This article examines Jim Bulpitt's seminal work on UK territorial politics within the American context. We approach territorial politics by examining the ebbs and flows of American urban policy during the period 1964 to 2008. In doing so, our analysis explores changes in presidential approaches towards urban policy, and thus center–periphery relations, based on the outcomes of electoral politics. We find that conditions specific to the USA cause American territorial politics to be continually fluid, often erratic and highly differentiated by party affiliation.