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Difficulty: HardPolitical Realignment, Watergate, and Rise of Conservatism

"The only way to cut government spending is to limit the money they have to spend. Proposition 13 does that. It puts a ceiling on property taxes... The citizens of California are staging a modern-day Boston Tea Party... We are sending a message to the politicians that we want lower taxes, less government intrusion, and a return to individual fiscal responsibility."

— Howard Jarvis, speech on California Proposition 13, 1978

The sentiments expressed in the excerpt most directly contributed to which of the following political shifts during the late 1970s and early 1980s?

  1. The fragmentation of the New Deal coalition as middle-class suburban voters aligned with a platform of deregulation and tax cutsAnswer
  2. B
    An expansion of Keynesian demand-side economic policies at the federal level to combat stagflation
  3. C
    A bipartisan consensus to expand Great Society welfare programs to address urban poverty
  4. D
    A rejection of Cold War containment policies in favor of unilateral isolationism

Answer

The fragmentation of the New Deal coalition as middle-class suburban voters aligned with a platform of deregulation and tax cuts
The correct answer is correct because the tax revolt, exemplified by Proposition 13 in California, was a key grassroots driver of the modern conservative movement. Middle-class suburban homeowners, frustrated by inflation and rising property taxes, organized to limit government spending. This political mobilization eroded the New Deal coalition by shifting traditional Democratic voters toward a Republican platform focused on tax cuts, deregulation, and limited government intervention, laying the groundwork for the conservative realignment of the 1980 election.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the stimulus document and identify its core message.
The speech by Howard Jarvis advocates for Proposition 13, a 1978 California ballot initiative that limited property taxes, expressing distrust of government spending and bureaucracies.
Understanding the immediate context of the tax revolt is necessary to link it to national trends.
2
Connect the stimulus to the broader political realignment of the late 1970s.
The tax revolt reflected growing middle-class frustration with inflation, stagflation, and high taxes under the Carter administration, which drove many traditional Democratic voters (such as suburbanites and blue-collar workers) toward the Republican Party.
This establishes the link between local tax revolts and the national shift toward conservatism.
3
Evaluate the choices to find the one that accurately describes this political realignment.
The option describing the fragmentation of the New Deal coalition and the shift of middle-class suburban voters to a platform of tax cuts and deregulation matches this transition, culminating in the election of Ronald Reagan.
This completes the analysis of the political realignment and identifies the correct choice.

Key Concept

The rise of the conservative movement in the late 1970s was fueled by economic anxieties, a growing tax revolt, and suburban mobilization, leading to a major political realignment that fractured the New Deal coalition.
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Topics

Political Realignment, Watergate, and Rise of Conservatism

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