Where everything is bipartisan until it is not.
The legal process of transferring an accused criminal from one jurisdiction to another for prosecution.
A group of high-ranking executive officials (Secretary of State, Defense, Treasury, etc.) who advise the chief executive and collectively demonstrate why political experience often translates poorly to actual results.
A formal parliamentary procedure to end debate and force a vote, because apparently talking forever was so big a problem that Congress needed a specific rule to stop it.
A fancy British title for a woman who's done something impressive enough to earn royal recognition, or a pantomime staple where a man in drag steals the show. Definitely not your average dame.
Supreme control, sovereignty, or ownership over a territory or domain—the kind of power that gets historical empires to wake up sweating. It's dominance with a fancier medieval accent.
Hawks favor aggressive military intervention; doves prefer diplomatic solutions and restraint.
Using personal attacks and negative accusations against a political opponent rather than discussing policy.
A nation's ability to influence others through culture, values, and persuasion rather than military force or coercion.
A sudden, violent, and illegal seizure of power from a government, typically abbreviated to 'coup.'
An initial election within a political party to select the candidate for the general election, allowing party members to choose between ideological variants of basically the same group.
Nowhere On Planet Earth—an environmental stance that rejects a project's existence anywhere, not just refusing it locally.
Someone on an unchecked spending spree, typically dropping government stimulus checks on frivolous purchases with zero financial planning.
A formal written agreement between nations on matters like trade, military cooperation, or human rights.
A legislative official whose job is to enforce party discipline by convincing, threatening, or bribing fellow party members to vote the right way, which sounds dystopian but is basically just normal politics.
The official end of a legislative session or meeting, either temporary recess or permanent end-of-session conclusion.
Playful acronyms for Men in Black and Women in Black—the tongue-in-cheek term for federal government workers, especially those in military, intelligence, or Homeland Security who always look like they're about to ruin your day.
A verbose person who talks constantly and says almost everything in a misleading or dishonest way; basically all words, no truth.
A formal comment issued by the executive when signing legislation, ranging from 'nice bill' to 'I'm not actually going to follow the parts I disagree with', which is technically unconstitutional but happens anyway.
A collection of routine, non-controversial items that legislative bodies vote on as a package without individual discussion, assuming nothing controversial got snuck in, which is always a dangerous assumption.
A joint conference between House and Senate to resolve differences in bills they've both passed, where haggling happens behind closed doors and the public gets whatever they decide.
A bureaucrat, politician, or institutional mastermind who designs rules from the comfort of abstraction, confident that other people will deal with the messy reality. Policymakers craft the grand strategies while staffers handle the actual paperwork.
A political label for anyone who supports communism, socialism, or revolution—dating back to Bolsheviks waving red flags. During the Cold War, calling someone 'red' was an accusation more serious than modern internet insults.
Placement of a legislator on a specific committee determining their influence over certain policy areas, sometimes rewarding allies and punishing critics.
The mere possibility that a senator might filibuster, which is so powerful that the actual filibuster almost never happens anymore because the threat alone kills the bill.