That Time the Federal Government Was Ruled By Czars

From GovExec: How did a term for Russian oligarchs came to be applied to American government officials? On March 15, 1917, Czar Nicholas II abdicated the throne of Russia, ending its succession of autocratic rulers. But in an unlikely turn of events, the term “czar” carried on in, of all places, the United States.

The word had been previously used occasionally as an epithet to characterize power-hungry politicians. But it began to spread more widely after President Woodrow Wilson tapped Bernard Baruch to head the War Industries Board during World War I.

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