Essay on LBJs Great Society - 699 Words

When Lyndon B. Johnson succeeded the presidency after John F. Kennedys assassination he spoke of his vision of a Great Society in America. This Great Society included an end to poverty and racial injustice, and also was intended to turn America into a place where kids can enhance their mind, broaden their talents, and people could restore their connection with the environment. In order to reach his goal, LBJ enacted numerous proposals involving taxes, civil rights, poverty, and much more. For the most part Johnson did an excellent job on delivering his promises, but international affairs threatened the Great Society and although LBJ won the presidency in a landslide victory in 1964, by 1966 he and the Supreme Court began to face†¦show more content†¦One of his major accomplishments he during this time was a War on Poverty. Johnson believed that the cure to poverty was education and therefore passed numerous acts providing federal aid for education. The Elementary and Second ary Education Act was the first general federal-aid-to-education law in American history and gave over $1 billion to public and parochial schools for books, library supplies, and special-education courses. The Higher Education Act gave $650 million for scholarships and low-interest loans to poor college students and for funds for college libraries and research facilities. Also, through the Economic Opportunity Act Johnson started antipoverty programs such as the Job Corps, VISTA, Project Head Start, and the Community Action Program. However, these programs were designed by Johnson to be a ?hand up, not a hand out.? In addition to helping the poor in America by providing money to further education, Johnson proposed acts providing medical insurance and housing facilities. The Medical Care Act created Medicare which provides medical insurance to the elderly and Medicaid which provides free healthcare for welfare recipients. The Omnibus Housing Act gave almost $8 billion for low- and mi ddle-income housing and rent supplies for low-income families. In 1966 Demonstration Cities and Metropolitan Development Act gave far-reaching fundingShow MoreRelatedLyndon B. Johnson s President Of The United States Essay1712 Words   |  7 PagesStates, was born in Texas, on August 27, 1908. Lyndon was the oldest born. Politicians ran in LBJ’s family; His father, Samuel Ealy Johnson Jr. was a democratic member of the Texas House of Representatives. LBJ struggled in school as a child, but graduated from Southwest Texas State Teachers College. LBJ started his career in politics as a legislative secretary to the Texas Democratic Congressman. LBJ’s first campaign was in 1937 when he was twenty eight years old. He campaigned with the energyRead MoreThe Kennedy And Lyndon B Johnson775 Words   |  4 Pageson the other hand divides historical opinion to a broader extent. 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Johnson And Barry Goldwater Essay1448 Words   |  6 PagesJohnson, who was at the time the former vice-president of President John F. Kennedy . Johnson was a very experienced politician and campaigned for the idea of a â€Å"Great Society†, which became his candidacy legate. His campaign platform promoted the end of poverty by reforming the welfare and the improvement of civil rights. However, LBJ’s campaign was marked by the emphasis on Goldwater’s radical political statements to emphasize his unfitness to be head of the state. He ran ads that explicitly portrayedRead MoreLyndon B. W. Brand And Lbj s Written By Robert Dallek988 Words   |  4 PagesHowever, throughout the reading of the two biographies, I found myself discovering more and more about these men, their personal lives, their accomplishments, and much more I never knew about them. These biographies, Reagan’s written by H. W. Brands and LBJ’s written by Robert Dallek, dive deep into each president’s backgrounds, and into their years in office. Each of these presidents was faced with matters of national and global con cern during their presidency, and as these biographies reveal the typeRead More John F. Kennedy Vs. Lynden B. Essay944 Words   |  4 Pages The question I am about to answer can not be answered in brief. To fully comprehend the similarities and differences between John F. Kennedy’s â€Å"New Frontier† and Lyndon B. Johnson’s â€Å"Great Society† you must understand their intentions first. John F. Kennedy was not an ordinary President. He was one with a certain â€Å"charisma†, as some put it. He was very blunt and knew how to get what he wanted. During his rain as President, he created the reform program know as the â€Å"New Frontier†. 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As Theda Skocpol comments in her book Boomerang: Clinton’s Health Security Effort and the Turn Against Government in U.S. Politics, the Reagan administrationRead MoreCharacter Analysis Of The Movie Selma1070 Words   |  5 Pagesviolence. Upon recently reviewing it, I felt the same emotions overcome me. However, even though I felt much compassion for the civil rights activists, I felt none for Lyndon B. Johnson. â€Å"Selma† portrays Johnson as more interested in his own Great Society than the violent acts of oppression happening right in front of him. He appears to have forced himself to push the Voting Rights Act forward, rather than supporting it because he wants to, or because he believes it is right. The film shows Johnson