USA Modern History Glossary:
Terms and definitions as used in early twenty-first-century USA Modern History in the United States of America.

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Text book [AGBV, 2005]:
American Government: Brief Version

Buy 'American Government: Brief Version'

by James Q. Wilson
for a class on Political Science.

Chapters:
  1. What Should We Know About American Government?
  2. The Constitution
  3. Civil Liberties and Civil Rights
  4. Federalism
  5. Public Opinion and the Media
  6. Political Parties and Interest Groups
  7. Campaigns and Elections
  8. Congress
  9. The Presidency
  10. The Bureaucracy
  11. The Judiciary
  12. Making Domestic Policy
  13. Making Foreign and Military Policy
  14. American Government: Continuity and Change
Glossary of U.S. Modern History: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z.
Note: this site is not giving legal advice, simply organizing information from various Political Science classes and texts.
If you need legal advice consult your lawyer.

A.

B.

C.

Capitalism.
An economic system in which the means of production and distribution are mainly in private ownership for private gain at the expense of the non-owners. Mechanisms include free markets and freedom of contract.

Categorical Grants.
Federal funds granted to state and local governments for specific programs or projects. Compare with Block Grants.

Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
Intelligence organization that deals with foreign threats and enemies.

Checks and Balances.
A principle of a system of government whereby each branch of the government can check the actions of the others. As originally conceived, this was true of the government of the USA.

Civil Disobedience.
A nonviolent, public refusal to obey allegedly unjust laws.

Civil Law.
The law regulating conduct between private persons over noncriminal matters. The government provides the forum for the settlement of disputes between private parties in contracts, domestic relations, business interactions, and similar matters.

Civil Liberties.
Those personal freedoms that are protected for all individuals against the government.

Civil Rights.
In the USA, the rights rooted in the Constitution's Fourteenth Amendment's guarantee of equal protection under the law.

Clear and Present Danger Test.
The test (proposed by Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes) for determining when government may restrict free speech. Restrictions are not permissible unless speech presents a 'clear and present danger' to public order.

closed shop.
Employment situation where a provision in a labor contract requires new workers to join a union as a condition of employment. Closed shops were outlawed by the 1947 Taft-Hartley Act.

Commerce Clause.
A section of the Constitution that assigns to Congress the power to regulate trade among the states and with foreign countries.

Commercial Speech.
Advertising statements, which increasingly have been given First Amendment protection.

Common Law.
Judge-made law (originating in England) from decisions shaped according to prevailing customs. Decisions were applied to similar situations and then gradually became common to the nation.

Communism.
A social system in which goods and services are shared communally (as in early Christian communities). A variant of socialism that favors centralized public ownership of the means of production and the sharing of the products of labor:
"... the theory of the Communists may be summed up in the single sentence:
Abolition of private property."
[Karl Marx in The Communist Manifesto (1848).]
"From each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs."
[Karl Marx in Critique of the Gotha Program (1875).]

Concurrent Powers.
Powers held jointly by the national and state governments.

Confederal System.
A league of independent states, each having essentially sovereign powers. The central government created by such a league has only limited powers over the states.

Confederation.
An association of states; usually limits central authority to foreign affairs and is less permanent than a federation. A political system where states or regional governments retain ultimate authority, except for powers expressly delegated to a central government.

Connecticut (or 'Great') Compromise.
Ensured the support by the smaller states (as well as the larger) for a strong central government.

Constitution.
The fundamental law of a nation. Defines the power of the government; specifies offices and their authority.

Consent of the People.
Governments and laws are legitimate implicitly from the consent of those governed.

Conservatism.
A selfish right-wing approach that minimizes national government help of individuals and promotes traditional values and lifestyles. Thus Conservatism opposes change unless it reduces government support of individuals or regresses to even more traditional values and lifestyles than are in place.

Constitution.

Constitutional Convention.
1787: meeting of delegates from the States that fought the Revolutionary War.

Cooperative Federalism.
The theory that the states and the national government should cooperate in solving problems.

Court.
A place where justice is administered.

Criminal Law .
Law that defines crimes and provides punishment for violations. In criminal cases, the government is the prosecutor because crimes are against the public order.

D.

Dawes Act.
In 1887, this law terminated tribal ownership of land in the USA. It allotted 160-acre parcels of farmland or 320 acres of grazing land to individual Indians. The remainder of the land was opened for white settlement.

Deficit.
The amount by which a required sum of money is short. A national deficit is established by borrowing against the issue of government securities, to allow governmental expenditures to exceed receipts. See also: recession, (budget) surplus, fiscal policy.

Democracy. [From Greek demos = people and krateein = to rule.]
Rule by the people.

Democratic Republic.
A republic in which the representatives elected by the people make and enforce laws and policies.

Devolution.
Transfer of powers from the national or central government to state or local government. This happened in the United Kingdom in the late twentieth century.

Department of Defense (DOD).
Created in 1947, brought all activities of the American military establishment under the jurisdiction of a single department headed by a civilian.

Détente [French].
Reduction of discord between nations. Example: U.S.A.-Soviet relations that developed under President Richard Nixon and his Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.

Diplomacy.
The art and science of conducting negotiations between nations.

Direct Democracy [AGBV, 2005].
A system of government where political decisions are made by the people directly, rather than by their elected representatives.

Dollar diplomacy.
A foreign policy under President William Taft. It theorized that American economic intrusion would not only accrue profit and power to the United States (without the need to for U.S. military control of the region) but would also stabilize underdeveloped nations; Latin America and Asia were of main interest.

Dominant Culture.
Values, customs, and language of the group(s) that control politics and government in a society.

E.

Earned-Income Tax Credit (EITC).
A government program that gives back to low-income workers part of their Social Security taxes.

Electoral College.
In the USA, the electors selected by the voters in each state and the District of Columbia; these electors formally elect the president and vice president of the USA. The number of electors of a state equals the number of each state's representatives in the two chambers of Congress.

Elite Theory.
The speculation that society is ruled by a small number of people who exercise power to further their self-interest.

Equality.
The political idea that all people are of equal worth.

Exports.
Goods and services produced domestically and sold or traded abroad. Contrast with imports.

F.

Fascism.
A totalitarian system of government developed in Italy in 1919 by the Fascisti led by Benito Mussolini, in opposition to Socialism and Communism. Fascism: Applied to

Federal System.
A system of government where power is divided between a central government and regional, or subdivisional, governments. Each of those levels has a domain where its policies are dominant. And each has political or constitutional guarantee of authority.

Federalism.
A political system in which authority is shared between a central government and a state or regional government.

Federalist.
Historically, a person in favor of the adoption of the US Constitution in 1787, with its system for keeping some factors from dominating others, and the creation of a federal union with a strong central government.

Federalist Paper 10.
James Madison's essay claiming:S'liberty is safest in a large republic where many interests compete. Such diversity make tyranny by the majority more difficult since ruling coalitions will need to be more moderate'.

Federalist Papers.
85 essays written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay in defense of the new constitution. Published in New York papers to convince New Yorkers to vote for ratification of the newly proposed constitution.

Federation.
An association of states; usually more permanent than a confederation. A political system where states or regional governments retain ultimate authority, except for powers expressly delegated to a central government.

free speech.

Field Order No. 15.
In January 1865, by General William T. Sherman issued this order, which declared that abandoned land on the southern Atlantic coast would be set aside for 40-acre grants to freedman. President Andrew Johnson rescinded it a few months later.

Fourteenth Amendment.
Passed in 1866, this constitutional amendment (incorporating some of the features of the 1866 Civil Rights Act) prohibits states from violating the civil rights of its citizens. States can choose to disallow blacks to vote or losing representation in Congress.

Fifteenth Amendment.
Passed in 1870, this constitutional amendment forbids all states to deny the vote to anyone on the basis of race, color, or servitude.

Freedman (or freedperson).
A person freed from slavery.

Freedmen's Bureau.
After the U.S. Civil War, this federal refugee agency was established to help former slaves and poor whites. It provided food and clothing, helped find jobs, set up schools. In 1866, President Andrew Johnson vetoed the Freedmen's Bureau renewal bill. Congress overrode his veto.

G.

Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
[Dollar] value of all final goods and services produced during a one-year period.

Government [AGBV, 2005].
The establish form of rule and ultimate authority within a society or a nation. The institution that has authority and that makes decisions to resolve conflicts or allocate benefits and privileges.

Great Compromise.
The compromise between the New Jersey and the Virginia plans. It created one chamber of the Congress based on population and one chamber representing each state equally. [Also called the Connecticut Compromise.]

H.

Horizontal integration.
Merger of competitors in the same industry. Contrast with vertical integration.

I.

Ideology.
A world view or set of comprehensive beliefs about people and the role of government.

Imports.
Goods and services brought into a country from abroad for commercial purposes. Contrast with exports.

Initiative [AGBV, 2005].
Citizen petition of a measure put on the ballot.

Isolationism.
A policy that advocates national self-sufficiency and freedom from international affairs or alliances (political and economic).

Iron Curtain.
Winston Churchill's term for the barrier of censorship and secrecy that he perceived being imposed (specifically in Europe after World War II) by the Soviet Union between its region of influence (the Soviet Bloc) and rest of the world.

J.

Judicial Review.
The power of a court (the Supreme Court or any other court) to declare unconstitutional federal or state laws and other acts of government.

K.

Keynesian Economics.
School of economic thought that favors active federal government policy-making through discretionary fiscal policy to stabilize economy-wide fluctuations.

L.

Legislature.
That part of government primarily responsible for making laws.

Legitimacy.
Acceptance by the citizens of the right and power of a government or ruler to exercise authority.

Liberal Democracy [AGBV, 2005].
Democratic government that provides for the protection of individual human rights, in order to prevent a majority from oppressing a minority.

Liberalism.
Advocacy of positive government action to improve the welfare of individuals, support for civil rights, and tolerance for political and social change.

Libertarianism.
A political ideology of skepticism or opposition toward most government activities.

Liberty.
The fullest freedom of individuals consistent with the freedom of others in the society.

Limited Government.
A government whose powers are limited, particularly by institutional checks.

M.

Madisonian Model.
The structure of government proposed by James Madison in which the powers of the government are separated into three branches: executive, legislative, and judicial.

Majoritarianism.
The government ought to do what the majority of the citizens want.

Majority.
Over 50 percent.

Majority Rule.
In any political unit, support by the greatest number of citizens selects officials and determines policies.

Malcolm X.
Malcolm X autobiography.

Medicaid.
A joint state-federal program providing medical care to the poor.

Monetary Policy.
Manipulation of changes in the amount of money in circulation to adjust credit markets, employment, and the rate of inflation.

Monroe Doctrine.
2 December 1822, President James Monroe's message to Congress said that any attempt by European powers to acquire territory on the American continent or to interfere in the affairs of any American country would be regarded by the U.S.A. as an unfriendly act. This was the foundation of U.S.A. isolationist foreign policy toward Europe in the 1800s.

Moral Idealism.
Assumption that nations as willing to cooperate and agree on moral standards of conduct.

N.

National Security Council (NSC).
Agency (housed in the Executive Office of the President) that advises the President on integrating "domestic, foreign, and military policies relating to the national security".

Natural Rights.
Rights held to be inherent in natural law, rather than dependent on governments. As such, there is the danger of claims being made akin to religious beliefs.

John Locke claimed that natural law is superior to human law, and that it includes rights of 'life, liberty, and property'. These rights (modified to 'life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness') are asserted in the Declaration of Independence.

Nuclear Proliferation.
Development of nuclear weapons by nations that did not have them before.

O.

Order.
A state of peace and security, maintained by protecting citizens from violence and criminal activity.

P.

Parliamentary System [AGBV, 2005].
Representative democracy where political power is vested in an elected legislature. Used in most European countries.

Partizanship [AGBV, 2005].
Expression of party-based ideologies and policy priorities, which may lead to conflict in the political system.

Pluralism.
A social condition where different racial, ethnic, and religious groups are intermingled geographically. Also a theory of politics as a conflict among interest groups, where political decision making requires bargaining and compromise.

Police Power.
The authority to legislate for the protection of the health, morals, safety, and welfare of the people. (In the United States, most police power is reserved to the states.)

PoliticalCulture.
Beliefs and attitudes of a community or nation toward government and the political process.

Political Socialization.
The process by which citizens learn political attitudes and form opinions about social issues. Important forces in this process are the family and the educational system.

Politics [AGBV, 2005].
The art and science of government and conducting the affairs of a state. Also the struggle for power within organizations and informal groups that can grant and withhold benefits or privileges. The management of conflict over who will run the government and to what ends.

Compare with Diplomacy.

Political Realism.
Each nation acts principally in its own interests.

Power [AGBV, 2005].
The ability to force someone to change one's behavior, no matter what their wishes.

Popular Sovereignty.
Ultimate political authority is based on the will of the people.

Property.
Any thing that can be owned. Political philosopher John Locke considered that the right to property is a natural right (superior to human law made by government).

President.
  1. 1789-1797: George Washington.
  2. 1797-1801: John Adams. Washington's vice-president; defeated Jefferson for the presidency in the election of 1796. Resisted his party's demand for war with France.
  3. 1801-1809: Thomas Jefferson.
  4. 1809-1817: James Madison.
  5. 1817-1825: James Monroe.
  6. 1825-1829: John Quincy Adams. Successful secretary of state for President Monroe; but a single troubled and unsuccessful presidency.
  7. 1829-1837: Andrew Jackson.
  8. 1837-1841: Martin Van Buren.
  9. 1841-1841: William H. Harrison.
  10. 1841-1845: John Tyler.
  11. 1845-1849: James K. Polk.
  12. 1849-1850: Zachary Taylor.
  13. 1850-1853: Millard Fillmore.
  14. 1853-1857: Franklin Pierce.
  15. 1857-1861: James Buchanan. Experienced diplomat. Won the presidency as the nominee of the Democratic party. But during his term, the Democratic party divided North and South, and he was indecisive during the subsequent Secession Crisis (1860-1861).
  16. 1861-1865: Abraham Lincoln.
  17. 1865-1869: Andrew Johnson.
  18. 1869-1877: Ulysses S. Grant. General commander of Union forces; received General Lee's surrender at Appomattox Courthouse. Elected president in 1868 and 1872. Scandal-ridden administration.
  19. 1877-1881: Rutherford B. Hayes. (Republican) Elected when an electoral commission gave him disputed electoral votes.
  20. 1881-1881: James A. Garfield. A compromise (and relatively unknown) Republican nominee. A weak and indecisive leader. Assassinated four months into his presidency by Charles Guiteau.
  21. 1881-1885: Chester A. Arthur.
  22. 1885-1889: Grover Cleveland. Elected 1884 and 1892; the only Democrat elected president between 1856 and 1912.
  23. 1889-1893: Benjamin Harrison. Harrison accused Democrats of treason for the Civil War. Mainly deferred to Congress.
  24. 1893-1897: Grover Cleveland.
  25. 1897-1901: William McKinley. Assassinated in 1901 by an anarchist, Leon Czolgosz.
  26. 1901-1909: Theodore Roosevelt.
  27. 1909-1913: William H. Taft. See his:
  28. 1913-1921: Woodrow Wilson.
  29. 1921-1923: Warren G. Harding.
  30. 1923-1929: Calvin Coolidge. Conservative; laissez-faire economics; complacency, despite the increasing economic hardships of U.S. citizens at the approach of the Great Depression.
  31. 1929-1933: Herbert C. Hoover. Hoover was never elected to office prior to election as president. He was an experienced administrator and he led the New Era movement of government-business cooperation; the 1929 stock-market crash damaged his presidency.
  32. 1933-1945: Franklin D. Roosevelt.
  33. 1945-1953: Harry S. Truman.
  34. 1953-1961: Dwight D. Eisenhower. General 'Ike' Eisenhower commanded Allied forces in Europe in World War II and planned the D-Day Normandy invasion. Elected president for two terms.
  35. 1961-1963: John F. Kennedy.
  36. 1963-1969: Lyndon B. Johnson.
  37. 1969-1974: Richard M. Nixon.
  38. 1974-1977: Gerald R. Ford. A Republican congressman from Michigan; replaced Agnew (resigned in 1973) as Vice-president; when President Nixon resigned, Ford became president. Defeated in 1976 election by Democrat Jimmy Carter.
  39. 1977-1981: James Carter.
  40. 1981-1989: Ronald Reagan.
  41. 1989-1993: George H.W. Bush. Served as vice-president, then elected president. More moderate than Reagan. Broke (1990) his pre-election promised of "no new taxes". Invaded Panama (1989) and the Persian Gulf (1991).
  42. 1993-2001: William (Bill) Clinton. Governor of Arkansas; elected president in 1992 and 1996. His two administrations created moderate and flexible domestic policy and noninterventionist foreign policy.
  43. 2001-2009: George W. Bush (the Junior Bush).

Presidential System [AGBV, 2005].
Representative democracy where political power is vested in separately elected and appointed branches of national government. This system is used in the USA.

Primary [election] [AGBV, 2005].
Election to determine which will be a party's candidate for office. [In Europe, this selection is done by the party leader.]

Progressive Tax.
A tax that is an increasing percentage as income rises.
Compare with: proportional tax and regressive tax.

Proportional Tax.
A tax that is a constant percentage as income rises.
Compare with: progressive tax. regressive tax.

Q.

R.

Ratification.
Formal approval.

Recall [AGBV, 2005].
An election procedure that allows the people to vote to dismiss an elected official from state office before his or her term has expired.

Referendum.
Legislative or constitutional measures referred by the legislature to the voters for approval or disapproval.

Regressive Tax.
A tax that is a decreasing percentage as income rises.
Compare with: progressive tax. proportional tax.

Representative Assembly.
A legislature composed of individuals representing the population.

Representative Democracy [AGBV, 2005].
A form of government in which representatives are elected by the people to make and enforce laws and policies. Political decisions are made by the officials elected by the people. [Some such democracies retain a monarchy in a ceremonial role.]

Republic [AGBV, 2005].
A form of government in which sovereignty rests with the people (or a portion of the people), as opposed to a king or monarch or dictator. This form of Representative Democracy was created by the framers of the US constituion.

S.

Separation of Powers.
The division of governmental functions and powers among different branches of government, so that the various self-interests of each group would moderate those of the others.

Shays Rebellion.
1787: Soldiers of the Revolutionary War were led by Daniel Shays to prevent foreclosure of farms as a result of high interest rates and taxes. This rebellion highlighted the weakness of individual states in such situations and the need for a federation.

Social Contract.
A voluntary agreement among individuals to establish and secure their rights and welfare by creating a government and abiding by its rules.

Social Security Tax.
An example of a regressive tax.

Socialism.
Public collective ownership and control of the means of production, distribution, and exchange.
Also viewed as a political ideology based on strong support for economic and social equality, in a society where major businesses are taken over by the government or by employee cooperatives.
Also see Communism.

State.
A group of people occupying a particular region and organized under a single government; a nation or a subunit of a nation.

Subsidy.
Aid, usually money or of monetary value, given by the government to support a public service.

Suffrage. [From Latin suffragium = voting tablet, vote.]
The right and privilege of voting; the franchise.
Also see universal suffrage.

Supremacy Clause.
The provision in the Constitution that makes the Constitution and the federal laws superior to any conflicting state and local laws.

Supremacy Doctrine.
Doctrine that asserts the priority of national law over state laws. In the USA, this principle is in Article VI of the Constitution, which provides that the supreme law of the land comprises:

T.

Taft-Hartley Act.
1947 Act mandated:

Tariff.
Tax on imports.

Tax.
See progressive tax, proportional tax, and regressive tax.
Also: Estate Tax, Federal Corporate Income Tax, Federal Income Tax, and social security tax.

theocracy. [From Greek theos = god and krateein = to rule.]
Rule by a god, which in practice means rule by a priesthood. No separation of church and state. Compare with aristocracy.
Totalitarian.
A regime of command by the government and obedience by the citizens. The regime controls all aspects of political and social life (as in George Orwell's 1984). In contrast with an authoritarian state, all social and economic institutions are under government control.

U.

Unicameral Legislature.
A legislature that comprises a single part or chamber. In the USA (early 21st century) only the state of Nebraska has a unicameral legislature. Compare with bicameral legislature.

Unitary System.
A centralized governmental system where local or regional governments exercise only the powers that the central government gives them.

universal suffrage. [From Latin suffragium = voting tablet, vote.]
The right and privilege of all adults to vote for their representatives.
Also see suffrage.

V.

Vertical integration.
The consolidation within a single company of all of the production functions, from the extraction of the raw materials to the distribution of the finished goods. Example: Carnegie Steel was controlled the extraction and shipping of its ore, coke, and limestone, as well as the production and marketing of steel. Contrast with horizontal integration.

Virginia Plan.
Proposed at Constitutional Convention; recommended three branches of government, and that all state laws would be subject to the veto by national legislature.

W.

X.

X: Malcolm X.
Malcolm X autobiography.

Y.

Z.

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