-isms
This system of government championed by Alexander Hamilton and his political party called for greater power to the national government.
federalism
Named after a US Senator, this idea embodied the anti-communist hysteria of the Cold War era.
McCarthyism
Nicknamed “The Great Commoner,” this three-time Democratic Party candidate and free silver advocate gave the “Cross of Gold” speech.
William Jennings Bryan
In 1948, this group of southerners broke from the Democratic Party and formed their own faction dedicated to states’ rights and maintaining segregation.
Dixiecrats
This principle of the Democratic Party stated that Congress should not interfere in the expansion of slavery, but should leave the choice up to the inhabitants of each territory.
popular sovereignty
This economic theory emphasized the importance of a nation’s exports being greater than its imports.
mercantilism
This term highlights the mood of late 19th-early 20th century reformers and muckrackers who sought to bring attention to and fix socioeconomic issues.
This time period under the Monroe administration was characterized by a lack of political faction and a desire for unity after the War of 1812.
Era of Good Feelings
The anti-Catholic, nativist, secretive Order of the Star Spangled Banner, which became the core of the American Party, was also known by this name.
This term for sensationalized and often misleading newspaper stories helped sway public opinion in favor of the Spanish-American War.
yellow journalism
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, this belief based on the work of a British naturalist was used as a justification for racism, imperialism, and the widening socioeconomic gap between rich and poor.
social darwinism
Many of the founding fathers, most notably Thomas Jefferson, were believers of this religious philosophy which likened the universe to a system created by and then left to run independently of its creator.
deism
The phrase "Tippecanoe and Tyler Too" was part of the Whig party’s 1840 attempt to appeal to the common people in this campaign which changed the face of American politics.
Log Cabin Campaign/William Henry Harrison Campaign
This term was used by Democrats to deride southerners who cooperated with Reconstruction.
scalawags
Used to describe the attitude of Parliament toward its American colonies, this term denotes lax supervision and control.
salutary neglect
A rejection of rationality, this spitirual movement started by author Ralph Waldo Emerson emphasized a personal, emotional relationship with God.
transcendentalism
This ideology maintains that the United States is unique among other nations in terms of its founding and principles, and that it has a unique mission to foster the same society among other nations.
American exceptionalism
This catchy - but never actually realized - promise to secure the Oregon territory from Britain launched James K. Polk to a surprising victory against Whig Henry Clay in 1844.
54-40 or fight!
This name was given by southern whites to northerners who moved south in the Reconstruction Era in pursuit of political and economic opportunity.
carpetbaggers
These illegal bars, often run by organized crime, flourished by selling alcohol during the Prohibition Era.
speakeasies
This political philosophy is defined as the recognition and appreciation of cultural diversity in a unified body.
pluralism
Having developed in the 19th century, this political doctrine originated as an appeal to the working people and was adopted by the agrarian People’s Party.
populism
In this speech given on a ship headed for the Massachusetts Bay Colony, Puritan John Winthrop called his new settlement a “city on a hill.”
A Model of Christian Charity
In the late 1800s, this was a derogatory term for more liberal Republicans.
mugwumps
In the early 1800s after a decline in birthrate, rural white families began to adopt this principle, which emphasized the mother’s responsibility for the moral education of her children.