Midterm Review Poli 10

Veto

"Checking" function of the legislature; embodies the right of an official or institution to say "no" to a proposal from another official or institution; Unilateral, allowing its possessors to impose their views regardless of the preferences of others; far less potent that command because it is a "negative" or blocking action that preserves the status quo

San Diego budget

(City) Fiscal Year 2013 budget of $2.75 billion, (County) Fiscal Year 2013 budget of $4.85 billion; the county Provides government services for unincorporated areas, plus many services city does not provide (i.e. health and social programs). • County implements many state and federal programs. • City provides local, basic services.

Presidential system

(from POLI 11) • Provides 2 separate agencies of government - the executive and the legislature • Fixed terms • ultimate power to authorize legislation and approve budgets lies w/ the legislature

Faction

(topic of Federalist No. 10, by Madison) "a number of citizens, whether amounting to a majority or minority of the whole, who are united and actuated by some common impulse of passion, or of interest, adverse to the rights of other citizens, or to the permanent and aggregate interests of the community"

Ideal point

A point at which a voter wants a candidate's viewpoint to be at.

Survey samples

A well-designed survey can represent characteristics of the full population with only a very small sample (Survey of 1,000 can represent 300 million); opinion survey (News, politics, academic, business, government)

Culture War (Fiorina)

Argument against polarization in the electorate (there is none): on specific policies, most citizens in the middle, as they always have been; ex: abortion; partisanship views of abortion are very similar

McCarty, Nolan

Author of Polarized America

Duverger's Law

In electoral systems w/ single-winner plurality elections, multiple parties tend to coalesce into two; Major parties adopt popular aspects of third parties, and expand coalitions as needed. • POLI 11 definition: In electoral systems w/ single-winner plurality elections, multiple parties tend to coalesce into two States that there is a systematic relationship b/w electoral systems and party systems, so that plurality single-member district election systems tend to create two-party systems in the legislature, while proportional representation electoral systems generate multiparty systems

Hamilton

Leader of the Federalists • His faction-commercial and manufacturing interests, British economic model, federal power.

Jefferson

Leader of the Republicans (Today's Democrats) • Jefferson and Madison faction-protect the interests of farmers, tradesman, and agrarian states, supported diplomatic relations with France, wary of federal power.

Federalist 51

Madison; Summarizes the goals of the Constitution- "If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary. In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself. A dependence on the people is, no doubt, the primary control on the government; but experience has taught mankind the necessity of auxiliary precautions."

Federalist 10

Madison; topic- factions • "a number of citizens, whether amounting to a majority or minority of the whole, who are united and actuated by some common impulse of passion, or of interest, adverse to the rights of other citizens, or to the permanent and aggregate interests of the community"

Median voter theorem

Median, means "middle" as in the voter who is in the middle of the other voters; this is not the same as being in the middle of the "policy" • POLI 11 Definition: (Anthony Downs' theory) according to this theory, two-party systems will exhibit a centrist pull or "convergence"; Parties moderate their policies so as to try to win support of the median voter • It appears that candidates take distinct positions - they do not converge to the median voter. Why not? o There is also evidence of a force pulling candidates towards the middle. o Candidates who take positions that are extreme relative to their district are more likely to lose.

Polarized America (McCarty, Poole, and Rosenthal)

NOMINATE scores- a method to measure the ideology of members of Congress; uses roll call votes cast by members to measure similar and different members of Congress • Interesting correlation with income inequality and size of immigrant population

Supremacy clause

National laws override state laws; National laws must be applied as if they were state laws; national laws and treaties are the supreme law of the land, superseding state laws. • Actions of U.S. Congress must be applied by state and local governments as if they were state or local laws.

Economic voting

One of the most consistent findings in political science is that incumbent politicians and parties win when the economy is growing; this is taken as evidence that voters assess politicians' performance based on the economy---retrospective economic voting

Cues and shortcuts

Party Label, a large majority of voters continue to take CUES from the parties, even though popular attitudes towards parties as institutions tend to range from indifference to outright hostility; the most important information SHORTCUT voters use to make predictions

Whig

Party founded in 1836; Third Party System; business and commercial interests

Polarization

Party polarization is the collapse of ideological diversity within each of the two party coalitions. • The Democrats have fewer conservatives and moderates, and more liberals. • The Republicans have fewer liberals and moderates, and more conservatives. • "[N]ot only is the desire to participate not very widely distributed in the general population, there is a strong bias in how it is distributed. The extremes are overrepresented in the political arena and the center underrepresented. (100)" • Unlike members of Congress, citizens do not cast hundreds of votes per year with their jobs on the line. o Harder to measure their ideology.

Fiorina, Morris

Political scientist; wrote about modern political parties

Gilens, Martin

Professor, Department of Politics, Princeton University • "Inequality and Democratic Responsiveness." • Public Opinion Quarterly 2005 • See Public Opinion PowerPoint

Madison

Republican(along with Jefferson), wrote Federalist Papers 10 and 51

Redistribution

SS, Medicare, and the progressive tax system • Ex Medicare • All 65%eligible for same coverage • Funded through taxes on wage income: more wages--> more paid • The US was a pioneer of the social safety net, although most developed countries are now more redistribution

Southern realignment

Southern whites become Republicans after the New Deal; African Americans strongly loyal to the Democratic Party • the South suddenly realigned around 1964, largely as a result of President Johnson's Civil Rights Act of 1964 and President Nixon's infamous Southern Strategy.

Tyranny of the majority

The Framers included separation of powers and checks and balances to prevent this

Spatial voting

The term "spatial" refers to "distance": I vote for whoever is closer to me. • Sensible to vote this way. • Odd to do the opposite - vote for whoever was farther away. • There are many ways to conceive of this "space" • Valence can produce divergence o If candidates do not have to be in the middle to win, they may take extreme positions

Forecasting

Voters are somewhat predictable (the economy, partisan ID and pre-election polls); We can use predictable features to forecast election winner; Forecasting uses the data from past elections to estimate what will happen in the next one.

Opinion leaders

Voters may take cues from; a citizen who is highly attentive to and involved in politics or some related area and to whom other citizens turn for political information and cues

Turnout

What if voters only turn out if a candidate is close enough to their position? • in large elections no single voter changes the outcome -- a classic free-rider problem. • in practice, candidates must think about turnout and vote choice, the two decisions.

Checks and balances

a constitutional mechanism giving each branch some oversight and control of the other branches; examples are the Presidential veto, Senate approval of presidential appointments, and judicial review of presidential and congressional actions

Free-rider problem

a form of the prisoner's dilemma; to defect from the agreement by withholding a contribution to the group's undertaking while enjoying the benefits of the collective effort

Cognitive shortcut

a mental device allowing citizens to make complex decisions based on a small amount of information; for example, a candidate's party label serves as a shortcut by telling voters much about his or her positions on issues

Proportional representation

a party receives legislative seats in proportion to its share of votes; is used in many European democracies; Helps preserve smaller parties b/c votes for their candidates are not wasted"

Fiscal cliff

a set of decisions about redistribution; 2/3 of the Fiscal Cliff is about taxes. The first deal of January 2: tax system slightly more progressive, but still starved of revenue for Medicare, Medicaid, and, to a lesser extent, Social Security; the constitution has set of rules that can make it hard to do things

Insurance company with an army

amusing description of (US) government. • The government's main responsibility is maintaining the welfare of its citizens, first by protecting their physical security (Army) and second by ensuring social and economic liberties through regulative legislation and finance (insurance)

Conservative

an ideology; distrust government and have greater faith in private enterprise and free markets, but they are more willing to use government to enforce traditional moral standards

Electoral college

arguably the most convoluted rules to be found in the Constitution: as a device, the electoral college tries to mix state, congressional, and popular participation in the election process and in doing so has managed to confuse citizens for more than 200 years; Each state is awarded as many electors as it has members in the House and the Senate" • Presidential winner is the candidate who receives the most Electoral College votes. • Originally President and Vice President chosen separately, superseded by the Twelfth Amendment. • States determine how their Electors are chosen; today, by popular vote of individual citizens.

Prisoner's dilemma

arises whenever individuals decide that even though they support some collective undertaking, they are personally better off pursuing an activity that rewards them individually despite undermining the collective effort

New Deal coalition

brought together Democrats of every conceivable background • Fifth party System beginning in 1932 • The New Deal: FDR-led Democratic policies to combat the unemployment and economic stagnation of the Great Depression. o Early programs: public works, farm subsidies, housing support. Banking and securities regulations. Suspension of the gold standard. (end of Prohibition) o Later programs: Social Security, right to collective bargaining (labor unions), Works Progress Administration. • FDR's coalition: white segregationists in the South, blacks in the north, progressive intellectuals, city machines, union members, poor farmers, Catholics, and Baptists. o When the crises had passed, this diversity of interests could not hold together.

Direct democracy

citizens participate directly in collective decision making, is reserved primarily for small communities and organization

Republic

designed to allow some degree of popular control and also to avoid tyranny; voters elect their representatives, but these representatives are constrained in following the majority's dictates by constitutional guarantees for minorities and by institutions and rules requiring exceptionally large majorities for certain decisions

Jungle primary

in CA since 2010; All candidates are put on one ballot regardless of party affiliation. The top two candidates

Constitution

is a compromise written by powerful men to solve problems of government for the new nation. • The Constitution establishes institutions and procedures for governmental structure. • Describes who has what powers. • Describes how individuals are granted the right to exercise those powers. • Enforces collective action upon citizens and states. • Parts: o Preamble. o Article I: The Legislative Branch (2,266 words). o Article II: The Executive Branch (1,023 words). o Article III: The Judicial Branch (375 words). o Article IV: National Unity/The States. o Article V: Amendments. o Article VI: Supremacy. o Article VII: Ratification.

Federalism

is a hybrid arrangement that mixes elements of confederation, in which lower-level government possesses primary authority; different elected bodies share responsibilities and powers with overlapping jurisdictions. • Dual Federalism: the simplest arrangement, leaving the states and the national government to preside over mutually exclusive "Spheres of sovereignty" • Shared federalism: (or "cooperative")recognizes that the national and states governments jointly supply services to the citizenry" • (Unfunded Mandates) Since the 1960s the federal government has also relied on rules to pursue policy objectives. o States are required to administer policies they might object to, and may even be asked to pay. o Examples:  Civil Rights Acts of 1957 and 1964.  Education for all Handicapped Children act of 1975. • Cons: o Variations in state laws mean that what state you live in determines:  What sort of taxes you pay.  What you can smoke: In California, medical marijuana is legal but tobacco smoking is severely limited.  With whom you could have sex, until Lawrence v. Texas (2003) Supreme Court decision invalidating a law against sodomy.  Regulation of firearms. o Cutthroat Competition b/w states o Being governed both by a state and a national government makes it hard for voters to know who to reward or punish. • Pros o Variations in state laws encourage innovation and allow successful experiments to be replicated. o States (and more local jurisdictions) with voters holding different values and preferences can have different laws more consistent with local preferences.

Status quo

it is difficult to get things done because the Status quo is always the default winner • Institutional bias that fundamentally favors continuation of current public policy

Federalist

led by Hamilton • Tyranny of impassioned public majority. • Elites are best to govern, "excessive democracy" bad. • Strong central power to create a powerful nation. • Argued for Constitution. • Also one of the 1st political parties (against the Republicans, led by Jefferson)

Australian ballot

listed candidates from all parties, and was marked in the privacy of a voting booth; Named for it country of origin

Single-issue voters

make decisions based on one dominant issue; for voters with strong views, any difference b/w candidates on an issue may be enough to settle their choice; Esp. abortion, gun control, environmental protection

Retrospective voting

means to vote for incumbent who have performed well • One shortcut is to assess the past performance of the incumbent candidate or the majority party.

Caucuses

members assembled w/ their allied to make party decisions • Under the first party system the party's congressional caucuses nominated presidential candidates- a natural development b/c electoral competition began as an explanation of party competition in congress

Coordination

members of a group must decide individually what they want, what they are prepared to contribute to the collective enterprise, and how to coordinate their efforts w/ those of others

Primary election

replaced conventions in nominating presidential and other candidates. Loss of control by party bosses.

Republican

tend to prefer less government intervention in the economy, and (now) are more comfortable with government intervention on social questions. • Tend to favor a smaller, cheaper federal government • Advocate lower taxes • Less regulation of business • Lower spending on social welfare • Let free enterprise flourish • Spend more on national defense • Ban abortion and gay marriage (?) • Allow official prayer in public schools

Democrat

tend to prefer more government intervention in the economy, and (now) less government intervention on social questions. • More inclined to regulate business on behalf of consumers and the environment • More spending on social welfare • Spend less on national defense • More concerned with "fairness" and equality • Support legal abortion • Do not support official prayer in school

Necessary and proper clause

the "elastic" clause; in addition to the expressed powers, what else can they do? • Article I, Section 8 • "To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof."

Judicial review

the Court's authority to overturn federal laws and executive actions as unconstitutional; ultimate power vested in "one supreme court"

Commerce clause

the clause on Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution that gives Congress the authority to regulate commerce with other nationals and among the states

Patronage

the control over government jobs services and jobs (jobs, offices, government contracts, business licenses, and so forth); Party central committees, state and local party clubs and committees around the nation, newspapers to support the party's cause, and the promise of patronage to local elites around the nation.—during the Second Party System, pioneered by Andrew Jackson

Progressive era reforms

the decades just before and after the turn of the twentieth century, overlapping the end of the third party system and the beginning of the fourth; the most important reforms were in the civil service, the Australian ballot, and primary elections • Machine politics inspired a reform movement. • Break the patronage-vote relationship. • Secret ballot, nonpartisan civil service, primary elections, nonpartisan local elections, direct democracy. • Despite reasonable-sounding reforms, some perverse consequences for participation.

Agency loss

the discrepancy b/w what a principal would ideally like its agents to do and what they actually do

Separation of powers

the distribution of government powers among several political institutions. In the US, at the national level power is divided b/w the 3 branches- Congress, the president, and the Supreme Court; a characteristic of Article 1 of the Constitution

Collective action

the efforts of a group to reach and implement agreements; Coordination problems and the prisoner's dilemma may block effective collective action

Articles of confederation

the nation's first constitution; although not ratified until 1781, the Articles served as the nation's facto constitution during the intervening war years; government by the consent of the states; any one state could block action; most business handled by the state; Shay's Rebellion (1786) • "Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union" operational in 1776, ratified in 1781. • A confederation — a decentralized governmental system. • States grant national authority rather than authority directly from the people. • Major laws required the endorsement of nine of the thirteen states. • Amending the Articles, such as allowing direct taxation, required unanimous agreement. • Laws passed by Congress to be executed by the states. • National authority was so limited; delegates saw little purpose for an executive or a judiciary. • Could not levy taxes. • Could not regulate commerce between states. • Could not prevent one state from discriminating against another. • Highly limited national power, little ability to coordinate and enforce collective action.

Party identification

the single best predictor of the vote in federal elections; Longstanding, psychological, stable; Democrat, Independent, Republican.

Aggregate public opinion

the sum of all individual opinions- both stable and coherent; apparently rational and relatively stable; Opinions about public figures, policies, or circumstances.

Issue voting

the typical position of Republicans and Democrats differ in predictable ways on many issues

Majority rule

this type voting system will select the outcome most preferred by the median voter

Bicameral

two chamber-legislature; house and senate

Liberal

typically favor using government to reduce economic inequalities, champion the rights of disadvantaged groups such as racial minorities and women, and tolerate a more diverse range of social behaviors

California state budget

what do we spend our money on? • K12 -39.2% • Higher education 12.7% • Human and health 29% • Corrections and rehabilitations 10.5% • Other 8.6%

Abstention

when a participant in a vote intentionally does not cast a vote

Divided government

when different parties hold the presidency and Congress, for example if Democrats have the majority in the House and Senate and a Republican holds the presidency. Or, the situation in 2013, where President Obama is a Democrat, the Senate is held by the Democrats, and the House is held by Republicans.

Latent opinion (Zaller article)

• Key defined public opinion as " those opinions held by private persons which governments find it prudent to heed" • "latent opinion," which " in the practice of politics ad government ... I really about the only type of opinion that generates much anxiety" • Latent opinion is opinion that might exist at some point in the future in response to the decision makers' actions and may perhaps result in political damage or even defeat at the polls • Key's path breaking arguments that most voters are not ideological, and that they often have no attitudes at all, were in service of a larger point concerning the kinds of inferences that may and may not be legitimately drawn from expression of public opinion • His conception has 3 important virtues o It focuses on what actually drive much of politics, which is gain and holding public offices in elections o It distinguishes electorally relevant opinion from mere survey responses, raising thereby the specter of nonattitudes o It highlights the complexity of the process by which politicians' estimates of public opinion affect their decisions

Antifederalist

• Tyranny of aristocracy or monarch. • Government close to the people, power dispersed. • Retention of power by states. • Preferred modification to Articles.