Taking the late train An interest group strategy for gaining access to future officeholders that involves donating money to the winning candidate. Rather than offer support early on, it can be advantageous to wait until an obvious winner emerges.

Talent primary Candidates’ attempts to recruit well-respected consultants and campaign staff prior to the first primaries and caucuses. A candidate’s ability to recruit a prestigious campaign team is often considered indicative of his or her electoral prospects.

Tax Freedom Day That day when we stop working for the government and start working for ourselves.  States such as Mississippi and Louisiana have passed  their own Tax Freedom Day.

Term limits Attempts made to limit the time which a politician may serve in his/her post. In 2009 the Republican Senator Jim DeMint proposed term limits for members of Congress but the proposal failed to gain sufficient support. There have also been attempts to overturn the two-term limit for the President, but none have ever been successful. It seems unlikely that any such proposal would be successful as it would require professional politicians to willingly place a constraint upon their power. Politicians seek to acquire power and they rarely relinquish power voluntarily, even if they pay lip-service to the problem at election time.

Terrorism Described by the Department of Defense as the unlawful use of – or threatened use of – violence against individuals, or property to coerce or intimidate governments and societies, often to achieve political, religious or ideological objectives. Terrorism can be applied as a label to several political movements. As with crime, the fear of terrorism is much greater than the impact of terrorism itself.

The Tea Party A libertarian movement closely aligned to the Republican Party. The Tea party is a congressional caucus group who perceive themselves as patriots against the unconstitutional encroachment of a socialist government. Whilst the Tea party certainly exerts pressure upon politicians, they are not a pressure group in the technical sense of the phrase. As well as being a reference to the famous revolt against the British at Boston, the acronym ‘TEA’ stands for Taxed Enough Already. Critics claim that the Tea party stance is obstructionist rather than one offering a message of hope.

Third Way A theory which aims to modify conventional notions of social democracy towards the realities of the modern world. The third way recognizes that society is basically individualist, but that we also have a wider obligation to others. Crucial to this way of thinking is the concept of active citizenship and a desire to strengthen community values. The third way is keen to stress a reciprocal relationship between the individual and society as a whole. The third way is associated with new Democrats, although the term has fallen out of favor since the 1990s.

Toleration A willingness to accept opinions and lifestyles that differ from the wider norms and values of a society. The term is associated with a social liberal perspective. Tolerance does not necessarily mean approval, merely acceptance of alternatives. In the United States, the issue of tolerance has an obvious resonance to the issue of gay (or same-sex) marriage.

Trade agreement A contract between nations that specifies tariff levels and sets terms on which goods can be imported and exported. The result may be due to the donations that candidate received. It can be bi-lateral or multi-lateral.

Trade association An interest group composed of companies in the same business or industry that lobbies for policies that will benefit members of the group. Some trade associations can be highly influential pressure groups.

Treasury Department A cabinet agency that is responsible for managing the federal government’s revenue. It prints currency, collects taxes and sells government bonds.

Treaty A formal written agreement between nations involving security, trade, economic development or human rights. Ratification of a Treaty is subject to checks and balances.

Trustee A member of Congress who represents constituents’ interests whilst also taking into account national, collective, and moral concerns that sometimes cause the member to vote against the preference of a majority of constituents.

Turkey farms Agencies where campaign workers and donors are often appointed to reward them for their service because it is unlikely that their lack of qualifications will lead to bad policy.

Turnout A measure of the degree to which those registered to vote actually cast their vote. It is usually measured as a percentage of the voting age population, although it can be expressed as an aggregate. For example, voter turnout increased by over 5 million during the 2008 presidential election. Turnout figures are not wholly accurate because of problems with registration and polling in certain constituencies. Turnout is usually higher when voters perceive there to be a genuine contest at stake. Turnout is also higher during a presidential election than an electoral contest for the House of Representatives. This may be explained by the voter context model of voting behaviour.