President Bush ordered an attack on Baghdad with the intent of eliminating Saddam Hussein and his government. On May 1, 2003, Bush declared the war over and “Mission Accomplished.” The conflict continued in Iraq and was followed by questions from Congress and the American public about the validity of the administration’s original reasons for the war.
In the 2006 mid-term elections, Democrats regained control of both chambers of Congress. They had campaigned against Iraq policy and corruption in the Republican Party.
John Collier persuaded Congress to pass the Indian Reorganization Act, which terminated the allotment program of the Dawes Severalty Act of 1887; provided funds for tribes to purchase new land; offered government recognition of tribal constitutions; and repealed prohibitions on Native American languages and customs. Later the same year, federal grants were provided to local school districts, hospitals, and social welfare agencies to assist American Indians.
Congress passed the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allocation Act to limit overproduction by paying farmers to reduce the cultivation of soil-depleting crops.
Congress passed the Judiciary Act of 1789, which established the federal court system and the position of attorney general. The Supreme Court had already been established by the Constitution but the creation of a lower federal court system had been left to Congress.
Congress passed the Hepburn Act, which gave the Interstate Commerce Commission the power to determine maximum railroad rates and regulate other transportation.
Congress enacted the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act, which dramatically raised tariffs on imports an average of 20 percent in order to protect American industry and farming. The tariff prompted retaliation from foreign governments and created a ripple effect of global trade reduction.
At Roosevelt’s urging, Congress passed the Emergency Banking Bill, which took the nation off the gold standard, allowed some Federal Reserve System banks to reopen, and permitted the Federal Reserve and the Reconstruction Finance Corporation to provide funds to buy stocks in chosen banks.
Congressman Rufus King of Massachusetts proposed a ban on slavery in the western US territories.
Congress adopted a policy of “termination” toward American Indians with the intention of “as rapidly as possible mak[ing] Indians within the territorial limits of the United States subject to the same laws and entitled to the same privileges and responsibilities as are applicable to other citizens of the United States.”