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PLO
Palestine Liberation Organization, purpose is liberation of Palestine through armed struggle and violence aimed at Israeli civilians -
Yasser Arafat
Palestinian political leader -
Walter Mondale
Served as the 42nd vice president of the U.S -
California v Bakke
Allowed race to be one of the several factors in college admission policy -
Moral Majority
Prominent American political organization associated with the Christian right and the Republican party -
Saddam Hussein
Former president of Iraq, member of revolutionary Arab Socialist Ba'ath party -
Sandinistas
Members of the Sandinista National Liberation Front in Nicaragua -
Supply-Side Economics
Theory that argues that economic growth can be most effectively created by lowering taxes and decreasing regulation -
Trickle-Down Economics
Economic theory that advocates reducing taxes on businesses and the wealthy -
Religious Fundamentalism
Belief of an individual or a group of individuals in the absolute authority of a sacred religious texts -
AIDS
AIDS epidemic -
PATCO Strike
Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization strike was declared illegal and broken by Reagan administration -
Ronald Reagan
40th president of the United States -
Economic Recovery Tax Act
Encourage economic growth through through reductions in individual income tax rates, -
Sandra Day O'Connor
Associate Justice of the Supreme Court from 1981 to 2006, appointed by the Reagan administration -
Boland Amendment
Term describing three U.S legislative amendments, all aimed at limiting U.S assistance to the Contras in Nicaragua -
Lech Walesa
Retired polish politician and labor activist, co-founded and headed Solidarity, Soviet bloc's first independent trade union -
Internet
The internet was invented by Robert E. Kahn and Vint Cerf -
Beirut Bombings
Acts of terrorism that occurred during the Lebanese Civil War -
Geraldine Ferraro
American attorney and Democratic Party politician who served in the U.S House of Representatives, first female vice presidential running mate for a major political party -
SDI
Proposed missile defense system intended to protect the U.S from attack by ballistic strategic nuclear weapons -
Bob Dole
Served as Republican leader of the United States Senate -
Enron
American energies, commodities, and services company in Houston, Texas -
John Kerry
68th U.S Secretary of State,represented Massachusetts in the U.S Senate -
Iran-Contra Affair
Political scandal that occurred during the Reagan administration -
William Rehnquist
Lawyer and jurist who served on the Supreme Court, then as the 16th chief justice of the U.S -
Immigration Act of 1986
Criminalized the act of engaging in "pattern or practice" of knowingly hiring an "unauthorized alien"and established consequences for hiring illegal immigrants -
"Tear Down This Wall"
Speech by Ronald Reagan on tearing down the Berlin Wall -
INF Agreement
Treaty between the U.S and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on elimination of intermediate-range and short-range missiles -
Glasnost and Perestroika
Political movement for reformation within the Communist party of the Soviet Union -
"Read my lips, no new taxes"
Phrase spoken by presidential candidate George H.W Bush, which ultimately ended up being a lie -
Al-Qaeda
Militant Sunni multi-national organization founded by Osama Bin Laden -
Osama Bin Laden
Founder of Al-Qaeda, responsible for organization of 9/11 -
Mikhail Gorbachev
Eighth and last leader of the Soviet Union -
George H.W. Bush
41st president of the U.S -
Tiananmen Square
Student-led demonstrations in Beijing, China -
Fall of the Berlin Wall
As the Cold War thawed out, Berlin Wall was taken down -
Panama Invasion
Attempt to overthrow military dictatorship -
Breakup of the Soviet Union
Granted self-governing independence to republics of the soviet union -
Persian Gulf War
Build up of troops and defense of Saudi Arabia -
Americans with Disabilities Act
Civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability -
Boris Yeltsin
Soviet and Russian politician and the first president of the Russian Federation -
Start I and II
Bilateral treaty between the U.S and the USSR on the reduction and limitation of strategic offensive arms -
Clarence Thomas
American judge, lawyer, and government official, currently serves as the Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, appointed by George H.W Bush as the first African American to serve on the court -
NRA
American non profit organization that advocated for gun rights -
Ross Perot
American business magnate and former politician, founder of Electronic Data Systems, ran for president -
Ethnic Cleansing
Mass killing of members of an unwanted ethnic or religious group in society (Bosnia) -
Kyoto Accord
International treaty that commits parties to reduce greenhouse gas emissions -
Bill Clinton
42nd president of the U.S -
Failure of Health Reform
Clinton healthcare plan failed -
Deficit Reduction Budget
Taxation, spending, and economic policy debates and proposals designed to reduce the Federal budget deficit -
Brady Bill
Federal law that requires a waiting period for handgun purchase and background checks on those who wish to purchase hand guns -
Nuclear Proliferation
Spread of nuclear weapons, fissionable material, and weapons-applicable nuclear technology and information to nations not recognized as "Nuclear Weapons States" by the Treaty of Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons -
EU
European Union, political and economic union of 28 member states that are located primarily in Europe -
Al Gore
45th vice president of the U.S -
Hillary Clinton
American politician, former diplomat, first lady of the U.S to president Bill Clinton -
"Don't Ask, Don't Tell"
Official U.S policy on military service by gays, bisexuals, and lesbians, instituted by the Clinton administration -
NAFTA
North American Free Trade Agreement, trilateral trade bloc including Canada, Mexico, and the U.S -
Taliban
Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, Sunni Islamic fundamentalist political movement in Afghanistan -
Newt Gingrich
American politician and author, 50th speaker of the U.S House of Representatives -
Oklahoma City Bombing
Domestic truck bombing on the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City -
WTO
World Trade Organization, intergovernmental organization that regulates international trade -
Welfare Reform
The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, made to dramatically change the nation's welfare system into one that requires work in exchange for time-limited assistance -
Contract of America
Document released by the Republican party during 1994 congressional election campaign -
Madeleine Albright
First woman to have become the U.S Secretary of Sate, served under Bill Clinton -
G-8
Group Eight, inter-governmental political forum -
Clinton Impeachment
Initiated by the House of Representatives and led to a trial in the Senate for Impeachment of Bill Clinton -
Bosnia and Kosovo
Kosovo War and Bosnian War -
West Bank and the Gaza Strip
Palestinian territories under the control of Israeli forces -
Bush v Gore
Decision of the U.S Supreme Court that settled a recount dispute in Florida's 2000 presidential election -
George W. Bush
43rd president of the U.S -
Bush Tax Cuts
Changes to the U.S tax code passed under Bush and extended under the presidency of Obama through Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act -
9/11
Series of four coordinated terrorist attacks by the Islamic terrorist group al-qaeda on the U.S -
No Child Left Behind
Authorizes several federal education programs that are administered by the states -
Homeland Security
Cabinet department of the U.S federal government with responsibilities in public security -
Axis of Evil
Described governments that Bush's administration accused of sponsoring terrorism and seeking weapons of mass destruction -
WMD's
Weapon of mass destruction, a nuclear, radio-logical, chemical, biological, or other weapon that can kill and bring significant harm to a large number of humans or cause great damage -
Operation Iraqi Freedom
A protracted military conflict in Iraq that began with an attack by a coalition of forces led by the U.S and resulted in the overthrow of Saddam Hussein's regime -
Abu Ghraib Prison
Prison complex in a city in Iraq, personnel of the U.S committed a series of human rights violations to prisoners -
Hurricane Katrina
Extremely destructive and deadly category 5 hurricane that caused damage along the Gulf coast from Florida to Texas -
Housing Bubble
Real estate bubble affecting over half of the U.S states, housing prices dropped -
Sarah Palin
Ninth governor of Alaska, American politician -
Great Recession
Period of general economic decline observed in world markets -
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
Government sponsored enterprises, privately owned but receive support from the federal government -
John McCain
Republican nominee for president of the U.S in the election of 2008 -
Debt Ceiling
An upper limit set on the amount of money a government can borrow -
DC v Heller
Protected individuals' right to possess firearms unconnected with service in a militia for traditionally lawful purposes such as self defense in the home -
Barack Obama
44th president of the U.S -
Tea Party
American conservative movement within the republican party -
Sonya Sotomayor
Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, first justice of Hispanic descent -
Dodd-Frank Act
Places major regulation on the financial industry -
Affordable Care Act
Supports innovative medical care delivery methods designed to lower the cost of health care generally -
Arab Spring
Revolutionary wave of both violent and non-violent demonstrations, riots, etc. -
Citizens United
Decided that political spending is a form of protected speech under the first amendment -
Syrian Civil War
Multi-sided armed conflict in Syria -
Mitt Romney
Republican party's nominee for presidential election, 70th governor of Massachusetts -
Boston Marathon Bombing
Two bombs detonated at the finish of the annual Boston Marathon, killing three people and injuring hundreds -
Shelby County v Holder
Struck down provisions on to the pre clearance of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, declaring it unconstitutional -
Same-Sex Marriage
U.S Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in all states
