CONGRESS Flashcards
Political participation
All the activities by which citizens attempt to influence the selection of political leaders and the policies they pursue. Voting is the most common example of this in a democracy.
Politics
The process determining the leaders we select and the policies they pursue.
“ who gets what, when, and how.”
Single-Issue Groups
Groups that have a narrow interest which their members tend to take an uncompromising stance.
Ex: Group of activists dedicated to outlawing abortion
Linkage institutions
The political channels through which peoples concerns become political issues on the policy agenda.
•ex: elections, political parties, interest groups, the media
Policy agenda
The issues that attract the serious attention of public officials and other people involved in politics at a point in time.
•ex: rising healthcare costs
Policymaking institutions
The branches of government church with taking action on political issues. The Constitution established three policymaking institutions- Congress, the presidency, and the courts.
• some political scientists consider the bureaucracy a fourth policymaking institution
Public policy
A choice that government makes in response to political issue. A policy is a course of action taken with regard to some problem.
•ex: laws, establish budgets, rules
•types-statue, presidential action, court decision, regulation
Democracy
A system of selecting policymakers and organizing government so that policy represents and responds to the public’s preferences.
Majority rule
A fundamental principle of traditional Democratic theory in which policies should reflect the will of over half the voters.
Pluralism
Groups with shared interestS influence public policy by pressing the concerns through organized efforts. Examples – National Rifle Association NRA and the national organization for women (NOW)
Elitism
Theory of american government that says an upper-class elite should hold the power to make policy, regardless of the formal governmental organization. • wealth pulls the strings of government
Hyperpluralism
Theory of american democracy -groups are so strong that government, which gives into the many different groups, is thereby weakened
• overlapping jurisdictions for multiple governments
Marxist theory
the ideology espoused by Karl Marx which holds that government is a reflection of economic forces, primarily ownershop of the means of production. If you control the economy, you have the power
Bureaucratic theory
the hierarchical structure and standardized procedures of modern governments allow bureaucrats, who carry out the day-to-day workings of government, to hold the real power over public policy (Max Weber)
Orthodox Culture War
Orthodox (social) One of two camps in the culture war that believes morality is as important (or even more so) than self-expression and that moral rules are derived from God.
