There seem to be so many tsars or czars involved in politics these days， you could be forgiven for thinking that the government had been overrun by Russian autocrats. In the US the word has been used since the 1930s to describe an official appointed to coordinate policy in a particular area， and it is now familiar in British English. A modifying word usually specifies the czar's area of responsibility: drug is the commonest， followed by terms such as health， border， security， and counterterrorism. Many people are uncomfortable with the power and influence of these modern czars, a feeling that can't be helped by the choice of a name traditionally associated with authoritarian rule. See also OLIGARCH.