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Using the language of the class, NO citations, NO quotations, just YOU… For the short
prompts, write three good paragraphs, for the long prompt, write 600 words.
SHORT PROMPT 1: Is the primary goal of most members of Congress good public policy or
to be reelected? Is that good or bad for democratic government. What should their goal be?
Could you ask everyone you know for money every time you see them? That’s what a candidate
must do. Would you ever run for public office? Why or why not?
SHORT PROMPT 2: In what ways are courts, judges and justices shielded from politics and
political pressure? In what ways are they vulnerable to political power? What does this say about
our justice system?
SHORT PROMPT 3:Suppose you were aware of some corruption that was occurring in the
government agency in which you worked. What would you do? Would you be a whistleblower?
What are the possible consequences to you for reporting corruption? Do you believe you are an
honest and ethical person? If you didn’t report the corruption, would you still consider yourself to
be an honest and ethical person?
LONG PROMPT 1: What is the role and influence of the news media in American politics?
What is “setting the agenda”? What are the differences between print and broadcast news? Give
an example of the effect of the news media on American politics.
LONG PROMPT 2: How “democratic” is the U.S. democracy? What is “limited government”
and how are the various levels of government in the U.S. limited? How is power “decentralized”
in the U.S. political system? What is “credit claim”? How does “image” factor into politics?
What do these concepts tell us about the state and health of our democracy?
SHORT PROMPT 1 LECTURE AND LANGUAGE FROM CLASS:
terms of interest
standing committee
pork barrel
casework
ad hoc committee
filibuster
oversight
select (special) joint committee
veto over ride
seniority system
roll call vote
incumbency
appropriations
term limits
party vote
Bicameral
Redistricting
patronage
Key concepts from the Text:
Congress was designed to be the people’s most direct voice in the national government,
and the most powerful of the three branches.
–
Power in Congress is allocated by political parties.
–
Most of Congress’s important work is done in committees, sub commitees and by staff
people.
–
Because of the lengthy process by which a bill becomes a law, most bills never become
law.
–
The president, interest groups and constituents all influence congressional action.
SHORT PROMPT 2 LECTURE AND LANGUAGE FROM CLASS:
Key concepts from the Text:
– Millions of cases come to trial in the United States every year.
– State Courts handle the vast majority of court cases in American (about 98%).
– The key to the power of the courts is judicial review.
– Only a tiny percentage of cases get to the Supreme Court, which tightly controls the flow of the
cases it hears.
– Court decisions are shaped by the justices’ activism and ideology.
English Law only exists in those parts of the world the English dominated. Like the us.
Most of the rest of the world doesn’t have the same legal system that we have. Most of the rest
of the world practices ” Roman Law. ,” or sometimes called ” French Law” or ” Codified Law ”
It’s law written down and enforced by judges.
We, and the rest of the world colonized by England, practice ” common law ” or “judge made
law.” It’s based on what previous judges have done in similar cases.
Guilt (or non-guilt) is determined by the jury, not the judge.
But the judge controls what the jury sees. It’s a purposefully artificial reality inside the courtroom.
Reality doesn’t matter. What matters is legal reality. Reality which can be proved to a jury
“beyond a reasonable doubt ”
Spirit of the Law v. the Letter of the Law
Law Scholars talk about “ the Spirit of the Law v. the Letter of the Law. ” Or, “Law as a search
for justice…”
But in this reality, on this planet, with my species – we can’t achieve justice. We can’t even
agree on what justice really means.
Justice? System.
We can’t really get justice from our Justice System, not justice of outcome, nor justice in fact.
Justice in fact is impossible for humans to agree upon , let alone to have on our planet.
What really is justice if it’s your child killed who is victimized, or your spouse attacked, your
parent?, or you ?
Justice in fact is impossible, so justice of procedure is all we can hope to get.
That’s not justice!
Of course all justice systems (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an
external site.)at all levels of government fail at least some times. They are all run by humans,
with human problems and prejudices.
Is the justice system any more racist than the rest of society? In LA county (Links to an external
site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.), 100% of the people arrested,
convicted and doing time for a certain crime are of one ethnic group and gender. Is that proof of
racism? The crime is child pornography and the group is white males. (LA TIMES)
Remember the levels of courts.
The first court to hear a case has original jurisdiction (Links to an external site.)Links to an
external site. (Links to an external site.). That means this court hears and decides the case. It’s
decision on guilt, liability or whatever is the only time the facts of the case get heard and the
only time a decision on those facts is made.
The appellate court (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external
site.)does not re-try the case. The only issues the court of appeals looks at are issues of
whether the original court followed all the procedures we have come to call “due process.”
Essentially, the appellate court looks at are whether the process was fair not weather the
outcome was just.
And the Supreme Court (of the U.S. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links
to an external site.)or the states (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an
external site.)– they all have their own) is the final arbiter of the procedural justice questions
about the case. But the Supreme court does not re-try the case, nor does it listen to anybody
accept the lawyers from both sides. Usually they get an hour (or less) each to make the merits
of their position.
But many interest groups (and even the state or federal government) can file a “ Friend of the
Court ” brief and “weigh in” on whatever central issue the court is reviewing.
Briefs
Most of the Supreme Court’s work is done reading and writing briefs. The minority decisions are
often important in future cases – even though being on “the minority” means that side has lost
the vote on the case.
Of course, the Supreme Court is a political body. All Supreme Court justices in our history have
worked for politicians on campaigns or in their administrations, (except one justice, who was
dean of a law school).
Judicial Restraint v Activism
The right wing of our political spectrum likes to say that activist judges want to legislate from the
bench. These same folks argue that judges should show restraint in interpreting the constitution.
In many ways this is a bogus debate . The question is NOT really between activist judges (who
what to change things) and “ original intent judges” (who see no need for change). The point of
contention is the RATE of change, not the fact of change.
Birth control is a wonderful example. Before Griswold v Conn. (a landmark Supreme Court
case) many states simply outlawed birth control. The court held that although the word privacy
is not in the constitution, there was obviously a concern to limit the government’s ability to
invade our privacy (no troops in homes, freedom of speech, etc). This concern covers a woman
and her re-productive rights (i.e. – the right to control whether she re-produces).
Later, Roe v Wade did not really expand rights as much as it recognized change. What is the
federal government’s position on abortion? They really don’t have one. The President and the
Congress can never seen to agree, so the Supreme Court has ruled only that STATES cannot
outlaw abortion. The question is left open as to whether the federal government could. The
Supreme Court doesn’t deal in hypotheticals.
Right to Privacy?
Speaking of hypothetical – Do you have a right to privacy?
Really? Where? On the Job? On the phone? In your car? In the Mall?
Maybe the only place where you have a reasonable expectation of privacy is in your home, with
the curtains drawn and no illegal activity occurring. The only exceptions are your doctor, your
lawyer and your priest
SHORT PROMPT 3 LECTURE AND LANGUAGE FROM CLASS:
terms of interest
Bureaucracy
Cabinet Departments
Spoils system
Civil service
independent agencies
Merit system
Congressional Oversight
government corporation
Deregulation
Managerial President
Federal Reserve System (the Fed)
Whistle-blower
fiscal policy
Key concepts from the Text:
– Bureaucratic structures exist to improve efficiency in large organizations.
The bureaucracy of the federal government is smaller than it used to be, and is composed of
people whose job is to serve the public.
– Different types of government agencies perform different tasks.
– Bureaucracy is controlled by the president, Congress, and federal rules.
LONG PROMPT 4 LECTURE AND LANGUAGE FROM CLASS:
Key Concepts from the Text
terms of interest
Agenda Setting
Spinning & Spin doctors
Bias
Trial balloon
Broco vs. Print Journalism
Framing
Horse Race Elements
media concentration
Priming
Cold Fax
For political science, Media really means News Media.
There are no investigative reporters, or at least very very few. Sure, in movies and on TV there
are, but not in this world. Reporters (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to
an external site.) have to work on several stories at once and rarely have time to “pursue a
story” unless others are interested in it.
If you’ve ever had dealings with news people, you may have felt manipulated. But the news
producers (those who do the work and make the news shows and the newspapers) are much
more often manipulated by the newsmakers (those public and private officials who are covered
by the newspapers and news shows).
Most people complain that the news is biased to one political position or another. In reality, our
news is biased to our culture and the political divisions in that culture are not as important as the
over-riding power of our own cultural biases. Those biases can be described as “Northern” and
“Western.” “Northern” refers to the rich countries of the world (Links to an external site.)Links to
an external site. (Links to an external site.) (north of the Tropic of Cancer) and “Western” refers
to the western tradition ( Greece (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an
external site.) , Rome (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external
site.) , etc.).
Cold fax.
Back when fax machines ruled the office….A “cold fax” is just one recent example of how easy it
is for those with information to manipulate the press. I’m a reporter investigating the Lewinsky
affair a few years ago and I receive an anonymous fax of Linda Tripp’s arrest record. It’s valid
and true, I’ve called and confirmed. Trip lied on her Pentagon application where she said she’d
never been arrested. It’s a “true” story. If we run it, she loses her job and her credibility. If we
don’t run it, some other company will and we’ll lose our story. Of course, you know it was faxed
to you by enemies of Tripp who want her to lose her job and her credibility, but you can’t prove
anything. Of course you run the story.
Today the same thing is done via anonymous email… Can you, as a reporter, risk ignoring it?
This is from UCLA on media bias: http://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/Media-Bias-Is-Real-FindsUCLA-6664 (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)
Spin doctor
“Spin doctors” are just the new name for spokesmen, spokespeople, or public relations officers.
They used to be called “flax” (as in those WWII air explosions you see in movies). To “spin a
story” means to present your client in the best light without lying mostly by using “Ugly English”).
Horse Race Issues
News (TV especially) is much better at covering ” horse race issues ” (who’s ahead, who’s
trailing, etc.) than in-depth, complex events. Often complex events take a certain perspective of
time or distance to understand. But the news is focused on the here and now, the 24 hour
“news cycle.” (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)
Trial balloons – Is it Leaked or is it a test?
A common way for those with power to manipulate the news producers is to release a “trial
balloon.” That is purposefully “leaking” a proposal before it is “official.” Then you can gauge the
reaction to the proposal. If it’s a positive, you can take credit, if it’s negative, you can deny the
entire matter.
Print vs. Broco
Most news stories start in the print news and then are covered by broadcast news (what
professionals call Broco). Print news (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links
to an external site.) and Broco news (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links
to an external site.) are different products. You should think about the differences between
these two products, including what goes into making them as products that are consumed each
day. Here’s some things to think about: Time to get a story, time to report a story, depth and
complexity of the story reported, emotional impact of each product, relative money involved in
each industry. Email me any more you can think of…or if you have any question or comments.
(This is directly related to answering one of the potential final essay questions)
The news industry needs information. They are addicted to it. Governments love to give out
information and so do corporations. Most news stories are written from press releases issued by
governments, corporations or interest groups.
“Setting the Agenda”
The various news providers (all large corporations which usually produce products other than
just the news) compete daily with each other for a shrinking market of “news consumers (people
who watch TV news or read newspapers). Setting the agenda has top do with that completion,
in a way. Newspapers and TV news do not call each other and ask “what are you covering?”
They try to scoop each other (be the first to report a story – or the first with a new angle on the
story). Over a period of time (a month or a year or whatever) we can see that what TV news
and newspapers are covering is what the US population is most likely to be talking about. In
many ways the TV news and newspapers set the agenda of the national dialog (if such a thing
exists) The internet is not used and viewed by everyone and TV is still supreme in numbers of
viewers, but still the main topics of discussion around the country are those issues covered by
the news industry. It’s an inescapable fact.
“All the news that’s fit to print.”
That used to be a famous newspaper’s (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
(Links to an external site.) motto, now it just seems a little strange. What does “fit” to print
mean, anyway? Figuring out what is “fit” for you to know is no longer the news industry’s job.
It’s up to each of us. That’s what the internet gets us all – more work…Now with the internet,
there is even more information available than any of us (all of us?) could ever view (let alone
use) in our life time(s). The problem is deciphering what information is credible and what is not.
Fortunately or unfortunately political science cannot answer that question with an easy formula
or typology. But we must always “consider the source.” We must remain ever vigilant and critical
when reading or viewing any information.
LONG PROMPT 5 LECTURE AND LANGUAGE FROM CLASS:
Terms of interest:
citizenship
suffrage
direct action politics
Elite theory
Pluralism
laissez-faire capitalism
bourgeois
politics
equality of opportunity
political equality
popular sovereignty
In a very simple way you can think about the central question of this class: Why do we all have
the expectations of freedom, privacy, liberty, etc? where do these ideas come from and why,
really, do things work in our government and society as they appear to work.
There are many different theories in the study of American government and society but the two
beginning points are two of the oldest theories about our government and society.
Many of the so-called Founding Fathers could be called Pluralists in that they beleived the
important interplay of power takes place on the group level.
The Elite Theory offers an alternative view. It suggests we look at who is in charge of those
groups and the assests of the country and identify them as the elite who are in control.
Pluralism and the Elite theory.
These two ways of asking questions and finding ways to answer them are really just starting
points on how we get at the heart of the class – “Why do we – you and me – have the stuff we
have – not just the physical stuff but all those expectations about liberty and freedom and all
that?”
Consider the following mathematical statement when applied to the US government:
Public Opinion = Public Policy.
Is that true?
“The Will of the People” = “What government does”
Or is it more complicated than that?
click here for a MT slide show on pluralism and the elite theory (Links to an external site.)Links
to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
The Pluralist theory looks at the activity, membership, role and power of interest groups while
the elite theory challenges us to look at who is in charge of most of those interest groups. It is all
about perspective. Just like real life.
These two theories are not really mutually exclusive, in that we can see evidence of both. Also
these are not the only two theories in political science to answer our central question (Why do
we have what we have?).
Each chapter presents us with a compelling theory about how and why our government and
society works. It is up to you to figure out which works best for your understanding of reality.
For More on Pluralist vs Elite Theory,
Here’s one from Univ of Delaware: https://www1.udel.edu/htr/American/Texts/pluralism.html
(Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an
external site.
Here’s one from UC Santa Cruz:
http://www2.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/theory/alternative_theories.html (Links to an external
site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
Informal power – the ability to persuade.
Former President Clinton may have been the commander-in-chief of the armed forces so why
didn’t he just order the military to accept gays? Was he a wimp, or is it because he knew that
order would not be followed? He knew his own limits. Sure he had the formal authority, but what
good is that if the order isn’t carried out? Will the next order be viewed in the same light?
Every successful Politician (from FDR to Hitler to Stalin to Clinton) has followed the Six Tactics
of Persuasion. They are the same, even if the culture in which they are practiced is different.
These tactic of persuasion can be sued by parents to send their child to bed or by presidents
wanting senators to pass a bill. They are the key to every successful person’s life, even if that
person has never heard of them.
The Six Tactics of Persuasion. (R. Neustadt (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
(Links to an external site.)Links to an external site., on Presidential Power (Links to an external
site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. )
So you want some one (or group) to do something. Your power and credibility is limited and
finite (no matter who you are) so you should always be aware of it and conserve it. Use it to
make it stronger, or mis-use it and lose it.
What’s the easiest way to get some one to do something?
(1) Ask – explain your position.
It may not be enough to get people to do what you want, but if it is, then why do any more than
that?
Maybe asking isn’t enough – do the second tactic (2) Make an emotional appeal.
Don’t appeal to your own emotions. If you want others to do things then you must stay focused
on others and appeal to their emotions. The Parent who says: “Do it ’cause I’m the Dad and I
said so.” Can only say this if he has done his work as a parent and the child has a positive
definition of “dad.” LBJ (President Johnson) used to have his staff wake him in the middle of the
night so he could call senators and wake them to remind them: “tomorrow, your country needs
you to vote…” All successful politicians stay focused on others, not on themselves.
If the first two tactics don’t work, you need to move to the third tactic.
(3) Make a vague promise.
Why a vague promise? So you don’t have to keep it? No, just the opposite, make a vague
promise so that you CAN keep it. I’m sure you’ve all been told by someone: “I’ll look into it and
see what can be done.” And you knew they were blowing you off. Did you go back to that
person? But if someone told you that and then came back to you and said: “I looked into it and
we can’t help you, but those guys over there can.” That person has helped you (and those other
guys) and has gained credibility from you (and those other guys).
(4) Call in past favors. This is where you use guilt, don’t squander guilt at tactic #2. Guilt is
finite. In order to call in past favors that means that politicians help people? What’s this? Hitler
helped people? Sadam Hussein helps people? Yes. All people? No only those people who keep
him in power. Just like Clinton, Reagan, Churchill or whomever, just a different culture. If you
want power, do things for people. If you want to amass power and enhance your credibility, get
positive things done for people.
(5) Grant a current favor.
Unlike the promise, keep this specific and limited. If you start here, everyone will want
something, so be careful what favors you grant. The more you do, the more people will ask, the
more you will be able to do, the more past favors to call in…
(6) Threaten reprisals.
This doesn’t necessarily mean violence, but violence is part of the human condition. If politics is
like your book says: “deciding who gets what, when and how” then when someone doesn’t get
their’s they may perceive violence has been done to them. A reprisal may be: “Do this or I won’t
talk to you again.” But don’t threaten anything you can’t do, or wouldn’t do. In fact what you think
doesn’t matter. The other must perceive you as having the ability and the will to carry out the
threat. Don’t threaten anything that will cost you more than what you get if the person does what
you want.
I believe it was Isaac Asimov who wrote: “Violence is the final refuge of the incompetent.”
So you see, power can be used wisely or wasted. it is up to the one who uses power to do it
well.
Each lecture web page has questions at the end. They are taken from the publisher’s test bank
and will be used in the first half of the final.
In general, if you can understand the question and be able to discuss it with informed people,
than you should be okay. If not, than you should re-read the book, use the publisher’s web
resources, etc until you are able to do so.
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