P O L I T I C S G L O S S A R I E S Cover design: Cathy Sprent Edinburgh University Press 22 George Square Edinburgh EH8 9LF www.eup.ed.ac.uk ISBN 0 7486 2253 5 P O L I T I C S G L O S S A R I E S Series Editor: Keith Faulks Glossaries in this series provide brief, clear and convenient A–Z guides to the central concepts of the various branches of politics. They are thorough, authoritative and concise reference works which offer clear and consistent coverage of both traditional and contemporary terminology. Volumes in the series provide: • Dedicated coverage of particular topics within politics • Coverage of key terms and major figures • Practical examples of the terms defined • Cross-references to related terms Alex Thomson A GLOSSARY OF A Glossary of US Politics & Government Alex Thomson This glossary explains the key concepts, institutions, personalities and events most commonly referred to in the teaching of US politics and government. The emphasis is on accessibility in order to provide students with a ready source of knowledge which can supplement core reading. The book will help students to address any gaps they may have in their understanding of US politics which, in turn, will make studying this fascinating subject all the more rewarding and enjoyable. Alex Thomson is Principal Lecturer in Politics at Coventry University. His previous publications include Incomplete Engagement: US Foreign Policy Towards the Republic of South Africa (1996), An Introduction to African Politics (2000; second edition 2004) and (as co-author) Get Set for Politics (Edinburgh University Press, 2003). US POLITICS & GOVERN MENT Edinburgh US POLITICS & GOVERNMENT THOMSON A GLOSSARY OF A GLOSSARY OF US POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT M538 - THOMSON PRE M/UP 13/12/06 12:26 pm Page i Phil's G4 Phil's G4:Users:phi Politics Glossaries Series Editor: Keith Faulks This series introduces key terms within the core subject areas of politics. The aim is to provide a brief, clear and convenient A–Z guide to the central concepts of the various branches of politics. The series provides thorough, authoritative and concise ref- erence works which offer clear and consistent coverage of both traditional and contemporary terminology. Students and teachers of politics at all levels of study will find the books invaluable, though the books are aimed primarily at readers new to a subject area. In addition to appealing to mainstream politics students, the series will also appeal to those studying courses in sociology, journalism, media studies and social policy that include elements of politics. Volumes in the series provide: ■ Dedicated coverage of particular topics within politics ■ Coverage of key terms and major figures ■ Practical examples of the terms defined ■ Cross-references to related terms Titles in the series include: John Hoffman, A Glossary of Political Theory Alistair Jones, A Glossary of the European Union Alex Thomson, A Glossary of US Politics and Government Duncan Watts, A Glossary of UK Government and Politics M538 - THOMSON PRE M/UP 13/12/06 12:26 pm Page ii Phil's G4 Phil's G4:Users:ph A Glossary of US Politics and Government Alex Thomson Edinburgh University Press M538 - THOMSON PRE M/UP 13/12/06 12:26 pm Page iii Phil's G4 Phil's G4:Users:p © Alex Thomson, 2007 Edinburgh University Press Ltd 22 George Square, Edinburgh Typeset in 10.5/13 Sabon by Servis Filmsetting Ltd, Manchester, and printed and bound in Great Britain by Cox & Wyman Ltd, Reading A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN 978 0 7486 2804 9 (hardback) ISBN 978 0 7486 2253 5 (paperback) The right of Alex Thomson to be identified as author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. M538 - THOMSON PRE M/UP 13/12/06 12:26 pm Page iv Phil's G4 Phil's G4:Users:ph Contents Preface vi A Glossary of US Politics and Government 1 Appendix A Presidents and Vice Presidents of the United States 188 Appendix B Chief Justices of the United States 192 Appendix C Historic Strength of Political Parties within the US Federal Government 193 M538 - THOMSON PRE M/UP 13/12/06 12:26 pm Page v Phil's G4 Phil's G4:Users:phi Preface The United States houses one of the most intricate systems of government in the world, and produces politics of a complex nature. As a result, to understand this political arena, one needs to take on board many variables: the functions of a whole host of individual institutions; key political events that have occurred over some 250 years; individuals who have shaped this history; and the numerous expressions scholars have ‘coined’ in order to explain this political system. This may seem daunting at first. One has to sort out the legislative branch from the executive branch, and then work out where the Supreme Court resides in this political dispensation. This is before one realises that the federal government is only part of the equation, and that there are fifty other sovereign gov- ernments in the USA: those belonging to the individual states. And then there are the people and organisations that inhabit this system of government (politicians, political parties, inter- est groups, government departments, courts, independent agencies, and so on). Not to mention methods of represent- ation, in terms of general elections, primary elections, recall votes, state initiatives, lobbying and so forth. One needs some kind of mental map in order to put all these fragments of gov- ernment and politics back together, to gain an overall picture. Most use the US constitution as the starting point for drawing this map. And the constitution itself introduces a plethora of phrases that need to be understood (the commerce clause, denied powers, strict construction – again the list goes on). If M538 - THOMSON PRE M/UP 13/12/06 12:26 pm Page vi Phil's G4 Phil's G4:Users:ph you are serious about wanting to comprehend US politics and government there is a lot to learn. The good news is that assistance is at hand: literally. This book is specifically designed to help you understand the above events, institutions and terminology, and many more key words and phrases besides. It is not a comprehensive and exhaustive twelve-volume encyclopaedia of everything related to US politics and government, nor is it meant to be a substi- tute for the vast literature of books and articles published on this subject. Additionally, it is not a general political dictio- nary. There are no non-US-specific entries, such as ‘democ- racy’ in general or a broad consideration of ‘socialism’. The book is, instead, dedicated to terms that provide a good start- ing point for a journey into the politics of this part of the world. A Glossary of US Politics and Government works best when read alongside other texts. It will help newcomers to this subject understand a phrase or concept they come across in their other reading, while more knowledgeable scholars can use the entries in this book to clarify or remind themselves about a term previously encountered. Once you have looked up a word, and satisfied yourself of its meaning, you can then return to studying the key texts. However, having said this, there is nothing to stop you browsing. Inevitably with glos- saries, one often finds oneself following a path, with one entry leading to another: separation of the powers leads to Supreme Court, which leads to Brown v. Board of Education, 1954, which leads to civil rights movement, and so on. Glossary browsing is a great way to build up knowledge of a subject, but remember, the best way to learn is to eventually get back to the key texts! This book is only designed to give snap-shots, helping you digest more comprehensive volumes. So, what is actually in this book? Well, it is a collection of 500 or so explanations of often-used terms and phrases found in the study of US politics and government. These are listed PREFACE vii M538 - THOMSON PRE M/UP 13/12/06 12:26 pm Page vii Phil's G4 Phil's G4:Users:p in strict alphabetical order. The entries have been selected around four themes: institutions, historical events, expres- sions and personalities. Enough information is given to help one understand an issue, but the entries are deliberately concise in order not to bog the reader down with too many facts and detain them too long. Remember, the book is a com- panion to other recommended reading, not a substitute for it. In addition to the 500 or so entries that make up the vast bulk of this book are three appendices: ‘US Presidents and Vice Presidents’, ‘US Supreme Court Chief Justices’, and details of the US Congress since this body’s first session. These tables can be referred to when you need to confirm who was President or Chief Justice when, and which political party controlled the US Congress or the White House at a certain point in history. These are the types of sources that even the most experienced scholar of US politics has to turn to every now and then: when they forget which President succeeded William Henry Harrison in 1841, for example, after he died in office. In times of need or forgetfulness, we all need aide memoires, such as the present book. I also thought it would be useful to include the URLs of websites at the end of selected glossary entries. These are the official home-pages of the institutions concerned: the US Senate, for example, or the National Rifle Association. These URLs, however, have been confined to official sites. Readers may wish to search beyond these particular web pages, seeking a more critical view of these institutions. Similarly, one or two entries include further reading recommendations. Such recommendations have only been given when a specific book is mentioned in the text. Rather than overwhelm readers with several suggested books for each individual glossary entry, it would probably be better to start with a holistic view, and consult a couple of good text books instead. Two volumes, in particular, come highly recommended: George McKay’s American Politics and Society (Oxford: Blackwell, viii PREFACE M538 - THOMSON PRE M/UP 13/12/06 12:26 pm Page viii Phil's G4 Phil's G4:Users: 2005), and The Irony of Democracy, written by Thomas R. Dye and Harmon Zeigler (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 2005). The former is a good solid introductory text, written by a British-based author, useful to American and non-American scholars alike, while the latter is a (self sub-titled) ‘uncommon introduction’ to the US system, offering a slightly more radical twist. To assist the reader, all the entries in the glossary are cross- referenced. If you need further information about a topic, you can simply follow the cross-references to other sections of the book. Any entry in this glossary that appears within the description of another word or phrase is highlighted like so. If you use the above tools, what starts out to be a daunting and complex task, with a bit of effort, soon becomes easier and more straightforward. For, although the US system is intricate, it is also one of the most logical political dispensa- tions in the world. I hope this glossary will help you to unravel this logic, and above all, I hope this book contributes to your enjoyment of this political system. My thanks go to Roy Perry, Jacques Gallagher, Janice Ellis, and Keith Faulks for their suggestions which have improved this book. ART Manchester, 2006 PREFACE ix M538 - THOMSON PRE M/UP 13/12/06 12:26 pm Page ix Phil's G4 Phil's G4:Users:ph [...]... the fashionable carpet-fabric bags of the period Carter, Jimmy (1924– ) James Earl Carter was President of the United States, holding of ce between January 1977 and January 1981 After serving as a naval of cer and running his family’s farm, Carter entered local politics in Georgia, and was elected Governor of this state in 1970 Being a political ‘outsider’, rather than a Washington DC ‘insider’, Carter’s... reaching the White House, he was appointed Ambassador to the United Nations by Richard Nixon, he was Chair of the Republican National Committee, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, and was elected as Ronald Reagan’s Vice President in 1980 Bush’s presidency can be categorised as moderately conservative, consolidating many initiatives of the early Reagan administrations In international affairs,... service, and the payment of compensation to all African-Americans for years of exploitation at the hands of their white compatriots The Black Panthers also organised a number of social programmes amongst African-American communities, including the distribution of food to the poor At its height, in the late 1960s, the Black Panther Party was active in a number of cities across the United States, and had some... represent a total of 9 million American workers (including some in Canada, Mexico and Panama) As well as addressing workers’ interests at the shop-floor level, this organisation, although not as powerful as comparable European union federations, actively lobbies and sponsors candidates at all levels of US government Internal disputes have occasionally weakened the AFL-CIO In 1957, for example, the Teamsters,... ‘underground railway’, a network of paths and safehouses helping slaves to escape to Canada, and freedom It would eventually take the civil war to bring about the abolitionists’ demands President Abraham Lincoln made his ‘Emancipation Proclamation’ in 1863, and the end of slavery was confirmed by the Thirteenth Amendment to the US constitution in 1865 affirmative action Measures that positively discriminate, providing... Bay of Pigs An invasion of Cuba, by Cuban exiles, planned and funded by the administrations of Dwight D Eisenhower and John F Kennedy The US sought to overthrow the socialist regime of Fidel Castro, and establish a pro-western regime in Havana This 1961 invasion failed catastrophically and severely embarrassed the Kennedy Administration bellwether state An individual state that reflects the political... the values of this exceptionalism should be exported abroad American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) The AFL-CIO was created in 1955 by the merger of the American Federation of Labor and the Congress of Industrial Organizations to form the most influential trades union institution in the United States Individual unions affiliated to this organisation currently represent... candidate, it could be classed as an ‘issue ad’ rather than one associated with a particular campaign Elections in the 1990s, as a result, became typified by numerous negative issue advertisements being broadcast, criticising opposition candidates, as these could be paid for by soft money Since the legislation, any advertisement aired within thirty days of a primary election or sixty days of a general... organising political rallies, producing electoral literature, and, most expensive of all, buying air time to broadcast advertisements The scale of the M538 - THOMSON TXT M/UP 13/12/06 12:27 pm Page 23 Phil's G4 Phil's G4:Users:ph US POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT A Z 23 funding available to a candidate determines the nature and scope of that politician’s campaign, and their ability to get their message across to... money candidate-centred election Where candidates run for of ce highlighting their own ideas and character, rather than promoting a party platform Given the weaker influence of political parties in the United States, when compared to European countries, individual candidates are often the focus of elections, rather than national party strategies or manifestos Capitol Building The building located on Capitol . exported abroad. American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) The AFL-CIO was created in 1955 by the merger of the American Federation of Labor and the Congress of. to related terms Titles in the series include: John Hoffman, A Glossary of Political Theory Alistair Jones, A Glossary of the European Union Alex Thomson, A Glossary of US Politics and Government Duncan. political outlook of the nation as a whole. For example, if the citi- zens of Florida narrowly voted in favour of a Republican Party presidential candidate at a general election, and this Republican