US Foreign and Economic Policy and Political Parties

Three officials most responsible for US foreign policy

President, Secretary of State, National Security Advisor

US ambassadors are nominated by whom?

the President

US ambassadors are approved by whom?

majority of the Senate

what does the US ambassador represent

the policy of the Executive branch of the US government to the nation where they are assigned

role of a US ambassador

highest-ranking official of the US in the country where they are assigned

Status of US Embassy

land belongs to the country in which it sits, but the embassy is inviolable

Isolationism

the US should be relatively uninvolved in matters outside of the Western Hemisphere

Internationalism

the US should be active in the world when necessary, to protect vital US interests

two major alliances the US is involved in

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and Organization of American States (OAS)

What kind of economy does the US have

Capitalist

definition of Capitalist economy

"means of production" owned by private parties, and minimal government regulation of economy

what does the Federal Reserve Bank do

carries out monetary policy

what is monetary policy

has to do with the supply of money in the economy

how many federal reserve districts are there in the US

12

How does the federal reserve bank operate

Independently of the Executive branch

What does the treasury department do

controls fiscal policy

what is fiscal policy

has to do with taxation and the federal government's budget

What bills the treasury department circulates

1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, and 100 dollar bills

Reason to eliminate the penny

it costs 3.69 cents for the treasury department to mint a penny

Reason NOT to eliminate the penny

The average penny remains in circulation for 30 years, which means its cost per year to the Treasury is far less than one cent.

First two US political parties

Democratic-Republican party and Federalist party

leaders of Democratic-Republican party

Thomas Jefferson and James Madison

policies of Democratic-Republic party

favored France over Britain for foreign policy, favored farming over industry, strongest in the South and Frontier, favored states over federal government

leaders of the Federalist party

John Adams and Alexander Hamilton

policies of Federalist party

favored Britain over France in foreign policy, favored industry over farming, strongest in New England, favored federal government over the states

origin of today's Democratic party

was formed out of the Democratic-Republican party to elect Andrew Jackson as President

origin of today's Republican party

formed out of the Whig party and some other smaller ones

symbol of Democrats

donkey

symbol of Republicans

elephant

what do the two parties hold during the winter and spring of presidential election years?

primary elections

purpose of primary elections

to choose a presidential nominee for each political party

where is the first Democratic and Republican primary traditionally held

New Hampshire

two purposes of party national conventions

to nominate formally the candidates for President and Vice, and to endorse a "platform" that sets forth the major principles and policies of each party

where was the most violence convention

Chicago