Name:_________________________
The Reagan Era Webquest
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1) Who dominated the 1980s with his message, personality, and politics?
2) Name three groups that supported Ronald Reagan and his quest for the presidency in
1980.
3) What promise did Reagan make to working-class Americans concerned about taxes?
4) What caused many Catholics to support Reagan?
5) What are Democrat voters called who supported Reagan?
6) Who did Reagan defeat in the 1980 presidential election?
7) How many electoral votes did Reagan receive in the 1980 presidential election? How
many did Carter receive?
8) What did Iran do just hours after Reagan was inaugurated?
9) What happened to Reagan two months after his inauguration?
10) Who did Ronald Reagan defeat in his 1984 re-election campaign?
Reaganomics
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11) Name three things Reagan claimed hampered growth in the United States.
12) What percentage tax cut did Reagan propose during the first three years of his
presidency? Who benefitted the most from this tax cut?
13) What is the name of Reagan’s economic theory?
14) Why did Reagan believe tax relief for the rich would generate more revenue for the
federal government?
15) What did the Federal Reserve Board believe would be the effect of Reagan’s tax cuts?
16) What impact did the high-interest rates have on the economy in 1981 and 1982?
17) How was the economy after 1983 and the remaining years of Reagan’s presidency?
18) Why did the defense industry boom during Reagan’s presidency?
19) How did Reagan plan to pay for tax cuts and increased military spending?
20) How much did the national debt increase during Reagan’s presidency?
Foreign and Domestic Entanglements
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21) What did Ronald Reagan label the USSR before he was elected president?
22) What did Reagan believe he had to do before negotiating with the Soviet Union?
23) What did Reagan propose to defend the United States mainland from any incoming
ballistic missiles?
24) What treaty did Reagan and Gorbachev negotiate in 1987? What did this treaty
eliminate?
25) How did Reagan plan to stop the spread of communism around the world?
26) What did Reagan warn nations around the world if the United States could prove there
was a link between an act of terrorism and a foreign government?
27) How did Reagan respond when the CIA linked the bombing in West Berlin to the
government in Libya?
28) What did the press report in 1986 that was Reagan’s worst domestic scandal?
29) How did Reagan respond when asked about the Iran-Contra Affair?
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Life in the 1980s
30) Describe two fundamental changes in the standard of living for Americans in the
1980s.
31) What exacerbated the nation’s drug problem in the 1980s?
32) What disease spread by the sharing of intravenous needles and sexual contact
increased during the 1980s?
The End of the Cold War
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33) Why did Gorbachev introduce the policies of glasnost and perestroika? What was the
effect of these policies?
34) What country elected a noncommunist opposition government in 1989, and it began the
unraveling of the Soviet Bloc?
35) What happened when Ukraine, Byelorussia, and Russia declared independence from the
Soviet Union?
36) How do Republicans and Democrats differ in their opinion of the Soviet Union’s
collapse?
37) How do you think the collapse of the Soviet Union affected the world?
Name:_________________________
The Reagan Era Webquest Answer Key
Go to: http://www.ushistory.org/us/59a.asp
1) Who dominated the 1980s with his message, personality, and politics?
Ronald Reagan
2) Name three groups that supported Ronald Reagan and his quest for the presidency in
1980.
Working-class Americans, Southerners, and Catholics.
3) What promise did Reagan make to working-class Americans concerned about taxes?
Reagan promised to reduce their level of misery with sound fiscal policy.
4) What caused many Catholics to support Reagan?
He promised to oppose abortion rights and promote family values.
5) What are Democrat voters called who supported Reagan?
Reagan Democrats
6) Who did Reagan defeat in the 1980 presidential election?
Jimmy Carter
7) How many electoral votes did Reagan receive in the 1980 presidential election? How
many did Carter receive?
Reagan won 489 and Carter 49.
8) What did Iran do just hours after Reagan was inaugurated?
They released the American hostages that had been held for 444 days.
9) What happened to Reagan two months after his inauguration?
John Hinckley attempted to assassinate the president.
10) Who did Ronald Reagan defeat in his 1984 re-election campaign?
Walter Mondale
Reaganomics
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11) Name three things Reagan claimed hampered growth in the United States.
Taxes, excessive government regulation, and massive social spending.
12) What percentage tax cut did Reagan propose during the first three years of his
presidency? Who benefitted the most from this tax cut?
Thirty percent tax cut and the bulk of the reduction would be at the upper-income levels.
13) What is the name of Reagan’s economic theory?
Trickle-Down Economics
14) Why did Reagan believe tax relief for the rich would generate more revenue for the
federal government?
He thought if the rich received tax cuts, they would be able to spend and invest more,
thus creating new jobs.
15) What did the Federal Reserve Board believe would be the effect of Reagan’s tax
cuts?
The Federal Reserve Board believed the new tax cut would cause inflation and raise
interest rates.
16) What impact did the high-interest rates have on the economy in 1981 and 1982?
High-interest rates caused a deep recession.
17) How was the economy after 1983 and the remaining years of Reagan’s presidency?
The economy stabilized and showed national growth.
18) Why did the defense industry boom during Reagan’s presidency?
Reagan thought the United States as vulnerable to the Soviet Union, so he awarded
massive government contracts to defense firms.
19) How did Reagan plan to pay for tax cuts and increased military spending?
He wanted to cut government programs.
20) How much did the national debt increase during Reagan’s presidency?
The national debt tripled from one to three trillion dollars.
Foreign and Domestic Entanglements
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21) What did Ronald Reagan label the USSR before he was elected president?
He labeled the USSR an “Evil Empire.”
22) What did Reagan believe he had to do before negotiating with the Soviet Union?
He thought he had to increase military spending.
23) What did Reagan propose to defend the United States mainland from any incoming
ballistic missiles?
He proposed the Strategic Defense Initiative.
24) What treaty did Reagan and Gorbachev negotiate in 1987? What did this treaty
eliminate?
They agreed to an Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty, and it eliminated an entire class
of existing nuclear weapons.
25) How did Reagan plan to stop the spread of communism around the world?
He pledged American support to “Freedom Fighters” opposing communism anywhere on the
globe.
26) What did Reagan warn nations around the world if the United States could prove there
was a link between an act of terrorism and a foreign government?
Reagan warned the countries of the world there would be serious consequences if the
United States could ever prove a link between an act of terrorism and a foreign
government.
27) How did Reagan respond when the CIA linked the bombing in West Berlin to the
government in Libya?
He had the United States retaliate by bombing Libya and the home Muammar El-Qaddafi.
28) What did the press report in 1986 that was Reagan’s worst domestic scandal?
The press reported that American military supplies had been sold to Iran in exchange for
their support for the release of American hostages in Lebanon.
29) How did Reagan respond when asked about the Iran-Contra Affair?
He said he did not remember.
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Life in the 1980s
30) Describe two fundamental changes in the standard of living for Americans in the
1980s.
Cable television became standard for most American households, and Apple introduced the
personal computer.
31) What exacerbated the nation’s drug problem in the 1980s?
Newer and more dangerous substances like crack cocaine.
32) What disease spread by the sharing of intravenous needles and sexual contact
increased during the 1980s?
Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome
The End of the Cold War
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33) Why did Gorbachev introduce the policies of glasnost and perestroika? What was the
effect of these policies?
He wanted to spark the sluggish Soviet Union economy by allowing western ideas and
limited market incentives. The policies gave the people a taste of freedom that helped end
the Cold War.
34) What country elected a noncommunist opposition government in 1989, and it began the
unraveling of the Soviet Bloc?
Poland elected a noncommunist government in 1989, and it began the unraveling of the
Soviet Bloc.
35) What happened when Ukraine, Byelorussia, and Russia declared independence from the
Soviet Union?
The Soviet Union was dissolved.
36) How do Republicans and Democrats differ in their opinion of the Soviet Union’s
collapse?
Republicans believe military spending during the Reagan-Bush years forced the Soviets to
the brink of economic collapse, and Democrats believe containment of communism for 45
years since Harry Truman caused the Soviet Union to collapse.
37) How do you think the collapse of the Soviet Union affected the world?
Answers will vary.
