Government and Economy Today

President Obama (44 th ) Secretary of State Clinton Since the civil and women’s rights movements in the 1960’s more minorities and women serve in our Federal government than ever.

Voluntary Exchange Allows buyers and sellers to work out their own terms for exchange. You as the consumer control how much you will pay for an item. Stores also determine how much they will sell an item for.

No nation has all the resources it needs. Trade is one way that nations solve the problem of scarcity.

Coffee only grows in the tropics.

Bananas also grow in the tropics.

In today’s economy companies usually go beyond national boundaries when they buy and sell goods and services.

North American Free Trade Agreement In order to eliminate tariffs, many parts of the world have signed regional trade agreements.

The South’s Economy A major trading partner with Latin America (due to proximity) A long history of growing cash crops-agriculture is still an important piece of the South’s economy (due to resource availability)

The Northeast’s Economy Due to lack of natural resources the North has long been focused on business Business is driven by human resources and the Northeast has a large population

The Midwest’s Economy The Midwest has plenty of fertile soil so they grow many crops like corn, wheat, and soybeans The Midwest is also rich in mineral resources making their cities centers for manufacturing

The West’s Economy A major trading partner with Asia (due to proximity) Rich in natural resources such as fish, timber, and minerals Also known for being centers for technology

Recession: a period of no economic growth for at least six straight months. Our current economic recession began with the collapse of the housing market in Banks made some risky home loans at a time when home prices decreased.

By 2009 people who still had jobs feared they might lose them so they began saving money.