Test 3 Flashcards
Political party
A private organization that seeks to win elections and control government power
Although political parties are very powerful, they are not mentioned in the Constitution
Party organization
Recruits candidates for office and provides resources for campaigns
Mobilizes voters
Officeholders elected or appointed in the name of the party
Responds to policy views of the public
Responds to the policy views of the party organization
Citizens who identify with the party
Provides workers to the party organization
Elects government officials
Politics in the U.S. is dominated by…
Two political parties
____ vie to control the House, the Senate, and the Presidency
Republicans & Democrats
The U.S. has ____
Single-member districts
Single-member districts
Favor the development of a two-party system
The one candidate with the most vote wins
The system favors the two largest parties. No one wants to “waste their vote” on smaller parties
The E.U.
Has proportional representation with multiple members per district
Proportional representation with multiple members per district
Voters generally vote by party. The parties receive seats in proportion to the votes.
Violence of faction
Interest groups
Madison warned against it
Faction
“The downfall of governments based on the people,” leading to “mortal diseases” such as “instability, injustice and confusion”
BUT you can’t outlaw faction without destroying liberty
Madisons opinion of factions
Madison believed that, in a large country, the many different factions will balance each other
Madison also believed that the election process would select representatives who are “wiser and more dedicated to the common good than the average citizen”
George Washington
Also condemned factions in his farewell speech
Yet Washington’s own Cabinet broke into the first two political parties
Federalists, Democratic-Republicans
Federalists
Led by Alexander hamilton, secretary of the treasury
Democratic-Republicans
Led by Thomas Jefferson, Secretary of State
Washington’s Cabinet - primary controversy
Whether the federal government had power to create a national bank
Modern Democratic Party
Founded in 1828
Federalist Party died out, and the Democratic-Republican Party split
Led by Andrew Jackson
Splitting of the Democratic-Republican Party
The opposing party, the Whigs, died out after about 20 years
Andrew Jackson
War hero
Was seen as a “man of the people”
The Tammany Society endorsed Jackson in exchange for influence over federal jobs (more later)
Republican Party
Emerged in the 1850s from the Abolitionist (anti-slavery) movement
The Republican-controlled Congress passed the Reconstruction Amendments (13th-15th)
All of the 20+ black members of Congress before 1900 were Republican
Starting in the late 1800s, the Republican Party also pushed for women’s voting rights (opposed by the Democrats)
Abraham Lincoln
First Republican president
Between the Civil War and the Progressive Era (1870s-1900), ____ dominated elections
Political machines
Political machines
Tammany hall was a powerful “machine” based in New York
Tammany and other “machines” provided social services for many new immigrants in exchange for votes
Once the candidates were in power, they gave federal jobs and contracts back to Tammany Hall
Many of the Progressive Era reforms targeted the corruption of the “machines”
Direct primary elections gave the people a voice when selecting candidates within each party
Direct election of senators also gave the people a voice and diluted the power of political parties
Prohibition was, in part, an attack on the “saloon culture” of the machines
The female vote was also seen as “purer” and less corrupt
Teddy Roosevelt
Was a Republican President who went Third Party during the Progressive Era
TR felt that his successor in officer, William Taft, was not progressive enough
When the Republicans nominated Taft for reelection, TR created his own Progressive Bull Moose Party (1912)
While TR received more votes than Taft, he acted as a “spoiler,” sending a Democrat to the White House —> Woodrow Wilson
The Democrats dominated from ____
1930s-1970s, growing social welfare programs
Democrats 1930s-1970s
During the Great Depression, FDR’s “New Deal” gained popularity, especially for the poor and marginalized
Democrats became associated with welfare entitlement program (including Lyndon Johnson’s “Great Society”)
Democrats also received credit for the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which was passed during Johnson’s presidency
Republicans 1980s and 1990s
They led a Conservative backlash
Led by President Ronald Reagan, Republicans argued that the federal government had become too big and too invasive
America was also reacting to the Communist threat against freedom and prosperity
Reagan and conservative Republicans believed “less government is more” (except when it came to military defense)
Today the balance of power
Continues to fluctuate between Democrats and Republicans
The federal government grew in size under both President G.W. Bush and President Obama
Within the Republican Party, there is a split between moderate / Establishment candidates and conservative / Tea Party candidates
The Democratic Party is more unified in its willingness to support progressive causes
Democratic Platform
Emphasizes the need for government intervention and “social justice”
Economic Security for Middle Class
Economic Fairness
Social Justice
Democratic Platform: Economic Security for Middle Class
Government protection and subsidies for workers, housing, education, health care
Democratic Platform: Economic Fairness
Higher taxes for wealthy, more regulation of Wall Street and corporations
Democratic Platform: Social Justice
Combat climate change, fix immigration, guarantee rights of minorities, women, LGBT
Republican Platform
Promotes less government intervention and “traditional values” (conservative)
Economy
Defense Security
Traditional Values
Nonetheless, it is politically difficult to cut entrenched subsidies and entitlement programs. Most Republicans don’t try
Republican Platform: Economy
Reduce taxation and regulation
Republican Platform: Defense Security
Strong military, secure borders
Republican Platform: Traditional Values
Importance of families, traditional marriage and sanctity of unborn life
GOP: freedom views
Freedom “from”
GOP: equality views
Equality “before the law”
Democrats: freedom views
Freedom “to”
Democrats: equality views
Equality of “opportunity”
Freedom “to”
Bigger government promotes important social goals
Equality of “opportunity”
Means the government actively promotes the rights of disadvantaged groups
Freedom “from”
Smaller government protects individual choice and responsibility
Equality “before the law”
Means the government protects all parties equally, including the unborn and those who hold traditional religious beliefs
In the U.S. _____ dominate
Two political parties
In the U.S., two political parties dominate
Party leaders can increase their power by limiting our choice of candidates
Activists during the Progressive Era fought to give voters control over the candidates for each party…Leading to primary elections
Federal elections are a two-step process
- The Primary elections
- The General elections
The exact primary election process varies from party to party and from state to state
Primary elections
Select the top nominee from each party
General elections
The party nominees run against each other for the office
Most primaries are ____
Closed, open, or mixed
Closed primaries
You must be registered with a Party to vote in that Party’s primary
Open primaries
You can choose a Party primary regardless of your affiliation
Mixed primary
Registered voters must vote in their own Party primary, but unaffiliated voters can pick
In each of these systems, you can only vote in ___ primary
One
A few states have ____ primaries
Top two
A few states have “top two” primaries
In a few states (including LA), all primary candidates run on the same ballot
In CA and WA, the top two candidates (regardless of Party) run in the general election
In LA, the majority candidate wins. If there is no majority candidate, the top two have a “runoff” election
Top two system
Not allowed for Presidential primaries
Louisiana is ____ for Presidential primaries
Closed
Presidential primaries
Held on a state-by-state basis, and the results are aggregated
2016 presidential primary
Clinton won the Democratic primary
Trump won the Republican primary
They ran against each other in the general election
2016 Presidential race
Presidential primaries started in early 2016
General election was in Nov. 2016
Presidential race
The earliest states get the most media attention
Super Tuesday
Some states have primary caucuses instead of elections
Super Tuesday
The Tuesday in Feb./March where the greatest number of states vote
The Louisiana presidential primaries took place on ____
March 5
Traditionally, ____ have the first primaries
Iowa and New Hampshire
Iowa has the ____
First primary caucus
New Hampshire has the ____
First primary elections
After the state primaries
Final party nominees are chosen at the Party National Convention
Party National Conventions
These conventions take place in the summer before the Nov. election
Each state sends delegates to the conventions based on the rules of their Party
The delegates select the final party nominees
RNC 2016
Cleveland, OH
July 18-21
DNC
Philadelphia, PA
July 25-26
After the primaries comes the ____
General election
After the primaries comes the general election
The general election uses the electoral college system
General election 2016
Tuesday, Nov. 8
Louisiana voters elected 6 members of the House (1 per district), 1 senator and the President
Elections are very expensive
Over $6 Billion was spent during the last presidential election cycle (2016)
Members of Congress spend a significant amount of time fund-raising for re-election
Average spent to win in the House
Over $1 Million
Average spent to win in the Senate
Over $8 Million
Decisions by elected officials can have a huge financial impact on individuals and businesses
Remember the government spends $4+ trillion per year
Regulation
Spending $6 billion for an election cycle is tiny compared to potential impact (the federal government spends many hundreds of times more every year!)
Regulation
Can have an even greater impact than direct grants of money
- Makes things more expensive
- Stifles competition
Federal Election Commission
FEC
Regulates campaign finance
Source of funds
Candidates own money
Individual donors
National Party
Political Action Committees (PACs)
Super PACs
Public funds
Candidate’s own money - Limits
Unlimited spending on own campaign
Individual donors - Limits
$2.7K to candidate
$5K to PAC
National Party - Limit
$5K to candidate
$5K to PAC
Political Action Committees - Limit
$2.7K or $5K per candidate per election
Super PACs - Limit
Unlimited “independent” spending; can accept unlimited contributions
Public funds - Limit
$250 match per donor in primaries and $20M in general election; must accept spending limits
Political Action Committee (PAC)
Allows voters to pool their campaign donations
Super PAC
Not affiliated with any particular campaign, and is allowed to freely engage in “independent” spending
Were created by the 2010 decision of the Supreme Court in Citizens United
First Amendment
Priorities USA, Future 45
PACs and Super PACs are formed by ___
Interest groups
Interest groups
Seek to influence government on behalf of their members
Chamber of Commerce
AFL-CIO
Agricultural industry
Chamber of Commerce
A powerful interest group on behalf of business
Generally aligned with the Republican Party
Spends millions on lobbying
Many chamber employees previously worked for the government (the “revolving door” phenomenon)
AFL-CIO
A powerful interest group on behalf of unions
Generally aligned with the Democratic Party
11% of the American workforce is unionized. But about half of union members are public employees
35.7% of the public sector is unionized compared with 6.6% of the private sector
Spends millions on lobbying and obtains employees through the “revolving door”
American Federation of Labor & Congress of Industrial Organizations
Agricultural industry sponsors many interest groups
The federal government has subsidized farmers since the Great Depression
Every 5 years, Congress passes a “farm bill” authorizing hundreds of billions of dollars of spending
U.S. farm policies have increased prices for consumers (in addition to taxes)
Farm bill
Contains both farm subsidies and food stamp/nutrition funding
There are also interest groups for ____
Social issues
Interest groups for social issues
Planned Parenthood
NRA-ILA
Interest groups may engage in ____
Lobbying
Lobbying
Direct contact with members of congress
Interest groups may engage in lobbying
There are about 10,000 registered lobbyists specifically paid to influence Congress
Lobbying is highly regulated, and lobbyists must file disclosures
Interest groups may file ____
Lawsuits
Interest groups may file lawsuits
If you can’t get something through legislation, try litigation!
An interest group may file a test case on behalf of a sympathetic member who has been wronged
An interest group may file an amicus brief seeking to influence the judge in someone else’s lawsuit
Interest groups try to ____
Influence the public (YOU)
Interest groups try to influence the public
“Grassroots” campaign
AstroTurf
“Grassroots” campaign
Staffed by ordinary, local volunteers
AstroTurf
Involves paid professionals who mimic a grassroots effort
Political speech by ____ is generally not regulated by the Federal Election Commission
News media
Political speech by news media is generally not regulated by the Federal Election Commission
The FEC has considered regulating political commentary on the internet
The public has generally protested such regulation
The media shows bias how?
By what stories it chooses to cover…or not cover
In how it covers stories
The media shows bias by what stories it chooses to cover…or not cover
When Sarah Plain made a gaffe about Hawaii, the liberal media had extensive coverage
When President Obama made a similar mistake, the right-wing media covered it
The media also shows bias in how it covers stories
Fox News leads story with content of undercover videos
MSNBC leads story with statement by Planned Parenthood
The media
Will often choose the sensational over the serious
Also directly influenced by business and government interests
The media is also directly influenced by business and government interests
Media covers companies / Companies buy ads and suggest stories
Companies lobby the government / Government regulates companies
Media covers government / Government provides media with access
It can be hard to tell the difference between news and advertising
John Rutland
John Rutland
Cinematographer, Paranormal Activity: Ghost Dimension
Bureaucratic Agencies are ____
Media-savvy
Bureaucratic agencies are media-savvy
Agencies lobby news media for favorable coverage
They use access to import government figures as leverage over the media
Many agencies even have their own media facilities
The media may stick with “safe” stories to avoid hassle and avoid being cut out of the loop
