Balanced budget Where the government’s spending is equal to its revenue. Fiscal conservatives have in recent times sought to get a balanced budget amendment passed.

Balanced ticket Where a presidential candidate appoints his running mate on the basis of a geographical balance, a religious balance, an ideological balance and so on. For example, in 2012 Romney sought to balance his moderate beliefs with Paul Ryan (a Tea Party favorite). In recent years there have also been attempts to offer voters a balance between a Washington insider and a Washington outsider such as Obama/Biden and Romney/Ryan. The aim is to appeal to as many voters as possible. However, a balanced ticket is not always necessary in order to be successful.

Beltway bandit A civil servant who leaves a government department to work as a lobbyist. It is a mutually beneficial relationship because insider knowledge and contacts benefit the lobby firm; whereas the ex-civil servant can earn a great deal more money working for the lobby firm than they could in the public sector.

Beltway mentality A pejorative term associated with those Washington insiders who adopt a belief-system contrary to those of the wider public. The word ‘beltway’ refers to the motor periphery around our nation’s capital. Having said this, the dynamics of American politics are such that politicians seeking re-election must ultimately bring home the bacon. This inevitably requires adopting a Beltway mentality in order to succeed. Successful politicians must therefore sound like they have no association with governance around the Potomac, but act like Washington insiders once they are elected.

Bicameralism The system of having two chambers within one legislative body. The opposite is known as unicameralism. Most countries have two law-making chambers.

Bill of Rights A set of constitutional amendments that seek to protect the rights and liberties of the American people. Some of the founding fathers (such as James Madison) argued in favor of an entrenched Bill of Rights. Originally, there were to be 12 amendments to the Bill of Rights before a compromise was reached.

Bipartisanship Where politicians from the two main parties put aside their ideological differences in order to reach a compromise position. When seeking to implement a bipartisan strategy, it can be beneficial to gain a prominent co-sponsor from the opposing side such as the Start Up Visa Act of 2010 that was jointly proposed by Kerry (D) and Lugar (R). A bipartisan approach is vital towards 'getting things done' in a political system characterized by a system of checks and balances and the separation of powers. This is most noticeable in the case of the President who must reassure his party’s base whilst not being in any sense beholden to it.

Black Nationalism A radical social movement with a variety of aims; all seeking to ensure some degree of autonomy for black people from white society. Black Nationalism is underpinned by two aspects. Politically, attempts to achieve meaningful equality in a predominantly white US society are futile, as its power structure will always disadvantage black people. Secondly, it asserts that racial integration is misguided and doomed to fail.

Block grants The provision of money to the states enabling them to adopt the grants to their particular needs.

Blocking tactics Where relations between the legislature and the executive become obstructionist. It is commonly associated with divided government.

Bradley effect Where white people vote against black candidates even though they inform pollsters they intend to do the exact opposite. The term refers to Mayor Tom Bradley, who lost his re-election race despite polls predicting a comfortable victory.

Budgetary ceiling The limit at which the US Treasury can borrow money. Congress votes on a budgetary ceiling for the American government and that ceiling has been raised virtually every year since it first came into effect in 1917. The budgetary ceiling came into prominence during the debt crisis of 2011, when America’s credit rating was downgraded.

Bureaucracy A broad term applied to the administrative functions of a state/organization. The term is often used in a negative context by theorists from the New Right such as Charles Murray and Irving Kristol who claim that bureaucrats follow their own interests rather than the wider public interest. It is also claimed that those agencies which seek to regulate powerful organizations are effectively captured by the wealthy and powerful.

Bush Doctrine The principles behind the foreign policy adopted by the George W. Bush administration. It entailed pre-emptive strikes against the enemy and made no distinction between terrorists and those nations that harbor terrorists.

Busing Where students from various ethnic backgrounds are mixed together in order to ensure a more representative ethnic balance within schools. The Supreme Court ruling on Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenberg Board of Education (1971) marked an important milestone in relation to busing. Right-wing populist commentators such as Rush Limbaugh and Michael Savage have highlighted instances in which white children were beaten up by black kids on school buses. The nature of such stories plays upon fears amongst the white community in a society so visibly separated to race. There is also a class dimension to consider.