history 80s-2000s
Largest attack on US soil/killed 2996 people/4 passenger planes hijacked by 19 al-Qaeda terrorists/2 crashed into WTC towers, 1 into Pentagon, last into field in Shanksville, PA
9/11
Prison in Iraq used by US Army & CIA to hold hostile Iraqis/2003 scandal regarding abuse of prisoners/17 US soldiers were court-martialed
Abu Ghraib
2000 Dem presidential nominee/lost to W Bush/VP under Clinton/infamous for creation of internet quote/won 2006 Academy Award for Best Documentary for An Inconvenient Truth
Al Gore
Literally 'The Base'/Sunni Islamist organization founded in 1988 by Osama bin Laden, Abdullah Azzam, & others in Afghanistan to combat Soviet invasion/now led by al-Zawahiri
Al-Qaeda
1990 civil rights law under George HW Bush/banned discrimination against citizens based on disabilities
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
African-American woman/charged Clarence Thomas with sexual harassment during his Supreme Court nomination hearings/he was her supervisor at Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
Anita Hill
Description
Answer
NY Congressman (1999-2011) imprisoned for sexting with a minor/used alias 'Carlos Danger'/ran for Mayor of NYC in 2005 & 2013/husband of Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin
Anthony Weiner
Lethal bacteria infecting letters sent by terrorists just after 9/11
Anthrax
Arab nationalist & socialist political party espoused by Saddam Hussein in Iraq & Bashar al-Assad in Syria/founded in 1947
Ba'ath Party
44th Pres/1st black Pres/born in Honolulu/attended Occidental College & Columbia/community organizer in Chicago/Senator from Illinois/defeated McCain in 2008 & Romney in 2012
Barack Obama
Pres of Syria since 2000/father was Pres from 1971-2000/leader of Ba'ath party/was ophthamologist/has used chemical weapons during Syrian Civil War/supported by Putin/opposed by US
Bashar al-Assad
42nd Pres/Arkansas Governor/signed NAFTA & welfare reform bills/impeached b/c of perjury in Monica Lewinsky scandal/autobiography My Life
Bill Clinton
1996 Repub presidential nominee/lost to Clinton/senator from Kansas/was VP nominee in 1976 w/Ford/wife Elizabeth served as NC Senator from 2003-09
Bob Dole
Literally 'Western education is forbidden'/Islamic extremist group founded in 2002 based in NE Nigeria (also in Chad, Niger & N Cameroon)/allegiance to ISIL
Boko Haram
1st President of Russian Federation after collapse of USSR (1991-99)/privatized economy/survived attempted coup in 1993
Boris Yeltsin
Term used to describe efforts during 1992-95 Bosnian War to eliminate Muslim & Croatian populations thru ethnic cleansing/led to 1995 NATO airstrikes led by US under Clinton
Bosnian Genocide
1993 gun-control law named for White House Press Secretary who was paralyzed after being wounded in assassination attempt on Reagan/mandated federal background checks & 5-day wait
Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act (Brady Bill or Brady Act)
Overthrow of Slobodan Milošević on 5 Oct 2000 in Belgrade, Yugoslavia/vehicle operator drove vehicle into RTS building (symbol of regime & ruling party)
Bulldozer Revolution
FL ballots that supposedly confounded elderly Gore voters in 2000 election
Butterfly Ballot
Domestic terrorist bombing in Atlanta during 1996 Summer Olympics/1st of 4 pipe bombings by Eric Rudolph/security guard Richard Jewell was falsely accused by FBI & media
Centennial Olympic Park bombing
2nd Black SCOTUS Justice/rarely speaks/longest-serving currently/headed EEOC under Reagan/Anita Hill charges/'high tech lynching'/wrote My Grandfather's Son/appointed by HW Bush
Clarence Thomas
1st Black Sec of State for W Bush (2001-05)/Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (1989-93)/National Security Adviser for Reagan/supported Obama in 2008
Colin Powell
20 April 1999 shooting at this Colorado high school by Eric Harris & Dylan Klebold/12 students & 1 teacher killed/21 injured/17 yr old Rachel Scott was killed for being a Christian
Columbine High School
Loose confederation of countries that were formerly part of the USSR/founded in 1991/includes Russia & Belarus/Baltic Republics didn't join/Ukraine dropped out in 2018
Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS)
2nd Sec of State for W Bush (2005-09)/1st black female Natl Security Adviser (01-05) & Sec of State/pioneered Transformational Diplomacy/currently professor at Stanford
Condoleezza Rice
1994 document by Newt Gingrich/conservative promises to US in 1994 midterms/helped GOP net 9 Senate & 54 House seats/1st GOP control of Congress since 1954
Contract with America
Region of Sudan w/racial conflict from 2003-present/genocide of non-Arab population by Pres Omar al-Bashir/rebel groups JEM & SLMA vs Janjaweed militia & Sudanese military
Darfur
Branch Davidian cult leader/accused of sexual abuse of minors/killed in Waco siege/claimed to be their final prophet
David Koresh
Cabinet department created by Bush in 2002 to protect the US in aftermath of 9/11/coordinates intelligence between govt agencies
Department of Homeland Security
VP under W Bush (2001-2008)/Ford Chief of Staff/Wyoming Congressman/Sec of Defense for HW Bush & oversaw Operation Desert Storm/CEO of Haliburton (oil company)
Dick Cheney
Russian Pres from 2008-2012/currently PM under Putin (2012-present)/led modernization program/won Reusso-Georgian War (2008)/law enforcement reform
Dmitri Medvedev
Conservative news website/doesn't write articles/just links to other sites/1st source to break Monica Lewinsky scandal/founded 1995/currently most accessed news site
Drudge Report
Controversial pres election/Gore won popular vote but lost to W Bush/election came down to recount in FL/stopped by Supreme Court b/c of arbitrary interpretation of ballots
Election of 2000
1st Obama AG (2009-15)/1st black AG/oversaw Operation Fast & Furious ATF gunwalking scandal
Eric Holder
Agency of Dept of Homeland Security/created by exec order in 1979/responds to US disasters that overwhelm state resources/criticized in 2005 for response during Hurricane Katrina
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
State at the heart of the 2000 election controversy/Bush won by only 537 votes after recount was halted
Florida
5 Nov 2009 shooting at this US military base in Killeen, TX by Nidal Hasan (US Army psychologist)/killed 13 & wounded 30/had been emailing jihadist imam in Yemen
Fort Hood
43rd Pres/son of 41st Pres/Gov of Texas (1995-2000)/co-owner of Texas Rangers baseball team/led War on Terror after 9/11/defeated Gore in 2000 & Kerry in 2004/wrote Decision Points
George W Bush
Dec 2007 - June 2009 economic slowdown in US & most developing countries/triggered by US subprime mortgage crisis/2nd worst downturn behind Great Depression
Great Recession
US military prison for terrorists in Cuba/also called Gitmo/established in 2002 by W Bush/Obama promised to close it but didn't/currently 40 inmates
Guantanamo Bay
Socialist Pres of Venezuela (1999-2013)/failed 02 coup attempt/nationalized oil industry/economic collapse after initial gains/called W Bush the devil at UN/died from cancer 2013
Hugo Chavez
2005 Category 5 hurricane/catastrophic damage to New Orleans/over 1200 deaths & $125 billion in damage/levees around city failed/W Bush criticized for Federal response
Hurricane Katrina
Salafi jihadist group founded in 1999/goes by Arabic acronym DAESH/proclaimed itself worldwide caliphate under al-Baghdadi/ethnic cleansing in Iraq & Syria/called JV team by Obama
ISIS/ISIL
2003-11 conflict/US led coalition invaded namesake nation to overthrow Saddam Hussein/instigated by search for weapons of mass destruction/began by W Bush/ended by Obama
Iraq War (Second Gulf War)
1st female attorney general in US history/served under Clinton from 1993-2001/authorized FBI to assault Branch Davidians in Waco TX
Janet Reno
Former Navy SEAL & World Wrestling Federation tag team champion/acted in Running Man & Predator/Reform Party candidate who was Governor of Minnesota from 1999-2003
Jesse 'The Body' Ventura
VP under Obama (2009-2016)/Delaware Senator/known as gaffe machine/running for 2020 Dem nomination for Pres/chaired Judiciary Committee for SCOTUS hearings on Bork & Thomas
Joe Biden
2004 Dem Pres nominee/lost to W Bush/Massachusetts Senator/married Teresa Heinz/Sec of State for Obama/won medals in Vietnam/was outspoken opponent on return/Lt Gov under Dukakis
John Kerry
2008 Repub Pres nominee/defeated by Obama/Arizona Senator/Vietnam pilot & POW for 6yrs/refused early release/regarded as a maverick/campaign finance reform w/Feingold/died 2018
John McCain
Current Chief Justice/nominated to replace O'Connor but got CJ when Rehnquist died/clerked for Rehnquist/conservative philosophy but votes w/liberals at times (eg Obamacare)
John Roberts
Dem VP nominee for Kerry in 2004/NC Senator/2 Americas slogan/indicted for campaign finance violations relating to his affair w/Reille Hunter while his wife was dying of cancer
Jonathan Edwards
1st Jewish candidate for VP/ran with Gore in 2000/Senator from Connecticut/ran as independent for Senate in 2006/supported Bush in Iraq invasion/introduced Don't Ask, Don't Tell
Joseph Lieberman
Republican political adviser called 'The Architect' by W Bush/headed Bush's campaigns for Gov of TX in 94 & 98 and his Pres campaigns in 2000 & 2004
Karl Rove
Solicitor general for GHW Bush/was independent council who investigated Bill Clinton for Whitewater affair & perjury regarding Monica Lewinsky/report led to Clinton impeachment
Ken Starr
Mastermind of the 9/11 attacks/captured in 2003 by CIA w/help of Pakistani intelligence/held at Guantanamo Bay since 2006
Khaleid Sheikh Mohammed
Leader of North Korea from 1994-2011/son of Kim Il-Sung/called 'Dear Leader'/father of Kim Jong-un/poor land management led to massive famine in mid-90's
Kim Jong-il
International agreement committing nations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions/signed in 1997 but not effective until 2005/not signed by US or China
Kyoto Protocol
Nation of Islam leader/led Million Man March in 1995/criticized for antisemitic & anti-White remarks
Louis Farrakhan
Repub SC Governor (2003-11)/disappeared for 1 week in 2009/went to Argentina to be w/mistress Maria Chapur/told staff he was hiking Appalachian Trail/still completed 2nd term
Mark Sanford
2002 law/amended Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971/regulates the financing of political campaigns/partially overturned by 2010 Citizens United vs FEC case
McCain-Feingold Act (Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act)
Republican politician/1st African American elected to statewide office in Maryland/RNC chairman (2009-11)/ran for Senate in 2006 but lost
Michael Steele
Longest serving KY senator in history/current Repub Senate Majority Leader/blocked Obama appointee Merrick Garland from SCOTUS/worked to confirm Trump nominees Gorsuch & Kavanaugh
Mitch McConnell
White House intern that Bill Clinton had sex with in the Oval Office/led to Clinton's impeachment when he lied about it under oath
Monica Lewinsky
Arab nationalist & socialist leader of Libya from 1969-2011/overthrown & executed during Arab Spring/his Third International Theory recorded in The Green Book/Lockerbie bombing
Muammar Gaddafi
Only female Speaker of the House (2007-11, 2019-present)/Democrat who represents San Francisco in US House/opposed Iraq War & other Bush policies/oversaw passage of Obamacare
Nancy Pelosi
18 yr old AL student/missing on school trip to Aruba (2005)/Joran van der Sloot was arrested but released/remains never found/van der Sloot later convicted of murdering another
Natalie Holloway
Speaker of the House from 1995-99/led 1994 Republican Revolution w/Contract with America/led welfare reform & tax cuts in 1997/resigned over affair in 1999/govt shutdown in 1996
Newt Gingrich
1994 agreement/created a free trade zone between US, Canada & Mexico/passed under Clinton
North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms (ATF) sold weapons to Mexican drug cartels/US Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was killed w/one/scandal for AG Eric Holder under Obama
Operation Fast and Furious
Series of protests in Ukraine from late Nov 2004 to Jan 2005 after run-off vote for Pres between Yushchenko & Yanukovych/revote led to Yushchenko victory
Orange Revolution
Leader of Al-Qaeda behind 9/11/son of millionaire Saudi construction company founder/joined Mujahideen in Pakistan/attacked WTC in 1993/shot by Navy SEALs in Abbottabad, Pakistan
Osama bin Laden
1992/5 Pennsylvania state regulations on abortion were challenged/one was invalidated & four were upheld/could have but did not overturn Roe v. Wade
Planned Parenthood v Casey
1996 novel written by political reporter Joe Klein/fictionalized Clinton's 1992 Pres campaign/included his personal life & womanizing
Primary Colors
Monetary policy used by Fed to try to bring US out of Great Recession/massive increase in purchase of Govt bonds by central banks/injects money into economy
Quantitative Easing
Obama's White House Chief of Staff from 2009-10/Mayor of Chicago (2011-19)/nicknamed Rahmbo for intensity/sent dead fish to pollster who turned in results late
Rahm Emanuel
Consumer advocate turned Green Party presidential candidate in 2000/wrote Unsafe at Any Speed about car industry/namesake Raiders investigated FTC/environmentalist
Ralph Nader
African-American Los Angeles construction worker/beaten by police in 1991 after car chase/videotaped but police were acquitted/led to 1992 LA riots/'Can't we all just get along'
Rodney King
Pro-Western peaceful change of power in Georgia in November 2003/stormed Parliament w/flowers in hand/ousted Shevardnadze (ended Soviet-era leadership)/led to conflict w/Russia
Rose Revolution
Billionaire 3rd party presidential candidate in 1992/founder of Electronic Data Systems/founded Reform Party in 1996/opposed 1st Gulf War & NAFTA
Ross Perot
2-time Chief Justice of AL Supr Court/removed for refusing to remove 10 Commandments & defying same-sex marriage ruling/ran for AL Senate in 2016 but lost
Roy Moore
2nd female justice/oldest on court/majority opinion US v Virginia, Olmstead v LC, Friends of the Earth vs Laidlaw Environmental Services/'Notorious RBG'/appointed by Clinton (1993)
Ruth Bader Ginsberg
President & dictator of Iraq from 1979-2003/led Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party/invaded Iran & Kuwait/captured in 2nd Gulf War/executed in 2006
Saddam Hussein
2nd Italian-American SCOTUS justice/majority opinion on Burwell v Hobby Lobby, McDonald v Chicago, & Janus v AFSCME/was US Attorney for New Jersey/appointed by W Bush in 2006
Samuel Alito
Repub VP nominee for McCain in 2008/Governor of Alaska (youngest & 1st female) /Mayor of Wasilla/wrote Going Rogue/son w/Down syndrome/husband filed for divorce (2019)
Sarah Palin
1st Hispanic & Latina justice/taught at NYU & Columbia/dissent on Trump v Hawaii/appointed by Obama in 2009
Sonia Sotomayor
Oldest serving & longest serving senator in history/SC Senator 1954-2003/over 100 when retired/1st Dem the Repub/ran as Dixiecrate Pres candidate in 1948/won 39 electoral votes
Strom Thurmond
2007-10 nationwide financial crisis caused by collapse of housing prices/led to massive numbers of foreclosures & huge bank bailouts
Subprime Mortgage Crisis
Name literally means 'students'/Sunni group that ruled & seeks to rule Afghanistan/harsh Sharia law/brutal treatment of women/provided home base for bin Ladin & al-Qaeda for 9/11
Taliban
Conservative political movement begun in 2009 to oppose increase in size of govt under Obama/inspired by call from CNBC reporter Rick Santelli/targeted by IRS under Lois Lerner
Tea Party
2001 act passed in wake of 9/11 terror attacks/united intellegence info/allowed wiretapping & searching of business records/expired on June 1, 2015/replaced by USA Freedom Act
The Patriot Act
US terrorist that bombed federal building in Oklahoma City, OK in 1995/killing 168 & wounded 680/deadliest terror attack until 9/11/wanted revenge for Waco & Ruby Ridge incidents
Timothy McVeigh
Passenger on Flight 93 on 9/11 who helped fight hijackers/immortalized by being recorded saying, 'Are you ready? Okay. Let's roll.'/killed in crash of plane
Todd Beamer
Mississippi Senator/Majority Leader 2001/Minority Leader (01-03)/resigned praised Strom Thurmond's 1948 Dixiecrat Pres run at Thurmond's 100th birthday party/supposed racism
Trent Lott
Name for Ted Kaczynski/US domestic terrorist who sent bombs thru mail/math prodigy & anarchist/lived in remote cabin in Montana/wrote Industrial Society & Its Future/arrested 1996
Unabomber
Domestic commercial flight hijacked by al-Qaeda as part of 9/11 attacks/crashed in Stony Creek, Pennsylvania (20 min from DC) when passengers fought to retake plane/44 killed
United Airlines Flight 93
Russian president 2000-08 & 2012-present/KGB officer in 70's-80's/economic growth w/corruption/annexed Crimea from Ukraine/decrease in political & press freedom/PM from 2009-11
Vladimir Putin
Created 1995 by Marrakesh Agreement/intergovernmental organization for regulating international trade/successor to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)
World Trade Organization (WTO)
Interrogation technique intended to simulate drowning/used on Khaleid Sheikh Mohammed to extract info/banned later by W Bush administration
waterboarding
Systematic forced removal of ethnic, racial and/or religious groups from a given territory by a more powerful ethnic group, often w/intent of making it ethnically homogeneous
ethnic cleansing
