How did the United States respond to the end of the Cold War and tensions in the Middle East?

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VICE PRESIDENT GEORGE H. W. BUSH announced his bid for the presidency in 1988, declaring, “We don’t need radical new directions.” As president, Bush proposed few domestic initiatives, but he signed key environmental and disability rights legislation.

More dramatic changes swept through the world, and Bush confronted situations that did not fit the free-world-versus-communism framework of the Cold War years. Most Americans approved of Bush’s handling of the disintegration of the Soviet Union and its hold over Eastern Europe as well as his response to Iraq’s invasion of neighboring Kuwait. But voters’ concern over a sluggish economy limited him to one term as president.

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The Gulf War
This soldier arriving in Saudi Arabia in September 1990 was part of the massive military buildup in the Persian Gulf area before the U.S.-led coalition drove Iraqi forces out of Kuwait. For the first time, women served in combat-support positions. More than 33,000 women were stationed throughout the area; eleven died, and two were held as prisoners. Among their duties were piloting planes and helicopters, directing artillery, and fighting fires. © Bettmann/Corbis.

CHRONOLOGY

1988

  • – George H. W. Bush is elected president.

1989

  • – Communism collapses in Eastern Europe.
  • –United States invades Panama.

1990

  • –Americans with Disabilities Act.

1991

  • – Persian Gulf War.

1992

  • – William Jefferson “Bill” Clinton is elected president.