POLS 207 Exam #1

What is the policymaking system? 

How policy comes into being and evolves over time.

Our government is a policymaking system, it is set up for us to get involved every _____ years.

We get to…

Set up for us to get involved at least every 2 yrs,

We get to voice our opinion to the govt which allows citizens to influence decisions through voting and participation in democratic processes.

List the 5 steps of the policymaking system cycle.

1. People

2. Linkage institutions

3. Policymaking institutions

4. Policies

5. Policy implementation and evaluation

What is the role of people in the policymaking system?

People voice…

• Issues

• Concerns

• Problems

What is the difference between Law and Policy?

• Law: (AKA ordinances) authoritatively binding decisions passed by a legislative body

• Policy: How we enforce laws

• Law is a formal, binding rule established by legislation, while policy encompasses the strategies and actions implemented to enforce and adhere to those laws.

Which is the only branch of government permitted to make laws?

The legislative branch, consisting of Congress, is the only branch of government permitted to make laws. It is responsible for drafting, debating, and enacting legislation.

What are some linkage institutions? (5) What is the role of linkage institutions?

1. Public opinion

2. Media

3. Political parties

4. Interest groups

5. Elections

Linkage institutions are entities that connect citizens to the government, helping to ensure that public preferences are heard and considered in the policymaking process.

List some of the policymaking institutions.(3) What are policymaking institutions?

1. State legislature

2. Executive and Bureaucracy

3. Judiciary (the Courts)

Policymaking institutions are the branches of government that create, implement, and interpret laws and policies, crucial for governing and decision-making in society.

What is the definitition of government we will use in this class? Give a defining characteristic of our government.

Definition: the institutions that make authoritatively binding decisions for society

Defining characteristic: the government has legitimate use of force, but they must also have the consent of the governed.

Describe the role of the three branches of government in Law-making

• Legislative (congress): responsible for creating laws

• Judiciary (courts): interpret the laws

• Executive (President): enforces the laws

What are some of the major policy topics in the policymaking system?

• Fiscal

• Education

• Social services

What is fiscal policy? Monetary policy?

Fiscal: Management of money by the government

Monetary: Management of money supply and interest rates by a central bank.

What is a simple reason for inflation? ______makes laws that regulate economic activity affecting inflation, such as _______ and ______.

Reason: Too much money chasing too few goods (fiscal policy can affect this as well, too many taxes, too few taxes)

Congress makes laws that regulate economic activity affecting inflation, such as taxation and government spending.

What is a bond election? Does the federal government have these?

A bond election is a voting process where the public decides whether to approve the issuance of state debt. The federal government does not have bond election, does not need to ask permission to go into debt.

What are the two largest categories for the government to spend money? Followed far behind by? Over ____% of the entire Texas budget is spent on ______.

1. Education

2. Social services

3. Transportation

4. Criminal justice

50%, Education.

Who decides when a policy needs to be tweaked or whether or not a policy is working?

The people!

The policymaking/policy implementation cycle is a _______. This cycle is how…

Feedback loop, it is constant and ongoing.

How our government works at all levels.

What is political culture?

Broadly shared values, beliefs, and attitudes about how government and society should function.

What is the democratic peace theory?

Mature democracies do not fight other mature democracies.

What are the 3 categories of political culture in the US, according to political scientist D.E.?

• Moralistic

• Individualistic

• Traditionalistic

Daniel Elezar

Where did moralistic political culture start? What is the view of moralistic political culture? Where do we see this modern day?

Started in New England States/ colonies

View: Government is for everyone; everyone should be involved. The government helps man search for the good of society. To this end, the government should push for political, economic, and social change and be very active in doing so.

Modern day: New England states, Midwest, Oregon, and California.

Where did Individualistic political culture start? What is the view of Individualistic political culture? Where do we see this modern day?

Started in Mid Mid-Atlantic states

View: Stresses reliance on the individual, not on the government, which is seen as an added entity. The government should supply itself when people demand it. Large emphasis on limited government.

Modern day: very prevalent in every part of Texas.

Where did Traditionalistic political culture start? What is the view of traditionalistic political culture? Who is politics for according to this view? Where do we see this modern day?

Started in the southern states

View: Stresses networking and political ties. More about who you know than what you know. Politics is more for the elite than the masses

Modern day: a mix of individualistic and traditionalistic culture in Texas, goes to explain low voter turnout.

Describe Texas’s political culture.

Texas is a mix of individualistic and traditionalistic cultures.

• Low tax, low service (top 5 least taxed states in the US, no income tax)

• Dominated by business and special interests (tech, health care, oil)

What is government?

The institutions that make authoritatively binding decisions for society.

What is politics? Harold Laswell’s definition?

The process through which these authoritatively binding decisions are made

• HL: Who gets what, when and how.

• Who: All of us in the various groups we belong to

• What: The substance of a policy or law

• When not all laws go into effect at the same time, now all parts of a law go into effect at the same time.

• How: How we participate.

There are two ways to participate in government and politics. Name and describe each.

Conventional: voting, running for office, working on political campaigns

Unconventional: Protest, boycotts, civil disobedience.

What is the comparative study of states and communities? (2)

States provide excellent…

• Describes politics and public policy, and explains the differences from state to state and community to community

• Analyzes socioeconomic and political environments to arrive at explanations

• States and communities provide excellent laboratories for comparative analysis

What are some of the things we can compare between states and communities (two large categories).

Socioeconomic factors

• Education

• Income

• Race and ethnic composition

Ideologies

• Liberalism

• Conservativism

Is Texas a Democrat or Republican state? Why might there be clashing in Texas politics?

Republican after the 90s.

The demographics of the state would seem to favor the Democrats; the structure favors Republicans

What is ideology?

A cohesive and coherent set of ideas about how the government should function in relation to the people

• What is the relationship between the government and the governed?

What are the two main ideologies in the US? Describe each.

• Liberalism: A state’s tendency to expand welfare benefits, regulate business, adopt progressive state income taxes, and generally use government to achieve social change

• Conservatism: A state’s tendency to limit welfare benefits, deregulate business, keep taxes low, and generally place less reliance on government and more reliance on individuals and the marketplace to achieve social goals.

Constitutionalism is synonymous with ________.

Limited government.

• Having a true constitution limits the government. An authoritarian regime may have a constitution, but not a true one.

• Sets up negative rights: says what the government CANNOT do.

All 50 states have consitutions. The state consitutions… (5)

• Govern governments

• Set government structure and organization

• Distribute powers among branches of the government

• Prescribe the rules by which decisions are made

• Limit the powers of government and protect the rights of citizens.

Describe the background of constitutions.

Where do state consitutions stand legally?

Limited govt: In our political heritage, the power of government over the individual is clearly limited, with aspects of life government cannot regulate or interfere with.

Legal Status: State constitutions are the supreme law of the state and only subordinate to the US Constitution, laws of Congress, and national treaties.

What is the first instance of a document that limits the power of a monarchy?

The Magna Carta.

The US has the oldest version of…

A written consitution.

In the US Constitution, there is a supremacy clause with 3 laws of the land:

1. There is nothing higher than the constitution

2. Laws of congress/ national laws cannot violate the Constitution

3. Treaties of the US can be negotiated and signed by the president, but states cannot have treaties

What is a crisis sparked by John C Calhoun? What document did he write?

• John C. Calhoun, who was Vice President under Andrew Jackson, wrote the "South Carolina Exposition and Protest" in 1828.

  • In it, he argued that states had the right to nullify (i.e., invalidate) any federal law they deemed unconstitutional.

  • This idea sparked the Nullification Crisis (1832–33), when South Carolina attempted to nullify a federal tariff.

  • 🔴 Important: This concept was not legally valid then, and it remains unconstitutional today under the Supremacy Clause (U.S. Constitution, Article VI).

• At the time, Calhoun's pamphlet was motivated largely by tensions over slavery and economic policy, particularly in the Southern states.

What is the Dred Scot decision

• A Supreme Court decision that denied citizenship to African Americans and ruled Congress had no power to ban slavery in U.S. territories.

• This decision outraged the North and is widely seen as the "straw that broke the camel's back," pushing the nation closer to the Civil War.

What is democracy?

Popular participation in government.

What is direct democracy?

People themselves can initiate and decide policy questions by the popular vote.

What is republicanism?

Involves direct decision making by representatives of the people.

Direct democracy developed in states and communities following strong populist and progressive reform movements. Describe this (3) (Created a range of devices to… Supported ____, ____, and ____, were responsible for the adoption of…)

The populist and progressive reform movement…

• Introduced a range of devices to bypass political institutions and encourage direct participation

• Supported women’s suffrage, civil service, and restrictive immigration

• were responsible for the adoption of the three forms of direct democracy.

What are the three forms of direct democracy?

Initiative, referendum, and recall.

What is initiative (direct democracy)

A % of voters, using a petition, may have a law or amendment placed on the ballot without legislative involvement.

What is referendum (direct democracy)?

The electorate (voters) must approve legislative decisions before they become law. Allows voters to approve or reject a law or policy that has already been passed by the state legislature. It gives the public the final say before the law goes into effect.

What is recall (direct democracy)?

Allows voters to remove an elected official before the end of his or her term.

The US Constitution does not provide for direct democracy (initiative, referendum, recall), but there are some arguments that this would be effective. Describe the arguments for direct democracy.

• Enhances government responsiveness and accountability

• Stimulates debate about policy issues

• Increases trust in government and diminishes alienation

What is the argument for a representative democracy(a republic)?

Representative democracy better protects individual liberties and rights of minorities.

Name the 4 ways to change a state consitution.

Legislative proposal

Popular initiative

Constitutional convention

Constitutional revision commissions

What is a legislative proposal?

The most common method to change a state constitution: an amendment is passed by the legislature and put to the voters in a referendum.

Steps:

• The state legislature drafts and approves a proposed amendment

• Once passed, the amendment is placed on the ballot for voter approval in a referendum.

• If a majority of voters approve it, the amendment becomes part of the state constitution.

What is popular initiative?

Citizens can bypass the legislature for a direct vote if they obtain a requisite number of petition signatures (similar to initiative for direct democracy)

What is the most common method of changing a state consitution? Most successful?

Most common: Legislative proposal

Most successful: constitutional revision commissions

Describe the Texas constitution today.

Notoriously poor, outdated document (written 1876).

• overamended

• micromanages (opposite of broadly constructed laws)

• Easy to amend, difficult to completely replace

  • tack on laws easily

  • starting over would be very difficult

Describe the constitution of Coahuila and Tejas.

What did Mexico encourage? What did they ignore?

Settlers often ignored…

• Texas was combined with Coahuila to form the state of Coahuila y Tejas with its capital in Saltillo.

• Mexico encouraged U.S. immigration but turned a blind eye to:

  • Slavery (though technically abolished),

  • Military service (not enforced for white settlers),

  • Tax collection (easy to avoid).

• Problems emerged as laws were written in Spanish, which settlers didn’t understand and often ignored.

• Santa Anna eventually centralized power and led Mexico into civil conflict, causing tension with Texas.

Describe the events leading up to the Republic of Texas. What year was this? What did the new Texas constitution look like ? (3)

• Conflict sparked in Gonzales over Mexico’s demand to return a cannon — beginning of the Texas Revolution.

• During the Battle of the Alamo, Texas leaders met at Washington-on-the-Brazos.

• In 1836, Texas declared independence and adopted a constitution modeled after the U.S.

  • Slavery was protected.

  • Republic of Texas was established.

What is the context of the Texas State Constitution of 1845?

• James K. Polk, a proponent of Manifest Destiny, pushed for annexation.

• Mexico still claimed Texas, but the U.S. annexed it in 1845 as a slave state.

What are the key provisions in the Articles of Annexation for Texas? When did Texas cede their land?

• Texas could divide into up to 5 states (never happened).

• Texas had to manage its own pre-existing debt.

• Texas retained control of its public lands, unlike other states.

By 1851, Texas ceded land to the U.S. in exchange for debt relief, giving us the current state boundaries.

What was the Confederate Constitution of 1861? What decision sparked this? Who vocally opposed this? What did it explicity protect and forbid? Give some context for this as well.

• 1857- Dred scott decision deepened conflict over slavery

• In 1861, Texas seceded from the Union, despite vocal opposition from Sam Houston, who urged independence over joining the Confederacy.

• Texas then joined the Confederacy and adopted a new state constitution modeled after the Confederate Constitution, which closely resembled the U.S. Constitution but explicitly protected slavery and forbade the emancipation of enslaved people.

What is the constitution of 1866? Give some context for this as well.

• After Lincoln's assassination, and abolishment of slavery (1865) Radical Republicans took charge of Reconstruction.

• Constitution of 1866 attempted mild reconstruction but was rejected by Radical Republicans (NEVER GOES INTO EFFECT)

• Texas placed under martial law; Radical Republicans demanded public apologies and strict reforms.

Describe the reconstruction constitution of 1869 (4)

• centralized power in…

• governor could…

• Who opposed it?

• Who dominated state politics for the next few years?

In 1869, a new Reconstruction Constitution was written under Union control.

• Centralized power in Austin.

• Governor could appoint executive officials and judges.

• Democrats (mostly ex-Confederates) strongly opposed it.

• Republicans dominated state politics for the next few years.

Describe the E.J. Davis era. Who defeated him?

• E.J. Davis became governor in a disputed election.

  • Created a police force, jailed political enemies, ruled as a tyrant (in the eyes of many).

• Reconstruction damaged the Republican brand in Texas (E.J. Davis too extreme, he was a radical republican).

• Democrats regained voting rights and began dismantling Republican reforms.

• Texas became a Democratic one-party state for over a century.

• Richard Coke defeated Davis in 1873; Davis refused to leave office, leading to an armed standoff at the Capitol.

What was the need for the constitution of 1876? What are the four goals of this constitution?

Needed due to Governor Davis corruption and power imbalance allowed in 1869 constitution.

Four goals:

• Strong popular control of government

• Powers were to be limited (2 year terms for governors before people given a chance to reelect)

• Restrain spending

• Promote agricultural interests (don’t like big railroads, don’t like big banks)

Describe the processes involved in amending the Texas Constitution of Today (4 Steps).

• Legislature proposes amendments

• Then goes to attorney general’s office to make sure proposed amendments uphold the supremacy laws

• Then to secretary of state’s office to ensure paragraph on ballot will make sense

• A majority of state voters must approve

  • Majority of those who vote, turnout typically pretty low

  • Low number of actual votes needed

Large Apples Satiate Me

State governments have the responsibility to administer all of the following programs except (options: social security, unemployment compensation, medicaid, food stamps)

Social Security.

States have been called "laboratories of democracy" because

States often provide innovative solutions to social and economic problems.

Contracting of government services to private firms is referred to as

outsourcing

Philosophically, the Texas Constitution reflects a…

distrust of politicians and political power.

Those powers that are exclusively delegated to the national government are called

Enumerated powers.

The most significant expansion of constitutional power to the national government, as recognized in the McCulloch v. Maryland decision, was the broad interpretation of the (WHICH ARTICLE IS ALL YOU NEED TO REMEMBER NOW)

Necessary and Proper Clause.

• Even though the Constitution doesn't explicitly say Congress can create a bank, it does give Congress the power to make laws that are “necessary and proper” for carrying out its duties (Article I, Section 8 — the Necessary and Proper Clause).

• This affirmed implied powers — powers not explicitly listed but necessary to fulfill government functions

MvM: N&P Implied Powers.

M and Ms are never pink. I promise.

The Tenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution affirmed the

states' reserved powers.

On your 10th birthday, you want some more privileges.

Which of the following was not a goal for those writing the Texas Constitution?

• limits on the ability of the government to impose taxes

• restrictions on the power of the government to get into debt

• giving independence to the judiciary by making all judges appointed, instead of elected

• strong popular control of state government

• giving independence to the judiciary by making all judges appointed, instead of elected

What is federalism? Unitary? Confederation?

Federalism: shared power

Unitary: Centralized power

Confederation: Decentralized power

Why is federalism so important? (2 main reasons)

1. Decentralizes our politics

   a. more opportunities to participate

   b. We have a pluralistic government; there are many avenues through which we can participate.

2. Decentralizes our policies

   a. Federal and state governments handle different problems (states regulate drinking age, marriage, and speed limits)

   b. States can solve the same problem in different ways and tend to be policy innovators

Describe the Supremacy Clause

The following are supreme:

• The US Constitution

• Laws of Congress

• Treaties

What keeps the national government from usurping state powers despite the supremacy clause?

• What did this come from historically?

The tenth amendment: "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."

• This came out of the Massachusets compromise

Describe the significance of McCulloch v. Maryland

• Brought about the Necessary and proper clause (the constitution gives Congress the power to make laws that are necessary and proper, such as a national bank, in this context)

• Also established that states cannot tax/ control federal institutions because it violates the supremacy clause.

Explain the significance of Marbury vs. Madison

• Establishes judicial review: the power of the courts to authoritatively interpret the constitution , and declare laws unconstitutional

• Gave the judicial branch an equal role in checking the power of Congress and the president.

What is the significance of Gibbons v. Ogden?

• Commerce clause

• In Gibbons v. Ogden, the Court ruled that the federal government has exclusive power over interstate commerce, not the states. The case struck down a New York law that gave one steamboat operator a monopoly, ruling instead that only Congress could regulate trade between states under the Commerce Clause of the Constitution.

Gates over cattle cows.

What did the Civil war establish?

The federal government can tell the states what to do on a national level.

What is the significance of Brown vs. Board of Education?

The national government can tell the states what to do when it comes to the integration of public schools.

Name 3 of the States’ Obligations to each other.

1. Full faith and credit

2. Privileges and immunities

3. Extradition

Fall fairies create perfect indica elderflower

What is vertical federalism?

The relationship between the federal government, state governments, and local governments.

What is horizontal federalism? Which article of the constitution is this detailed in?

As detailed in article 4 of the constitution, this describes the relationships and obligations between states themselves.

Age 4 is when you learn to be fair to your friends.

What is “Full Faith and Credit”? What could this include? Where is this found in the constitution?

Each state must recognize and honor the civil legal decisions of other states, as well as the official documents and judgements.

This could include

• Money (currency of US)

• Bankruptcies

• Lawfully contracted debts

• * Divorces and marriages (This has been a point of contention.)

Article 4, Section 1 of the constitution

Why have divorces and marriages been a point of contention between states? Which act has been struck down?

Particularly regarding same-sex marriage, this issue was significantly impacted by the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) until its constitutional challenge, deemed unconstitutional because it conflicted with full faith and credit clause).

• DOMA allowed states to refuse same sex marriage and recognized marriage as the union between a man and a woman.

What are “Privileges and Immunities” that must be recognized between states? Where can this be found in the consitution?

Citizens of each state have privileges of citizens of other states.

This means…

If you're a U.S. citizen and you travel or move to another state, that state cannot treat you unfairly just because you're from somewhere else. You must be given the same basic rights and protections as its own citizens — especially for things like:

• Owning property

• Accessing courts

• Earning a living

Article 4, section 2

Example: If you live in Texas but drive into Oklahoma, they can't fine you more just for being an out-of-stater. However, some distinctions (like in-state vs. out-of-state tuition) are allowed because they are based on long-term residency, not discrimination.

What is extradition? What is the origin of this law? Does a statute of limitation apply?

States must return a person charged with a crime in another state to that state for punishment.

This principle, initially used to address slavery and fugitive slaves, remains relevant in modern interstate crime.

Statutes of limitations may or may not apply depending on the nature of the crime and whether a warrant has been issued.

When was Dual federalism prevalent? What is dual federalism?

• Prominent in the early years of the US

• A system of government in which both the states and the national government remain supreme within their own spheres, each responsible for some policies.

• analogous to a layer cake, with distinct layers representing federal and state authority

When was cooperative federalism prevalent? What is cooperative federalism? What analogy has this been compared to?

• Emerged during the great depression

• A system of government in which powers and policy assignments are shared between states and the national government

• Analogous to a marble cake, with intertwined layers representing shared authority and cooperation

• The Great Depression highlighted the limitation of state resources in addressing national crises, leading to increased federal involvement.

What is fiscal federalism? Which amendment played a crucial role in the shift toward cooperative and fiscal federalism?

The pattern of spending, taxing, and providing grants in the federal system

• This is a subtype of cooperative federalism that emphasizes the use of federal funds (through taxing, spending, and grants) to influence state and local policies.

The 16th Amendment: "The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census or enumeration."

Remember 16 because that is the age you can start working for money.

Fiscal federalism consists of ______ and ______ systems.

The Grant System: distributing the federal pie

The federal mandate system

What are the two main types of federal grants? Name the subtypes as well. 4 total.

Categorical grants: federal grants that can be used for specific purposes; grants with strings attached

• Project grants: Competitive grants based on merit

• Formula grants: distributed based on pre-established formulas that consider factors like population, need, and cost of living (ex. social security)

Block grants: federal grants given more or less automatically to support broad programs. Gives states greater flexibility in how they spend the funds.

What are mandates? Two types?

Mandates direct states or local governments to comply with federal rules under threat of penalties or as a condition of receipt of a federal grant

• Funded mandates: the federal government mandates a program and provides the necessary funding to states for implementation.

• The federal government mandates a program without providing any funding, placing the financial burden entirely on state and local government (e.g., No Child Left Behind, clean air and water act, americans with disabilities act

What could the result be of unfunded mandates?

The financial pressure of unfunded mandates can force states to make difficult budgetary decisions.

Describe what happened during the Great Recession with block grants.

During the Great Recession, the federal government offered states block grants as part of a stimulus package.  Some states, notably Texas, initially refused these funds, only to later accept them due to significant budget shortfalls. This highlights the complex interplay between federal aid and state financial realities.

There are 3 types of local governments. Name an describe each.

• Counties: these vary significantly in structure and responsibilities depending on the state and population density

• Municipalities (Cities and Towns): Provide essential services such as fire and police protection, often manage utilities

• Special districts: Single-purpose governmental units focused on specific issues such as schools, water, hospitals, or utilities. There are over 50,000 special districts in the US, with school districts making up a substantial portion.

Describe the responsibilities and importance of local government.

• Responsible for providing services to their residents.

• Understanding their structure is crucial for navigating local issues and accessing services

Describe the geographic consideration of local governments

City limits and county jurisdictions often overlap; unincorporated areas are governed by the county 

• This often leads to situations where services are provided by different levels of government even in a seemingly single geographic area.