The President of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in United States by influence and recognition. The President leads the executive branch of the federal government; his or her role is to enforce national law as given in the Constitution and written by Congress. Article Two of the Constitution establishes the President as commander-in-chief of the armed forces and enumerates powers specifically granted to the President, including the power to sign into law or veto bills passed by both houses of Congress. The President also has the power to create a cabinet of advisers and to grant pardons or reprieves. Finally, with the "advice and consent" of the Senate, the President is empowered to make treaties and appoint federal officers, ambassadors, and federal judges, including Justices of the Supreme Court. As with officials in the other branches of the United States government, the Constitution restrains the President with a set of checks and balances designed to prevent any individual or group from taking absolute power.

The President is elected indirectly through the United States Electoral College to a four year term, with a limit of two terms imposed by the Twenty-second Amendment to the Constitution, ratified in 1951. Under this system, each state is allocated a number of electoral votes equal to the size of the state's delegation in both houses of Congress combined. The District of Columbia is also granted electoral votes, per the Twenty-third Amendment to the Constitution. Voters in nearly all states choose, through a plurality voting system, a presidential candidate who receives all of that state's electoral votes. A simple majority of electoral votes is needed to become President; if no candidate receives that many votes, the election is thrown to the House of Representatives, which votes by state delegation.

Since the adoption of the Constitution, forty-two individuals have been elected or succeeded into the presidency, serving fifty-five four-year terms altogether. Grover Cleveland served two non-consecutive terms and is counted as both the 22nd and the 24th president. Because of this, all presidents after the 23rd have their official listing increased by one. Current President George W. Bush, the forty-third President, was inaugurated on January 20, 2001 to a first term and on January 20, 2005 to a second term, which expires at noon on January 20, 2009. Barack Obama, having won the 2008 presidential election, is expected to be inaugurated shortly after noon.

The White House in Washington, D.C. serves as the official place of residence for the President; he is entitled to use its staff and facilities, including medical care, recreation, housekeeping, and security services. One of two Boeing VC-25 aircraft, which are extensively modified versions of Boeing 747-200B airliners, serve as long distance travel for the President, and are referred to as Air Force One while the president is on board.Air Force One. White House Military Office. Retrieved June 17, 2007. A salary of $400,000, along with other benefits, is paid to the President annually.

After World War II, the United States' status as a superpower transformed the American President into one of the world's most well-known and influential public figures. The appellation "leader of the free world", frequently used in reference to Presidents since the Cold War, symbolizes the President's elevated role in world affairs. The official presidential anthem is "Hail to the Chief"; preceded by "ruffles and flourishes", it is primarily played to announce the President at state functions.

George Walker Bush (; born July 6, 1946) is the forty-third and current President of the United States. He served as the forty-sixth Governor of Texas from 1995 to 2000 before being sworn in as President on January 20, 2001. His term ends at noon (ET) on January 20, 2009.See Section 1 of the Twentieth Amendment

Bush is the eldest son of former U.S. President George H. W. Bush and Barbara Bush. After graduating from Yale University, Bush worked in his family's oil businesses. He married Laura Welch in 1977 and unsuccessfully ran for the United States House of Representatives shortly thereafter. He later co-owned the Texas Rangers baseball team before defeating Ann Richards to become Governor of Texas in 1994. In a close and controversial election, Bush was elected to the Presidency in 2000 as the Republican candidate, receiving a majority of the electoral votes but losing the popular vote.

Eight months into his first term as President, the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks occurred, and Bush announced a global War on Terrorism, ordered an invasion of Afghanistan that same year, and an invasion of Iraq in 2003. In addition to national security issues, President Bush has attempted to promote policies on the economy, health care, education, and social security reform. He has enacted large tax cuts, the No Child Left Behind Act, medicare prescription drug benefits for seniors, and his tenure has seen a national debate on immigration.;

Bush ran for re-election against Democratic Senator John Kerry in 2004 and was re-elected, garnering 50.7% of the popular vote to his opponent's 48.3%. After his re-election, Bush received increasingly heated criticism. During his first term, he has received the highest approval rating of American Presidents; however, in his second term, he received the lowest.

President is a title leaders of organizations, companies, trade unions, universities, and countries. Etymologically, a "president" is one who Category: Wiktionary - :Preside|presides, who sits in leadership (from Latin pre- "before" + sedere "to sit"; giving the term praeses). Originally, the term referred to the presiding officer of a ceremony or meeting (i.e., chairman), but today it most commonly refers to an official. Among other things, president today is a common title for the heads of state of most republics, whether popularly elected, chosen by the legislature or by a special electoral college. It is also often adopted by dictators.

A presidential system is a system of government where an executive branch exists and presides (hence the name) separately from the legislature, to which it is not Category: wikt - :accountable|accountable and which cannot, in normal circumstances, Category: wikt - :dismiss|dismiss it. The legislature may retain the right, in extreme cases, to dismiss the executive, often through a process called impeachment or, as happened in England in 1649, through the abolition of the Crown (see Commonwealth of England). However, such an intervention is seen as so rare (only two United States presidents were impeached — charged with misconduct — and neither was convicted, while no impeachment has occurred in what is now the United Kingdom for hundreds of years) as not to contradict the central tenet of presidentialism, that in normal circumstances using normal means the legislature cannot dismiss the executive.

It owes its origins to the medieval monarchies of France, England and Scotland in which executive authority was vested in the Crown, not in meetings of the estates of the realm (i.e., parliament): the Estates-General of France, the Parliament of England or the Estates of Scotland. The concept of separate spheres of influence of the executive and legislature was copied in the Constitution of the United States, with the creation of the office of President of the United States. Perhaps ironically, in England and Scotland (since 1707 as the Kingdom of Great Britain, and since 1801 as the United Kingdom) the power of a separate executive waned to a ceremonial role and a new executive, answerable to parliament, evolved while the power of the United States's separated executive increased. This has given rise to criticism of the United States presidency as an "imperial presidency" though some analysts dispute the existence of an absolute separation, referring to the concept of "separate institutions sharing power".

Although not exclusive to republics, and applied in the case of absolute monarchies, the term is often associated with republican systems in the Americas.

Freedom of speech is the freedom to speak freely without censorship or limitation. The synonymous term freedom of expression is sometimes used to denote not only freedom of verbal speech but any act of seeking, receiving and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used. Freedom of speech and freedom of expression is closely related to, yet distinct from, the concept of freedom of thought or freedom of conscience. In practice, the right to freedom of speech is not absolute in any country and the right is commonly subject to limitations, such as on "hate speech". This is because exercising freedom of speech always takes place within a context of competing values.

The right to freedom of speech is recognized as a human right under Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and recognized in international human rights law in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). The ICCPR recognizes the right to freedom of speech as "the right to hold opinions without interference. Everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression".OHCHRUsing Courts to Enforce the Free Speech Provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights | Australia & Oceania > Australia & New Zealand from All Business... Furthermore freedom of speech is recognized in European, inter-American and African regional human rights law.

Head of state is the generic term for the individual or collective office that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchic or republican nation-state, federation, commonwealth or any other political state. His or her role generally includes personifying the continuity and legitimacy of the state and exercising the political powers, functions and duties granted to the head of state in the country's constitution and further legislation. The head of state is often thought of as the official "leader" of the nation-state.

Charles de Gaulle described the role he envisaged for the French president when he wrote the modern French constitution, stating the head of state should embody "the spirit of the nation" for the nation itself and the world: une certaine idée de la France (a certain idea about France). Today many countries expect their head of state to embody national values in a similar fashion.

A constitution is a system for government, often codified as a written document, that establishes the rules and principles of an autonomous political entity. In the case of countries, this term refers specifically to a national constitution defining the fundamental political principles, and establishing the structure, procedures, powers and duties, of a government. Most national constitutions also guarantee certain rights to the people. The term constitution can be applied to any overall law that defines the functioning of a government, including several historical constitutions that existed before the development of modern national constitutions.

Constitutions concern different kinds of political organizations. They are found extensively in regional government, at supranational (e.g., European Union), federal (e.g., United States Constitution), state or provincial (e.g., Constitution of Maryland), and sub-national levels. They are also found in many political groups, such as political parties, pressure groups, and trade unions.

Non-political entities such as corporations and voluntary associations, whether incorporated or not, may also have a constitution. The constitution of a legally incorporated entity is more usually styled as its memorandum and articles of association (U.S. incorporation).

Politics consists of "social relations involving authority or power"Definition of politics from die.net and refers to the regulation of a political unit,Politics (definition)@Everything2.com and to the methods and tactics used to formulate and apply policy.Definition of politics from "The Free Dictionary"

Political science (also political studies) is the study of political behavior and examines the acquisition and application of power. Related areas of study include political philosophy, which seeks a rationale for politics and an ethic of public behavior, and public administration, which examines the practices of governance.

:For the government of parliamentary systems, see Executive (government).

Category: Image - :Government-Vedder-Highsmith-detail-1.jpeg|thumb|300px|Detail from Elihu Vedder, Government (1896). Library of Congress Thomas Jefferson Building, Washington, D.C.

A government is "the organization, that is the governing authority of a political unit,"Wordnet Search 3.0: Government "the ruling power in a political society,"LoveToKnow: 1911 Encyclopedia: Government and the apparatus through which a governing body functions and exercises authority.American 760 "Government, with the authority to make laws, to adjudicate disputes, and to issue administrative decisions, and with a monopoly of authorized force where it fails to persuade, is an indispensable means, proximately'', to the peace of communal life."Adler 80-81 "A compulsory territorial monopolist of protection and jurisdiction equipped with the power to tax without unanimous consent." Statist theorists maintain that the necessity of government derives from the fact that the people need to live in communities, yet personal autonomy must be constrained in these communities.

A state or province of sufficient size and complexity will have different layers or levels of government: local, regional and national.

Democracy is a form of government in which power is held by people under a free electoral system. It is derived from the Greek ?????????? (), "popular government"Demokratia, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, "A Greek-English Lexicon", at Perseus which was coined from ????? (d?mos), "people" and ?????? (kratos), "rule, strength" in the middle of the 5th-4th century BC to denote the political systems then existing in some Greek city-states, notably Athens following a popular uprising in 508 BC. Democracy is people who rule the government directly.BBC History of democracy In this form, there were no defined human rights or legal restraints upon the actions of assembly, making it the first instance of "illiberal democracy."The Future of Freedom: Illiberal Democracy at Home and Abroad, Fareed Zakaria, (W.W. Norton & Company; 2003) ISBN 0-393-04764-4

In political theory, democracy describes a small number of related forms of government and also a political philosophy. Even though there is no universally accepted definition of 'democracy', Liberty and justice for some at Economist.com there are two principles that any definition of democracy includes. The first principle is that all members of the society have equal access to power and the second that all members enjoy universally recognized freedoms and liberties. R. Alan Dahl, I. Shapiro, J. A. Cheibub, The Democracy Sourcebook, MIT Press 2003, ISBN 0262541475, Google Books linkM. Hénaff, T. B. Strong, Public Space and Democracy, University of Minnesota Press, ISBN 0816633878

There are several varieties of democracy some of which provide better representation and more freedoms for their citizens than others.G. F. Gaus, C. Kukathas, Handbook of Political Theory, SAGE, 2004, p. 143-145, ISBN 0761967877, Google Books link The Judge in a Democracy, Princeton University Press, 2006, p. 26, ISBN 069112017X, Google Books link However, if any democracy is not carefully legislated to avoid an uneven distribution of political power with balances such as the separation of powers, then a branch of the system of rule is able to accumulate power in a way that is harmful to democracy itself.A. Barak, The Judge in a Democracy, Princeton University Press, 2006, p. 40, ISBN 069112017X, Google Books linkT. R. Williamson, Problems in American Democracy, Kessinger Publishing, 2004, p. 36, ISBN 1419143166, Google Books linkU. K. Preuss, "Perspectives of Democracy and the Rule of Law." Journal of Law and Society, 18:3 (1991). pp. 353-364 The "majority rule" is often described as a characteristic feature of democracy, but without responsible government it is possible for the rights of a minority to be abused by the "tyranny of the majority". An essential process in representative democracies are competitive elections, that are fair both substantivelySubstantively fairness means equality among all citizens in all respects i.e. equality in chances, in starting point etc. and procedurallyProcedural fairness means that the rules of the elections are clear and set in advance. Furthermore, freedom of political expression, freedom of speech and freedom of the press are essential so that citizens are informed and able to vote in their personal interests.A. Barak,The Judge in a Democracy, Princeton University Press, 2006, p. 27, ISBN 069112017X, Google Books linkH. Kelsen, Ethics, Vol. 66, No. 1, Part 2: Foundations of Democracy (Oct., 1955), pp. 1-101

Popular sovereignty is common but not a universal motivating philosophy for establishing a democracy. In some countries, democracy is based on the philosophical principle of equal rights. Many people use the term "democracy" as shorthand for liberal democracy, which may include additional elements such as political pluralism, equality before the law, the right to petition elected officials for redress of grievances, due process, civil liberties, human rights, and elements of civil society outside the government. In the United States, separation of powers is often cited as a supporting attribute, but in other countries, such as the United Kingdom, the dominant philosophy is parliamentary sovereignty (though in practice judicial independence is generally maintained). In other cases, "democracy" is used to mean direct democracy. Though the term "democracy" is typically used in the context of a political state, the principles are also applicable to private organizations and other groups.

Democracy has its origins in ancient Greece.John Dunn, Democracy: the unfinished journey 508 BC - 1993 AD, Oxford University Press, 1994, ISBN 0198279345Kurt A. Raaflaub, Josiah Ober, Robert W. Wallace, Origin of Democracy in Ancient Greece, University of California Press, 2007, ISBN 0520245628, Google Books link However other cultures have significantly contributed to the evolution of democracy such as the American Indians ( Weatherford 1990) Ancient Rome, Europe, and North and South America. Democracy has been called the "last form of government" and has spread considerably across the globe."The Global Trend" chart on Freedom in the World 2007: Freedom Stagnation Amid Pushback Against Democracy published by Freedom House Suffrage has been expanded in many jurisdictions over time from relatively narrow groups (such as wealthy men of a particular ethnic group), but still remains a controversial issue with regard to disputed territories, areas with significant immigration, and countries that exclude certain demographic groups.

A monarchy is a form of government in which supreme power is absolutely or nominally lodged in an individual, who is the head of state, often for life or until abdication, and "is wholly set apart from all other members of the state.""Bouvier, John, and Francis Rawle. Bouviers Law Dictionary and Concise Encyclopedia. 1914. 2237-2238. The person who heads a monarchy is called a monarch. It was a common form of government in the world during the ancient and medieval times.

There is no clear definition of monarchy. Holding unlimited political power in the state is not the defining characteristic, as many constitutional monarchies such as the United Kingdom and Thailand are considered monarchies. Hereditary rule is often a common characteristic, but elective monarchies are considered monarchies (the pope, sovereign of the Vatican City State, is elected by the College of Cardinals) and some states have hereditary rulers, but are considered republics (such as the stadtholder of the Dutch Republic). A 1914 edition of Bouvier's Law Dictionary'' states that "Monarchy is contradistinguished from republic," and gives this definition:

Currently, 44 nations in the world have monarchs as heads of state, 16 of which are Commonwealth realms that recognise Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom as their head of state.

A dictatorship is usually defined as an autocratic form of government in which the government is ruled by a dictator. It has two possible meanings:

*Roman dictator was a political office of the Roman Republic. Roman dictators were allocated absolute power during times of emergency. Their power was originally neither arbitrary nor unaccountable, being subject to law and requiring retrospective justification. There were no such dictatorships after the beginning of the 2nd century BCE, and later dictators such as Sulla and the Roman Emperors exercised power much more personally and arbitrarily.

*In contemporary usage, dictatorship refers to an autocratic form of absolute rule by leadership unrestricted by law, constitutions, or other social and political factors within the state.

For some scholars, dictatorship is a form of government that has the power to govern without consent of those being governed, while totalitarianism describes a state that regulates nearly every aspect of public and private behavior of the people. In other words, dictatorship concerns the source of the governing power (where the power comes from) and totalitarianism concerns the scope of the governing power (what is the government). In this sense, dictatorship (government without people's consent) is a contrast to democracy (government whose power comes from people) and totalitarianism (government controls every aspect of people's life) corresponds to liberalism (government emphasizes individual right and liberty). Though the definitions of the terms differ, they are related in reality as most of the dictatorship states tend to show totalitarian characteristics. When governments' power does not come from the people, their power is not limited and tend to expand their scope of power to control every aspect of people's life.

Theocracy is a form of government in which a god or deity is recognized as the state's supreme civil ruler,Catholic Encylopedia "A form of civil government in which God himself is recognized as the head." or in a broader sense, a form of government in which a state is governed by immediate divine guidance or by officials who are regarded as divinely guidedDictionary For believers, theocracy is a form of government in which divine power governs an earthly human state, either in a personal incarnation or, more often, via religious institutional representatives (i.e., a church), replacing or dominating civil government.CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Theocracy Theocratic governments enact theonomic laws.

Theocracy should be distinguished from other secular forms of government that have a state religion, or are merely influenced by theological or moral concepts, and monarchies held "By the Grace of God".

A theocracy may be monist in form, where the administrative hierarchy of the government is identical with the administrative hierarchy of the religion, or it may have two 'arms,' but with the state administrative hierarchy subordinate to the religious hierarchy.

Anarchy (from anarchía, "without ruler") may refer to any of the following:

* "Absence of government; a state of lawlessness due to the absence or inefficiency of the supreme power; political disorder.""anarchy." Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. 2004. The first quoted usage is 1552

* "A theoretical social state in which there is no governing person or body of persons, but each individual has absolute liberty (without the implication of disorder).""anarchy." Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. 2004. The first quoted usage is 1850.

* "Absence or non-recognition of authority and order in any given sphere.""anarchy." Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. 2004. The first quoted usage is 1667

*Without government or law

*A society free from coercive authority of any kind is the goal of proponents of the political philosophy of anarchism (anarchists).

The United States of America (commonly referred to as the United States, the U.S., the USA, the States, or America) is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its forty-eight contiguous states and Washington, D.C., the capital district, lie between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, bordered by Canada to the north and Mexico to the south. The state of Alaska is in the northwest of the continent, with Canada to its east and Russia to the west across the Bering Strait. The state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific. The country also possesses several territories, or insular areas, scattered around the Caribbean and Pacific.

At 3.79 million square miles (9.83 million km²) and with about 305 million people, the United States is the third or fourth largest country by total area, and third largest by land area and by population. The United States is one of the world's most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many countries.Adams, J.Q., and Pearlie Strother-Adams (2001). Dealing with Diversity. Chicago: Kendall/Hunt. ISBN 078728145X. The U.S. economy is the largest national economy in the world, with an estimated 2008 gross domestic product (GDP) of US$14.3 trillion (23% of the world total based on nominal GDP and almost 21% at purchasing power parity).The European Union has a larger collective economy, but is not a single nation.

The nation was founded by thirteen colonies of Great Britain located along the Atlantic seaboard. On July 4, 1776, they issued the Declaration of Independence, which proclaimed their independence from Great Britain and their formation of a cooperative union. The rebellious states defeated Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War, the first successful colonial war of independence.Dull, Jonathan R. (2003). "Diplomacy of the Revolution, to 1783," p. 352, chap. in A Companion to the American Revolution, ed. Jack P. Greene and J. R. Pole. Maiden, Mass.: Blackwell, pp. 352?361. ISBN 1405116749. A federal convention adopted the current United States Constitution on September 17, 1787; its ratification the following year made the states part of a single republic with a strong central government. The Bill of Rights, comprising ten constitutional amendments guaranteeing many fundamental civil rights and freedoms, was ratified in 1791.

In the 19th century, the United States acquired land from France, Spain, the United Kingdom, Mexico, and Russia, and annexed the Republic of Texas and the Republic of Hawaii. Disputes between the agrarian South and industrial North over states' rights and the expansion of the institution of slavery provoked the American Civil War of the 1860s. The North's victory prevented a permanent split of the country and led to the end of legal slavery in the United States. By the 1870s, the national economy was the world's largest. The Spanish?American War and World War I confirmed the country's status as a military power. In 1945, the United States emerged from World War II as the first country with nuclear weapons, a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, and a founding member of NATO. The end of the Cold War left the United States as the sole superpower. The country accounts for approximately 50% of global military spending and is a leading economic, political, and cultural force in the world.

: For a topic outline on this subject, see List of basic Iraq topics. For other uses, see Iraq (disambiguation).

Iraq (Arabic: ?????? ), officially the Republic of Iraq (Arabic:

, Kurdish: ?????? ????? Komarê Iraq; or Category: Wikipedia - :IPA for English|/??ræk/), is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert. It shares borders with Kuwait and Saudi Arabia to the south, Jordan to the west, Syria to the northwest, Turkey to the north, and Iran to the east. It has a very narrow section of coastline measuring 58 km (35 miles) at Umm Qasr on the Persian Gulf. There are two major flowing rivers: the Tigris and the Euphrates. These provide Iraq with agriculturally capable land and contrast with the desert landscape that covers most of Western Asia.

The capital city, Baghdad ( ), is in the center-east. Iraq's rich history dates back to ancient Mesopotamia. The region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers is identified as the cradle of civilization and the birthplace of writing. Throughout its long history, Iraq has been the center of the Akkadian, Assyrian, Babylonian and Abbasid empires, and part of the Achaemenid, Macedonian, Parthian, Sassanid, Rashidun, Umayyad, Mongol, Ottoman and British empires.Top 10 Battles for the Control of Iraq

Since an invasion in 2003, a multinational coalition of forces, mainly American and British, has occupied Iraq. The invasion has had wide-reaching consequences: increased civil violence, establishment of a parliamentary democracy, the removal and execution of former authoritarian President Saddam Hussein, official recognition and widespread political participation of Iraq's Kurdish minority and Shi'ite Arab majority, significant economic growth, building of new infrastructure, and use of the country's huge reserves of oil. In 2008 the Failed States Index, produced by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace's Foreign Policy magazine and the Fund for Peace, Iraq was the world's fifth most unstable country, after Sudan, and the United States in 2007 referred to it in court proceedings as "an active theater of combat."Munaf v. Geren, 06-1666, pg. 5 of Syllabus Iraq is developing a parliamentary democracy composed of 18 governorates (known as muhafadhat).

Afghanistan //,The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2004. officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (, ), is a landlocked country that is located approximately in the center of Asia. It is variously designated as geographically located within Central Asia,The 2007 Middle East & Central Asia Politics, Economics,and Society Conference University of Utah "Regional Economic Outlook: Middle East & Central Asia" May 2006, International Monetary Fund South Asia,CIA world factbook, Afghanistan - Geography (Location: Southern Asia)University of California, [http://www.southasiaoutreach.wisc.edu/countries.htm], University of Pennsylvania, World Bank; U.S. maps; [http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&y=2007&m=August&x=20070829160347saikceinawz0.2609064] ; University of Washington Syracuse University and the Middle East.http://www.umich.edu/~iinet/cmenas/info.htm It has religious, ethno-linguistic, and geographic links with most of its neighboring states. It is bordered by Pakistan in the south and east, Iran in the west, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan in the north, and China in the far northeast. The name Afghanistan means the "Land of Afghans."

Afghanistan is a culturally mixed nation, a crossroads between the East and the West, and has been an ancient focal point of trade and migration. It has an important geostrategical location, connecting South, Central and Southwest Asia. During its long history, the land has seen various invaders and conquerors, while on the other hand, local entities invaded the surrounding vast regions to form their own empires. Ahmad Shah Durrani created the Durrani Empire in 1747, with its capital at Kandahar.Ahmad Shah Durrani, Britannica Concise. Subsequently, the capital was shifted to Kabul and most of its territories ceded to former neighboring countries. In the late 19th century, Afghanistan became a buffer state in "The Great Game" played between the British Indian Empire and Russian Empire.The Decline of the Pashtuns in Afghanistan, Anwar-ul-Haq Ahady, Asian Survey, Vol. 35, No. 7. (Jul., 1995), pp. 621?634. On August 19, 1919, following the third Anglo-Afghan war, the country regained full independence from the United Kingdom over its foreign affairs.

Since the late 1970s Afghanistan has suffered continuous and brutal civil war, which included foreign interventions in the form of the 1979 Soviet invasion and the recent 2001 U.S.-led invasion that toppled the Taliban government. In late 2001 the United Nations Security Council authorized the creation of an International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). This force is composed of NATO troops that are involved in assisting the government of President Hamid Karzai in establishing the writ of law as well as rebuilding key infrastructures in the nation. In 2005, the United States and Afghanistan signed a strategic partnership agreement committing both nations to a long-term relationship. In the meantime, multi-billion US dollars have also been provided by the international community for the reconstruction of the country.

"Axis of evil" is a term coined by United States President George W. Bush in his State of the Union Address on January 29, 2002 in order to describe governments that he accused of helping terrorism and seeking weapons of mass destruction. President Bush named Iran, Iraq, and North Korea in his speech. President Bush's presidency has been marked by this notion as a justification for the War on Terror.

The United States Armed Forces are the overall unified military forces of the United States. The United States military was first formed during the Continental Congress to defend the new nation against the British Empire in the American Revolutionary War. The Army, Marine Corps and Navy were commissioned in 1775 in anticipation of the declaration of independence in 1776. The Coast Guard originated as the Revenue Cutter Service which was formed in 1790. The United States Air Force originated as the Army Air Corp in 1926 and emerged as an independent service in 1947.

From the time of its inception, the military played a decisive role in the History of the United States. A sense of national unity and identity was forged out of the victorious Barbary Wars and War of 1812, with the latter sometimes referred to as America's "Second War of Independence". Even so, the Founding Fathers were suspicious of a permanent military force and not until the outbreak of the Second World War did a peacetime army become officially established.

The President serves as the Commander-in-chief of the military, with the Secretary of Defense, Department of Defense acting as the principal organ by which military policy is carried out. The 9/11 attacks prompted the formation of the Department of Homeland Security to counter internal threats to the United States.

The U.S. military is composed of almost 3 million personnel, of which approximately half are reserve personnel. The U.S. military is one of the largest militaries in terms of number of personnel. The U.S. military draws its manpower from a large pool of volunteers and as such conscription is neither needed nor desirable as it maintains a purely professional military force. The U.S. military receives $711 billion per year in funding,The FY 2009 Pentagon Spending Request - Global Military Spending http://www.armscontrolcenter.org/policy/securityspending/articles/fy09_dod_request_global/ Center for Arms Control and Non/Proliferation study constituting approximately 50% of military expenditure in the world. The U.S. military possesses advanced and powerful military equipment giving it huge military capabilities and power projection. Thus, it is considered to be by far the most powerful and most advanced military in the world, giving the United States enormous hard power and is a major factor towards the superpower status of the United States.

The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States of America, consisting of two houses, the Senate and the House of Representatives. Both senators and representatives are chosen through direct election.

As provided by the United States Constitution, each of the 435 members of the House of Representatives represents a district and serves a two-year term. House seats are apportioned among the states by population. The 100 Senators serve staggered six-year terms. Each state has two senators, regardless of population. Every two years, approximately one-third of the Senate is elected.

Article I of the Constitution vests all legislative power in the Congress. The House and Senate are equal partners in the legislative process (legislation cannot be enacted without the consent of both chambers); however, the Constitution grants each chamber some unique powers. The Senate is uniquely empowered to ratify treaties, to approve top presidential appointments, and to declare war. Revenue-raising bills must originate in the House of Representatives, which also has the sole power of impeachment, while the Senate has the sole power to try impeachment cases.

The Congress meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C.

The term Congress is also used to refer to a particular meeting of the national legislature, reckoned according to the terms of representatives. Therefore, a "Congress" covers two years. The current 110th Congress first convened on January 4, 2007.

The United States Capitol serves as the seat of government for the United States Congress, the legislative branch of the U.S. federal government. It is located in Washington, D.C., on top of Capitol Hill at the eastern end of the National Mall. Although not in the geographic center of the District of Columbia, the Capitol is the focus by which the quadrants of the district are divided. Officially, the east and west sides of the Capitol are referred to as "fronts." Historically, however, the east front was initially the side of the building intended for the arrival of visitors and dignitaries.

In 2007, it was ranked sixth on the List of America's Favorite Architecture'' by the American Institute of Architects.

The State of the Union is an annual message which the President of the United States gives to Congress, usually an address to a joint session of Congress (the House of Representatives and the Senate). It has occurred in January (except for six occasions in February) since 1934.

Sometimes, especially in recent years, newly-inaugurated Presidents have delivered speeches to joint sessions of Congress only weeks into their respective terms, but these are not officially considered State of the Union addresses. The address is also most frequently used to outline the President's legislative proposals for the upcoming year. For these reasons, a State of the Union address is generally not given in years in which a new president is inaugurated.

Modeled after the monarch's Speech from the Throne during the State Opening of Parliament in the United Kingdom, such a report is required by the United States Constitution. Note that there is no requirement that the speech must take place annually, although it typically does:

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The Constitution of the United States of America is the supreme law of the United States. It provides the framework for the organization of the United States Government. The document defines the three main branches of the government: The legislative branch with a bicameral Congress, an executive branch led by the President, and a judicial branch headed by the Supreme Court. Besides providing for the organization of these branches, the Constitution carefully outlines which powers each branch may exercise. It also reserves numerous rights for the individual states, thereby establishing the United States' federal system of government. It is the shortest and oldest written constitution of any major sovereign state.

The United States Constitution was adopted on September 17, 1787, by the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and later ratified by conventions in each U.S. state in the name of "The People"; it has since been amended twenty-seven times, the first ten amendments being known as the Bill of Rights. The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union was actually the first constitution of the United States of America. The U.S. Constitution replaced the Articles of Confederation as the governing document for the United States, and transformed the constitutional basis of government from confederation to federation, also making it the world's oldest federal constitution. The Constitution has a central place in United States law and political culture. Casey (1974) The handwritten, or "engrossed", original document is on display at the National Archives and Records Administration in Washington, D.C.