Questions tagged [united-states]
Questions relating to the government or the politics of the United States of America
3,876
questions
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1answer
284 views
What if Hong Kong airport protest happened in the US? [closed]
I only mentioned Hong Kong here to provide context.
Here's what I am interested in:
What would happen if a similar protest happened in the US (from a legal perspective, by which I mean what of the ...
35
votes
6answers
16k views
Are there really no countries that protect Freedom of Speech as the United States does?
During the past few months I've seen a few news items about Europeans not having that much freedom of speech online, specifically in the UK. Americans, on the other hand, always pride themselves on ...
0
votes
2answers
192 views
Why did issues about rural district representation not concern framers of the 17th amendment?
Background
In the United States, the 17th amendment changed the election of senators from state legislatures to the popular vote:
Amendment XVII
The Senate of the United States shall be ...
0
votes
3answers
338 views
Why does Andrew Yang want to give people 1.000 dollars per month when that is a relative value? [closed]
From his apparent website,
Andrew Yang is running for President as Democrat in 2020 to implement the Freedom Dividend. This form of UBI that he is proposing for the United States is a set of ...
3
votes
2answers
391 views
The NRA is a major known U.S. lobbying group claiming to protect the second amendment. Do equivalent groups exist for other amendments?
Background
In the United States, the NRA's first point in its mission statement talks about its insistence on the defense of the second amendment of the United States Constitution:
To protect and ...
-1
votes
1answer
161 views
Amending the constitution to allow for multiple presidents
If someone proposed a change to the current system of the president of the United States, like electing three presidents and needing two to sign off on each bill, for example, would this be possible? ...
77
votes
11answers
23k views
If “more guns less crime”, how do gun advocates explain that the EU has less crime than the US?
As a naive European, I thought that the self-defense argument for guns in the US was mostly based on the high number of guns already in the country. In other words, I thought that the argument takes ...
1
vote
1answer
48 views
Do trade or currency wars require congressional approval?
According to the US Consitution, Article 1, Section 8, US Congress has the power "To declare War".
Currently, several mainstream news outlets are describing various tariff increases by the current US ...
6
votes
1answer
335 views
How are “Red Flag Laws” not a violation of Due Process protection?
Red Flag laws, aka Extreme Risk Protection Orders (ERPO) are state laws that provide for a process of confiscating firearms that are accessible to persons, who by judicial order, are found to be ...
-1
votes
1answer
130 views
Why aren't other states objecting against Iowa and New Hampshire being the first primary states?
During both Republican and Democratic primaries, Iowa and New Hampshire get a disproportionate amount of attention due to being the first two states to run the vote. This gives these two small states ...
5
votes
3answers
403 views
How often do private-owned guns protect US-Americans
As far as I understand, the main argument for US-Americans having guns is to protect themselves.
I am wondering if there are statistics which show
How often a civilian US-American person saved his ...
2
votes
2answers
111 views
Why do early states matter more in presidential primaries?
There’s a whole ton of attention and polls of places like Iowa and New Hampshire that vote earlier than others in the primaries. Reading sites like FiveThirtyEight, it seems like these are a pretty ...
6
votes
1answer
205 views
Why are machine guns not subject to Second Amendment protections? [duplicate]
There is an argument that any control of weapons in private hands is forbidden by the Second Amendment. However there are several gun control laws that are seemingly unchallenged.
Getting a tank with ...
10
votes
1answer
340 views
What has been the result (so far) of the new US sanctions on Iran?
About 14 months ago, President Trump reimposed sanctions on Iran. As I remember, one of goals of the sanctions was to reduce Iran's influence in the Middle East by reducing its financial resources.
...
85
votes
18answers
12k views
Do other countries guarantee freedoms that the United States does not have?
Lifelong citizens of the United States report that they are accustomed to hearing that the US is the "Land of the Free" and most patriotic celebrations seem to emphasize freedom as one of the unique ...
67
votes
10answers
13k views
Why is there a need to prevent a racist, sexist, or otherwise bigoted vendor from discriminating who they sell to?
Background
The issue of discriminating who you sell to in the United States seems to be premised on the fact that businesses are public accomodations according to this article:
Whether you post a ...
60
votes
6answers
10k views
Does the United States guarantee any unique freedoms?
As a lifelong citizen of the United States, I'm accustomed to hearing that the US is the "Land of the Free" and most patriotic celebrations seem to emphasize freedom as one of the unique qualities of ...
6
votes
2answers
192 views
Can the senate vote to condemn? Is this even an official practice?
Recently, the Democrat-controlled House voted to condemn 3 of President Trump's tweets. This gave me two questions:
Can the Republican Senate do the same based on their political desires and
Is "...
1
vote
3answers
169 views
Evidence for meeting Treasury Criteria for Currency Manipulation
In order for a country to be designated as a currency manipulator, it needs to meet three criteria set by the Treasury itself:
Significant bilateral trade surplus with the United States
...
0
votes
1answer
165 views
What part of the Firearm Owners' Protection Act prohibits a ballistics database?
An audit by the ATF in 2005 in regard to NIBIN (National Integrated Ballistic Information Network) states:
Finally, we found that the ATF had established minimal controls to ensure that ballistic ...
7
votes
5answers
2k views
Why is the US constitution so set in stone and immobile, leading to inevitable anachronisms with the modern world? [closed]
As far as I know, the US is the only country in the world that has surrounded their constitution with a "don't touch, just reinterpret" veil of protection.
I live in a country where changing the ...
3
votes
4answers
354 views
What reasoning is being used to differentiate firearms in the Jan 2019 proposed law?
The Jan 9, 2019 proposed law (https://www.feinstein.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/a/4/a46156b5-9337-4193-95db-d381bc3c6fe3/E12DA96F0D3C33D8F714C5E186B1CD38.awb.pdf) is signed by many Democratic ...
50
votes
7answers
14k views
Why do proponents of guns oppose gun competency tests?
Many people on the right who are in favor of the right to own guns do so based on reasons such as safety. For example, in the wake of pretty much any mass shooting, you will have people come out and ...
5
votes
1answer
256 views
Why are some Senators so insistent on using unanimous resolution to pass election security bills?
Background
Recently, Mitch McConnell was the only senator to stop two unanimous resolutions on election security:
On July 25th he said
“Clearly this request is not a serious effort to make a law. ...
31
votes
7answers
12k views
How easy is it to get a gun illegally in the United States?
One argument against gun control is:
Gun control only hurts law-abiding citizens. A person intent on doing harm will simply just acquire it illegally.
And so my question is, how good is this ...
10
votes
2answers
351 views
In American politics is the “free ride” problem (Japanese defence spending) acknowledged as a direct consequence of American strategy?
I have been reading an article from The Atlantic which was published in 1989, on the question of whether Japan enjoys a "free ride" with regards to defence spending. This is a topic which has ...
-5
votes
2answers
139 views
Is there any regulation meant to limit coverage of mass shootings? Are any politicians pushing for such ideas?
The recent mass shootings in the United States were widely covered by the media. It isn't a new observation that the extensive coverage of such events aid in the popularization of the killer and also ...
4
votes
4answers
4k views
Can a House-impeached but not Senate-convicted president run for a second term?
Suppose the House impeaches Trump but the Senate does not convict him and he is not removed from office. Could this House-impeached president run for a second term?
3
votes
1answer
107 views
How has Angus King explained why he's an Independent?
Angus King is an independent who caucuses with the Democrats. Unlike Bernie Sanders, he is a pretty normal-seeming Democrat, not a self-described democratic socialist. What has he said about his ...
2
votes
2answers
717 views
Why do the U.S. (and other republics) not have separate capital cities for each branch of government?
Background
In South Africa, the cities of Bloemfontein, Cape Town, and Johannesburg are the seats of power for the Judicial, Legislative, and Executive branches of government.
In the United States ...
8
votes
1answer
184 views
What are the groups that can legally challenge Trump's tariffs and can they have them reversed?
In a Wikipedia article about Trump's tariffs, it is argued that Trump's tariffs are illegal and The American Chamber of Commerce is considering suing. Can any other group other than them sue Trump and ...
10
votes
1answer
2k views
Has the US government provided details on plans to deal with AIDS and childhood cancer?
Twitter moments reports that Trump said that the US government is going to deal with the AIDS epidemic in the USA, and cure childhood cancer.
Most of the comments in the Twitter moment, along with ...
3
votes
2answers
246 views
Which politicians (if any) are pushing for plant-based meat and dairy substitutes?
The other day, I went into a restaurant and bought a burger with a plant-based burger patty. I tasted one many years before and it was horrible, so I thought I'd see how far they've come now.
Yes, it ...
5
votes
2answers
1k views
Why was the Lobbying Transparency and Accountability Act of 2006 deemed too weak?
In the Wikipedia article about lobbying in the U.S., I found this excerpt interesting:
The Lobbying Transparency and Accountability Act of 2006 (H.R. 4975)
legislation modified Senate rules, ...
12
votes
5answers
860 views
Why do Americans (US) want to keep their employee-based healthcare insurance?
The generalized argument against some sort of Medicare for All (M4A) is that Americans really like the employer based health insurance (EBHI). That approximately 150 million workers are enrolled in ...
5
votes
2answers
298 views
How does the DNC decide who they will let run?
How does the DNC decide who they will let run as a Democrat? What would happen if a candidate applied to run for president as a Democrat who strays very far from the platform? Would he be denied, and ...
6
votes
0answers
144 views
What is the actual process in a US deportation to Mexico?
This question is a follow-up from a previous question Self-deportation of American Citizens from US, and the purpose of my question is not to discuss the particulars of the Galicia event, but to ask ...
9
votes
2answers
2k views
Would it take any sort of amendment to make DC a state?
To achieve statehood for DC, would an amendment to the Constitution need to be passed, or would it just work like a regular territory, i.e. only needing Congress to pass a law?
7
votes
1answer
266 views
Can a U.S. Presidental candidate skip or avoid registering for the ballot in any given state?
Can a U.S. presidential candidate successfully run for national office without being on the ballot in one or more states? For example, recently some U.S. states have adopted requirements for ...
7
votes
2answers
174 views
What power does Congress have against acting administration officials?
An NPR article published July 12, 2019 notes that, in addition to the Department of Labor:
Many other key agencies are also led by acting officials, including the Federal Aviation Administration, ...
-2
votes
1answer
217 views
Is there any reason why one candidate only runs for election once? [closed]
When running for an office such as the presidency for the USA, one candidate will never run for the office more than once.
Why?
2
votes
3answers
312 views
Can electors in US make complex “vows”?
I am just wondering can electors in US make complex vows.
Even though the aggregate national popular vote is calculated by state
officials, media organizations, and the Federal Election ...
-4
votes
1answer
134 views
Will electoral college benefit smaller states or bigger states? [closed]
I've heard about the following mathematical analysis
Mathematically speaking the effect of your vote is inversely proportional to the standard deviation of the votes in your state but proportional to ...
23
votes
2answers
10k views
Why did House of Representatives need to condemn Trumps Tweets?
Can someone elaborate on the reason why the House of Representatives needed to pass a resolution to condemn Trump's tweets?
Many people in government have criticized Trump's tweets before, but I don'...
0
votes
2answers
240 views
Non-politically flavoured source for US news [closed]
[Below refers to getting news on US [esp US domestic] politics]
I am a foreigner who has followed CNN on TV for probably the last 30 years, and on-line maybe 20, and until the US turmoil that started ...
9
votes
2answers
8k views
If Trump gets impeached, how long would Pence be president?
If President Donald Trump were impeached and convicted, and Mike Pence became president, how long would his term be? Would it be for 4 years or would there still be a 2020 election?
3
votes
2answers
193 views
Is a state-level legal proceeding against a sitting president any less of a burden on the president?
As contrasted with a federal-level proceeding
One of the pillars of the 2000 Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) argument to support the shield of a sitting president against federal indictment is the ...
25
votes
10answers
8k views
Why isn't there a serious attempt at creating a third mass-appeal party in the US?
Most people in the US do not identify themselves as either Republican or Democrat (see Gallup data).
There seems to be four possible explanations.
These independent-leaning Americans prefer more ...
5
votes
4answers
387 views
How is justice supposed to work for the president of the United States?
I am having trouble understanding how the President of the United States should be brought to justice if one should commit a crime. This question should not be viewed as pro-vel-contra Trump, but an ...
8
votes
3answers
235 views
Are sworn witnesses not obligated to answer questions in congressional hearings?
Watching the Mueller hearing today, I was surprised to find that he was declining to answer some questions. Although many questions could be rightfully answered by saying "I refer you to the report", ...
