United States

Question 1

US legislative-executive System

Answer 1

Presidential system

Question 2

Type of Democracy / Authoritarianism US

Answer 2

Majoritarian and Liberal elements
Seperation of powers (all branches have veto power)

Question 3

US unitary or federal?

Answer 3

Federal
Competitive Federalism
Lack of standardisation
Strongly decentralised federation (but state powers decreasing)

Question 4

Competitive Federalism

Answer 4

o States often fight for their autonomy with the federal government

Question 5

Head of State US

Answer 5

President
- (In)directly elected for four-year term
- Eligibility: 35 years old, “natural born citizen”
- Appoints and can fire his own cabinet
- Nominates judges, ambassadors, public officials
- Commander in chief of the armed forces.
o US has one of the strongest militaries
- Veto-powers (but can be overruled)
o Has the power to block any law that is adopted by the house and the senate
o If 30% of both the chambers of congress disagrees with the veto, the veto is overruled
o Over time the veto-powers of the president have increased
- Impeachment procedure (Congress)
o Treason, bribery, and other high crimes and misdemeanours
o = reasons for impeachment and removement of the president.

Question 6

Head of government

Answer 6

President
Appoints and can fire cabinet
Commander-in-chief
Veto Power
Impeachment procedure

Question 7

Commander-in-Chief

Answer 7

A commander-in-chief or supreme commander is the person who exercises supreme command and control over an armed force or a military branch.

Question 8

Impeachment procedure US

Answer 8

The federal House of Representatives can impeach a party with a simple majority of the House members present or such other criteria as the House adopts in accordance with Article One, Section 2, Clause 5 of the United States Constitution. This triggers a federal impeachment trial in the United States Senate, which can vote by a 2/3 majority to convict an official, removing them from office. The Senate can also further, with just a simple-majority vote, vote to bar an individual convicted in a senate impeachment trial from holding future federal office.

Question 9

Lower House US

Answer 9

House of representatives
Both houses basically equal (but different focus in powers)
Introduce and passes legislation (budget, taxes, revenue)

Question 10

Upper House US

Answer 10

Senate
Each state represented by 2 senators
Introduce and pass legislation (approves presidential appointments - cabinet, supreme court)
- 6-year terms; 1/3 (re)elected every 2 years
- Presided over by Vice-President (deciding vote)

Question 11

Judiciary

Answer 11

Supreme Court
Judicial review powers
Appointed by president (confirmed by senate)
Lifetime tenures
Increasingly partisan and polarised

Question 12

Electoral system US

Answer 12

SMD
Primaries
Presidential Elections use Electoral College (indirect election for president) - requires majority
Possibility of faithless electors

Question 13

Primaries

Answer 13

Each party organises their own primary election to select candidates for elections.
Primary elections are state-based, with delegates for the presidential primary being elected - Process differs by state
Primary elections feature a fight over the agenda (Candidates from different ideological backgrounds debating the agenda of the party)

Question 14

Political Economy US

Answer 14

Capitalism

Question 15

Low voter turnout US

Answer 15

Among the lowest in Wester Democracies beacause of:
- Voter fatigue, high number of political functions open for voting might result in fatigue
- Winner-take-all-system, Non-swing states have uncompetitive elections
- registration laws
- anti-government mentality
- Active voter suppression and Gerrymandering

Question 16

Consequences of increased polarisation US

Answer 16

Troubling trend of polarisation similar to Weimar / French Fourth Republics
Lieberman et al (2017) lists these threats:
Polarised two party presidentialism
Fundamental division about membership and status
Erosion of democratic norms at elite and mass levels (informal norms that have guided American
democracy have been fading)

Question 17

Parties

Answer 17

Right: Republicans
Left: Democrats

Question 18

Splendid Isolation

Answer 18

USA has had great stability due to incremental development (Northern and Southern neighbours
relatively weak)

Question 19

American Exceptionalism

Answer 19

Strongly linked to frontier mentality (gradual colonisation from East to West - everything is possible so long as you fight for it - resulting in the absence of traditional cleavages of class, religion, anti and pro
monarchy are absent)

Internationally: the term translates into the idea that America has a mission to ‘lead the free world’ by spreading freedom and democracy

Some principles of Americansim: Freedom, Equality of Opportunity, Individualism

Question 20

Bill of Rights

Answer 20

Ten amendments to the Constitution passed by the first U.S. Congress in 1789.
Compromise with antifederalists = first 10 amendments to the constitution that strongly emphasise the individual liberty of American citizens (protecting them from the state)

Question 21

Federalists vs Antifederalists

Answer 21

o Federalists: We need a stronger centralized state
o Antifederalsist: we want to keep the soevereingty of our states
o Federalists won
- Separation of powers
o In 1787 the separation of powers was strong because people were so scared of all power in one hand
- 1789: into effect (oldest written constitution the world)
- 1789-1791: Bill of Rights.
o They implement 10 type of individual rights all citizens in Americans have

Question 22

New Deal

Answer 22

New Deal, domestic program of the administration of U.S. Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) between 1933 and 1939, which took action to bring about immediate economic relief as well as reforms in industry, agriculture, finance, waterpower, labour, and housing, vastly increasing the scope of the federal government’s activities.

Question 23

Articles of Confederation

Answer 23

The weak confederal regime that governed the colonies after 1781; it was replaced by the U.S.
Constitution after 1790.
Creates a confederation of states (a loose alliance of different states), the weaknesses of this approach emerge over time

Confederation system obstructed the political and economic development of the US (strong boundaries between states, etc.)

Leading to a historic compromise in 1789 (in which the Federalists won), whilst ensuring a
separation of powers (that enshrines the rights of states) (between state and federal
government, between the trias politica - three branches of government)

Question 24

Equality of Opportunity

Answer 24

American Dream: no matter how poor, one can become a self-made man

Question 25

Gerrymandering

Answer 25

The process of apportioning electoral districts to favor one political party or marginalize certain groups.

Question 26

Constitutional Convention

Answer 26

1787: Convention about what kind of political system the USA wanted, Lot of immigrants did not trust the state because they could not have religions in their former countries

Question 27

Civil War

Answer 27

1861-1865: War about slavery, blue states wanted to abolish slavery red keept hem. Southern states declared themselves independent of the rest of America because they didn’t want a federalist state

Question 28

Civil Rights Movement

Answer 28

• 1865 – 1960s: continuation of discrimination
• 1954: Brown vs. Board of Education
• 1963: “I have a dream” speech
• 1965: Voting Rights Act
• Can a system be democratic if such a big part of a country is discriminated against?

Question 29

Electoral college

Answer 29

• Each state has electors equaling number of Representatives and Senators (+3 from DC)
  o Total 538
• States & Parties determine manner of selecting their electors
  o No guarantee of election by voters
• States determine how electors are allocated
  o All but Miane and Nebraska employ “winner take all”
   Maine and Nebraska have subdistricts
• Winner must have a majority (not plurality) of 270 votes
  o What if no one wins 270 votes
  o House chooses a president

United States