The USA has a federal democratic government. Under this system, many important issues are dealt with by the states. The federal government, for example, does not have a central role in education or urban development.
Main Political Issues
Crime, race and poverty
The USA has seen its crime rates soar for 20 years. At the same time parts of its cities have faced increasing social problems. The black community, which makes up 60% of those living in poor districts, faces particular problems. Both rates of criminality and crime victims are higher in the black community than in any other.
A priority in the next ten years will be finding a way of regenerating the cities where the poorest live. This is most likely to be achieved by a combination of new economic opportunities and programs that give poor people more power over their own lives (for example, by self-management of public housing projects). If it fails in this effort, the country runs the risk of having a permanently disaffected section of the population living within its major cities.
Health
The USA is wrestling with a health-care system whose costs are increasing faster than private or public budgets can tolerate, and which gives patchy service to clients. The costs of health care are currently growing at twice the rate of the rest of the economy. The aim of the proposed legislation is to make health care free to all citizens at the point of access. However, there is considerable debate as to how this should be funded. According to the president's preferred option, employers would foot at least 80% of the bill of their employees' health costs. Regional bodies would be set up from which all but employees of the largest companies would choose from between at least three health-care schemes. An alternative favored by some Liberal Democrats in Congress is the adoption of the Canadian model, under which costs are met out of direct taxation.
Foreign policy
In the post-Cold War world, the USA has to decide how and in what circumstances to project its unique power abroad. The USA is not by nature isolationist, but historically has required convincing in order to play the role of global policeman. As demands on US military personnel and logistics continue to grow, so will the domestic consequences of these demands.
The Clinton presidency
The Clinton administration has been beset by minor irritants, which commentators suggest are distracting the president. The president's personal life has been closely scrutinized by the press amidst a number of opportunistic lawsuits. The mid-term elections in November 1994 saw a surge of support for Republican candidates, resulting in Republican majorities in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Profile
In modern times, the Republican party has dominated the presidency and the Democratic Party the Congress. The election of Bill Clinton at the end of 1992 was meant to end the resultant "gridlock" between the executive and legislative branches. However, Congress has become such a power in its own right that it is at least as important to the country's domestic agenda as Clinton.
In the 1950s and 1960s, some of the most momentous decisions in the country were in fact made in the Supreme Court. However, the big legal issues û such as ending racial discrimination û were taken long ago, and the Court is now retreating to a much less salient position in US politics.
A fundamental concensus on economic and foreign policy continues to exist between the USA's two main political parties.
