A person's religion has a great effect on how they live their daily lives. It can influence the choices they make. Even someone's opinion about the government and management of a country can influence what one can and cannot do regarding religious issues. When religious freedom is taken away or silenced, people back down or speak out. A totalitarian government controls everything society does, from public to private things. In a totalitarian government, religion may be sidelined on some issues. Conservatism became known in the early 1980s in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada. While in the 1970s liberalism became popular. At the time, Canada had a Liberal government under Prime Minister Pierre Eliot Trudeau. Brian Mulroney finally overthrew the Prime Minister in 1984. Mulroney set in motion a Progressive Conservative that reduced government control in some areas. In the United Kingdom, conservatism was fostered when they had their first female prime minister, Margaret Thatcher. At the time, the UK was in an economic crisis. Thatcher had ambitions to reduce spending on all social programmes. Ronald Reagan became president in 1980 as a Republican, winning against the current president, Jimmy Carter. Carter was known for a struggling economy and for failing to get fifty-two Americans who were taken as victims in Iran by an anti-Western group. For this reason, Reagan undoubtedly won the election ("Historical Context"). Religion plays an important role in political changes during the 1980s. The Moral Majority was an evangelical Christian political action committee that played an important role in Reagan's election victory. This caused tension with...... middle of the paper ......rge. "Café Niagara: Overview." Discovering the authors. Detroit: Gale, 2003. Student Resources in Context. Network. April 7, 2014. “Government Promotes Religion, Education, and Land Ownership to “Civilize” Indians.” Discovering multicultural America: African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans, Native Americans. Detroit: Gale, 2003. Student Resources in Context. Network. April 3, 2014.Grizzard, Carol and Tandy McConnell. “Religious Freedom (1990s).” American Decades: 1990-1999. Ed. Tandy McConnell. Detroit: Gale Group, 2001. Student Resources in Context. Network. April 8, 2014. "Historical Context: The Handmaid's Tale." Gale Student Resources in Context.Detroit: Gale, 2011. Student Resources in Context. Network. March 27, 2014. Library of Congress. Np, nd Web. 1 April 2014.exhibits/religion/rel06.html>.