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NRA
National Rifle Association that advocates for the right to own guns and gun rights in the name of protecting America's constitutional right to keep and bear arms. -
PLO
Palestine Liberation Organization- has employed the use of violence and was considered a terrorist organization by the US and Israel until their acceptance of the UN Security Council regulations and denouncement of “violence and terrorism”. -
Yasser Arafat
Chairman of the PLO from 1969-2004 and was the president of the Palestinian National Authority. He helped found Fatah, an organization which worked towards the disestablishment of Israel and putting back a Palestinian state in its place. -
William Rehnquist
Served on the Supreme Court for 33 years. As Chief-justice at the time, Rehnquist presided over the trial for the impeachment of Bill Clinton. -
Supply-Side Economics
Also called Reaganomics, this theory states that economic growth can happen by lowering taxes and decreasing regulations. -
Walter Mondale
Prior vice president to Jimmy Carter, Mondale won the 1984 Democratic presidential nomination, eventually losing to Reagan. Mondale pushed for a nuclear freeze, the ERA, increase in taxes, and a reduced U.S. public debt. -
California v. Bakke
A case between the University of California and Allan Bakke. The University of California held 16/100 places for minority students. Bakke who applied twice and was rejected and who’s GPA and testing scores were better than any of the minority accepted in the two times Bakke applied, contended that his rejection was based on race solely. -
Sandinistas
A Nicaraguan democratic socialist party made up of both English and Spanish members. The Contras, a US backed militia, was made (1981) to overthrow the Sandinista government after they came under attack for mass executions and oppression of the indigenous people. -
Saddam Hussein
President of Iraq. Was brutal in his dictatorship and led invasions into Iran and Kuwait resulting in hundreds of thousands of deaths. -
Moral Majority
A political organization having to do with the Republican party and right-minded Christians. Was effective in Republican presidential victories and the political force of Christians. -
Religious Fundamentalism
Loyalty to a set of beliefs and rejection of different opinions. -
Ronald Reagan
Former governor and actor, Reagan took presidency and began new political and economics strategies. -
Trickle-Down Economics
Economic theory that states that the reduction of taxes for businesses and the wealthy will benefit society at large. It is a form of supply-side economics. -
Economic Recovery Tax Act
A federal law that was to motivate economic growth by reducing individual income tax and expense depreciable property. -
PATCO Strike
The union of PATCO went on strike looking for better working conditions, better wages, and a workweek of 32 hours. By doing this the union violated the rule stating that federal government employees cannot hold strikes. -
Sandra Day O’Connor
She was the first woman to serve on the Supreme Court. -
AIDS
An virus that had a major outbreak in the 70's and 80's, mostly stapled as being a disease reserved for gay people. Under Reagan, little was done to alleviate the problem. -
Boland Amendment
Three legislative amendments limiting US Government assistance to the Contra militia in Nicaragua. -
SDI
Strategic Defense Initiative- a proposed defense system to protect the US from missiles. -
Beirut Bombings
During the Lebanese Civil war, two truck bombs hit buildings in which US and French peacekeepers were in. The Islamic Jihad took responsibility and said the bombings were to get the peacekeeping MNF out of Lebanon. -
Geraldine Ferraro
First female vice presidential candidate (to Walter Mondale) for a major American political party. -
Sonia Sotomayor
She was the first Hispanic Justice. -
Mikhail Gorbachev
The 8th and last leader of the Soviet Union. Gorbachev held the titles of General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, Chairmen of the Supreme Soviet, and President of the Soviet Union. -
Glasnost & Perestroika
Glasnost and Perestroika were political slogans. The former was meant for more openness and transparency of the government and the latter was meant to be the restructuring of the Soviets political and economic systems. -
Bob Dole
Longest serving republican leader in the Senate of Kansas, ran up against Bill Clinton. -
Iran-Contra Affair
A political scandal during Reagan’s second term, in which senior officials secretly sold arms to Iran, which was under an arms embargo, in order to be able to fund the Contras and release US hostages. -
Immigration Act
Act that prevented hiring undocumented immigrants, but would offer citizenship of those living in the US for over 5+ years in an attempt to control the borders and illegal immigration. -
John McCain
He is a senator who has been influential in many important foreign affairs. -
INF Agreement
Treaty that eliminated all (short and immediate range) nuclear and conventional missiles and their launchers. The treaty did not cover sea launched missiles. -
“Tear down this wall”
A famous line from Ronald Reagan’s speech made in West Berlin, calling for Mikhail Gorbachev to open up the wall that had been splitting West and East Berlin since 1961. -
Al-Qaeda
The organization of terrorists who were responsible for the attacks on 9/11. Their leader was Osama bin Laden. -
Citizens United
A conservative social welfare nonprofit organization. -
“Read my lips, no new taxes”
A campaign promise by George Bush to appease the Republican/Conservative wing to help him win the election. -
Tienanmen Square
Protest turned massacre caused by the death of Hu Yaobang, political corruption, nepotism, inflation, and economic reform. -
George H. W. Bush
Vice president to Reagan and the 41st president of the United States. Many foreign policy legislations were carried out during Bush 41’s term. -
Fall of the Berlin Wall
New regulations allowing travel between West and East Germany came through to the party boss and spokesman without a time delay, therefore when the broadcast to the people went out, the guards at the gates were too overwhelmed to regulate the influx of people going through that they let them go through. -
Panama Invasion
Occurred 10 years after the transfer of control of the Panama Canal from the US to Panama. During the invasion, Manuel Noriega, the Panamanian leader, general and dictator, was overthrown. -
Lech Walesa
President of Poland, labor activist, and won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1983. -
Americans with Disabilities Act
An act that prevents discrimination based on disability (this includes in careers, transportation, businesses, etc). It was signed into law by George Bush. -
Failure of Health Reform
It was a reform that required everyone to have some type of health care, and his proposal was to push a universal health care for each citizen or resident. This would fail due to a lack of Democratic Senators to push the bill. -
“Ethnic Cleansing”
The mass killing of a certain ethnic group from certain territories. Relevant in the case of Serbia and Kosovo where brutal attacks were carried in order to force Muslims to relocate. -
Internet
First started as an attempt to make a 'network of networks' by ARPANET that soon became modern internet known today made by Robert E. Kahn and Vint Cerf. -
Breakup of the Soviet Union
Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev resigned, gave his powers to Russian president Boris Yeltsin, and stated that the office of “soviet president” was extinct. In December 1991, the Republics of the Soviet Union were officially granted self-governance. -
Persian Gulf War
A war fought by conjoined forces of 35 nations led by the US in response to the invasion and annexation of Kuwait by Iraq. -
Boris Yeltsin
Was elected to the post of President of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and became the President of Russia when the Soviet Union dissolved and Gorbachev handed over his powers to Yeltsin. -
Bosnia and Kosovo
During the Balkan Wars under a dictator, ethnic cleansing was promoted. Bosnia and Kosovo were fighting for independence during this time of oppression. -
West Bank and the Gaza Strip
Palestinian territories under the control of Israel after the Six-Day war. -
START I and II
The first START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) between the US and USSR worked on the reduction and limitation of strategic weapons. This resulted in the elimination of about 80% of all nuclear weapons that were in existence then. START II, between the US and Russia worked to ban the use of MIRVs and on ICBMs. Eventually SORT came to be, limiting warheads per country to be 1,700-2,200. -
Clarence Thomas
He was the second black jurist on the Supreme Court, appointed by George Bush. -
Ross Perot
He ran in 1992 on the Independent ticket for the presidential election and ended up curating 20% of the popular vote. His main goal was to solve the debt issue, though due to a split in Democratic votes he did not win. -
Bill Clinton
The 42nd president of the United States who was a Democrat. However, he was the impeached due to sexual relations with a White House intern, making him the second impeached president throughout all of American history. -
Brady Bill
Helped placed restrictions on buying guns with background checks and waiting periods, with the assassination attempt of Reagan being the catalyst for this bill being passed. -
EU
Eu, also known as the European Union, was created after the 1993 Treaty of Maastricht that created political and economic ties between western European countries, that then gradually took in eastern European countries as time went on. -
Al Gore
45th Vice President of the United States under Bill Clinton, advocated environmental awareness. -
Hillary Clinton
First Lady from 1993 until 2001 to President Bill Clinton. First female senator from New York. Secretary of state from 2009 to 2013. Ran for presidency in 2006, but lost. -
NAFTA
America, Canada, and Mexico engaging in North American Free-Trade that created tariff-free goods, services, communication, and patent protection within this agreement. -
Contract with America
A ten-point plan put out by Republicans that helped them gain the majority of seats of senate by a mass cooperation of over 300 republicans. -
Taliban
A political movement in Afghanistan which is raging war in the country since 2016 but was founded in '94. -
“Don’t ask, don’t tell”
This was an intended compromise that you could not prevent closeted gay people from joining the military, nor try to hunt and pick them out. However, openly gay people could be barred from entering service. -
Newt Gingrich
Succeeded in having over 300 republicans sign the Contract of America in 1994 that gained them a high amount of representation in the Senate and the majority of the House positions. This was a triumph in the Conservative movement. -
Nuclear Proliferation
The spread of nuclear weapons to other nations that may have not possessed them. -
WTO
Known as the World Trade Organization that regulates international trade that was promoted by Clinton that came after the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. -
Oklahoma City Bombing
A domestic terrorist attack on the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building by Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols that were angered by the handling of Ruby Ridge. -
Welfare Reform
Signed by Bill Clinton that made cuts into welfare benefits for legal and illegal immigrants and made it harder for certain people to find employment. -
Same-sex marriage
Congress passed the marriage defense act which stated that marriage was just between a man and a woman, but then some of the states made their own laws that allowed same sex marriage. -
Madeleine Albright
First woman to serve as secretary of state, also tried to devise peace in the Middle East. -
G-8
The Group of Eight, consisting of US, Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Japan, Canada, Russia. Controls World Bank, IMF, and GATT. North American Free Trade Agreement. -
Clinton Impeachment
Bill Clinton was impeached for suspected sexual relationships within the White House with Monica Lewinsky (plus obstruction of justice and perjury), making him the only president besides Andrew Johnson. -
Bush v. Gore
A recount had been instated during the Florida election, which Bush was highly against and said it went against the equality within the system. The Supreme Court favored him, making him president. -
George W. Bush
Elected president in 1988, spent eight years as vice president under Ronald Reagan. His popularity declined by economic decline experienced during late term in his presidency. -
Bush Tax Cuts
The Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 signed by George W Bush that cut income tax and eliminated estate tax. -
9/11
Multiple terrorist attacks by airplane crashing into the twin towers, pentagon and one heading for the white house. -
Enron
An energy company that had a big financial scandal due to accounting fraud in 2001 -
No Child Left Behind
Educational law that provided money for assistance of poor children to help pioneer their educational success. -
Homeland Security
"the national effort to ensure a homeland that is safe, secure, and resilient against terrorism and other hazards where American interests, aspirations, and ways of life can thrive to the national effort to prevent terrorist attacks within the United States, reduce the vulnerability of the U.S. to terrorism, and minimize the damage from attacks that do occur" -
“Axis of Evil”
-This phrase was used by President Bush to describe the countries who sought after weapons of mass destruction. -
Operation Iraqi Freedom
The war in Iraq which started in 2003 which allowed the US to overthrow the leader and conflicts ended in 2010 -
WMD’s
Weapons that are unconventional in war that can wipe out a significant amount of lives. Used in many wars and eventually banned, it became the primary reason why the US invaded Iraq. -
Hurricane Katrina
A hurricane level 5 that was destructive and catastrophic to the states by the gulf of mexico. At least 1,245 people died. -
Kyoto Accord
This put into place the Kyoto Protocol which was a way of countries to limit greenhouse gas emissions and help fight the probable man-caused problem of global warming. -
Sarah Palin
Governor of Alaska in 2006 but resigned by her 2nd year. She was the youngest person and the first woman to be elected for governor in Alaska. -
Housing Bubble
A period where real estate value increase until became sustainable, and then it lowers again. This "Bubble" burst in 2007 during the financial crisis. -
Great Recession
A time of general economic decline. It varied from country to country, when it happened, but most countries felt the effects of it. -
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
Home loan corporations created to expand the mortgages combined in 2008 through government intervention. -
D.C. v. Heller
This case made the supreme court rule that D.C.'s restricted gun laws were unconstitutional. -
Barack Obama
President of the United States from 2009 until 2017. -
Tea Party
Conservative political movement that opposed Obama's economic and healthcare policies -
Abu Ghraib Prison
A prison in Iraq where the US had taken over to hold and torture suspected terrorists. It was closed in 2010 -
Dodd-Frank Act
A financial regulation that was put into place by President Obama after the financial crisis of 2008 -
Affordable Care Act
-Also known as Obamacare, it was put into place by newly sworn in Barack Obama -
Arab Spring
Many Arab revolutions that continued from 2010 until 2012. -
Debt Ceiling
It is the legislation that sets a limit on the amount of debt that the US treasury is issued. It limits the amount of money that the government can borrow. -
Syrian Civil War
Ongoing multi-sided civil war that started in 2011 and is still going on today. -
Osama bin Laden
The man responsible for 9/11 who was killed in 2011 after the US put a $25 million bounty on his head. -
Mitt Romney
Ran for president in 2012 against Barack Obama but lost. -
Deficit Reduction Budget
Spending and taxation proposals to reduce federal budget deficit. -
John Kerry
68th secretary of state from 2013 to 2017. Ran for president in 2004 but lost to George W Bush. -
Boston Marathon Bombing
Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and Tamerlan Tsarnaev bombed the Boston marathon in 2013 setting off two homemade bombs killing three people and injuring several hundred other people. -
Shelby County v. Holder
In this case the US Supreme Court ruled that states cannot make their own voting rights, that it goes against the constitution.
