Plain English

Political Glossary

From PAC to FTO to CBDC — what every term actually means.

PAC (Political Action Committee): A political committee organized for the purpose of raising and spending money to elect and defeat candidates, regulated under 52 U.S.C. § 30101.
Super PAC: An independent-expenditure-only committee that may raise unlimited sums from corporations, unions, and individuals to advocate for or against candidates, but cannot coordinate with campaigns.
501(c)(4): A tax-exempt social welfare organization permitted to engage in political activity as long as it is not the primary purpose.
Leadership PAC: A political committee established and controlled by a current or former federal officeholder, used to support other candidates and build political infrastructure.
Federal Election Commission (FEC): The independent regulatory agency that enforces federal campaign finance law, requires disclosure of contributions and expenditures, and oversees the public funding of presidential elections.
Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA): The 1971 statute (as amended) that governs federal campaign finance and is codified at 52 U.S.C. § 30101 et seq.
Electoral College: The constitutional body of 538 electors that formally elects the President and Vice President of the United States.
Value Added Tax (VAT): An indirect tax on the value added at each stage of production, used by most U.S. trading partners but not the United States. Often functions as a de facto tariff on American exports.
Tariff: A tax on imported goods, used to raise revenue, protect domestic industry, and respond to unfair foreign trade practices.
Section 232 (Trade Expansion Act): Statutory authority allowing the president to impose tariffs on imports threatening national security.
Section 301 (Trade Act of 1974): Authority for the U.S. Trade Representative to investigate and respond to unfair foreign trade practices, including tariffs.
IEEPA: International Emergency Economic Powers Act — broad presidential authority to regulate international commerce during a declared national emergency.
Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO): A designation under 8 U.S.C. § 1189 that triggers financial and immigration sanctions against the designated organization and its supporters.
Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP): Also known as 'Remain in Mexico' — the Trump-era policy requiring asylum seekers to wait in Mexico for U.S. adjudication.
Title IX: Federal law prohibiting sex-based discrimination in federally funded education programs, originally enacted to protect women and girls.
Title I: Federal funding for schools serving high concentrations of low-income students.
Education Savings Account (ESA): A government-authorized account allowing families to use education funds for private school, tutoring, or homeschooling.
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA): The 2017 Trump tax reform law that cut individual and corporate rates, expanded the standard deduction, and introduced the 199A pass-through deduction.
Section 199A: The pass-through business deduction created by TCJA, allowing up to 20% of qualified business income to be deducted.
Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC): A digital currency issued by a central bank that would replace cash with a fully traceable, programmable token.
Second Amendment: The constitutional right of the people to keep and bear arms, ratified in 1791.
Bruen Decision: NYSRPA v. Bruen (2022) — Supreme Court ruling establishing the text-history-tradition test for Second Amendment cases.
Section 230: 47 U.S.C. § 230, the federal law shielding online platforms from liability for user-generated content.
Censorship-Industrial Complex: The network of federal agencies, NGOs, academic centers, and Big Tech platforms that coordinate to suppress lawful American speech.
Deep State: The unaccountable network of federal career bureaucrats, intelligence officials, and contractors who operate outside elected oversight.
Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG): Natural gas cooled to liquid form for storage and export — a strategic American export and tool of energy diplomacy.
Small Modular Reactor (SMR): Compact nuclear reactor designs offering safe, scalable, and rapid-deployment power generation.
ANWR: Arctic National Wildlife Refuge — Alaskan reserve containing billions of barrels of recoverable oil.
DEI: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion — a federally and corporately deployed ideology that displaces merit with racial and ideological quotas.
Critical Race Theory (CRT): An academic framework asserting that American institutions are inherently racist and must be dismantled.
Open Borders: The de facto immigration policy of the Biden-Harris administration that admitted more than 10 million illegal aliens between 2021 and 2025.
Sanctuary City: A municipality that limits cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.
Catch and Release: The practice of apprehending illegal aliens at the border and releasing them into the U.S. interior pending court dates that often never occur.
Remain in Mexico: Common name for the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP).
Drill, Baby, Drill: The shorthand for the America First energy abundance agenda — domestic production at maximum responsible volume.
2-for-1 Rule: Trump-era requirement that federal agencies repeal two regulations for every new one issued.
Constitutional Sheriff: A sheriff who interprets their oath to the Constitution as authority to refuse enforcement of unconstitutional federal mandates.
Abraham Accords: Historic 2020 normalization agreements between Israel and several Arab states, brokered by the Trump administration.
Notice of Inquiry (NOI): A federal agency's first step in proposing or modifying a regulation, opening a public comment window.
Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR): The statutory status that grants China the same low-tariff trade access as U.S. allies. Revoking PNTR is a core America First trade reform.