ANG Flashcards
Public Opinion
attitudes people have about political issues, leaders, institutions, and events (opinion is shared by values and beliefs)
- political culture
- political ideology
Public culture
a widely shared set of values and beliefs about politics and government within a society
Public Ideology
cohesive set of beliefs about politics, public policy, and the role of government
Conservatism Political ideology
free market, limited government, individual self-reliance in economic affairs, combined with a belief in the value of tradition, law, and morality in social affairs
Liberalism Political Ideology
strong government to provide economic security and protection for civil rights, combined with a freedom from government intervention in social conduct
Political Socialization
process by which individuals acquire political attitudes, beliefs, and values
(begins early in life and continues through adulthood)
Agents of political socialization
individuals/institutions involved in socializing
example: family, friends, media, school, religious institutions, government
Polling
surveying / recording peoples’ opinions
Polling typically done to assess the views of large populations
Polls use samples to subset of population
Example: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Joe Biden is handling his job as president?
Random Sampling
a method used to select a sample in which every person in the population has an equal chance of being selected for the sample
What does Random sampling eliminate?
selection bias, error that arises when the sample is not representative of the larger population
Sampling error
level of confidence in the findings of the public opinion poll
Direction
proportion of population holding views on an issue
Intensity
strength of opinion about an issue
Salience
the importance of the issue in a person’s everyday life
Stability
the extent to which opinion changes over time
Use of Public Opinion Polls
Political candidates, people in government, and media
Mass Media
means of communication that reaches the public
Examples: print media, broadcast media, digital media (Internet or new media like social media and citizen journalism
The criteria used to select stories
news that is breaking
news involving violence, conflict and scandal
news involving familiar individuals
Election Reporting
horse-race coverage – elections as a contest or battle
standing in polls, amount of money raised or spent, turnout at events, accusations by candidates against each other
Media Role
to inform the public, serve as watchdog (oversight)
Investigative Journalism
in-depth reporting to reveal wrongdoing
Government’s use of the media
to inform the public
Press conference (Government Media Strategies)
a meeting between government officials and the media
Media event (Government Media Strategies)
a event purposely staged for the media, designed to look spontaneous and to draw media coverage
New leaks
anonymous release of information to the media
Trail Balloon
coordinated, strategic release
Newsmaking (Influence on Public Opinion
deciding what constitutes news
Selection bias (Influence on Public Opinion)
focusing on certain aspects of an issue and ignoring others
Framing (Influence on Public Opinion)
words, images, and tone in reporting
Agenda-setting (Influence on Public Opinion)
creating public demand for government action (drawing public attention to issue or problems)
Priming (Influence on Public Opinion)
influencing how the public will evaluate a leader or issue
Political party
a group of people who seek to control government by gaining political office, seeking to shape the policy process and achieve shared goals
Party identification
a person’s support for a political party usually expressed in his or her tendency to vote for candidates of that party
Build coalitions
bring people together in semi-permanent groups
Articulate policies
help develop and advocate policy solution, party platforms: statements of party goals and agenda
Function of Political Parties
Gives cues to voters (help voters make decisions)
The connection between the voter, the party and the candidate
Facilitate Elections
recruit candidates, help run campaigns, register voters, etc..
Organize Government
Provide organization to institutions, help coordinate policy process
Political Participation
Two types?
activities used to influence the selection of leaders or the policies they pursue
Conventional-common and widely accepted
Unconventional-infrequent, less widely accepted and often dramatic
Voter Turnout
percentage of eligible voters who vote in an election
Election Cycle
Presidential election year?
Midterm election?
Off-year elections?
Presidential election year-president, congress, and senate/local
Midterm Election-Congress and senate/local
Off-year election- state/local
Voters Behavior, Reasons For Voters not Voting?
apathy vote doesn’t matter low levels of political knowledge lack of choice access to polls time/priorities not registered
Factors Affecting Voter Choices
Policy Voting- evaluation of candidates’ positions on issues
Candidate image- evaluation of candidates’ personal qualities
Four type of elections
Partisan, Non-partisan, Primary, General
Partisan Election
election in which candidates may have political party affiliation
Non-Partisan
election in which candidates are prohibited from having political party affiliation
Primary Election
determines party nominees for a general election, winners run in general election
General Election
determines who wins the seat/office, winners enter government
Type of Primary Election
Open Primary- on election day, votes choose one party ballot
Closed Primary- party affiliation registered in advance of election, on election day, voters receive party ballot matching registration
Electoral College
Constitutional mechanism used to select the president under Article II Section 1
538 electoral college votes, divided among the 50 states and DC, candidate needs 270 votes to be elected
each state electoral number is determined by the 2 senators and number of representatives the state has. Example (Ohio (18) 2 senators 16 representatives)
Direct Contributions (Money and Campaigns)
money given directly to a candidate’s campaign fund or to a political party
limited by federal law. Federal Election Commission enforces campaign finance laws
Independent Spending (Money and Campaigns)
Contributions and Spending by groups not affiliated with candidates (527, 501 (c), Spuer PACs)
Public Funding (Money and Campaigns)
For presidential campaigns, requires limits on spending
Interest Groups
a group of individuals who seek to influence government programs and policies
examples: National Rifle Association (NRA), National Organization for Women (NOW)
Actual Group (Interest Group Membership)
comprised of group members
NRA- 6 million
NOW- 500,000
Potential Group (Interest Group Membership)
comprised of people who identify with the group
Economic Interest Groups (Interest Group Types)
Economic interest groups
business groups ex: Chamber of Commerce
labor groups ex: United Auto Workers
professional associations ex: American Medical Association
Public Sector groups (Interest Groups Types)
Ex: National Governors Association
Citizen Groups
single-issue groups ex; NRA
broad-cause groups ex: NOW
Lobbying (Interest groups Strategies)
act of communicating with government officials in hopes of influencing their decision, generally preformed by professional lobbyists
Electioneering (Interest Group Strategies)
interest groups involvement in the electoral process, campaign contributions, campaign workers, endorsements, independent advertising, etc., contributions made through Political Action Committees (PACs)
Coalition Building (Interest Groups Strategies)
interest groups forming temporary alliances with each other
Grassroots Mobilization
Interest groups motivating the public
ex: petitions, phone calls, mailings
Litigation (Interest Groups Strategies)
Interest groups using courts
ex: lawsuits, amicus curiae briefs
Unconventional tactics (Interest Groups Strategies)
Civil disobedience, protest, boycott, strike, illegal action, etc..
Impact on Interest Group Success
Membership (Size, dedication, unity) Money Leadership Issue Reputation
Bicameral Legislature (Congress)
House of Representative and Senate, legislative branch of government (makes policy)
House of Representatives
2-year term of office (directly elected)
435 members, +6 members representing non-state territories
Representation based upon population
Unique Characteristics of the House
Power to initiate revenue bills
power to investigate and impeach executive and judicial branch officeholders
Senate
100 members, Equal representation for states, (2 per state )
51% of U.S. population lives in 10 states
30% of U.S. population lives in 32 states
6-year term of office
directly elected -17th Amendment (1913)
Staggered terms (2020 election-33 seats contested)
Unique Characteristics of Senate
Advice and consent powers, check on presidential power ex: presidential appointments and treaty ratification
Power to hold trials of impeached officials
Filibuster-unlimited debate designed to delay or stop legislative process
Lawmaking/Policymaking (Functions of Congress)
decision-making influences
ex: political parties, leadership, colleagues, political ideology, constituents, interest groups, president, courts, etc.
Casework (Functions of Congress)
Providing individual service to constituents
Represent Constituents Interests (Function of Congress)
working on behalf of the entire constituency
pork barrel legislation-provides money, jobs, contacts, etc. to constituency
Legislative Oversight (Functions of Congress)
monitoring of the executive branch to ensure proper functioning and implementation of policy
House of Representatives (Leadership Positions)
Speaker (3rd in line to the president seat)
- Majority leader/Minority leader
- Majority Whip/Minority Whip
Senate Leadership (Leadership Positions)
-President
-President pro tempore (Longest serving senator Patrick Layhe)
-Majority leader/minority leader
-Majority Whip/Minority Whip
When there’s a tie in the senate, that’s when the president can vote
(House representative speaker and senate president leadership is the only two established by the constitution)
Standing Committees (Committees )
Permanent committees responsible for most work on legislation
House and Senate have separate committees
Select Committees (Committees)
Temporary committees created to conduct investigations or study specific issues
House and Senate have separate committees
Joint Committees (Committees)
Permanent committees focused on broad policy areas, ex: Economic Committee, Taxation Committee
House and Senate members serve together
Conference Committees (Committees)
Temporary committees formed when House and Senate pass different versions of the same bill
House and Senate members serve together
