Dwight D Eisenhower Contributions towards the USA Revolution - Research Paper Example

Dwight D Eisenhower Contributions towards the United s of America Revolution Dwight David Eisenhower had an illustrious career in his life spanning from October 14 1990 to March 28 1969. His life was showered with achievements, as he was not only the President of America for eight years from 1953 to 1961; he was also a highly decorated army general. In World War II Dwight D. Eisenhower was the Supreme Commander of all the armed forces of Europe, his rank being a general in the army achieving five star status. The great man was brought up in Kansas in a family that had six sons and strict religious upbringing. His upbringing contributed generally to his competitive nature that was evident throughout his lifetime, with excellence as his main goal. Later on in life, he was married and had a family of two sons, serving as the Chief of Staff in the Army during the presidency of Harry Truman. He ventured into politics in 1952 and won with a clear majority defeating Democrat candidate Adlai Stevenson, himself being a Republican. During his reign as the United States President, he oversaw many political and social changes with the help of Richard Nixon his Vice President. In his presidency the implementation of the Highway Act cannot be overlooked and its importance in the transformation of American infrastructure and commerce. The country before his reign president had experienced great transformations in the automobile sector and ownership of cars had increased necessitating new and well-maintained roads. His National System of the Interstate and defense Highways was a great innovation that helped in the transformation of America (Bennett 451). The new highway system, arguably the greatest public works project to be engaged in America in its History, aided the speed of transport. However, every great side has a dark shadow and so did his noble idea. The great highway system is directly linked to hindering growth of cities, destruction of neighborhoods, and greatly hurt the environment. The great Interstate Highway system had elements of being helpful and at the same time destructive as has been argued by historian Evan Bennett who raised a question as to whether the highways were to ruin or highways to heaven (Bennett 452). The highway was constructed in pursuant to the 1956 Federal Act on aid to highways, following major campaigns by President Dwight D. Eisenhower. The highway forms the second longest road in the world with its present day 47,182 miles its first phase having taken 35 years for construction. The need for the highway at that time was rife following the unsafe roads that had numerous accidents and had recorded high numbers of deaths than before its inception. The President’s quest to have the road constructed was reinforced by the defense part, as there were great fears of the Cold War (Mumford 234). His belief and support for construction of new highways is traced back to 1919 when he joined the first United States Army’s Cross-Country Motor Transport Train. The team was on a mission to learn how motor vehicles would cross the country (Whitman 70). He attributed his vision of the highway from Germany, which had made him see the wisdom of broader ribbons across America instead of two-lane highways (Murphy 50). Dwight D. Eisenhower took immediate action upon assuming office, writing a proposal to Congress on the creation of transcontinental highway system (Murphy 50). He signed the act on highways into law on June 26, 1956 that provide for federal government funding of the project to a tune of 90%. The states in this case contributed only 10% of the funding. The immediate negative effects of the construction were the increases in gasoline and tire taxes to fund the project (Faber 26). The highway also saw the first standardization across states in America making the roads less dangerous than before the inception of the highway (Frissell 2). The highway system did not benefit the transport sector only, but had other economic effects on different sectors. Faster cars were designed leading to the growth in the agricultural industry due to the fast transport system. Manufacturing costs mainly associated with transport reduced drastically thereby increasing profits enjoyed. The economic impact of the highway envisioned and championed for by Dwight D. Eisenhower is still being felt across the country. Majority of the goods that are used in America today have crisscrossed states therefore linking various companies to a wider market. The interstate highway smoothed the progress of suburbanization. During and after its construction there was springing of suburbs as job opportunities became available across states and there were booming businesses in the construction period (Stevens 68). The highway led to new growth patterns of different regions that were more cosmopolitan due to migration of people across states. The destruction of some neighborhoods during the construction of the road cannot be overlooked and increased congestion in some areas (Murphy 91). Social security is a matter of national concern and has been so for a very long time in the history of the United States. The issue has been at the core of nearly all the administration prior and after that of Dwight D. Eisenhower. The matter has formed serious debates and a great determinant in presidential races. The administration of Dwight D. Eisenhower did not overlook this area and addressed it thoroughly to the core. The matter of social security was so close to the president who was of the view that any person or political party that would try to do away with social security would not be heard of again in the history of America. The advent of the Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI) was in 1935 and it did not include any provisions for disability insurance. This changed in the presidency of Dwight D. Eisenhower when more than twenty years later from its inception he signed into law the 1956 amendments to the Social Security Act. That is the year when the disability in OASDI was implemented starting august 1, 1956. The implementation of the program was significant in the social security aspect even though in its first stages it covered people with disabilities of ages 50 to 65. Social security matters before the presidency of Dwight D. Eisenhower had suffered a major blow when all the programs touching on disabilities were affected by a ‘freeze’. However, on assumption of presidency Eisenhower ensured on June 30, 1953 the freeze was lifted (Berkowitz 72). The issue of disability insurance was a thorny issue that pitted insurance companies who were opposed with Social Security Act administrators who were for the idea. Under the amendments, disability was defined as “inability to engage in any substantial gainful activity by reason of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment which can be expected to result in death or to be of long continued and indefinite duration”. Alongside the social security for disabled people, the act that Eisenhower passed provided for the setting up of a disability trust fund to be used to pay disabled workers. All these gains in the social security issue in America had the strong backing of the president who had the issue at heart. The social security issue did not end with the 1956 enactment of the amendments to the act ,but throughout the remaining years of his term, more was done. There were improvements to the act pertaining to disabilities as the act was amended further to remove majority of the restrictions as age requirements, and increased beneficiaries to include spouses and children. Overall, issues relating to social security in Eisenhower’s rule got major and transformational facelifts. The issues addressed during his reign concerning social security have had long lasting and positive effects in the country and have shaped the approach on social security issues. Dwight D. Eisenhower’s presidency witnessed transformation of the relatively young Criminal Intelligence Agency (CIA). The CIA played a larger and significant role than it had done before in the previous governments. Eisenhower assumed office of the presidency on the background of the ongoing war in Korea. Eisenhower’s first mission in office was to address the issue in Korea that had resulted in many American casualties. He had made a campaign pledge of finding an intelligent way of ending the war. President Eisenhower’s military experience aided his quest to strengthen the CIA, as he was a strong believer in intelligence. His administration oversaw many changes to the department of CIA including the construction of its headquarters and the acquisition of advanced technological equipments to aid its operations. The CIA had become an important part in all major decision making processes of the government in Washington. CIA used its expertise to collect, analyze, and effect changes in different security operations using sophisticated and well-calculated moves. During the tenure of Eisenhower, Allen Welsh Dulles, who was a pragmatic and long-serving intelligence professional, headed the CIA. Dulles was widely accepted in many circles including the military and had good working relations with the secretary of the state who was his brother. This gave President Eisenhower an edge over his predecessor as he enjoyed significant foreign policy advantages. Eisenhower changed tact on the Korean army and instead of relying on intelligence from the U.S Army and started relying heavily on the CIA. Eisenhower’s presence and leadership could be felt in the intelligence unit as unlike President Harry Truman, he personally attended National Security Council (NSC) meetings. President Dwight D. Eisenhower made the CIA a strong department that carried out serious intelligence surveys for the government. Eisenhower was highly tilted to maintaining peace at all costs and to this end he saw the utilization of CIA as pivotal in achieving sustainable peace in the region and beyond. The President advocated for intelligence operations to forestall any looming security threats to America and with the use of intelligence avert situations that would disturb general peace. He undertook his major role of protecting his citizens by ensuring security issues got all the attention they deserved. The CIA in his tenure helped in removal from power of leaders from Belgian Congo, Iran, and Guatemala. He gave the CIA room to operate their department free of interference and empowering the division to serve its rightful purpose. Eisenhower’s terms as the United States President had several other high-ranking achievements that contributed largely to the countries growth and status to date. The first of such subsidiary achievements was the launch of exploration of space under his final term. He was responsible for the approval of a congressional program that aimed at improving the space technology field by enlisting young scientists and supporting their endeavors. In line with this, he inaugurated the Space Administration and Aeronautics National Department. Another achievement that was notable in his tenure and shaped America to what it is today was the consolidation of America to include Alaska and Hawaii the 49th and 50th states of America respectively. This increased the size of the country considerably and opened up more opportunities in different sectors especially the tourism industry. Civil right issues were rife in the tenure of Dwight D. Eisenhower and from the onset of his presidency, it was clear that he was against segregation. He was opposed to racial segregation in the army and the federal government an issue he addressed in his first address to the nation as President. His administration took matters of racial discrimination seriously and they were declared as issues of national security. He advocated for the integration of Black Americans into the previously ‘white’ schools in Washington. It was in his tenure that the act on civil rights came into place. He was the one responsible for proposing the act that he signed into law to help fight racial discrimination. He even went as far as using the military in Arkansas to protect black students as the governor had refused to follow the act. This act of his intervention spelt out clearly his stand and formed a strong base for the free America for all. In conclusion, the presidency of Dwight D. Eisenhower was capped with many historic events that have gone a long way in the shaping of today’s America. His strong policies and control of issues helped the country in achieving many groundbreaking processes. Works cited 1. Bennett, Evan P. “Highways to Heaven or Roads to Ruin? The Interstate Highway System and the Fate of Starke, Florida.” The Florida Historical Quarterly 78.4 (spring,2000): 451-467. 2. Berkowitz, Edward D. Disabled Policy: America’s Programs for the Handicapped. New York: 1987 Cambridge University Press. 3. Derthick, Martha. Policymaking for Social Security. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution. 1979. 4. Faber, Harold. “85% of Interstate Roads in State Complete at a Cost of $2.5 Billion.” New York Times 30 Sept. 1973: 26. 29 Dec. 2009. 5. Frissell, Susan. “Driving Took a Major Turn with Interstate Highways.” Daily Herald 6. Mumford, Lewis. The Highway and the City. New York: Harcourt, 1963. 7. Murphy, John. The Eisenhower Interstate System. New York: Chelsea House, 2009. 8. Whitman, Sylvia. Get Up and Go: The History of American Travel. Minneapolis: Lerner Publications Company, 1996. Read More