The USA - Outstanding American presidents
The president represents the executive branch of power. He is chosen together with his Vice-President in elections every 4 years
(next election will be in November 2000 - it takes place the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November). The president can be elected only into
2 terms (since 1951). The president is quite powerful person in the USA. He proposes bills (right to veto a bill), proposes federal law, appoints
federal judges, makes treaties. He's responsible for foreign policy, he's the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. He appoints the head of each
department ("the President's Cabinet"). The present departments are: State, Treasury, Defense, Justice, Interior, Agriculture, Commerce,
Labor, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation, Emergency, Education.
The Vice-President is also powerful
person. He's elected from the same political party as the President, he's the chairman of the Senate. His most important function is to replace the
President, if the P. must leave the office.
The USA has Had already over 40 presidents, I'd like to mention some of them. The 1ST American
president was George Washington. He was very active person in and before the time, when the USA was established. He was commander of army in The War
of Independence. He's the man, who chose the place for new U.S. Capitol. Until that, Philadelphia was the capitol. The new city was named after
Washington. Washington was the first city, which was built especially as the capitol - there are no factories, only governments and offices. We can
find there for example the White House (seat of all American presidents except G.Washington) or the Capitol - the seat of Congress.
A
beloved Amer.president is Thomas Jefferson. He's outstanding man of american history. He was incredibly talented person - beside his presidency, he
was active in science, architecture, farming or writing. At the age of 33 he wrote The Declaration of Independence, where was expressed, why the
colonies wanted to fight for independence from G.Britain. He became the President in 1800. He doubled the sire of the USA by the Louisiana Purchase.
This great statesman died on Independence Day July 4, 1826 - exactly on the 50TH anniversary of creating the USA.
Another well-known
American president is Abraham Lincoln. He was the president during the Civil War. After his election, southern states protected against his
presidency and these states wanted to leave the Union. Then he issued the Emancipation Proclamation, where he granted freedom to all slaves. He was
leader of the North in the war, short after the victory he was assassinated in April 1865. There is Lincoln Memorian in Washington. Lincoln himself
as well as the memorial are great symbols of freedom. Freedom, that cost 635.000 American lifes.
Theodore Roosevelt is certainly worth
mentioning president. He was interested in foreign affairs. He helped to negotiate peace treaty between Russia and Japan in the beginning of the 20TH
century. For this he won the Nobel Prize. Beside these activities he was interested in nature. He established some national park. His cousin was
Franklin D.Roosevelt - 32ND Am.president.
During the W.W.I. was serving Woodrow Wilson, who in several attemps tried to end war in Europe
and finally was succesful in 1918, but in 1917 the USA joined the war.
Franklin D.Roosevelt was outstanding person of American policy in
30's and 40's. He reduced the Crissis by his plan - called the New Deal. He helped to expansion of industry, in 40's the USA became the industrial
country no.1 in the world. It was caused by the W.W.II., which the USA joined in 1941 after Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Roosevelt succesfuly lead
his nation through the war, but he died before the end. He was the right man, on the right place. If the President in that time had been somebody
another, the end of the war would have been very unhappy.
His successor became Harry S.Truman - Roosevelt's vice-pres. He's responsible for
dropping of atomic bombs, an event, that brough end of war in Pacific and maybe peace to world for all next years. He helped to create NATO - the
North Atlantic Treaty Organisation - military organisation of the USA and other western countries. Marshall Plan was realized during he was in office.
That was destroyed by W.W.II. Truman also broke a Rusian blockade of West Berlin, when hundreds of planes saved people in W.Berlin by transporting
food and all needed every day. Then UN joined the Korean War. This was long and bloody conflict between UN and the Southern Korea on one side and
the Northern K., China and particulary Russia on the other. This was serious beginning of the Cold War - never fought war between Russia and the USA
and their selies. People in the USA were disgusted by the Kor.War, so Truman didn't candidate in net election. He was followed by Dwight
D.Eisenhower.
There were several other outstanding presidents in post - war period. I'D like to mention some of them.
J.F.Kennedy is well-known American pes. He became hero during W.W.II., he wrote a book, which won a Pulizer Prize. His family was very ambitious,
his father was succesful businessman, who later became ambassa- dor to G.Britain. When J.F.K. was being inaugurated, he told Americans: "Ask
not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country." Many important events happened, when he was in office. There was
Cuba crissis, in 1961 Russians built a concrete wall between West and East Berlin, also tension in Vietnam rose. Howeve, J.F.K. couldn't afford any of
these problems, because he was assassinated in 1963. Still it isn't known, who or why did it.
In 1964 the Vietnam war broke out. Thousands
of young Americans had to fight in jungle against communism. For most of them, before the war, was Vietnam an unknown country lost somewhere in Asia.
After 5 years of cruel war, most of Americans called for change. Then Richard Milhous Nixon was elected as president. Finally, after next 3 years of
fights, U.S. troops withdraw from Vietnam. The USA lost about 70.000 of men and women and sustained defeat. Nixon the first US.pres. to visit
China and the Soviet Union. On a night in 1972 some men tried to wiretap telephone conversations in the offices of Democratic campain headquarters
located in Watergate building. The men were caught. They were hired by the Commite to Re-Elect the Pres. Much money was paid to make them quite.
Evidences about their connection to the White House had to be destroyed. Nixon tried to stop FBI's Watergate investigation. But reporters to the
Washington Ppost uncovered the truth. People were shocked. Their president knew about it from it's start. He lied them for several years. In 1974
Nixon became the 1ST President to resign in US. history.
Before the resignation Nixon had to appoint new vice-president, because the old
vice-pres. resigned. Nixon appointed Gerald R.Ford. After Nixon had left the office. Ford became the pres.He also had to choose vice-pr. He appointed
Nelson Rockefeller, a governor from N.Y. So the two most powerful men in the U.S.A. weren't simple. Americans were disgusted by Watergate and Vietnam.
He tried to detente with Soviets and he was particulaty succesful. On the other hana, there were problems in Middle East. There were struggles
between Arabs and Jews, also many homes problems appeared in the USA. Factories were producting less, import was increasing, inflation started. In
that atmosphere, Ford wasn't succesful in next election. He was defeated by James Carter. He tried to encourage human rights. He helped to
negotiate an agreement between Israel and Egypt. Then the S.U. invaded Afghanistan. As a result of this, Carter cut off sale of grain to the S.U. -
that made many American farmers angry. Then another problem appeared Iranians occupied U.S. ambassy in Iran. 53 Americans were held hostage.
Attempts to free them weren't succesful. After all these events, Carter was beaten in next election. That election won Ronald Reagan, a famous
Hollywood actor and governor.
During his inauguration, American hostages in Iran were released. About two months later, he was wounded by
an assassination attempt. But he recovered after several weeks. He had to solve many problems in domestic affairs. He supported expansion of
industry by lower taxes, industry became more efficient. He was very popular. Americans liked to see him, to hear him. He was the right man on the
right place.
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