Questions tagged [history]

Questions on the history of politics, political action and political debate, as well as historical political figures, heads of state etc. Also including any historical political actions and situations which may be of relevance to modern-day scenarios. Consider before posting whether your question is better suited to History.SE.

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Do/did non-dictatorial Communist societies exist?

I've often heard the following two points of view: Communism is a failed philosophy, and it has always failed (e.g. USSR, China, Cuba etc...). Therefore it's simply wrong. Communism has never been ...
Sklivvz's user avatar
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14 votes
3 answers
4k views

Why do some countries recognise Taiwan as the sole legitimate government of China?

There are some countries that recognise Taiwan (Republic of China) as the sole legitimate government of China instead of the People's Republic of China. Recently, just a few days ago, São Tomé and ...
Panda's user avatar
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36 votes
9 answers
15k views

Why doesn't Russia join NATO and what would happen if it tried?

So, I'm likely demonstrating my own stupidity here, but I'm wondering what I'm missing. Russia claims that it's afraid of NATO and feels like it might attack it. So... what if it joined NATO? I know, ...
Vilx-'s user avatar
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40 votes
4 answers
9k views

How often a post WWII US president said publicly that the leader of another country must go? (e.g. "For God’s sake, this man cannot remain in power")

US President Biden concluded his March 27, 2022 speech in Poland with the words For God’s sake, this man cannot remain in power. (e.g. CBS News's video Biden says Putin "cannot remain in power&...
uhoh's user avatar
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34 votes
5 answers
8k views

Why is changing the size of the Supreme Court considered dangerous today, when it has been done in the past?

Recently, there has been a lot of talk about "court packing", the process of increasing the size of the Supreme Court, thereby creating openings to be filled with new justices. A common ...
divibisan's user avatar
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10 votes
2 answers
2k views

Historically, why is the filibuster allowed?

As an European, I find it very strange for a modern democracy to allow someone to obstruct the functioning of a democratically-elected political organisation. So, is there a historical (or other) ...
leite0407's user avatar
  • 103
40 votes
7 answers
9k views

Why is Biden's "(Putin) ...cannot remain in power" widely considered a gaffe to be walked back while previous US presidents have said similar?

Together, answers to How often a post WWII US president said publicly that the leader of another country must go? (e.g. "For God’s sake, this man cannot remain in power") have listed perhaps ...
uhoh's user avatar
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12 votes
3 answers
657 views

Are there any proposed systems of running the government like a corporation?

Has there ever been a legitimately proposed system whereby either the entire government or the executive branch of it was run the way a corporation is usually supposed to - more specifically, with set ...
user4012's user avatar
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9 votes
7 answers
3k views

What is a Republic?

The question "What is a Republic?" has been half-asked more than once on this website (see this question, this one and last but not least this other one). However, it seems it has never been answered ...
Distic's user avatar
  • 667
38 votes
7 answers
16k views

Has a Nobel Peace laureate ever been accused of war crimes?

Nobel Prizes aren't without controversy, and I was wondering if a Nobel Peace laureate has ever been accused of war crimes. For the purpose of this question, I will accept accusations of war crimes ...
JJJ's user avatar
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35 votes
4 answers
11k views

Difference between nationalism and patriotism

Nowadays, nationalism has a strong negative connotation attached to it. This stigma doesn't apply to patriotism. What's the difference between them? If there is a difference to what extent could ...
El Shteiger's user avatar
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33 votes
3 answers
11k views

Is it true that Jim Crow laws were primarily promoted by the Democratic Party?

I've been told that the laws had received widespread support amongst the Democrats of the time. This seems at odds with the current posture of the Democrat Party; is this true?
Jaood's user avatar
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30 votes
3 answers
7k views

What caused a massive shift in Republican ideological trajectories in the late '70s?

On a post on Skeptics.SE I saw recently, there was a chart showing the ideological position of the political parties over time: (source) As you can see, both parties were drifting more liberal ...
Kevin's user avatar
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23 votes
2 answers
2k views

How does Israel teach the displacement of the Arab population in 1948 (Nakba)?

How do Israeli educational institutions go about teaching the Nakba? According to Wikipedia it can be summarized as following: The Nakba ("catastrophe", or "cataclysm"'), also ...
Mozibur Ullah's user avatar
20 votes
10 answers
21k views

What was the reason for extending NATO in the 1990s?

I know there are questions that might sound similar, but this is a completely different one. Firstly, I am using the word extending and not expanding. Secondly, the question is limited to a time ...
convert's user avatar
18 votes
6 answers
4k views

Are there any wars other than the 2023 Israel-Hamas War that are named after a country and a political party?

Background The 2023 Israel–Hamas war is referred to in the Western media as "the Israel-Hamas war". All Western commentators I've seen, including military experts, journalists, and political ...
TheScream's user avatar
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18 votes
3 answers
1k views

Did past presidential impeachment inquiries have basic defendant's rights?

In a recent letter on behalf of the president to the House committees on impeachment, the president's counsel Pat A. Cipollone wrote: I write on behalf of President Donald J. Trump in response to ...
JJJ's user avatar
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12 votes
10 answers
2k views

Are/were there any countries where rich people have more votes?

Are/were there any countries where richer people have more active votes than poorer people? For example: someone with an income of $5,000/month would have 5x more votes than a person with an income of ...
kandi's user avatar
  • 3,365
9 votes
1 answer
243 views

What has been the historical trend of U.S. congresspeople voting as blocks?

It feels as though every time I've looked at voting records from the U.S. congress, I notice that virtually everyone votes with their party; that is, for any given bill, every Republican votes the ...
Izzy's user avatar
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8 votes
2 answers
1k views

Why does Russia bother to justify the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact?

According to this Guardian article, Russia is trying to justify the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact which is a very complex matter that was not even recognized until the end of the Soviet Union: Eighty ...
Alexei's user avatar
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3 votes
4 answers
2k views

What is the current internationally accepted way of resisting an external power that invades a country?

As is common in modern history, the last few decades have seen superpowers and great powers invading sovereign countries in the Middle East, Africa, South America and Central Asia under various ...
user366312's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
385 views

Have permanent US residents ever before been subjected to restrictions based on their origin country?

President Trump's recent executive order temporarily barring nationals of 7 countries from entering the U.S. included those who originated from one of those countries, are not citizens of the U.S., ...
Pekka's user avatar
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2 votes
2 answers
696 views

If the countervailing ideology to Progressivism is Conservatism, what is the countervailing ideology to Reactionary movements?

Background In the United States, Progressivism has been associated with sets of (normally left leaning relative to the political spectrum of the time) political reforms whose number and societal ...
isakbob's user avatar
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1 vote
0 answers
95 views

Are there prior examples when a US president was strongly at odds with the grassroots of his party over a foreign policy issue?

Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, Nov 15: More than two-thirds of Americans support a ceasefire in Israel’s war on Gaza, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll whose results were released on ...
the gods from engineering's user avatar
62 votes
10 answers
9k views

Has there ever been an independence movement with the goal to split off an underperforming part of a nation?

There have been many independence movements in history. The Wikipedia category of independence movements alone lists 145 articles about mostly distinct independence / seperationist / liberation ...
Robert Hönig's user avatar
35 votes
6 answers
5k views

In the United States, why aren't both legislative chambers involved in the Supreme Court confirmation process?

I'm following the situation around the recent Supreme Court vacancy left by the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. As a non-American, what's strange to me is that confirming a new SCOTUS Justice ...
Jules's user avatar
  • 402
31 votes
2 answers
4k views

Where did all the Confederate Statues come from?

Why are there so many Confederate Statues in the United States? The Confederate States LOST the Civil War so why are there so many statues to people who tried to break up the country and lost? I've ...
Hannover Fist's user avatar
28 votes
5 answers
5k views

The politicization of the supreme court

It seems that both the Republican and Democratic parties look at the appointment of a Supreme Court Justice as a political move. Optimally, a judge has no part in politics. Their personal opinion ...
Burt's user avatar
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26 votes
5 answers
6k views

To what does US Army Lt. General H. R. McMaster refer saying that Germany's Social Democratic Party has a 'deep and unnatural affinity' for Russia?

CNN's March 3, 2022 video H.R. McMaster on how NATO is holding up against Vladimir Putin's stress test includes the following statements by United States Army lieutenant general, Senior Fellow at the ...
uhoh's user avatar
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24 votes
2 answers
4k views

Did Soviet Union ever apologize for its alliance with Germany before 1941?

Inspired by the similar question about Poland. We all know what Soviet Union and Nazi Germany became deadly enemies, but this is after A. Hitler broke all agreements and invaded. Looks like before ...
Stančikas's user avatar
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22 votes
3 answers
12k views

Has the ICC ever ordered to arrest any Western or pro-Western politician?

Referring to this question, it appears as if the ICC is biased in favor of the West, since all the people it has punished were enemies of the West. But since crimes which can be prosecuted by the ICC ...
convert's user avatar
19 votes
3 answers
4k views

Why has Vermont been so reliably blue since 1992, despite being so white and rural?

Vermont used to be solidly red, but flipped to solidly blue in 1992. Why? I'm getting conflicting answers from different sources. Wikipedia talks about ethnic coalitions: white of French descent vote ...
Eli Rose's user avatar
  • 291
15 votes
10 answers
2k views

Has there ever been a national meritocracy?

Has there ever been a meritocracy at the scale of a nation? By meritocracy I mean a system of government in which the citizen's vote is weighted based upon the merit of the individual casting that ...
Chris Mueller's user avatar
14 votes
1 answer
3k views

Why did Aristotle refuse democracy?

I've read a book about antique political systems and I read that Aristotle refused democracy because he didn't support the idea of the rule of the poor. Here's my two explanations of this statement: ...
Probably's user avatar
  • 1,511
14 votes
2 answers
3k views

How did United Kingdom responsibility for the defence of the British Channel Islands originate?

The government of the United Kingdom is responsible for the defence of, and foreign relations of, the Channel Islands - i.e. the Bailiwicks of Guernsey and Jersey. How did this arrangement come about? ...
Nemo's user avatar
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14 votes
1 answer
16k views

Has a recount ever changed the winner of a state during a presidential election?

The Trump campaign stated that they'll ask for a recount in Wisconsin (and it wouldn't surprise me when either of the candidates will ask for one in other states). I'm wondering how often a recount ...
Glorfindel's user avatar
  • 3,212
14 votes
6 answers
3k views

Was there any war Russia has ignited that was NOT explained by its "support" of a newly-created bogus puppet state (e.g. "People's Republic")?

History This excerpt of a Russian newspaper says: […] On December 4 {1939}, comrade Molotov has telegraphed to Avenol. In his answer, he stated that there are no reasons for raising "Finnish ...
Be Brave Be Like Ukraine's user avatar
12 votes
3 answers
5k views

Is there historical precedent for the US Senate to confirm a SCOTUS nominee from a POTUS of their own party in an election year?

There is debate over whether it is right for Donald Trump to try to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the SCOTUS now, because the election is coming up. Republican Senator Mitt Romney said he will still ...
Levi C. Olson's user avatar
12 votes
2 answers
2k views

What sources imply that the office of President was deliberately excluded from the 14th amendment?

The Fourteenth Amendment, as passed by Congress and ratified by the states says: No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice-President, or hold any ...
Bobson's user avatar
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11 votes
1 answer
1k views

Has there ever been a presidential election where every state voted the same way as in the midterms?

Has there ever been a presidential election where every state voted for the same party as in the House elections in the previous midterm? If so, when was it? And, if there has never been as of writing,...
Number File's user avatar
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11 votes
1 answer
364 views

Are there precedents for Congresspersons going in uninvited to closed-doors committee proceedings?

According to CNN: Roughly two-dozen House Republicans on Wednesday stormed a closed-door deposition in secure House Intelligence Committee spaces to rail against the Democratic-led impeachment ...
the gods from engineering's user avatar
10 votes
3 answers
2k views

Why do some muslim countries ban polygamy?

Islam allows men to have up to 4 wives (simultaneously). Why would an overwhelmingly Muslim country, such as Turkey or Tunisia, ban polygamy? Not banning it would of course not prevent most people to ...
Bregalad's user avatar
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10 votes
3 answers
761 views

Why won't UK Prime Ministers formally apologise for the Amritsar massacre?

A BBC article today recalls the trapping and shooting to death of 379 - 1000 Indian protesters by British troops in 1919. While Winston Churchill called it "monstrous" in 1920, David Cameron paid his ...
benxyzzy's user avatar
  • 349
10 votes
1 answer
463 views

Has a law or amendment been passed without a vote in Parliament because there were no tellers before?

If the breaking news is correct, MPs started voting on Stephen Kinnock’s amendment 6. But then, a few minutes into voting, Lindsay Hoyle, announced that the division had been called off because the ...
the gods from engineering's user avatar
9 votes
1 answer
1k views

Could Bill Clinton have won a third term?

This may straddle the line between politics and history at this point, but if we didn't have the 22nd Amendment, which limits Presidents to two terms, could Bill Clinton have won a third term? ...
Bobson's user avatar
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9 votes
6 answers
3k views

Have any politicians been elected to the government of two different countries during their career?

After the recent elections in Czech Republic it became apparent that Andrej Babiš is going to become the next Prime Minister of the country. The curious thing about him is that he holds dual Czech-...
JonathanReez's user avatar
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8 votes
3 answers
921 views

Why does the US Supreme Court work this way?

Sorry for the non-descriptive title, but while I was typing a more descriptive one I realized it was going to be overly long. My understanding of the USSC appointments is that they are for life only ...
Federico's user avatar
  • 6,726
8 votes
2 answers
437 views

What state/country, given the right, refused to reelect any previous governor/president the most consecutive times?

In Brazil, mayors, governors and president have the right of one consecutive reelection since 1998. (Such right is being reviewed at Congress right now, but it is not relevant to this question). As ...
curiouser's user avatar
  • 556
7 votes
6 answers
3k views

How do today's Germans perceive the Nazis

I am curious about the perceptions of Germans today with regard to their country's past? What do they generally have to say about Hitler and the events of the holocaust?
Personal Concerns's user avatar
7 votes
2 answers
254 views

Is the dispute over the naming of Macedonia unique in recent history?

The dispute between Greece and Macedonia over who gets to keep the name "Macedonia" has been ongoing for 20 years now. Is this a unique dispute or have there been any other similar disputes in recent ...
JonathanReez's user avatar
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