Eisenhower Checkpoint

Eisenhower Checkpoint

Checkpoint: Eisenhower's Politics

Checkpoint: Eisenhower's Politics
Explain how the American economy changed after WWII.
After WWll ended, the American economy picked up dramatically.   More people were buying homes and cars than ever before.   More women were going to college and by the 50’s, instead of grocers and milkmen delivering their goods from door to door; more housewives were out “running errands”, taking care of purchasing the goods for their families.   Once the war ended, more families found themselves with more free time and televisions were introduced into American families’ homes as a free form of entertainment.  
Describe the culture of consumption during the Eisenhower administration.
The culture of consumption during the Eisenhower administration was a lot different in the 50’s, compared to the 20’s.   Americans had more money and were eager to spend it.   Advertising was much more sophisticated so that corporations and ad agencies could determine their target audiences.   Television became a free form of entertainment in many American’s homes.   Household appliances, along with canned foods and fast food became more popular as many people did not want to spend much time cleaning house and preparing food.
       Explain Eisenhower’s pragmatic political measures to manage the economy and the politics of consensus.
President Eisenhower was considered a consensus builder.   He wanted to reach an agreement, rather than be trapped in a lengthy debate.   He agreed to increases in Social Security, unemployment insurance, and the minimum wage.   Since he was uncomfortable with big government, he rejected the liberals’ idea of housing and universal health care through the Social Security system.   He supported the Highway Act and he signed an agreement in 1954 called the St. Lawrence Seaway Act.   This act was designed to join the United States and Canada in a major engineering project to open the Great Lakes to ocean shipping.