Unit one slides
- 1. Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman
- 2. Introduction Voting Getting a job; minimum wage The Drinking Age 6/29/2012 American National Politics 2
- 3. Government • Definition: Government is the institutions and processes through which public policies are made for society • This definition leads to two basic questions: – How should we govern? – What should government do? • Typical functions: Maintain a national defense, provide public services, socialize the young, collect taxes, and preserve order 6/29/2012 American National Politics 3
- 4. Government • US: Congress, president, courts, federal administrative agencies (“the bureaucracy”) along with thousands of state and local governments – 500,000 elected officials 6/29/2012 American National Politics 4
- 5. People shape policy • Definition: Linkage institutions are the political channels through which people’s concerns become political issues on the policy agenda – Political Parties – Elections policy agenda – the – News & Entertainment Media issues that attract the serious attention of – Interest Groups public officials and other • Institutions help shape the agenda people actually involved • Policy agenda responds more to in politics at any given societal failures than successes: point in time “How can we as a people do better?” 6/29/2012 American National Politics 5
- 6. Traditional Democratic Theory • Democracy is a system where policy represents and responds to the public’s preferences • Components of Traditional Democratic Theory: – Effective participation (adequate and equal opportunity to express preferences) – Equality in voting (one person, one vote) – Enlightened understanding (marketplace of ideas – free press/speech) – Citizen control of the agenda (majority concerns vs special interests) – Inclusion (government must include/extend rights to all subject to its laws, i.e. citizenship) 6/29/2012 American National Politics 6
- 7. Theories of U.S. Democracy • Pluralism – A theory of government and policies emphasizing that politics is mainly a competition among groups, each one pressing for its own preferred policies NRA, UAW, NOW, etc; organized groups compete with one another for control over policy, and yet no one group or set of groups dominates – Groups use all branches of government to meet needs – Public interest prevails through bargaining and compromise – Rather than “majority rule” we should speak of groups of minorities working together “Who really governs our nation?” 6/29/2012 American National Politics 7
- 8. Theories of U.S. Democracy • Elitism – Societies are divided along class lines and that an upper-class elite will rule, regardless of the formal niceties of governmental organization Wealth – holding assets such as property, stocks, and bonds is the basis of power Over 1/3 of the nation’s wealth is currently held by 1% of the population – this class controls most policy because they can afford to finance election campaigns and control key institutions such as large corporations “Robber Barons” 6/29/2012 American National Politics 8
- 9. Theories of U.S. Democracy • Hyperpluralism – Groups are so strong that government is weakened – an extreme, exaggerated, or perverted form of pluralism – Many groups are so strong, the government is unable to act because of division – Difficulty in coordinating policy implementation – Confusing and contradictory policies result from politicians trying to placate every group – The public interest is rarely translated into public policy 6/29/2012 American National Politics 9
- 10. How Active is American Government? • National, State and local government spend about 29 percent of our Gross Domestic Product • The National government… The total value …spends about $3.8 trillion annually of all goods and …employs over 2.8 million people services produced …owns one-third of the land annually by the …occupies 2.6 billion square feet of office space United States …owns and operates 400,000 nonmilitary vehicles 6/29/2012 American National Politics 10
- 11. Show me the money! 2010 U.S. Budget http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/special/politics/budget-2010/ 6/29/2012 American National Politics 11
- 12. Summary http://www.foundshit.com/tag/people/ Young people are apathetic about government and politics, even though they affect everyone Democratic government, which is how the United States is governed, consists of those institutions that make policy for the benefit of the people What government should do to benefit the people is a topic central to questions of American government How Should We Govern? What Should Government Do? 6/29/2012 American National Politics 12