Many working class and middle class whites in America embraced a new type of conservative populism.  This form of conservatism was embraced as a response to the turbulence of the the late 1960’s, such as the urban riots, antiwar protests, and the alienating counterculture.  These Americans were known for being tired of what they believed to be an interfering government that they viewed as coddling poor people and African Americans at taxpayers expense. 

     Despite the growth of conservative populism, in some ways 1960’s liberalism continued to grow.  Many people continued to work protect the environment, leading to new holidays and new acts being passed.
     During the 1970’s, many groups of people continued to fight for social and political rights.  Feminist communities and organizations began to grow more after many disappointments  in politics.  Very few people continued to support the war in Indochina, however President Nixon feared that a retreat would make the United States look weak, so Nixon and his aides created a policies to make the war more agreeable.  Many protesters would still be against the war.

     In 1972, Nixon won the reelection by a landslide, but he resented any challenge to his authority and he would approve of any attempts to discredit those who opposed him. Police found five burglars from Nixon’s Committee to Re-Elect the President in the office of the Democratic National Committee, which was located in the Watergate office building.  It was found out that Nixon was involved and in 1974, he resigned before he could be impeached. 

     In 1973, there was an oil embargo after an intervention by the west which led to the Israelis winning in a war against the Arabs.  Outraged, the Arabs placed an oil embargo on the western hemisphere, causing the US to make attempts at negotiate with the Arabs.  The embargo would lead to a rise in inflation, as well as a political debate over the economy.

     In 1972, Nixon was incredibly paranoid because he wanted to be elected for a second term.  To make sure he won, he sent men that were called “creepers” to find information.  The police would find five “burglars” in the office Democratic National Committee, located in the Watergate office building.  Nixon would eventually lead to his own downfall because the tapes he made so he could write an autobiography, were used against him and he would face many crimes and felonies in 1974 when the Watergate scandal erupted due to the media.  Nixon would eventually resign before Congress could impeach him.  When Nixon resigned, Gerald Ford was appointed president and he would pardon Nixon of his crimes, which would lead to Ford’s downfall at the end of his term.

During the 70’s, television had also become increasingly popular, but it experienced a rebirth for the box office thanks to new advances like Panavision and Dolby sound.  Movies that premiered in the 70’s included “Star Wars”, “Rocky”, “The Godfather”, “Jaws”, “The Exorcist”, and “Saturday Night Fever”.  The leading television show at the time were “Saturday Night Live”, “The Brady Bunch”, and “Happy Days”.  “Sesame Street” was also starting at this time.

The 70’s also saw the deaths of many influential musicians, such as Elvis Presley, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and Jim Morrison.  The Beatles also broke up during the Seventies.  Some of the top artists of the time were Aerosmith, the Bee Gees, Elton John, Bruce Springsteen, and Bob Marley.  Disco dancing was also becoming popular at this time.

Inflation was incredibly high in the 1970’s.  There was a high demand, but a low supply of jobs, houses, cars, and more.  One of the reasons for the high inflation was that nobody took office as the Federal Reserve chairman, and there was no mandates to stop the inflation, allowing prices to continue to rise.

Unemployment was also very high in the Seventies as a result of the growing women work force, as well as the return of soldiers after the Vietnam War.  There was an increase of over 16 million more workers, and the unemployment went from 3.3% to around 8%, almost reaching another depression.