Affordable Care Act
sometimes called ObamaCare, is a US law that reforms both the healthcare and health insurance industries in America
Balanced budget amendment
a constitutional rule requiring that a state cannot spend more than its income
Bonds
a bond issued by a national government, generally with a promise to pay periodic interest payments and to repay the face value on the maturity date
Clean Air Act
a United States federal law designed to control air pollution on a national level
Clear Water Act
established the basic structure for regulating pollutant discharges into the waters of the United States
Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act (1974)
modified the role of Congress in the federal budgetary process. It created standing budget committees in both the House and the Senate, established the Congressional Budget Office, and moved the beginning of the fiscal year from July 1 to October 1
Congressional Budget Office (CBO)
a federal agency within the legislative branch of the United States government that provides budget and economic information to Congress
Council of Economic Advisers
an agency within the Executive Office of the President that advises the President of the United States on economic policy
Debt & Deficit
Government takes in from taxes and other revenues, called receipts, and the amount of money it spends, called outlays. The items included in the deficit are considered either on-budget or off-budget. You can think of the total debt as accumulated deficits
Discount Rate
the interest rate set by the Federal Reserve on loans offered to eligible commercial banks or other depository institutions as a measure to reduce liquidity problems and the pressures of reserve requirement
Discretionary spending
is government spending implemented through an appropriations bill
Elite Theory
a theory of the state which seeks to describe and explain the power relationships in contemporary society
Entitlements
government-sponsored programs providing mandated/guaranteed/required benefits to those who meet eligibility requirements/qualifications
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
an agency of the United States federal government whose mission is to protect human and environmental health
Estate tax
a tax levied on the net value of the estate of a deceased person before distribution to the heirs
Excise tax
taxes paid when purchases are made on a specific good, such as gasoline
Fair Labor Standards Act (1938)
A United States law which sets out various labor regulations regarding interstate commerce employment, including minimum wages, requirements for overtime pay and limitations on child labor
Federal Reserve Board
the governing body of the Federal Reserve System, the seven members of the board of governors are appointed by the president, subject to confirmation by the Senate
Fiscal year
a year as reckoned for taxing or accounting purposes
Government Accountability Office (GAO)
an agency of the U.S. government that monitors and audits government spending and operations
House Ways and Means Committee
a permanent committee of the House of Representatives, which makes recommendations to the House on all bills for raising revenue
Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
a bureau of the Department of Treasury that is tasked with the enforcement of income tax laws and oversees the collection of federal income taxes
Mandatory spending
spending on certain programs that are required by existing law
Majoritarian politics
a traditional political philosophy or agenda that asserts that a majority (sometimes categorized by religion, language, social class, or some other identifying factor) of the population is entitled to a certain degree of primacy in society, and has the ri
Medicaid
a health care program that assists low-income families or individuals in paying for long-term medical and custodial care costs, a joint program, funded primarily by the federal government and run at the state level, where coverage may vary
Medicare
the federal health insurance program for people who are 65 or older, certain younger people with disabilities, and people with End-Stage Renal Disease (permanent kidney failure requiring dialysis or a transplant, sometimes called ESRD)
Monetary Policy
the macroeconomic policy laid down by the central bank. It involves management of money supply and interest rate and is the demand side economic policy used by the government of a country to achieve macroeconomic objectives like inflation, consumption, gr
National Labor Relations Board
an independent US government agency with responsibilities for enforcing US labor law in relation to collective bargaining and unfair labor practices
NAFTA OSHA (1970)
The Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) is a United States federal agency established in 1970 by the Occupational Health and Safety Act. OSHA is part of the Department of Labor and is charged with assuring healthy, safe, working environme
Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
the business division of the Executive Office of the President of the United States that administers the United States federal budget and oversees the performance of federal agencies
Reaganomics
the economic policies of the former US president Ronald Reagan, associated especially with the reduction of taxes and the promotion of unrestricted free-market activity
Sequester
a general cut in government spending
16th Amendment
amendment that allows the federal (United States) government to levy (collect) an income tax from all Americans
Social Security Act (1935)
law enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1935 to create a system of transfer payments in which younger, working people support older, retired people
Superfund
a fund established to finance a long-term, expensive project
Taft-Hartley Act (1947)
a federal law that was enacted in 1947 that prohibited certain union practices and required improvement in union disclosure of financial and political dealings
Wagner Act (1935)
made the federal government the arbiter of employer-employee relations through the creation of the national labor relations board (NLRB) and recognized for the first time the right of workers to organize and bargain collectively with their employers
ABM Treaty (1972)
popular name for part of the 1972 Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT) between the United States and the former Soviet Union; it restricts the number and locations of anti-ballistic missiles (ABM) that each nation can deploy
Appeasement
a political policy of conceding to aggression by a warlike nation
Atlantic Charter
a pivotal policy statement issued during World War II on 14 August 1941, which defined the Allied goals for the post-war world. The leaders of the United Kingdom and the United States drafted the work and all the Allies of World War II later confirmed it
Bush Doctrine
refers to various related foreign policy principles of the 43rd President of the United States, George W. Bush, after the 9/11 attack, the phrase described the policy that the United States had the right to secure itself against countries that harbor or g
Camp David Accords (1979)
a peace treaty between Israel and Egypt issuing from talks at Camp David between Egyptian President Sadat, Israeli Prime Minister Begin, and the host, U.S. President Carter: signed in 1979
CIA
a civilian foreign intelligence service of the United States federal government, tasked with gathering, processing, and analyzing national security information from around the world, primarily through the use of human intelligence
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs
by U.S. law, the highest-ranking and senior-most military officer in the United States Armed Forces and is the principal military adviser to the President, the National Security Council, the Homeland Security Council, and the Secretary of Defense
Collective security
the cooperation of several countries in an alliance to strengthen the security of each
Containment
a component of the Cold War, this policy was a response to a series of moves by the Soviet Union to increase communist influence in Eastern Europe, China, Korea, Africa, and Vietnam
Council on Foreign Relations
founded in 1921, is a United States nonprofit think tank specializing in U.S. foreign policy and international affairs. It is headquartered in New York City, with an additional office in Washington, D.C.
Cuban Missile Crisis
a confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union in 1962 over the presence of missile sites in Cuba; one of the "hottest" periods of the cold war
Dayton Accords
peace agreement reached on Nov. 21, 1995, by the presidents of Bosnia, Croatia, and Serbia, ending the war in Bosnia and outlining a General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Detente
the easing of hostility or strained relations, especially between countries
Domino Theory
the theory that a political event in one country will cause similar events in neighboring countries, like a falling domino causing an entire row of upended dominoes to fall
Fourteen points
included public negotiations between nations, freedom of navigation, free trade, self-determination for several nations involved in the war, and the establishment of an association of nations to keep the peace
Gold plating
the incorporation of costly and unnecessary features or refinements into a product or structure
Gulf of Tonkin Resolutions (1964)
the Southeast Asia Resolution, Pub.L. 88-408, 78 Stat. 384, enacted August 10, 1964, was a joint resolution that the United States Congress passed on August 7, 1964, in response to the Gulf of Tonkin incident
House Committee on Foreign Affairs
a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives, which has jurisdiction over bills and investigations related to the foreign affairs of the United States
Iran-Contra Scandal
scandal in the administration of President Ronald Reagan, which came to light when it was revealed that in the mid-1980s the United States secretly arranged arms sales to Iran in return for promises of Iranian assistance in securing the release of America
Isolationism
the doctrine that a nation should stay out of the disputes and affairs of other nations
Kellogg-Briand Pact (1928)
a treaty renouncing war as an instrument of national policy and urging peaceful means for the settlement of international disputes, originally signed in 1928 by 15 nations, later joined by 49 others
League of Nations
an international organization established after World War I under the provisions of the Treaty of Versailles
Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (1963)
prohibited the testing of nuclear weapons in outer space, underwater or in the atmosphere
Military-industrial complex
a country's military establishment and those industries producing arms or other military materials, regarded as a powerful vested interest
Monroe Doctrine
a principle of US policy, originated by President James Monroe in 1823, that any intervention by external powers in the politics of the Americas is a potentially hostile act against the US
Munich Conference
an agreement between Britain and Germany in 1938, under which Germany was allowed to extend its territory into parts of Czechoslovakia in which German-speaking peoples lived. Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain negotiated on behalf of Britain, and Chancell
National Security Act (1947)
a major restructuring of the United States government's military and intelligence agencies following World War II, majority of the provisions of the Act took effect on September 18, 1947, the day after the Senate confirmed James Forrestal as the first Sec
National Security Council (NSC)
a committee in the executive branch that advises the president on matters relating to domestic, military, and foreign security, also directs the operation of the CIA
NATO
the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, is a military alliance of European and North American democracies founded after World War II to strengthen international ties between member states�especially the United States and Europe�and to serve as a counter-b
Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
an international treaty whose objective is to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology, to promote cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, and to further the goal of achieving nuclear disarmament and general and complete di
Operation Desert Storm
the name used for the military operation in which international armed forces, including British and US troops, attacked Iraq in the Gulf War
Peace dividend
a sum of public money that becomes available for other purposes when spending on defense is reduced
Roosevelt Corollary
a corollary (1904) to the Monroe Doctrine, asserting that the U.S. might intervene in the affairs of an American republic threatened with seizure or intervention by a European country
Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
a standing committee of the United States Senate, charged with leading foreign-policy legislation and debate in the Senate
Strategic Arms Limitations Talks (SALT)
two rounds of bilateral conferences and corresponding international treaties involving the United States and the Soviet Union�the Cold War superpowers�on the issue of armament control
Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI)
also known as Star Wars, was a program first initiated on March 23, 1983 under President Ronald Reagan, intent of this program was to develop a sophisticated anti-ballistic missile system in order to prevent missile attacks from other countries, specifica
Truman Doctrine
the principle that the US should give support to countries or peoples threatened by Soviet forces or communist insurrection. First expressed in 1947 by US President Truman in a speech to Congress seeking aid for Greece and Turkey, the doctrine was seen by
United Nations
an international organization formed in 1945 to increase political and economic cooperation among member countries, organization works on economic and social development programs, improving human rights and reducing global conflicts
War Powers Act (1973)
a US law passed in 1973 which allows Congress to limit the President's use of military forces
Youngstown Sheet & Tube v. Sawyer (1951)
also commonly referred to as The Steel Seizure Case, was a United States Supreme Court decision that limited the power of the President of the United States to seize private property in the absence of either specifically enumerated authority under Article