U.S. Government Bureaucracy, Policy, and Interest Groups

Bureaucracy

The "Fourth Branch" of government; thousands of agencies that carry out and enforce federal laws

- Merit System

Hiring based on ability (also called Civil Service)

- Spoils System

The old system that the Merit System replaced

- Discretionary Authority

- The power agencies have to fill in the details of broad laws passed by Congress

- Rule-making

- The process by which agencies create regulations that have the force of law

- Iron Triangle

- Relationship between an Agency, a Congressional Committee, and an Interest Group

- Issue Networks

- More modern, looser, and temporary coalitions (compared to Iron Triangles)

- Legislative oversight

- Congressional committee monitoring of agencies

- Judicial review

- Courts checking bureaucratic action

- Policy

- Official government decisions and actions

- Public Opinion

- Collective views and attitudes of the general population

- Misalignment

- When policies don't reflect what the majority of people want

The Role of Special Interest Groups

influence policy through lobbying (including the Iron Triangle),They have resources and access that the general public lacks,- These groups can sometimes sway policy decisions against majority opinion

Presidential Checks on the Bureaucracy:

- Executive orders

- Appointments (selecting agency heads)

- Removal of heads (firing agency leaders)

Congressional Checks on the Bureaucracy:

- Oversight hearings

- Budgeting (controlling funding)

- Re-writing laws

The Tyranny of the Minority:

- A passionate minority can influence policy more than a passive majority

- Explains why policy sometimes doesn't match what most people want