The term refers to the rules, laws, and actions implemented by the United States government that guide its decision-making and influence its relationships with various groups or nations.
Related terms
Manifest Destiny: A belief held by many Americans in the 19th century that it was their divine right to expand westward across North America.
Indian Removal Act: A law passed in 1830 that authorized the forced removal of Native American tribes from their ancestral lands in the southeastern United States.
Dawes Act: An 1887 law that aimed to assimilate Native Americans into mainstream American society by dividing reservation lands into individual plots for Native Americans to own privately.