| Line 176: |
Line 176: |
| | In November 2008, Barack Obama was elected president and the Democratic Party won large majorities in Congress. They pushed into law the "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act," better known as "ObamaCare". This law imposes a penalty on working adults who do not purchase health insurance, making it the first time that Congress has penalized people unless they bought something. There are many legal challenges to the law and Republicans vow to repeal it if they win back control of Congress and the presidency. In November 2010, Republicans did win a landslide in the House of Representatives, but could not win a majority in the Senate. Since then Republicans have controlled the House of Representatives while Democrats have controlled the Senate. | | In November 2008, Barack Obama was elected president and the Democratic Party won large majorities in Congress. They pushed into law the "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act," better known as "ObamaCare". This law imposes a penalty on working adults who do not purchase health insurance, making it the first time that Congress has penalized people unless they bought something. There are many legal challenges to the law and Republicans vow to repeal it if they win back control of Congress and the presidency. In November 2010, Republicans did win a landslide in the House of Representatives, but could not win a majority in the Senate. Since then Republicans have controlled the House of Representatives while Democrats have controlled the Senate. |
| | | | |
| − | In 2009 the Democrats enacted a "Stimulus" economic packages, which consisted of hundreds of billions of dollars in new federal spending, throwing the nation into enormous debt. Then President Obama and the Democrats passed the "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act," better known as "ObamaCare", in March 2010, to compel nearly all Americans to purchase health insurance. Every Republican voted against this legislation, and in the "midterm elections" in November 2010 the Republican Party won in a landslide in the House of Representatives and the state legislatures. The Democrats held on to control of the U.S. Senate, and Obama won reelection in 2012, but Republicans continue to have a majority in the House of Representatives and are expected to control that chamber for the remainder of this decade. | + | In 2009 the Democrats enacted a "Stimulus" economic packages, which consisted of hundreds of billions of dollars in new federal spending, throwing the nation into enormous debt. Then President Obama and the Democrats passed the "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act," better known as "ObamaCare", in March 2010, to compel nearly all Americans to purchase health insurance. Every Republican voted against this legislation, and in the "midterm elections" in November 2010 the Republican Party won in a landslide in the House of Representatives and the state legislatures. The Democrats held on to control of the U.S. Senate, and Obama won reelection in 2012, but Republicans continue to hold a majority in the House of Representatives. |
| | + | |
| | + | == Culture, and the Rise of Donald Trump == |
| | + | |
| | + | Culture drives politics, not the other way around. Understanding shifts in culture are essential. In colonial times, chivalry was a big part of culture, and duels were used to resolved disputes. Alexander Hamilton died in a duel, and so did many other brilliant, good men. Andrew Jackson and Abraham Lincoln both survived duels before they became president. But eventually people turned against dueling and it was forbidden by law and banished by culture. |
| | + | |
| | + | The Roaring Twenties saw a shift in culture and towards an assertion of women as a political and economic force. Jazz music brought in more creativity in music. By the 1960s, the hippie movement of long hair and rebellion by young adults was another shift. "Pop culture" was captured in art by New York City resident Andy Warhol in his drawings of popular commercial items such as Campbell's soup can. American Frank Lloyd Wright creative architecture, epitomized by the Guggenheim modern art museum in Manhattan which opened in 1959 and promotes itself as a “temple of spirit” where “radical art and architecture meet.”<ref>https://www.guggenheim.org/history</ref> |
| | + | |
| | + | Donald Trump became a cultural icon in the 1990s with his successful buildings and bombastic style. Beginning in 2004, he starred in a popular reality television show called ''The Apprentice'', whereby at the end of each segment he would fire someone. He developed a large cultural following by his no-nonsense style with colorful humor. He ran for president in 2016 on a platform to "Make America Great Again" by protecting American workers against so-called free trade, by ending illegal immigration, by appointing federal judges who are pro-life, and by rejecting claims of man-made global warming. |
| | + | |
| | + | Trump was elected as president in 2016 to the astonishment of the media and pollsters, who predicted the Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton would win. Newsweek magazine even preprinted a cover with Hillary Clinton as president on its cover. After his election, the media stepped up their criticism of Trump and he became the first president to constantly criticize the media for its biased reporting. |
| | | | |
| | == The Supreme Court == | | == The Supreme Court == |