of years

What you need to know

  • Reagan's "Reagan Revolution" cut taxes and regulation, increased defense spending and supported supply-side economics. The Iran-Contra affair damaged his administration.
  • The Cold War ended as Gorbachev's reforms and the collapse of the Soviet bloc brought the end of the USSR in 1991. The U.S. became the sole superpower and fought the Gulf War (1991).
  • Technology changed life: personal computers, the internet and later smartphones created new industries. Globalization and trade agreements such as NAFTA moved jobs and goods across borders.
  • The 1990s brought a booming economy, the Contract with America, the impeachment of Bill Clinton and welfare reform. Immigration from Latin America and Asia changed demographics.
  • The September 11, 2001 attacks led to the War on Terror, the Patriot Act, the Department of Homeland Security and wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
  • The 2008 financial crisis and Great Recession led to government rescues of banks and the Affordable Care Act. Barack Obama became the first African American president in 2008.
  • Political polarization, debates over immigration, health care, the role of government and culture war issues grew. The Supreme Court decided major cases on voting, civil rights and same-sex marriage.
  • Social movements continued: environmental activism and concern about climate change, LGBTQ rights, and campaigns such as Black Lives Matter and #MeToo.

Exam traps

Watch forThe Cold War did not end with a military defeat. The Soviet Union collapsed from internal economic and political pressures.
Watch forBe careful with the order of recent events. Know the sequence: Reagan, Bush, Clinton, Bush, Obama.
Watch forSupply-side economics means cutting taxes to boost production. It is not Keynesian demand management.

Key terms

  • Reagan Revolution: A conservative shift of the 1980s based on tax cuts, deregulation and a strong military.
  • Supply-side economics: The idea that cutting taxes boosts production and growth.
  • Iran-Contra affair: A scandal over secret arms sales to Iran to fund rebels in Nicaragua.
  • Gorbachev: The Soviet leader whose reforms helped end the Cold War.
  • Fall of the Berlin Wall (1989): The opening of the Berlin Wall that signaled the end of Soviet control in Eastern Europe.
  • Persian Gulf War (1991): A U.S.-led war that pushed Iraq out of Kuwait.
  • NAFTA: A trade agreement among the U.S., Canada and Mexico that took effect in 1994.
  • Contract with America: The 1994 Republican platform that helped win control of Congress.
  • Globalization: The growing connection of the world's economies, cultures and technology.
  • September 11, 2001: Terrorist attacks that led to the War on Terror.
  • Patriot Act: A 2001 law that expanded government surveillance powers.
  • Department of Homeland Security: A cabinet department created after 9/11 to protect the country.
  • Great Recession: The severe downturn that followed the 2008 financial crisis.
  • Affordable Care Act (2010): A law that expanded health insurance coverage.
  • Citizens United (2010): A Supreme Court ruling that limited restrictions on political spending by corporations and groups.
  • Obergefell v. Hodges (2015): The ruling that same-sex couples have the right to marry.

Practice questions

Five of the 51 Period 9 questions in Credit Sprint. Every choice is explained in the app.

1. Ronald Reagan's economic program, often called supply-side economics, relied on
  1. higher taxes on corporations to fund new social programs
  2. tax cuts, reduced regulation and cuts in domestic spending
  3. wage and price controls to fight inflation
  4. a balanced budget achieved through large defense cuts
Show answer

tax cuts, reduced regulation and cuts in domestic spending. Reagan argued that lower taxes would spur investment and growth, but defense spending rose and the federal deficit and national debt grew sharply.

2. The USA PATRIOT Act (2001) expanded the government's power to
  1. detain foreign soldiers without any rules
  2. conduct surveillance and investigate suspected terrorism
  3. end the Department of Defense
  4. ban immigration from Muslim-majority nations
Show answer

conduct surveillance and investigate suspected terrorism. Passed after the September 11 attacks, it sparked debate over the balance between security and civil liberties.

3. The growth of the Sunbelt in the late twentieth century reflected
  1. a decline of the Southern economy compared with the North
  2. population and political gains in the South and Southwest
  3. the end of federal defense spending in the region
  4. a movement of Americans toward the Northeast
Show answer

population and political gains in the South and Southwest. Air conditioning, defense spending and business-friendly policies drew people and jobs, and the region gained congressional seats as the Northeast declined.

4. The Supreme Court's decision in Obergefell v. Hodges (2015) held that
  1. Congress alone holds the power to define marriage nationally
  2. same-sex couples may not adopt children in any state
  3. the Constitution guarantees same-sex couples the right to marry
  4. states may decide for themselves whether to recognize same-sex marriage
Show answer

the Constitution guarantees same-sex couples the right to marry. The Court relied on the Fourteenth Amendment's due process and equal protection clauses, after decades of activism that began to grow after the Stonewall uprising of 1969.

5. The Affordable Care Act of 2010 sought to expand health coverage mainly by
  1. replacing private insurers with a single government-run plan for every citizen
  2. creating insurance exchanges, subsidies and an individual mandate
  3. repealing Medicare for Americans over the age of sixty-five
  4. banning employers from offering health plans to workers
Show answer

creating insurance exchanges, subsidies and an individual mandate. Supporters celebrated the drop in the uninsured rate, while opponents objected to federal mandates and the law remained a central partisan battleground.