Poli Sci Chaps 13-14

The largest single expansion in contributory programs after 1935 was the establishment in 1965 of this program, which provides medical insurance coverage for elderly persons who are already eligible for Social Security benefits:

Medicare.

What is the most visible instrument of foreign policy that any country has?

Military force

Congressional attempts to plan for the economic effects of taxing and spending are known as:

fiscal policy planning.

The fact that American presidents have often, since World War II, committed the United States to overseas military missions and conflicts with little to no consultation with Congress is at odds with the intentions of the Constitution's framers because they:

gave Congress the power to declare war, and made the president the commander-in-chief only when Congress chose to exercise that power.

Despite developing an increasing number of social programs over time, since the advent of Social Security in 1935, the United States still has a much less robust welfare state than many other developed democracies. This means, comparatively, that it has ____________.

not developed as extensive a set of social programs or benefits

Noncontributory programs, such as Medicaid, are implemented in part through means testing, meaning that

potential benefit recipients have their eligibility determined through a process involving proof of income and need.

After World War II, sparked by economic talks held by the United States and its allies (excluding the Soviet Union) in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, toward the war's end, a number of countries laid the groundwork for a trade agreement that evolved, decades later, into the World Trade Organization. What brought the countries together to do this was:

the fear of a repeat of economic devastation that followed World War I, and the belief of many that 1930s-era economic turmoil had helped cause World War II.

Sales taxes, other "consumption" taxes on items including liquor and gasoline, and federal Social Security contributions are called regressive taxes because:

the less money you make, the higher the percentage of your income that goes toward paying these taxes.

Although Alexander Hamilton developed policies to promote industry at the beginning of the American republic's history, it was not until _______________, that the federal government began playing a central role in promoting economic growth.

the twentieth century, especially with the Great Depression and the New Deal programs created to battle it

Although the United States and the former Soviet Union had been allies during World War II, by the late 1940s they became engaged in a struggle that saw both build up their militaries, develop the ability to destroy each other completely through nuclear weapons, and fund and fight with opposing sides in conflicts worldwide. It became known as the "Cold War," however, because:

the two countries never directly engaged in all-out war with each other, with the full force of their militaries.

Programs like Social Security are referred to as "entitlement programs" because:

they guarantee-that is, entitle-benefits to certain groups of people, based on categories established by federal law.

Why, in the twentieth century, did isolationist foreign policy stances become less tenable or realistic in the United States?

Because technological progress left the country less isolated from foreign threats, while global economic interdependence increased

What does a foreign policy of deterrence against the threat posed by another country require?

Developing and maintaining large military forces

The ____________________, created after the stock market crash of 1929, requires companies to disclose information about any stocks and bonds they are selling, as well as inform buyers of investment risks and protect investors against fraud.

Securities and Exchange Commission

Which of the following is an organization founded in 1945 and created with the goal of increasing and maintaining international order, as well as providing a channel for international cooperation?

The United Nations

Which international institution, created toward the end of World War II by the United States and its allies (excluding the Soviet Union), provides development aid to poor countries through the financing of long-term projects?

The World Bank

Who controls the Federal Reserve System?

The system's chair and board, who are appointed by presidents (with Senate confirmation), but who make decisions independently

The Federal Reserve has the power to change the interest rate at which banks lend money to each other through a process called:

adjustment of the federal funds rate.

The amount by which government spending exceeds revenues in a fiscal year is called the:

budget deficit

After the end of the World War II, American diplomat George Kennan, who had been staffed in Moscow, attempted to alert officials to what he saw as increasing threats to U.S. interests posed by the Soviet Union. He suggested that the United States would need to undertake long-term countermeasures against the threat in order to limit Soviet attempts at expansion. Kennan's prescription came to be called _____________ policy.

containment

Medicare and Social Security, which are social programs that people pay for through what are legally referred to as tax "contributions" (even though those contributions are mandatory), are known as _____________ programs.

contributory

The term foreign policy refers to programs and policies that:

determine a country's relations with other countries and foreign entities.

If the president or a duly appointed executive branch official (e.g., the Secretary of State) meets with dignitaries of a foreign government with the purpose of promoting national values or interests by peaceful means, he or she can be said to be engaging in:

diplomacy.

When the economy began a downturn in 2007, one that rapidly worsened when the global financial system came to the brink of collapse in 2008, the Federal Reserve significantly lowered the ______________ in order to boost the economy, eventually lowering it to nearly rock bottom before pushing it upwards again in 2018.

discount rate (i.e., the interest it charges on loans it extends to member banks)

A public policy is a law, rule, statute, regulation, or order that:

expresses the government's goals

The federal government put millions of people back to work during the Great Depression by:

having them work with newly created agencies to construct bridges, walkways, and buildings that can still be seen across the country today.

In what has become known as his "farewell address," President George Washington laid one of the cornerstones of American foreign policy _______________ , a security stance it would maintain for decades to come, when he warned the nation to "steer clear of permanent alliances" and have little political connection to foreign countries?

isolationism

Although the International Monetary Fund has billions of dollars, collected from all its members, with which to make loans to developing or economically unstable countries, it generally does so in ways that are consistent with the interests of __________.

its leading shareholders, including the United States, Europe, and Japan

The proportion of the federal budget devoted to mandatory spending is

large and growing

Monetary policy, of the sort typically handled by a country's central bank or banking system, involves:

managing a country's economy through the supply of money and credit.

Budgetary spending items that cannot be easily avoided, such as interest payments on the national debt, are called __________ spending.

mandatory

Each year the federal government spends more money than it takes in from revenue, as it has since the late 1990s. The difference is added to the _________________, or the total amount of money owed by the U.S. government, which sat at $20 trillion in late 2017.

national debt

Groups that international relations specialists call "nongovernmental organizations" (NGOs) have had enormous influence worldwide in recent times, often in no small part due to their independence from any one country. Examples include the human rights advocacy organization Amnesty International and the international medical aid-focused Doctors without Borders. Although these groups are nonviolent, they have one thing in common with independent terrorist groups such as Al-Qaeda, which is that they are:

non-state actors

Terrorist groups-including Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, usually referred to as ISIS or ISIL-that undertake operations without any government ties or sponsorship are examples of the hostile brand of ____________.

non-state actors

Public-assistance programs, such as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Medicaid, which provide benefits to people based on their need rather than taxes paid by them, are often popularly referred to as "welfare" programs. To federal government analysts, however, they are referred to as __________________ social programs.

noncontributory

In 2003, when the United States launched an attack on Iraq on the grounds that the country was warehousing weapons of mass destruction, including chemical weapons banned under international law, it opted for a policy of _________________ against any threat to American interests that was posed by Iraq and its autocratic leader, Saddam Hussein.

preemption, or preventative war

Although its role in foreign policy is not as important as it was for much of American history, the Senate still plays an important constitutional role in this area through:

reviewing and approving treaties made by the president.

In the early years of the American republic, the federal government tried to support domestic markets by restricting imported goods through tariffs, which are:

taxes on imports, thereby raising their prices and discouraging their entry into domestic markets.

In 2018, President Trump passed a series of taxes on imports of agricultural, industrial, and consumer goods coming into the U.S. market from China as well as from allies, including the European Union, Canada, and Mexico. His actions marked a dramatic turn in U.S. trade policy because:

the United States had, for half a century, led the world in advocacy of the lowering of trade barriers, including tariffs, in order to encourage free trade.

Until the twentieth century and World War II at least, American national security was mostly based on:

the country's geographic isolation.

Most spending on social welfare programs in the United States goes to programs for:

the elderly

Even when presidents and other top American public officials have made it a point to vocally promote human rights and democracy worldwide, the United States has still repeatedly overlooked violations by some authoritarian and autocratic regimes, such as Saudi Arabia, that show little regard for human rights because:

those countries are either important allies or trading partners, or both, and protecting security and economic interests are the top priority of American foreign policy.

When the United States goes it alone in imposing economic sanctions against a foreign country in the hopes of stopping the target from engaging in behavior that it sees as threatening to American interests, it is:

unlikely to fully meet its goal since the target can usually trade elsewhere.

Whenever you deposit money into a checking or savings account at a traditional retail bank or other financial institution that advertises the fact that it is a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) member-and most banks are, in order to remain competitive- you can be certain that:

up to $250,000 of any of your deposited money will be insured against bank failure by the FDIC.

In 2010, Congress passed tougher financial regulations in response to harsh criticism of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for what analysts charged was ____________________ prior to the recessionary years of 2008-2009.

weak SEC oversight of its financial sector

Although sometimes a seeming adversary of business and industry when acting in a regulatory role, and often disliked by the private sector for its taxes and regulations, government is nonetheless essential to the functioning of a market economy because:

when it works, government provides the law and order, predictability, and accountability that market economies need to survive and thrive.