Exam 2 US Government

Primaries: What do they decide

Primaries (nominating campaign) decide who will represent the party as a candidate for election

• They can be open or closed depending on the state

• They do not directly elect individuals into office

• Parties hold national conventions in the summer of the election to announce nominations

Criteria for Winning: Majority System

Winner must win at least 50% of the total votes

• Used mostly by other nations

Criteria for Winning: Plurality System

The candidate with the greatest number of votes win

• Most American elections are by plurality

Gerrymandering

Redrawing districts to maximize the probability of a particular party winning

• Redistricting occurs every 10 years after Census

Gerrymandering: Packing

Packing like-minded voters into a district to decrease their influence

• Instead of spreading them around to distribute their influence, they pack them into one district

Gerrymandering: Cracking

Diluting dense pockets of like-minded voters to decrease their influence

• Takes the majority in one district and makes them minorities in separate districts

Gerrymandering: Stacking

Stacks a concentrated minority population with a much larger majority population

• Nullifies the smaller community’s voting power

Merges districts with like-minded voters to make them vote against eachother

Gerrymandering: What has the Supreme Court said?

Contiguous: Districts must share a common boundary

• You cannot pick and choose different areas

Compact: Districts must be sizeable

• You cannot take a small sliver from particular locations

Consistent with Existing Political Subdivision: Do not divide counties, cities, neighborhoods, etc.

* Race cannot be a criterion for districts

Political Parties

Organized groups that attempt to influence the government by electing their members into local, state, and national offices

Early Party System: Hamilton v. Jefferson

Federalists: Stronger federal government, protective tariffs, commercial ties with Britain, national bank, assumption of state war debts.

Jeffersonian Republicans: Agricultural interests, relations with France, subsistence economy

* Federalists declined after War of 1812 due to their failed attempt to secede, making them suspicious and distrustful

1896: Democrats v. Republicans

Republicans: Strong federal government, protective tariffs to promote industry, business interests,

• Strong in North & West

• McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt, Hoover

Democrats: Rural, minority party, oppose tariffs

• Strong in South & Midwest

• Wilson

* Era was defining by Progressivism and immigration, as well as the political aftermath of the American Civil War

New Deal System

Republicans: Yankee New England and the Midwest, business interests, Protestants

• Eisenhower

Democrats: Solid South plus African Americans, union members, Catholics, and Jews

• FDR, Truman, JFK, LBJ

* Election of FDR the flip in ideological interests of the parties was brought upon by new social welfare programs

Modern Party System: How did evolve into what we have now?

Republicans: Mainly conservative interests, status quo, free market, stiffer penalties for criminals

• GOP (Grand ‘ole Party)

Democrats: Emphasis on social welfare, upper-class intellectuals, racial minorities, support of civil rights, sympathetic to regulation

* 1960s split the New Deal coalition, Southern whites leave the Democratic party over civil rights

* Catholics and religious conservatives move to Republican party

Winner Takes All Election

Regardless of how many votes you lose by, the majority party maintains full power and control. Losing party gets not representation from that district

• Leaves the third parties’ votes to feel wasted

Proportional Representation

Common in other nations, party earns as many seats as they earn votes to secure proportional representation

• “Party wins number of seats in proportion to the share of votes won in the election”

Role of Third Parties

• Represent the social and economic interest that are not represented by the two major parties

• May influence a major party to address their issue

• May feel like a wasted vote

Types of Third Parties: Enduring Minor Parties

Existed for a long time

• Green Party, Libertarian Party

Types of Third Parties: Single Issue Minor Parties

Ideological parties, exist to promote a particular agenda

• National Rifle Association

Types of Third Parties: Candidate Centered Minor Parties

Formed around candidates

• Jesse Ventura

Types of Third Parties: Fusion Minor Parties

Alliance parties that engage in cross endorsement

• Liberal Party

• (Only permitted in 8 states)

Democratic Demographic

African Americas, Latinos (not Cubans), Asian Americans, Women, Jews, Low SES, lberals

Republican Demographic

White, Cubans, Men, White Catholics and Protestants, High SES, conservatives

Realignment Elections

Occurs when the majority party switches over. There is a new party in dominant ruling

• Occurs when issues separating parties becomes less prevalant

• New issue emerge and parties recenter around them

• Ex. Democrats and Republicans on Civil Rights in the 1960s

Interest Groups

Organized groups that attempt to influence politics, government policies, and programs

• Intermediaries linking people to government

• Lobby: Work for interest groups and try to get their agenda heard by elected officials

• Speak on behalf of members, mobilize citizens, hold officials accountable, etc.

Interest Groups: Business and Agricultural

Industry organizations, usually specific to companies

• Ex. American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers, Exxon

Interest Groups: Labor and Union Groups

AFL-CIO, pilots, teachers

Interest Groups: Professional Associations

AMA (Doctors)

Interest Groups: Public Interest Groups

Groups that claim they serve the general public good rather than their own particular interest

• Consumer protection

Interest Groups: Ideological

Religious, libertarian, conservative, liberal

Interest Groups: Public Sector

Universities, think tanks, research lobbies

• Think tanks: A research institute or organization that studies specific problems and provides advice and/or solutions

Pluralism

Theory that citizens connect to the government through interest groups that compete in the public sphere

• Interest groups invigorate marketplace of ideas

Reasons for growth of interest groups

• Expansion of government: Groups form in favor or against different government actions

• New Politics: New surge in public interest in the 1960s-70s centered around the Vietnam war and the Civil Rights movement

* Shift from economic concerns to broad societal issue

• Technology

What makes interest groups successful?

Assets ($), Objectives (Are their goals easy to accomplish?), Alliances (Cooperation between groups), Visibility of Policy Involvement (Typically groups that are more hush-hush are successful because it is hard to build opposition against them)

Iron Triangle

Congressional Committees, Bureaucratic Agency, and Interest Group

• Ex. Veteran Committees, US Department for Veteran Affairs, and Veteran Groups

Rules about Lobbying

• All lobbyists must register as such

• Business and trade associations cannot write off lobbying expenses

• No gifts over $50

• Disclosure rules

Federal Election Commission (FEC) oversees most of it

Direct Lobbying

An attempt by a group to influence the policy process through persuasion of public officials

• Ex. Meetings, fund-raising for parties, etc.

What makes lobbyists successful?

Access to members of Congress (policy-makers) and Information

American Association of Retired Persons (AARP)

Started as a group to help retired teachers purchase affordable life insurance

• More than 37 million members

• In favor of legislation that benefits seniors and the elderly

National Rifle Association (NRA)

The National Rifle Association of America is nonprofit that advocates for gun rights

How is Congress organized?

Bicameral legislature with elected officials (Connecticut Compromise)

House of Representatives: Population-based

• Decided by the districts

• Two-year terms (no term limits)

• 435 seats currently

Senate: Equal representation

• States decide

• Longer terms

• 100 seats

* Senates have to be more open because it is a much more broad position

Which party controls the House and Senate?

Both chambers are controlled by the Republican party

House of Representatives: Mike Johnson

Senate: John Thune and JD Vance

JD Vance

Republican Vice President of the Senate

Mike Johnson

Republican Speaker of the House

John Thune

Republican Majority Leader of the Senate

Sociological Representattion

Shares the demographic traits, experiences, and interests with constituents

Agency Representation

Representative has electoral incentive to act on constituent interests

House Leadership

Speaker of the House: Mike Johnson (R)

Majority Leader: Steve Scalise (R)

Minority Leader: Hakeem Jefferies

Steve Scalise

Republican Majority Leader of the House

Hakeem Jefferies

Democrat Minority Leader of the House

Senate Leadership

Vice President: JD Vance (R)

President Pro Tempore: Chuck Grassley (R)

• Member of the majority party with the longest continuous term in the Senate

Majority Leader: John Thune (R)

Minority Leader: Chuck Schumer (D)

Chuck Schumer

Democrat Minority Leader of the Senate

Chuck Grassley

Republican President Pro Tempore of the Senate

Where is legislation written mostly?

Standing committee

Select Committees

Handles a specific issue–cannot present bills to the chamber

Joint Committees

Form by members from both chambers (House & Senate)

Conference Committees

Conference committees are formed to write the final wording when both chambers pass similar bills

How does a bill become a law?

1. A bill is proposed and sponsored by a member of Congress

2. The bill is given a number and assigned to a committee

3. Congressional committee rewrites legislation to in corporate the changes

4. Committee writes the language of the bill

5. The bill is sent to the floor

Filibuster

Unlimited discussion in the Senate about a bill that delays or blocks the vote

• Can be ended via cloture or a 3/5 majority rule (60/100)

Impeachment: House of Representatives

Votes on whether the accused ought to be impeached

• Majority vote → Impeachment

Impeachment: Senate

Hears evidence and votes to convict or remove the person from office

• 2/3 vote requires to convict

* Not just the case for Presidents (A. Johnson, Clinton, and Trump)

Who represents this area in the House?

Troy Nehls (R), Randy Weber (R), and Al Green (D)

Troy Nehls

Republican representative for this district in the House

Randy Weber

Republican representative for this district in the House

Al Green

Democrat representative for this district in the House

Who are the Texas Senators?

Senior Senator John Cornyn (R) and Junior Senator Ted Cruz (R)

119th Congress’ Demographics

• Older median age of 57.5 (Nation is 38.5)

• 26% of voting members identify with non-hispanic white

  • Most ethnically diverse to dat

Qualifications to run for President

• At least 35 years old

• Natural-born citizen

• 14 years of US residency prior to taking office

Roles of the President

Chief Legislator: Initiate policy, sign/veto legislation, convene special sessions of Congress

Chief Administrator: Implement policy, supervise executive branch, appoint and remove executive officials, and prepare executive budget

Chief of State: Engage with foreign leaders, grant pardons and amnesties, appoint federal court and Supreme Court justices

Chief Diplomat: Makes treaties, exercise the power of diplomatic recognition, make executive agreements

Commander-in-Chief: Command US Armed Forces

Executive Order

Formal pronouncement governing the executive branch’s operations–does not require Congressional approval

Line of Succession

1. Vice President

2. Speaker of the House

3. President Pro Tempore of the Senate

4. Secretary of State

5. Secretary of Treasury

Which Presidents were born in Texas?

Dwight D. Eisenhower and Lyndon B. Johnson

Which Presidents were from Texas?

George W. Bush and George H.W. Bush

Policy Identification

Recognition of a problem and awareness

Agenda Setting

Public Agenda: Public is knowledgable of the issue

Government Agenda: Institutions of the Government

Policy Formulation

Occurs when the government actively considers the problem

Policy Adoption

Occurs when an actual decision has been made or legislation passes

Policy Implementation

When goals are translated to an ongoing program

Policy Evaluation

Evaluating how well the policy worked