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John McCain

John McCain

:Alternative meanings: John S. McCain, Sr., John S. McCain, Jr. John Sidney McCain III (born August 29, 1936) is an American politician. Widely recognized as a maverick Republican, McCain has been a U.S. Senator from Arizona since 1987, winning re-election in 1992, 1998, and 2004. He was a presidential candidate in the 2000 election, but was defeated in the Republican primaries by then-Texas Governor and now President George W. Bush. Prior to entering politics, McCain was a Captain in the United States Navy and a prisoner of war in Vietnam. He was honorably discharged upon his retirement from the Navy in 1981.

Early life

McCain was born in Coco Solo in the Panama Canal Zone, the son and grandson of prominent U.S. Navy admirals (John S. McCain, Jr. and John S. McCain, Sr.). He attended Episcopal High School and graduated in 1954. That fall, McCain, like his father and grandfather before him, entered the United States Naval Academy. He has admitted that he disliked the life of a midshipman. Accordingly, McCain was a lackluster student and received many demerits. He graduated in 1958, and joked that he had followed the footsteps of his father and grandfather, both of whom had both graduated very low in their respective classes at Annapolis. (McCain graduated 894th out of a class of 899.) In 1965, McCain married Carol Shepp, a model originally from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The couple divorced in 1980.

Vietnam

1980 A naval aviator, McCain was assigned aboard the USS Forrestal where, on July 29, 1967, he escaped death when a missile accidentally launched across the ship, striking his A-4 Skyhawk. The impact ruptured the fuel tank on his aircraft, the leaking fuel instantly ignited, and knocked a bomb into the fire. McCain escaped from his jet by climbing out of the cockpit, walking down to the nose of the plane, and jumping off the nose boom. A minute and a half after the impact, the bomb exploded underneath the plane, starting a major fire which killed 134 sailors and nearly threatened to destroy the ship. Video tape shot aboard the Forrestal shows McCain narrowly escaping the explosion. Later in 1967, he was shot down over Vietnam, and was held as a prisoner of war in Hanoi for five-and-a-half years, mostly in the infamous Hanoi Hilton. When the North Vietnamese discovered he was the son and grandson of admirals, he was offered a chance to go home, but he refused to break the military code that POWs be released in the order that they are captured. He was finally released from captivity in 1973, having survived the injuries he received when he was shot down, the beatings from an angry crowd and his captors, a year of torture, and two years of solitary confinement. Coincidentally, the pilot incarcerated next to him, James Stockdale, went on to be Ross Perot's running mate in 1992. Once released, his POW injuries prevented him from receiving a sea command, so in 1977, he became a Naval liaison to the Senate. He retired from the Navy in 1981 as a Captain on the same day he watched his father buried next to his grandfather in Arlington National Cemetery. During his military career he received a Silver Star, a Bronze Star, the Legion of Merit, the Purple Heart, and a Distinguished Flying Cross. McCain is one of only three Vietnam veterans serving in the US Senate, the others being fellow Republican Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, and Democrat John Kerry of Massachusetts. A TV movie entitled Faith Of My Fathers, based on McCain's memoir of his experiences as a POW, aired on Memorial Day, 2005 on A&E.

Political career

When John Jacob Rhodes, the longtime congressman from Arizona's First Congressional district, announced his retirement, McCain ran for the seat in 1982 and won it. In 1986, upon Senator Barry Goldwater's retirement, McCain was elected to succeed him. His campaign was partially financed by Charles Keating, who had also contributed to his House campaigns. Keating was convicted of fraud during the Savings and Loan crisis of the 1980s, also causing McCain to come under investigation by the Senate Ethics Committee. McCain was found to have no involvement in what became known as the Keating Five scandal, but the ordeal may have led to his later support of campaign finance reform.

Race for President 2000

In 1997, TIME magazine named him as one of the "25 Most Influential People in America." His best-selling book, Faith of My Fathers (1999, ISBN 0375501916), helped propel his presidential run. McCain ran in the 2000 presidential Republican primary, winning in New Hampshire, Michigan, Massachusetts, Arizona, Rhode Island, Connecticut and Vermont. He also gave a strong showing in Washington state, where he lost by 2,730 votes statewide, as well as in South Carolina and Maine. The primary in South Carolina was especially important, as a McCain victory probably would have put him on the track to nomination. His loss has been attributed to a combination of Bush's mobilization of the state's religious vote and the general reluctance of the American people to elect a senator to an executive position. The primary was remembered as particularly intense even relative to the political polarization of the electorate at that time, including allegations of dirty campaigning regarding McCain's adopted daughter. [http://www.dadmag.com/archive/060400jmccain.php] McCain was heavily criticized during the campaign for his continued use of an ethnic slur in reference to his Vietnamese captors. He told reporters, "I hate the gooks.... I will hate them as long as I live." [http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2000/02/18/MN32194.DTL] At first, he stood by his use of the slur, saying that it was "the kindest, the kindest description I can give them." [http://archive.salon.com/politics2000/feature/2000/02/17/mccain/index.html] After the comments caused a great deal of controversy which threatened to derail his Presidential bid, McCain reversed his position and apologized.

Race for President 2004

Despite his earlier rivalry with Bush, McCain was one of the President's most vocal supporters in the 2004 US Presidential Election. He often praised Bush's leadership and continuing zeal after the terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001, and in that light less important issues could be pushed aside. McCain's reputation as a moderate appealed to many voters who found Bush too hard-line conservative. There was some speculation that McCain's longtime friend and colleague, and also the Democratic Presidential nominee, John F. Kerry of Massachusetts would ask McCain to be his running mate to help Kerry shake his "liberal from the northeast" label, but McCain rejected Kerry's initial overtures, and so Kerry never officially asked him. This prompted Bush to run an advertisement called "The First Choice" showing clips of McCain praising Bush. Furthermore, the GOP used this information to ridicule Kerry's eventual running mate, one-term Senator John Edwards of North Carolina. At the 2004 Republican National Convention, he referred to Michael Moore as "a disingenuous filmmaker" without actually naming him. This was met with thunderous applause from the audience, after which he repeated the phrase. McCain knew Moore was in attendance that evening. He was writing a column for USA Today. After McCain's statement, Moore was caught on camera forming an "L" on his forehead with his thumb and index finger (in some circles this is a shorthand for "Loser", a term of derision)

Race for President 2008

USA Today on August 29, 2005.]] Many current polls have him as one of the leading candidates in the 2008 Republican primary, but McCain has not given a definitive answer as to whether or not he will pursue the nomination in 2008 as a Republican. In an interview in the June 2005 edition of Men's Journal magazine, McCain said that he "absolutely" would like to be President of the United States, but has not yet decided whether or not he will run again in 2008. He indicated that he would probably not make a firm decision until 2007 about another run at the White House, citing family and Senate responsibilities. On an episode of the ladies television show The View, aired 8 November 2005, McCain remarked he would only make a decision after the 2006 mid-term elections, when he could be certain the mood of the American people was similar to his vision for America. He will be 72 by the time the elections roll around in 2008, making him 3 years older than the oldest elected president Ronald Reagan, but he has dismissed concerns about his age and past health concerns, stating that his condition was "excellent." Though popular both with the press and the nation as a whole, McCain has made an enemy of rank and file Republicans who vote in primaries because of his high profile defection with key items of the party platform. His compromise (some say surrender) with the liberal Democrats on judicial nominations and his willingness to break with party leadership has caused several conservative groups to strongly oppose his candidacy for the Republican nomination. See also: U.S. presidential election, 2008

Political views

McCain is conservative on many military and social issues, but more liberal on a few fiscal issues, causing some Republicans (generally fierce conservatives) to call him a Republican In Name Only. He once fought against funding the construction of a new aircraft carrier, saying the money should be spent on the 12,000 enlisted families who were on food stamps. He is strongly pro-life and equally strongly against tobacco. He supported the 2003 invasion of Iraq and his speech at the 2004 Republican National Convention centered around that theme. His appeal during the 2000 presidential campaign was based on honesty, style and personal image rather than any label of liberal or conservative. McCain is sometimes called a "maverick senator" because of his willingness to break with the party line. He fights against pork barrel spending and supports expanded legislation on health care and education. McCain was principally responsible for forcing a re-evaluation of the USAF KC-767 leasing contract. He has also criticized both political parties for refusing to sacrifice President Bush's tax cuts and spending agendas in wartime. His concerns over global warming and other environmental issues have also put him at odds with the Bush administration and other Republicans. In addition, he voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment, reaffirming his position as a political moderate. McCain has also generally supported moves to expand immigration to the US[http://grades.betterimmigration.com/testgrades.php3?District=AZ&VIPID=33]-including expansion of the H-1b visa program. In 2005, he co-sponsored a bill [http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/5/13/112653/285] with Ted Kennedy that would expand use of guest worker visas. McCain has announced that he supports the inclusion of intelligent design teaching in schools. [http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/politics/90069] In 2005, McCain told the Arizona Daily Star that he believes "all points of view" should be available to students. McCain is also a member of The Republican Main Street Partnership and supports stem cell research. He has also joined the advisory board of Christine Todd Whitman's group It's My Party Too. McCain hasn't been afraid to criticize the Bush Administration. After a controversial meeting in Kuwait, he stated that he had "no confidence" in Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, but refused to go so far as to call for his resignation, explaining that President Bush "can have the team that he wants around him." However, he has been a very strong supporter of the Bush White House's decision to remove Saddam Hussein from power and their foreign policy in general. Even with this support, McCain has urged the Bush administration to make "significant policy changes" in the Iraq conflict, He criticized the Pentagon several times, most notably concerning troop strength in Iraq [http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/12/05/mccain.pentagon/index.html], and has more recently been calling for a diversification of Iraqi national forces to better represent the multiple ethnic groups contained within the country. He has also stated that he feels the United States government must do more to keep public support high for the war, stressing that "America, Iraq and the world are better off with Saddam Hussein in prison rather than in power...and we must honor their sacrifice by seeing this mission through to victory." McCain's full speech on the matter from mid-November 2005 can be read [http://mccain.senate.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=NewsCenter.ViewSpeech&Content_id=1622 at his Senate website.]

Campaign finance changes

One of McCain's main passions in his national political career has been the topic of campaign finance reform. In spite of voting against such measures initially, since 1992, McCain has repeatedly tried to pass legislation regulating campaign financing, finally achieving a major victory in 2002. That year, Congress passed a key "campaign finance reform bill", the "Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002", co-sponsored by Senator Russ Feingold and hence also known as the McCain-Feingold bill. It was immediately challenged on free speech grounds. The American Civil Liberties Union argued publicly that it "believes that key elements of Shays-Meehan (House version of "McCain-Feingold") violate the First Amendment right to free speech because the legislation contains provisions that would violate the constitutionally protected right of the people to express their opinions about issues through broadcast advertising if they mention the name of a candidate and restrict soft money contributions and uses of soft money for no constitutionally justifiable reason." The new law was narrowly upheld by the Supreme Court on December 10, 2003, in an expedited hearing and ruling.

"The Gang of 14"

Main Article: Gang of 14 On May 23, 2005, McCain was one of fourteen "moderate" senators to forge a compromise on the Democrats' use of the judicial filibuster, thus blocking the Republican leadership's attempt to implement the so-called "nuclear option". Under the agreement, senators would retain the power to filibuster a judicial nominee, the Democrats would agree to use this power against Bush nominees only in an "extraordinary circumstance", the Republicans involved would agree to vote against the nuclear option if implemented, and three of the most contested Bush appellate court nominees (Janice Rogers Brown, Priscilla Owen and William Pryor) would receive a vote by the full Senate.

Detention of Extrajudicial Prisoners

Main article: Detainee Amendments Senator McCain, as a former POW, has particular sensitivity to the issue of the detention and interrogation of detainees from the War on Terror. On October 3, 2005, Senator McCain introduced the McCain Detainee Amendment to the Defense Appropriations bill for 2005. On October 5, 2005, the United States Senate voted 90-9 to support the amendment. [http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=109&session=1&vote=00249] This amendment would establish the US Army Field Manual on Interrogation as the standard for interrogation of all detainees held in Department of Defense custody, including those held by the Central Intelligence Agency in the War on Terror. The amendment would also prohibit cruel, inhumane, and degrading treatment and follow the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Amendment is being opposed by the Bush administration, particuarly Vice-President Dick Cheney. Before the vote supporting the amendment, the White House had threatened to veto any language limiting the use of torture on suspected terrorists. However, due to the size of the majority voting in favor, this is no longer an option. The White House now seeks for alternative language which would allow CIA operatives to use torture. Senator McCain has refused the compromise. McCain has said that he will attach the amendment to every major bill until it is passed.
- [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10019179/site/newsweek/ Senator McCain's Newsweek Article: "Torture's Terrible Toll"]

Personal

McCain lives with his second wife Cindy Hensley McCain, chair of the large Anheuser-Busch beer and liquor distributor Hensley Distributing founded by her father, [http://www.mccain2000.com/contents/welcome/biographies/cindy.shtml] in Phoenix. He is five feet seven inches tall. McCain has been treated for recurrent skin cancer, including melanoma, in 1993, 2000, and 2002. Some media sources have suggested that this may be linked to his heavy sun exposure in Vietnam. Since then he has become active in promoting awareness of skin cancers. He has eight children; John adopted first wife Carol's sons (Doug and Andy), and he and Carol had a daughter, (Sydney). John has four children by Cindy (Meghan, Jack - Brophy College Preparatory (2004), United States Naval Academy (2009), Jimmy, and James), plus he and Cindy adopted their youngest daughter (Bridget) after discovering her in a Bangladeshi orphanage run by Mother Teresa. He has four grandchildren.

Appearances on television and in movies

McCain is not afraid to appear in various entertainment mediums. He was the center of controversy concerning his cameo appearance in 2005 summer movie Wedding Crashers. While his cameo was short, he has been criticized for appearing in an R-rated movie with several scenes of brief nudity. Matt Drudge of Drudge Report, while commenting on McCain's appearance, referred to the film as a "boob raunch fest." McCain, during an appearance on the Jay Leno show, joked about "working with boobs all the time in Washington." McCain hosted the October 12, 2002 episode of Saturday Night Live. McCain has appeared as a guest on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart at least four times - most recently on November 8, 2005 - and has also given video interviews to the program. He is a fan-favorite among the audience both for his sharp wit and willingness to speak his mind. One of his interviews with Stewart can be found on The Daily Shows Indecision 2004 DVD set. In the 2005 documentary Why We Fight by Eugene Jarecki, McCain is interviewed and gives his opinion on the ties between Dick Cheney and Halliburton. According to various websites, McCain is scheduled to make a cameo appearance on the fifth season of 24 from the Fox Network. There is no information regarding his role as either himself or an additional character at this time. During a November 2005 appearance on The View, McCain was asked about the rumors of a possible run for president in 2008. McCain responded, "Except for making my kids sing Hail to the Chief, I never think of myself as president."

Works


- Character Is Destiny: Inspiring Stories Every Young Person Should Know and Every Adult Should Remember by John McCain, Mark Salter (Random House, October 2005) ISBN 1400064120
- Why Courage Matters: The Way to a Braver Life by John McCain, Mark Salter (Random House, April 2004) ISBN 1400060303
- Odysseus in America by Jonathan Shay, Max Cleland, John S. McCain (Scribner, November 2002) ISBN 0743211561
- Worth the Fighting for: A Memoir by John McCain, Mark Salter (Random House, September 2002) ISBN 0375505423
- Unfinished Business: Afghanistan, the Middle East and Beyond--Defusing the Dangers That Threaten America's Security by Harlan Ullman, John S. McCain (Citadel Press, June 2002) ISBN 0806524316
- Faith of My Fathers by John McCain, Mark Salter (Random House, August 1999) ISBN 0375501916
- The Reminiscences of Admiral John S. McCain, Jr., U.S. Navy (retired) by John S. McCain (U.S. Naval Institute, 1999) ISBN B0006RY8ZK

See also


- International Republican Institute

External links


- [http://www.senate.gov/~mccain/ John McCain's Senate website].
-
- [http://www.azcentral.com/specials/special39/ Arizona Republic's Seven Chapter Special on John McCain, 1999]
- [http://www.patrickruffini.com/2008wire/index.php?c=McCain Sen. John McCain - 2008 Presidential Wire]
- [http://www.thenation.com/doc/20051212/berman Nation Magazine Cover Story: The Real John McCain]
- [http://mccain.senate.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=Newscenter.ViewOpEd&Content_id=1612 Senator John Mccain Offers 10 Ways That You, Too, Can Support The War Effort] McCain, John McCain, John McCain, John McCain, John McCain, John McCain, John McCain, John McCain, John McCain, John McCain, John McCain, John McCain, John Category:Pro-life politicians McCain, John ja:ジョン・マケイン

John S. McCain, Sr.

John Sidney McCain, Sr. (9 August 1884 – 6 September 1945) was an Admiral in the United States Navy, notable as a commander of the Fast Carrier Task Force in World War II. His son John S. McCain, Jr. was also an admiral (the only father-son pair of full admirals in US history), and his grandson John McCain III a senator from Arizona. McCain was born in Teoc, Mississippi, and graduated from the Naval Academy in 1906 after attending a few years at the University of Mississippi. His first assignments were on ships of the Asiatic Squadron. During the American occupation of Veracruz in the Mexican Revolution he served in San Diego, and remained on the ship during 1918 while she performed Atlantic escort duty. In the years between the world wars, McCain served in many ships, including Maryland (BB-46), New Mexico (BB-40), and Nitro (AE-2). His first command was the Sirius (AK-18). In 1936, at the age of 51, he was designated a Naval Aviator, and from 1937 to 1939 he commanded the aircraft carrier Ranger (CV-4), contributing much to the development of carrier tactics for the war to come. For the first year of World War II he served as Commander of Air Forces for Western Sea Frontier and the South Pacific Force. In October 1942 McCain became Chief of the Bureau of Aeronautics and in August 1943 rose to the rank of Vice Admiral as Deputy Chief of Naval Operations (Air). In 1944 he returned to the Pacific Theater, succeeding Marc Mitscher as commander of the Fast Carrier Task Force, which for over a year operated almost continuously in support of the great amphibious operations. McCain's exceedingly skillful tactics protecting Canberra (CA-70) and Houston (CL-81) in October 1944 earned him the Navy Cross, and the daring forays of his mobile force had much to do with the eventual victory. Vice Admiral McCain died in September 1945, just after arriving back in the United States, and was posthumously appointed Admiral effective that date. He was buried in Arlington National Cemetery. For his outstanding performance as an air planner and carrier task force commander he was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal with two Gold Stars; Secretary James Forrestal commented: "He was a fighting man all the way through." McCain, Sr., John McCain, Sr., John McCain, Sr., John McCain, Sr., John McCain, Sr., John McCain, Sr., John

August 29

August 29 is the 241st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (242nd in leap years), with 124 days remaining. It is also the 1st day of Thoth - which is the 1st day of the Egyptian Horoscope. Thoth is the Ibis-headed god of knowledge.

Events


- 708 - Copper coins are minted in Japan for the first time (Traditional Japanese date: August 10, 708).
- 1189- Ban Kulin wrote "The Charter of Kulin", which become a symbolic "birth certificate" of Bosnian statehood
- 1261 - Urban IV becomes Pope, the last man to do so without being a Cardinal first.
- 1475 - The Treaty of Picquigny ends a brief war between France and England.
- 1484 - Pope Innocent VIII, a staunch supporter of the Spanish Inquisition, is elected Pope.
- 1521 - The Ottoman Turks capture Nándorfehérvár, now known as Belgrade.
- 1526 - Battle of Mohács: The Ottoman Turks led by Suleiman the Magnificent defeat and kill the last Jagiellonian king of Hungary and Bohemia.
- 1533 - Inca emperor Atahualpa is executed in Cajamarca by the garrote.
- 1541 - The Ottoman Turks capture Buda, the capital of the Hungarian Kingdom.
- 1756 - Frederick the Great attacks Saxony, beginning the Seven Years' War.
- 1786 - Shays' Rebellion, an armed uprising of Massachusetts farmers, begins in response to high debt and tax burdens.
- 1831 - Michael Faraday discovers electromagnetic induction.
- 1842 - The Tokugawa shogunate orders the local daimyō to begin providing foreign ships with fresh water and supplies when requested. (Traditional Japanese date: July 24, 1842).
- 1862 - Battle of Aspromonte: Italian royal forces defeat rebels.
- 1871 - Emperor Meiji orders the Abolition of the han system and the establishment of prefectures as local centers of administration. (Traditional Japanese date: July 14, 1871).
- 1885 - Gottlieb Daimler patents the world's first motorcycle.
- 1895 - The formation of the Northern Rugby Union at the George Hotel, Huddersfield, England.
- 1896 - Chop suey is invented in New York City.
- 1898 - The Goodyear tire company is founded.
- 1907 - The Quebec Bridge collapses during construction, killing 75 workers.
- 1910 - Japan changes Korea's name to Chōsen and appoints a governor-general to rule its new colony.
- 1911 - Ishi, considered the last Native American to make contact with whites, emerges from the wilderness of northeastern California.
- 1922 - Turkish forces set fire to Smyrna, in Asia Minor.
- 1930 - The last 36 remaining inhabitants of St Kilda are voluntarily evacuated to Scotland.
- 1943 - German-occupied Denmark scuttles most of its navy; Germany dissolves Danish government.
- 1944 - Slovak National Uprising takes place as 60,000 Slovak troops turn against the Nazi rulers.
- 1949 - Soviet atomic bomb project: The Soviet Union tests its first atomic bomb, known as First Lightning or Joe 1, at Semipalatinsk, Kazakhstan.
- 1952 - Premiere of John Cage's 4'33" in Woodstock, New York.
- 1958 - United States Air Force Academy opens in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
- 1966 - Last Beatles concert, in San Francisco, California.
- 1966 - Execution of Sayyid Qutb, a leading theoretician of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood.
- 1982 - The synthetic chemical element Meitnerium, atomic number 109, is first synthesized at the Gesellschaft für Schwerionenforschung in Darmstadt, Germany.
- 1991 - Supreme Soviet suspends all activities of the Soviet Communist Party.
- 1995 - NATO launches Operation Deliberate Force against Bosnian Serb forces.
- 1996 - A Vnukovo Airlines Tupolev Tu-154 crashes into a mountain on the Arctic island of Spitsbergen, killing all 141 aboard.
- 1997 - At least 98 villagers are killed by the GIA in the Rais massacre, Algeria.
- 1997 - Serial killer Ángel Maturino Reséndiz bludgeons to death Christopher Maier of Lexington, Kentucky, USA, the first of nine victims.
- 2003 - Ayatollah Sayed Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim, the Shia Muslim leader in Iraq, is assassinated in a terrorist bombing, along with nearly 100 worshippers as they leave a mosque in Najaf.
- 2005 - Hurricane Katrina devastates much of the U.S. Gulf Coast from Louisiana to the Florida Panhandle, killing more than 1350 and costing over 100 billion dollars in damage.

Births


- 1619 - Jean-Baptiste Colbert, French minister of finance (d. 1683)
- 1628 - John Granville, 1st Earl of Bath, English royalist statesman (d. 1701)
- 1632 - John Locke, English philosopher (d. 1704)
- 1725 - Charles Townshend, English politician (d. 1767)
- 1756 - Heinrich Graf von Bellegarde, Austrian field marshal and statesman (d. 1845)
- 1780 - Jean Ingres, French painter (d. 1867)
- 1805 - Frederick Maurice, English theologian (d. 1872)
- 1809 - Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr., American physician and writer (d. 1894)
- 1810 - Juan Bautista Alberdi, founding father of the Argentine Republic (d. 1884)
- 1843 - David B. Hill, Governor of New York (d. 1910)
- 1844 - Edward Carpenter, English Socialist poet (d. 1929
- 1862 - Andrew Fisher, fifth Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1928)
- 1862 - Maurice Maeterlinck, Belgian writer, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1949)
- 1871 - Albert Lebrun, French politician (d. 1950)
- 1876 - Charles F. Kettering, American inventor (d. 1958)
- 1898 - Preston Sturges, American screenwriter (d. 1959)
- 1904 - Werner Forssmann, German physician, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (d. 1979)
- 1905 - Dhyan Chand, Indian hockey player (d. 1979)
- 1915 - Ingrid Bergman, Swedish actress (d. 1982)
- 1916 - George Montgomery, American actor (d. 2000)
- 1917 - Isabel Sanford, American actress (d. 2004)
- 1920 - Charlie Parker, American jazz saxophonist and composer (d. 1955)
- 1923 - The Lord Attenborough, English film director
- 1924 - Consuelo Velázquez, Mexican songwriter (d. 2005)
- 1924 - Dinah Washington, American singer (d. 1963)
- 1933 - Arnold Koller, Swiss Federal Councilor
- 1936 - John McCain, American politician
- 1937 - James Florio, Governor of New Jersey
- 1938 - Elliott Gould, American actor
- 1938 - Robert Rubin, United States Secretary of the Treasury
- 1939 - William Friedkin, American film director
- 1939 - Joel Schumacher, American film director
- 1940 - Gary Gabelich, race car driver and land world speed record holder
- 1941 - Robin Leach, English television host
- 1946 - Bob Beamon, American jumper
- 1958 - Michael Jackson, American singer and songwriter
- 1959 - Ernesto Rodrigues, Portuguese composer
- 1959 - Timothy Perry Shriver, American chairman of the Special Olympics
- 1961 - Carsten Fischer, German field hockey player
- 1962 - Rebecca De Mornay, American actress
- 1963 - Elizabeth Fraser, English singer (Cocteau Twins)
- 1969 - Me'Shell NdegéOcello, American singer
- 1969 - Joe Swail, Irish snooker player
- 1970 - Jacco Eltingh, Dutch tennis player
- 1971 - Carla Gugino, American actress
- 1978 - Larry Ganzman, Ukrainian emigrant
- 1980 - David Desrosiers, Canadian musician (Simple Plan)
- 1981 - Lanny Barbie, Canadian porn star and Penthouse magazine's Pet of the Month for June, 2003

Deaths


- 886 - Basil I, Byzantine Emperor (b. 811)
- 1093 - Hugh I, Duke of Burgundy (b. 1057)
- 1395 - Duke Albert III of Austria (b. 1349)
- 1435 - Isabeau de Bavière, queen of Charles VI of France (b. 1371)
- 1442 - John VI, Duke of Brittany (b. 1389)
- 1526 - King Louis II of Hungary and Bohemia (killed in battle) (b. 1506)
- 1533 - Atahualpa, last Inca ruler of Peru
- 1657 - John Lilburne, English dissenter
- 1712 - Gregory King, English statistician (b. 1648)
- 1769 - Edmund Hoyle, English author and teacher (b. 1672)
- 1780 - Jacques-Germain Soufflot, French architect (b. 1713)
- 1799 - Pope Pius VI (b. 1717)
- 1877 - Brigham Young, American religious leader and western settler (b. 1801)
- 1904 - Murad V, Ottoman Sultan (b. 1840)
- 1930 - William Archibald Spooner, English writer (b. 1844)
- 1935 - Queen Astrid of Belgium (b. 1905)
- 1947 - Manolete, Spanish bullfighter (b. 1917)
- 1966 - Sayyid Qutb, Egyptian theoretician (b. 1906)
- 1968 - Ulysses S. Grant III, American soldier and planner (b. 1881)
- 1972 - Lale Andersen, German singer (b. 1905)
- 1975 - Eamon de Valera, first Taoiseach and third President of Ireland (b. 1882)
- 1981 - Lowell Thomas, American writer and broadcaster (b. 1892)
- 1982 - Ingrid Bergman, Swedish actress (b. 1915)
- 1987 - Lee Marvin, American actor (b. 1924) 1988 Alastair Leslie-Dakers
- 1989 - Peter Scott, English explorer, naturalist, and painter (b. 1909)
- 2003 - Ayatollah Sayed Mohammed Baqir al-Hakim, Iraqi political leader (b.1939)
- 2004 - Hans Vonk, Dutch conductor (b. 1942)

Holidays and observances


- Eastern Orthodox Christianity and Roman Catholic Church commemorate the beheading of John the Baptist with a feast day
- Slovakia - Slovak National Uprising Day (1944, against the Nazi's)

Fictional


- The day the running stopped for fugitive Richard Kimble - 29 August 1967.
- Judgment Day in the movie Terminator 2: Judgment Day - 29 August 1997.

External links


- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/august/29 BBC: On This Day] ---- August 28 - August 30 - July 29 - September 29 – listing of all days ko:8월 29일 ms:29 Ogos ja:8月29日 simple:August 29 th:29 สิงหาคม

United States

:For alternative meanings, see the disambiguation page for US, USA, United States, or American. The United States of America is a federal democratic republic situated primarily in central North America. It comprises 50 states and one federal district, and has several territories. It is also referred to, with varying formality, as the United States, the U.S., the U.S.A., the States, or simply and most commonly, America. The official founding date of the United States is July 4, 1776, when the Second Continental Congress—representing thirteen British colonies—adopted the Declaration of Independence. However, the structure of the government was profoundly changed in 1788, when the states replaced the Articles of Confederation with the United States Constitution. The date on which each of the fifty states adopted the Constitution is typically regarded as the date that state "entered the Union" (became part of the United States). Since the mid-20th century, following World War II, the United States has emerged as a dominant global influence in economic, political, military, scientific, technological, and cultural affairs.

Geography and climate

The United States shares land borders with Canada (to the north) and Mexico (to the south), and territorial water boundaries with Canada, Russia, the Bahamas, and numerous smaller nations. It is otherwise bounded by the Pacific Ocean and the Bering Sea, in the west; the Arctic Ocean, in the northernmost areas; and the Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Caribbean Sea, in the eastern and southeastern areas. Forty-eight of the states are in the single region between Canada and Mexico; this group is referred to, with varying precision and formality, as the continental or contiguous United States, sometimes abbreviated CONUS, and as the Lower 48. Alaska, which is not included in the term contiguous United States, is at the northwestern end of North America, separated from the Lower 48 by Canada. The archipelago of Hawaii is in the Pacific Ocean. The capital city, Washington, District of Columbia is a federal district located on land donated by the state of Maryland. (Virginia also donated land, but it was returned in 1847.) The United States also has overseas territories with varying levels of independence and organization. When inland water is included in the total area, only Russia and Canada are larger than the United States; if inland water is excluded, China ranks third and the U.S. ranks fourth. The United States' total area is 3,718,711 square miles (9,631,418 km²), of which land makes up 3,537,438 square miles (9,161,923 km²) and water makes up 181,273 square miles (469,495 km²). The United States' landscape is one of the most varied among those of the world's nations: among its many features are temperate forestland and rolling hills, on the east coast; mangrove, in Florida; the Great Plains, in the center of the country; the Mississippi–Missouri river system; the Great Lakes, four of the five of which are shared with Canada; the Rocky Mountains, west of the Great Plains; deserts and temperate coastal zones, west of the Rocky Mountains; and temperate rain forests, in the Pacific northwest. Alaska's tundra, and the volcanic, tropical islands of Hawaii add to the geographic diversity. Hawaii The climate varies along with the landscape, from tropical in Hawaii and southern Florida to tundra in Alaska and atop some of the highest mountains. Most of the North and East experience a temperate continental climate, with warm summers and cold winters. Most of the South experiences a subtropical humid climate with mild winters and long, hot, humid summers. Rainfall decreases markedly from the humid forests of the Eastern Great Plains to the semi-arid shortgrass prairies on the high plains abutting the Rocky Mountains. Arid deserts, including the Mojave, extend through the lowlands and valleys of the southwest, from westernmost Texas to California and northward throughout much of Nevada. Some parts of California have a Mediterranean climate. Rainforests line the windward mountains of the Pacific Northwest from Oregon to Alaska.

History

American history started with the migration of people from Asia across the Bering land bridge approximately 12,000 years ago following large animals that they hunted into the Americas. These Native Americans left evidence of their presence in petroglyphs, burial mounds, and other artifacts. It is estimated that 2-9 million people lived in the territory now occupied by the U.S. before European contact, and the subsequent introduction of foreign diseases such as small pox that greatly diminished the native populations. Some advanced societies were the Anasazi of the southwest, who inhabited Chaco Canyon, and the Woodland Indians, who built Cahokia, located near present-day St Louis, a city with a population of 40,000 at its peak in AD 1200. Vikings first visited North America around 1000, but did not settle permanently. Following the discovery voyages of Christopher Columbus around 1492, other Europeans began to explore and settle there. During the 1500s and 1600s, the Spanish settled parts of the present-day Southwest and Florida, founding St. Augustine, Florida in 1565 and Santa Fe (in what is now New Mexico) in 1607. The first successful English settlement was at Jamestown, Virginia, also in 1607. Within the next two decades, several Dutch settlements, including New Amsterdam (the predecessor to New York City), were established in what are now the states of New York and New Jersey. In 1637, Sweden established a colony at Fort Christina (in what is now Delaware), but lost the settlement to the Dutch in 1655. This was followed by extensive British settlement of the east coast. The British colonists remained relatively undisturbed by their home country until after the French and Indian War, when France ceded Canada and the Great Lakes region to Britain. Britain then imposed taxes on the 13 colonies, widely regarded by the colonists as unfair because they were denied representation in the British Parliament. Tensions between Britain and the colonists increased, and the thirteen colonies eventually rebelled against British rule. British Parliament, George Washington (1789-1797).]] In 1776, the 13 colonies split from Great Britain and formed the United States, the world's first constitutional and democratic federal republic, after their Declaration of Independence of that year, and the Revolutionary War (1775 to 1783). The original political structure was a confederation in 1777, ratified in 1781 as the Articles of Confederation. After long debate, this was supplanted by the Constitution in 1789, forming a more centralized federal government. Prior to all these was the Albany Congress in 1754, in which a union was first seriously proposed. From early colonial times, there was a shortage of labor, which encouraged unfree labor, particularly indentured servitude and slavery. In the mid-19th century, a major division occurred in the United States over the issue of states' rights and the expansion of slavery. The northern states had become opposed to slavery, while the southern states saw it as necessary for the continued success of southern agriculture and wanted it expanded to the territories. Several federal laws were passed in an attempt to settle the dispute, including the Missouri Compromise and the Compromise of 1850. The dispute reached a crisis in 1861, when seven southern states seceded1 from the Union and formed the Confederate States of America, leading to the Civil War. Soon after the war began, four more southern states seceded. During the war, Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, mandating the freedom of all slaves in states in rebellion, though full emancipation did not take place until after the end of the war in 1865, the dissolution of the Confederacy, and the Thirteenth Amendment took effect. The Civil War effectively ended the question of a state's right to secede, and is widely accepted as a major turning point after which the federal government became more powerful than state governments. Thirteenth Amendment). The title of the painting, from a 1726 poem by Bishop Berkeley, was a phrase often quoted in the era of Manifest Destiny, expressing a widely held belief that civilization had steadily moved westward throughout history. [http://americanart.si.edu/t2go/1lw/1931.6.1.html (more)] ]] During the 19th century, many new states were added to the original 13 as the nation expanded across the continent. Manifest Destiny was a philosophy that encouraged westward expansion in the United States. As the population of the Eastern states grew and as a steady increase of immigrants entered the country, settlers moved steadily westward across North America. In the process, the U.S. displaced most American Indian nations. This displacement of American Indians continues to be a matter of contention in the U.S. with many tribes attempting to assert their original claims to various lands. In some areas American Indian populations were reduced by foreign diseases contracted through contact with European settlers, and US settlers acquired those emptied lands. In other instances American Indians were removed from their traditional lands by force. Though some would say the U.S. was not a colonial power until the Spanish-American War when it acquired Puerto Rico, Guam and the Philippines, the dominion exercised over land in North America the United States claimed is essentially colonial. The Philippines became independent in 1946. During this period, the nation also became an industrial power. This continued into the 20th century, which has been termed "the American Century" because of the nation's overriding influence on the world. The US became a center for innovation and technological development; major technologies that America either developed or was greatly involved in improving include the telephone, television, computer, the Internet, nuclear weapons, nuclear power, aviation, and aeronautics. In addition to the Civil War, another major traumatic experience for the nation was the Great Depression (1929 to 1939). The nation has also taken part in several major foreign wars, including World War I and World War II (in both of which the US later joined the Allies). During the Cold War, the US was a major player in the Korean War and Vietnam War, and, along with the Soviet Union, was considered one of the world's two "superpowers". With the collapse of the Soviet Union, the US emerged as the world's leading economic and military power. Beginning in the 1990s, the United States became very involved in police actions and peacekeeping, including actions in Kosovo, Haiti, Somalia and Liberia, and the first Persian Gulf War driving Iraq out of Kuwait. After attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, the United States and other allied nations found themselves involved in what has come to be called the "War on Terrorism," which has primarily encompassed military actions in both Afghanistan and Iraq.

Government

Iraq of the United States.]]

Republic and suffrage

The United States is an example of a constitutional republic, with a government composed of and operating through a set of limited powers imposed by its design and enumerated in the United States Constitution. Specifically, the nation operates as a presidential democracy. There are three levels of government: federal, state, and local. Officials of each of these levels are either elected by eligible voters via secret ballot or appointed by other elected officials. Americans enjoy almost universal suffrage from the age of 18 regardless of race, sex, or wealth. There are some limits, however: felons are disenfranchised and in some states former felons are likewise. Furthermore, the national representation of territories and the federal district of Washington, DC in Congress is limited: residents of the District of Columbia are subject to federal laws and federal taxes but their only Congressional representative is a non-voting delegate.

Federal government

The federal government is the national government, comprising the Legislative Branch (led by Congress), the Executive Branch (led by the President), and the Judicial Branch (led by the Supreme Court). These three branches were designed to apply checks and balances on each other. The Constitution limits the powers of the federal government to defense, foreign affairs, the issuing and management of currency, the management of trade and relations between the states, and the protection of human rights. In addition to these explicitly stated powers, the federal government—with the assistance of the Supreme Court—has gradually extended these powers into such areas as welfare and education, on the basis of the "necessary and proper" clause of the Constitution.

The Congress

necessary and proper The Congress of the United States is the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, comprising the House of Representatives and the Senate. The House of Representatives consists of 435 members, each of whom represents a congressional district and serves for a two-year term. House seats are apportioned among the states by population; in contrast, each state has two Senators, regardless of population. There are a total of 100 senators, who serve six-year terms. The powers of Congress are limited to those enumerated in the Constitution; all other powers are reserved to the states and the people. The Constitution also includes the necessary-and-proper clause, which grants Congress the power to "make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers."

The President

necessary-and-proper clause At the top level of the executive branch is the President of the United States. The President and Vice-President are elected as 'running mates' for four-year terms by the Electoral College, for which each state, as well as the District of Columbia, is allocated a number of seats based on its representation (or ostensible representation, in the case of D. C.) in both houses of Congress (see U.S. Electoral College). The relationship between the President and the Congress reflects that between the English monarchy and parliament at the time of the framing of the United States Constitution. Congress can legislate to constrain the President's executive power, even with respect to his or her command of the armed forces; however, this power is used only very rarely—a notable example was the constraint placed on President Richard Nixon's strategy of bombing Cambodia during the Vietnam War. The President cannot directly propose legislation, and must rely on supporters in Congress to promote his or her legislative agenda. The President's signature is required to turn congressional bills into law; in this respect, the President has the power—only occasionally used—to veto congressional legislation. Congress can override a presidential veto with a two-thirds majority vote in both houses. The ultimate power of Congress over the President is that of impeachment or removal of the elected President through a House vote, a Senate trial, and a Senate vote. The threat of using this power has had major political ramifications in the cases of Presidents Andrew Johnson, Richard Nixon, and Bill Clinton. The President makes around 2,000 executive appointments, including members of the Cabinet and ambassadors, which must be approved by the Senate; the President can also issue executive orders and pardons, and has other Constitutional duties, among them the requirement to give a State of the Union address to Congress once a year. Although the President's constitutional role may appear to be constrained, in practice, the office carries enormous prestige that typically eclipses the power of Congress: the Presidency has justifiably been referred to as 'the most powerful office in the world'. The Vice President is first in the line of succession, and is the President of the Senate ex officio, with the ability to cast a tie-breaking vote. The members of the President's Cabinet are responsible for administering the various departments of state, including the Department of Defense, the Justice Department, and the State Department. These departments and department heads have considerable regulatory and political power, and it is they who are responsible for executing federal laws and regulations. George W. Bush is the 43rd President, currently serving his second term.

The Courts

George W. Bush The highest court is the Supreme Court, which consists of nine justices. The court deals with federal and constitutional matters, and can declare legislation made at any level of the government as unconstitutional, nullifying the law and creating precedent for future law and decisions. Below the Supreme Court are the courts of appeals, and below them in turn are the district courts, which are the general trial courts for federal law. Separate from, but not entirely independent of, this federal court system are the individual court systems of each state, each dealing with its own laws and having its own judicial rules and procedures. A case may be appealed from a state court to a federal court only if there is a federal question; the supreme court of each state is the final authority on the interpretation of that state's laws and constitution.

State and local governments

supreme court of each state. Note that Alaska and Hawaii are shown at different scales, and that the Aleutian Islands and the uninhabited Northwestern Hawaiian Islands are omitted from this map.]] The state governments have the greatest influence over people's daily lives. Each state has its own written constitution and has different laws. There are sometimes great differences in law and procedure between the different states, concerning issues such as property, crime, health, and education. The highest elected official of each state is the Governor. Each state also has an elected legislature (bicameral in every state except Nebraska), whose members represent the different parts of the state. Of note is the New Hampshire legislature, which is the third-largest legislative body in the English-speaking world, and has one representative for every 3,000 people. Each state maintains its own judiciary, with the lowest level typically being county courts, and culminating in each state supreme court, though sometimes named differently. In some states, supreme and lower court justices are elected by the people; in others, they are appointed, as they are in the federal system. The institutions that are responsible for local government are typically town, city, or county boards, making laws that affect their particular area. These laws concern issues such as traffic, the sale of alcohol, and keeping animals. The highest elected official of a town or city is usually the mayor. In New England, towns operate directly democratically, and in some states, such as Rhode Island and Connecticut, counties have little or no power, existing only as geographic distinctions. In other areas, county governments have more power, such as to collect taxes and maintain law enforcement agencies.

Political divisions

With the Declaration of Independence, the thirteen colonies proclaimed themselves to be nation states modeled after the European states of the time. Although considered as sovereigns initially, under the Articles of Confederation of 1781 they entered into a "Perpetual Union" and created a fully sovereign federal state, delegating certain powers to the national Congress, including the right to engage in diplomatic relations and to levy war, while each retaining their individual sovereignty, freedom and independence. But the national government proved too ineffective, so the administrative structure of the government was vastly reorganized with the United States Constitution of 1789. Under this new union, the continued status of the individual states as sovereign nation states fell into dispute in 1861, as several states attempted to secede from the union; in response, then-President Abraham Lincoln claimed that such secession was illegal, and the result was the American Civil War. Since the Union victory in 1865, the independent status of the individual states has not been broached again by any state, and the status of each state within the union has been deemed by mainstream officials and academics to be settled as being subordinate to the union as a whole. In subsequent years, the number of states grew steadily due to western expansion, the purchase of lands by the national government from other nation states, and the subdivision of existing states, resulting in the current total of 50. The states are generally divided into smaller administrative regions, including counties, cities and townships. The United States–Canadian border is the longest undefended political boundary in the world. The U.S. is divided into three distinct sections:
- the "continental United States," also known as "the Lower 48" and more accurately termed the conterminous, coterminous or contiguous United States
- Alaska, which is physically connected only to Canada
- the archipelago of Hawaii, in the central Pacific Ocean. The United States also holds several other territories, districts, and possessions, notably the federal district of the District of Columbia, which is the nation's capital, and several overseas insular areas, the most significant of which are American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the United States Virgin Islands. The Palmyra Atoll is the United States' only incorporated territory; it is unorganized and uninhabited. The United States Navy has held a base at a portion of Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, since 1898. The United States government possesses a lease to this land, which only mutual agreement or United States abandonment of the area can terminate. The present Cuban government of Fidel Castro disputes this arrangement, claiming Cuba was not truly sovereign at the time of the signing. The United States argues this point moot because Cuba apparently ratified the lease post-revolution, and with full sovereignty, when it cashed one rent check in accordance with the disputed treaty.

Foreign relations and military

sovereign] The immense military and economic dominance of the United States has made foreign relations an especially important topic in its politics, with considerable concern about the image of the United States throughout the world. Reactions towards the United States by other nationalities are often strong, ranging from uninhibited admiration and mimicking of all things American to anti-Americanism. US foreign policy has swung about several times over the course of its history between the poles of strict isolationism and imperialism and everywhere in between. Three of the nation's four military branches are administered by the Department of Defense: the Army, the Navy (including the Marine Corps), and the Air Force. The Coast Guard falls under the jurisdiction of the Department of Homeland Security in peacetime, but is placed under the Department of the Navy in time of war. The combined United States armed forces consist of 1.4 million active duty personnel, along with several hundred thousand each in the Reserves and the National Guard. Military conscription ended in 1973. The United States Armed forces are considered to be the most powerful military (of any sort) on Earth and their force projection capabilities are unrivaled by any other nation. The 2005 defense budget amounted to $401.7 billion, which is an increase of 4% over 2004 and of 35% since 2001. Over 50% of that number is spent in research & development. (For comparison, in 2004 the European Union (considered as the second-largest military force) had a combined total of 1.6 million troops, and a defense budget of €160 billion, with less than 10% of that being spent on R&D.)

Largest cities

The United States has dozens of major cities, including 11 of the 55 global cities of all types — with three "alpha" global cities: New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago. The figures expressed below are for populations within city limits. A different ranking is evident when considering U.S. metro area populations, although the top three would be unchanged. Note that some cities not listed (such as Atlanta, Boston, Las Vegas, Miami, Nashville, New Orleans, Seattle, and Washington, D.C.) are still considered important on the basis of other factors and issues, including culture, economics, heritage, and politics. The twenty largest cities, based on the United States Census Bureau's 2004 estimates, are as follows:

Economy

The United States has the largest single-country economy in the world, with a per-capita gross domestic product of $40,100. In this market-oriented economy, private individuals and business firms make most of the decisions, and the federal and state governments buy needed goods and services predominantly in the private marketplace. gross domestic product The largest industry of the U.S. is now service, which employs roughly three quarters of the U.S. work force. The United States has many natural resources, including oil and gas, metals, and such minerals as gold, soda ash, and zinc. In agriculture, the U.S. is a top producer of, among other crops, corn, soy beans, and wheat; the United States is a net exporter of food. The U.S. manufacturing sector produces goods such as, cars, airplanes, steel, and electronics, among many others. Economic activity varies greatly from one part of the country to another, with many industries being largely dependent on a certain city or region; New York City is the center of the American financial, publishing, broadcasting, and advertising industries; Silicon Valley is the country’s primary location for high-technology companies, while Los Angeles is the most important center for film production. The Midwest is known for its reliance on manufacturing and heavy industry, with Detroit, Michigan, serving as the center of the American automotive industry; the Great Plains are known as the "breadbasket" of America for their tremendous agricultural output; the intermountain region serves as a mining hub and natural gas resource; the Pacific Northwest for fish and timber, while Texas is largely associated with the oil industry; the Southeast is a major hub for both medical research and the textiles industry. Several countries continue to link their currency to the dollar or even use it as a currency (such as Ecuador), although this practice has subsided since the collapse of the Bretton Woods system. Many markets are also quoted in dollars, such as those of oil and gold. The dollar is also the predominant reserve currency in the world, and more than half of global reserves are in dollars. The largest trading partner of the United States is Canada (19%), followed by China (12%), Mexico (11%), and Japan (8%). More than 50% of total trade is with these four countries. In 2003, the United States was ranked as the third most visited tourist destination in the world; its 40,400,000 visitors ranked behind France's 75,000,000 and Spain's 52,500,000. Labor unions have existed since the 19th century, and grew large and powerful from the 1930s to the 1950s. See Labor history of the United States. Since 1970 they have shrunk in the private sector and now cover fewer than 8% of the workers. However union membership has grown rapidly in the public sector, especially among teachers, nurses, police, postal workers, and municipal clerks. There have been few strikes in recent years. The United States' imports exceed exports by 80%, leading to an annual trade deficit of $700,000,000,000, or 6% of gross domestic product. It is the largest debtor nation in the world, with total gross foreign debt of over $13,000,000,000,000 (2005 estimate); and it absorbs more than 50% of global savings annually. Since the 1980s, the U.S. has increased the use of neoliberal economic policies that reduce government intervention and reduce the size of the welfare state, backing away from the more interventionist Keynsian economic policies that had been in favor since the Great Depression. As a result, the United States provides fewer government-delivered social welfare services than most industrialized nations, choosing instead to keep its tax burden lower and relying more heavily on the free market and private charities. Sixteen states and the District of Columbia have minimum wages higher than the national level ($5.15 per-hour), including the highest, Washington State at $7.35. Twenty-six states are the same as the federal level; two--Ohio and Kansas--are below; and six do not have state laws. America's wealth is relatively highly concentrated. The average C.E.O. earns 500 times the typical amount a worker grosses, this is up from 25 times in the late 1970s. In terms of wealth the top 1% of Americans own 40% of all assets and 50.1% of the country's income goes to the top twenty percent of households. Average wages for the majority of employees have been largely stagnating since the 1970s. America's poverty line defined as a family of four earning less than $19,157 is at 12.7% of the general population. Approximately one out of every five children in the United States grows up below the official poverty line. Among racial groups; African Americans have the lowest median income while Asians had the highest. Regionally, the southern states had the lowest median incomes while the West Coast and New England had the highest. The current Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan remarked that the U.S.’s growing income inequality since the 1970s is, "not the type of thing which a democratic society - a capitalist democratic society - can really accept without addressing."[http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0614/p01s03-usec.html?s=itm] However, Greenspan also noted, "...you can look at the system and say it's got a lot of problems to it, and sure it does. It always has. But you can't get around the fact that this is the most extraordinarily successful economy in history."

Transportation

Alan Greenspan ]] Because the United States is a relatively young nation, most of the development of U.S. cities has taken place since the invention of the automobile. To link its vast territory, the United States built a network of high-capacity, high-speed highways, of which the most important element is the Interstate Highway system, commissioned in the 1950s by President Dwight D. Eisenhower and modeled after the German Autobahn. The United States also has a transcontinental rail system, which is used for moving freight across the lower forty-eight states. Passenger rail service is provided by Amtrak, which serves forty-six of the lower forty-eight states. Many cities in the United States have extensive mass-transit systems. New York City operates one of the world's largest and most heavily used subway systems. The regional rail and bus networks that extend into Long Island, New Jersey, Upstate New York, and Connecticut are among the most heavily used in the world. Air travel is often preferred for destinations over 300 miles (500 kilometers) away. In terms of passengers, seventeen of the world's thirty busiest airports in 2004 were in the U.S., including the world's busiest, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport; in terms of cargo, in the same year, twelve of the world's thirty busiest airports were in the U.S., including the world's busiest, Memphis International Airport. There are several major seaports in the United States; the three busiest are the Port of Los Angeles, California; the Port of Long Beach, California; and the Port of New York and New Jersey. Others include Houston, Texas; Charleston, South Carolina; Savannah, Georgia; Miami, Florida; Portland, Oregon; San Francisco, California; Boston, Massachusetts; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Seattle, Washington; plus, outside the contiguous forty-eight states, Anchorage, Alaska, and Honolulu, Hawaii.

Society

Demographics

Hawaii The mean center of the U.S. population continues to drift farther west and south. The fastest growing region is the western United States followed by the southern portion. According to