US Democracy And Participation Flashcards
Key policies under Bush/ things that happened
-oversaw the largest increase in federal spending in 50 years
-allowed state authorities to lead response to hurricane Katrina in 2005 (criticised for federal distancing from disaster)
-passed no child left behind (20% increase in funding for poorest schools)
-created homeland security department for antiterrorism in 2001
-Bush vs Gore (2000)
Key policies/ events under Clinton
-signs NAFTA creating the worlds largest free trade zone
-bombing campaign in Yugoslavia
-“line item veto” (can censor parts of a bill) power revoked from him in Clinton vs New York 1998
Key policies/ events under Obama
-air strikes in Libya beyond 60 day limit set by war powers act
-American recovery and investment act ($800bn stimulus package providing job protection and middle class tax cuts)
-ACA 2010
-race to the top programme ($4.5bn funding to schools)
Key policies/ events under Trump
-executive order to prevent transgender military service (blocked by courts in 2025)
-Tax cuts and Jobs act (2017) which eased taxes on high income Americans
-attempted to repeal ACA and failed
-impeached twice and acquitted twice by a republican senate
-exec order ending DEI in 2025
-25% tariffs on china and Mexico
-gulf of America
-Withdrawl from Paris agreement
-delaying TikTok ban
Key policies/ events under Biden
-nomination of KBJ to SC (first black woman))
-inflation reduction act 2022 instead of original $1.8 trillion build back better plan
-rejoined Paris agreement
Evidence of needing political experience to run for president
Only 2 president ever (trump and W.Bush) haven’t served as senator or governor prior to presidency
What is the invisible primary
Period of time between a candidate indicating their intention to run as president and the first official primary election
Reasons for an invisible primary
-allows candidates to gain momentum (often announce up to 18 months before, Trump 2 years before in 2022)
-gives other candidates a chance to get their act together (after Hilary announced running in 2015, 4 other democrats came forward in the next three months expressing the same interest)
-in 2024 nearly 400 republican candidates registered for presidency with the FEC but only 5 took part in the formal primary process (provides more choice and evidences strongest candidates)
What’s the most significant reason for announcing you’re running for the presidency earlier
-fundraising (by the last third of 2023 trump had raised nearly three times as much as Nikki Haley)
Evidence to show that money isn’t everything in the primary process
-in jan 2020, biden had raised just under $9 mil but Michael Bloomberg had raised $263mil and lost to him (shows that self funding is not successful as isn’t a good indicator of popularity)
-just before the final primary result in 2020, Biden had $108mil and Sanders had $200mil (money isn’t everything)
Key media elements of the invisible primary
-debates (in 2023-24, 8 of the 13 major republican candidates (excluding trump) appeared in at least one tV debate)
-polls
-formal fundraising events (the republican Lincoln dinner and Democratic Jefferson-Jackson day dinner)
-tours and book releases (e,g Ron DeSantis, a republican canidate, went on tour with his book in 2023)
Examples of primary candidates visiting important states in primary process
In 2024 Nikki Kaley visiting Iowa 75 times whereas trump only did do 25 times and still won
In 2016 Clinton visited New Hampshire 86 times whereas sanders visited 93 times and he won
Evidence that more people withdraw from invisible primaries than actual primaries
In 2024:
-8 republicans drop out during the invisible primary process and only 3 drop out during actual primaries
-18 democrats drop out of invisibles and 10 drop out during actuals
What is a presidential primary
A state based election to choose a party’s candidate for the presidency
What is a presidential caucus
A state based series of meetings to choose a candidate for the presidency, tending to have lower turnout and attract more ideological voters
How does a state know if its having a primary or a caucus
The state legislature chooses whether to do a primary or caucus (and then each party has one)
What is an open primary
A primary in which any registered voter in the state can vote in any party’s primary but only once
This can lead to cross-over voting (AKA raiding), a tactical move in which republicans will vote in the democratic primary (or vice versa) in an attempt to skew the result
What is a semi open primary
Where an open primary is confidential as to which party you’re voting for, a semi open involves having the party you are voting for a candidate for known. Voters can still choose any candidate for any party, but they have to cast a party specific ballot
What is a closed primary
A primary in which only registered party members can vote in their party’s primary
What is a semi closed primary
A primary in which registered party members still vote for only their party, but unaffiliated voters may choose which party they vote in the primary of
Two types of ways delegates to vote at the national convention are awarded after primaries
-winner take all: the winner of the primary recieves all of the states delegates
-proportional: delegates are awarded to candidates in proportion to their share of the vote (all democrat primaries)
What is the purpose of a primary
-to show a candidates popularity
-choosing delegates for the national convention (the place where the final party presidential candidate is chosen)
What is a pledged delegate
A delegate who is pledged to vote in line with how their state voted in primaries when they are at the national convention
At the democrat convention, pledged delegates make up around 85% of all delegates. If a candidate fails to get a majority of the pledged then party grandees (unpledged randoms) known as super delegates cast their vote
At the republican convention, 100% of delegates are pledged
Primary significance of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina
The first caucus (republican) is held in Iowa, the first primary (republican) takes place in New Hampshire.
Since 2024, South Carolina has been the first democrat primary (to make minority voices heard) and first caucus is also Iowa (much later than the republican one)
