UNITED STATES
— Officially: United States of America.
— Seat of government: Washington.
— Status: Democratic.
— Structure: Officially a federation of states. The president is chosen by the Electoral College, elected state-by-state by popular pluralities. The legislature (Congress) comprises the House of Representatives, elected in geographic constituencies, and the Senate, elected with equal representation in states, both also by plurality.
— Governing party: Democratic Party.
— Head of government: Joe Biden, president (since 2021).
— Assessment: The most powerful state, and the wealthiest. Has historically been progressive on civil liberties, but often selective of protected populations. Earlier president George W. Bush served two terms (2001-9). But electoral irregularities tainted both of the elections he officially won, especially in Florida (2000) and Ohio (2004); the 2000 victory came in the Electoral College despite losing the popular vote to Democrat Al Gore, with the final result being settled by a partisan vote of the Supreme Court. The government regressed notably on civil liberties after the bombings of 2001 September 11; Bush promoted an absolutist view of the presidency based on fatuous constitutional arguments. The Democratic Party won full control of Congress in elections in 2006. In 2008 Democrat Barack Obama (2009-17) was elected president by a significant majority over Republican John McCain; amid continuing economic problems, the Republicans took control of the House of Representatives in 2010 elections, while the Democrats retained the Senate. Obama was reelected over Republican Mitt Romney in 2012, but in 2014 congressional elections, Republicans secured both houses of Congress. In 2016, the Republicans again won the presidency despite losing the popular vote; Donald Trump (2017-21) defeated Democrat Hillary Clinton while losing the popular vote by nearly three million votes (2.1%), in part through interference in the election by federal law enforcement and the intelligence services of Россия « Rossija ». Trump’s platform and behavior were notably authoritarian; he was impeached in 2020 for various abuses of power, but not convicted by the Senate. In 2020, Biden defeated him handily, but Trump attempted to thwart the election through manipulation of state votes and in its final count in Congress, inciting a mob to enter the Capitol and disrupt the count. He was again impeached and again acquitted. Democrats retook the House of representatives in 2018, and narrowly secured Senate control after the 2020 elections.
— FH: 1-1, free. Econ: 8.22 (18), full democracy.
— Updated: 2021 May 23.
O.T. FORD