Prelim 1 Flashcards
What are two of America’s core ideals? Describe each
- Liberal democracy: equality & justice for all
We hold these truths to beself-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.
-Declaration of Independence, 1776 - Self-government / Rule of Law
….That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from theconsent of the governed.
-Declaration of Independence, 1776
We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.
-US Constitution, ratified, 1788
What are two trends in American politics?
- Rising partisan polarization
2. rising hostility to government, declining trust in institutions i.e. Congress
Governing Capacity is needed to do what?
maintain order, protect property, provide public goods, protect rights
What are some compelling reasons to believe that government is not representative?
low voter turnout, increasing amount of $ in politics
What is needed to accomplish anything? What does it require?
Collective Action is needed to accomplish anything, and that requires politics: Conflict, struggle, cooperation and collaboration over the leadership, structure, and policies of government
What is the best way forward for collective action?
Democracy is the best option for collective action. “…the worst form of government, except for all of the others that have been tried from time to time.” (W. Churchill, 1947)
“The most important office in a democracy is that of the citizen.” –attributed to Louis Brandeis
What did Tocqueville note about America?
its egalitarianism
In contrast to Tocqueville, despite following his same route, what did Lord James Bryce discover?
vast inequality; “Sixty years ago, there were no great fortunes in America, few large fortunes, no poverty. Now there is some poverty… and a greater number of gigantic fortunes than in any other country of the world”
Name 4 aspects of American Exceptionalism that Lipset identifies
- A high level of religiosity
- Excessive litigiousness
- Extensive emphasis on mass education
- An absence of socialism
How is US doing in terms of female representative?
100th in the world
Name areas in which US is not doing well globally
incarceration rate, inequality, homicides by firearm
What Value Is There to Making Comparisons Across Nations?
Helps make it clear what’s unusual and what’s typical about our subject, the United States
To avoid ethnocentrism, bias
To avoid narrow view, “mistaking the part for the whole”
To recognize the variation that is possible in governing and political systems
To compare the factors that exist/vary across nations and attempt to understand the causes of different outcomes
What Value Is There to Making Comparisons Across Time?
Illuminate what’s unusual and what’s typical about our particular political moment in the United States; to consider the range of possibilities within the same set of governing arrangements
Avoid presentism
Avoid determinism, assuming that things are as they must be given earlier events, and no choice or human will is possible
Avoid functionalism
To engage in counterfactual thinking
Path dependency
how past has shaped the present
According to John Judis, name 4 true aspects about populism:
1) Populism is a political logic that pits The People against elites/the establishment, who are depicted as self-serving and undemocratic
2) Right-wing populism includes resentment of elites for favoring an outgroup, e.g. immigrants, welfare recipients, minorities
3) Populist fervor explains support for Bernie Sanders, Donald Trump, and Marine Le Pen
4) Populist parties in Europe tend to be more enduring than those in the United States
According to Mickey, Levitsky, and Way article “Is America Still Safe for Democracy?”, which of the following is true of American democracy?
a) The United States is the world’s oldest democracy
b) If authoritarianism replaces democracy, that shift will be signaled by a coup d’etat, martial law, or the rise of a one-party state
c) Authoritarianism in the past was limited to the 11 states of the former Confederacy
d) Partisan polarization presents particular threats
D
According to Mickey, Levitsky, and Way article “Is America Still Safe for Democracy?”, what particular threats does partisan polarization present?
creating congressional dysfunction, which erodes public trust & prompts presidents to overreach; making a majority party in Congress unlikely to engage in oversight (i.e. Republicans backing impeachment of Nixon) of the president of their own party, and very likely to try to restrain a president of the opposing party
Name one term associated with Mickey, Levitsky, and Way article article “Is America Still Safe for Democracy?”
backsliding –> incremental steps (not coup) that erodes democracy
What three streams of thought does Smith argue in “Multiple Traditions in America?”
1) Lockean Liberalism
2) civic republicanism
3) ascriptive hierarchy i.e. 3/5 Compromise, fugitive slave law, delay on ending slavery until at least 1808
What two facets of american identity conflict with regards to equality?
Declaration of Independence & ascriptive hierarchy
What does John Locke think about humanity and government?
Individuals, who are by nature free & independent, may for the purposes of peace, preservation of property, & the public good, give their consent to be governed
Name 4 aspects of Articles of Confederation
1) James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and others essentially tried to overthrow it by peaceful means.
2) It operated similarly to the United Nations today.
3) It lacked the power to collect taxes & have its own military.
4) Some member gov’ts were run by radicals, relative to pre-Revolutionary times.
What provokes overthrow of Articles of Confederation?
Shay’s Rebellion
Describe Great Compromise
From the Virginia Plan: nationalist, population-based
to the New Jersey Plan: state-based
To the Connecticut (Great) Compromise: bicameralism, mix of both
Name 4 explicit things about Constitution
1) Separation of powers
2) Power of Congress to collect taxes, regulate commerce, declare war
3) Federalism
4) Checks and balances
What is the national gov’t default?
inaction i.e. committees, judicial review
How is Constitution undemocratic?
- electoral college is not 1 person 1 vote
- Senators chosen not by popular vote but by state legislatures
- slavery sanctioned
- difficult to amend
What was Gordon Wood’s point in “Republicanism?”
Citizen patriots cultivate virtue and surrender their personal desires to the public good; res publica
What is true of the Constitution in Lane & Oreskes “We?”
It requires a process of finding the common good that emerges through the breadth of representation and depth of deliberation, as competing interests find a way forward together through consultation, debate, and compromise.
Example of how federal laws can encourage state-level action
1996 DOMA and gay marriage movement
Define federalism
def: division of powers and functions between states & national government
Seeks to limit gov’t by dividing it into two levels, national and state, each with independence (sovereignty) to compete with the other, thereby restraining the power of both
federalism allows for more/less representation?
MORE
What did the 10th amendment do?
gave governing jurisdiction to the states
Constitutional foundations of federalism: What empowers the national government?
Article I, Section 8 as “enumerated powers”
Implied powers: Necessary and proper clause, Article I, Section 8
Supremacy Clause, Article 6 “This Constitution, and the laws of the United States which shall be made in pursuance thereof; and all treaties made, or which shall be made, under the authority of the United States, shall be the supreme law of the land;”
Constitutional foundations of federalism: What empowers/obligates the states?
- Reserved powers/10th Amendment
- Reciprocal Obligations of States (Article IV):
- Full Faith & Credit clause (Sec. 1)
- Comity Clause (Sec. 2)
Identify three stages of American federalism
Dual Federalism, 1789-1937
First Constitutional Revolution, 1937-present
Second Constitutional Revolution, 1950s-present (will revisit w/ civil liberties & civil rights lectures in October)
Discuss role of state governments in dual federalism
Police powers: governing to protect the health, safety, morals of the people; a coercive power to protect the community, maintain public order
Traditionally, institutional home for illiberal governance, ascriptive hierarchies, multiple orders (R. Smith)
Supreme Court upheld Plessy v Ferguson on arguments of what? Also womens suffrage (“virtual representation”)
police powers; segregation laws uphold health of community
Describe role of national government in dual federalism
Economic development
Protection of borders
What does Mayhew argue about Congress in article, “Is Congress the Broken Branch?”
First, Congress is not all that defective an institution once its role is properly considered. To appraise it, we should appreciate the separation-of-powers complementarities of the American system, and we should consult real-world standards, not fanciful counterfactuals. Second, a compelling case does not exist for constitutional reform of Congress.
What does Binder conclude in “Polarized we Govern?”
Truth in Mayhews argument, but there could also be more dire prospects as polarization as increased steadily and Congress has “low legislative capacity”
What is comity clause?
Article IV, Section 2 of Constitution which prohibits states from enacting laws that treat the citizens of other states in a discriminatory manner
What are implied powers?
Powers derived from the necessary and proper clause (Art. I, Section 8) of the Constitution; such powers are not specifically expressed but are implied through the expansive interpretation of delegated powers
What is eminent domain?
right of gov’t to take private property for public use
What is the home rule?
the power delegated by the state to a local unit of government to manage its own affairs
Define cooperative federalism
A type of federalism existing since the New Deal era, in which grants-in-aid have been used strategically to encourage states and localities to pursue nationally defined goals; also known as intergovernmental cooperation; gives federal government far greater control over domestic policy
What are block grants?
federal funds given to state govts to pay for goods, services, or programs, with relatively few restrictions on how the funds may be spent
What is state sovereign immunity?
states are immune from lawsuits for violating an act of Congress
Name 3 types of committee power
gatekeeping authority: right and power to decide if change in policy will be considered
proposal power: capacity to bring proposal before full legislature
after-the-fact-authority: authority to follow up on the fate of a proposal once it has been approved by the chamber
How many senate votes are needed for cloture?
60
What tendency does Congress have?
distributive tendency
What is Duverger’s Law?
Law of politics stating that plurality-rule electoral systems will tend to have 2 political parties
Define White House Staff
analysts and advisors to prez, given title “special assistant”
Executive office of the President
The permanent agencies that perform defined management tasks for the president; created in 1939, it includes the Office of Management and Budget, the Council of Economic Advisers, and the NSC
What is regulatory review?
The OMB function of reviewing all agency regulations and other rule making before they become official policy
Describe the demographics of first American revolution
merchants and plantation elites mobilize the masses; i.e. tea throwing
After American independence, what does Becker describe as the demographics of either side?
backwoods farmers, artisans, enslaved people turn on elites
What does Frances Lee believe about political parties?
less about ideology, more about teamsmanship since procedural and other votes are partisan too
What is the Hastert rule in the House of Reps?
majority of the majority must approve for a bill to come to a vote on the House floor
SUM: Constitutional ______+ Polarization + Congressional _____ = Inaction
Design/Rules
Define political party
groups of individuals who organize around particular issues & try to influence the gov’t by winning office
Name 3 reasons parties exists
1) Party-in-government: to build stable legislative & electoral alliances, facilitate governing coalitions
2) Party organization: to recruit and promote candidates, provide identity; mobilize voters
3) Party-in-the-electorate: for citizens, party can simplify and prioritize issues, offer means of accountability, identity
What are the 2 types of electoral systems?
Single-member, simple-plurality (SMSP)
(“winner-take-all”, “first-past-the-post”)
Proportional representation (PR)
What has polarization brought?
Demise of legislative productivity Demise of trust in government Rise of animosity toward other partisans Dysfunctional government Populism Unorthodox President
What are parties essential?
For Congress to function
For Citizens to participate
For representation to occur
What did Obama learn from Clinton’s mistakes? Lawrence Jacobs and Theda Skocpol, “Hard Fought Legacy: Obama, Congressional Democrats, and the Struggle for Comprehensive Health Care Reform.
Agenda setting Articulating broad principles Taking the lead early Letting Congress sort out the details Being flexible No ultimatums Don’t give up
