[AP Govt] Domestic, Foreign, and Military Policy

insurance program

a self-financing government program based on contribution that provide benefits to unemployed or retired persons.

assistance program

a government program financed by general income taxes that provides benefits to poor citizens without requiring contributions from them.

means test

an income qualification program that determines whether one is eligible for benefits under government programs reserved for lower-income groups

majoritarian politics

a policy in which almost everybody benefits and almost everybody pays

client politics

a policy in which one small group benefits and almost everyone pays

worldviews

a comprehensive opinion of how the United states should respond to world problems

isolationism

the belief that the United States should withdraw from world affairs

containment

the belief that the United States should resist the expansion of aggressive nations, especially the former Soviet Union

disengagement

the belief that the United States was harmed by its war in Vietnam and so should avoid supposedly similar events

human rights

the belief that we should try to improve the lives of people in other countries

polarization

a deep and wide conflict over some government policy

military industrial complex

an alleged alliance between military leaders and corporate leaders

bipolar world

a political landscape with two superpowers

unipolar world

a political landscape with one superpower

cost overruns

when the money actually paid to military suppliers exceeds the estimated costs

gold plating

the tendency of Pentagon officials to ask weapons contractors to meet excessively high requirements