GVPT170 Final Exam

Federalist No. 78

argument by Alexander Hamilton that the federal judiciary would be unlikely to infringe upon rights and liberties but would serve as a check on the other two branches

Supreme Court

Consists of nine justices, each appointed by the President and confirmed by Congress. Appointment is for life. Supreme Court exercises the power to determine constitutionality of statutes

Judicial Review

Allows the court to determine the constitutionality of laws

Supreme Court Justices

9 justices, lifetime appointment, nominated by the president,approved by the Senate

State Judicial Selection

varies by state, i.e. gubernatorial, partisan election, nonpartisan elections, merit/Missouri plans

Agenda Control

SCOTUS hears 60-80 cases a year, and can dismiss a case for any or no reason at any time

Original Jurisdiction

the power of a court to hear a case first, before any other court

Appellate Jurisdiction

The authority of a court to review decisions made by lower courts

Writ of Certiorari

A formal writ used to bring a case before the Supreme Court.

Rule of Four

At least four justices of the Supreme Court must vote to consider a case before it can be heard

General Decision Process

I. Agenda setting/screening petitionsII. Briefs and Oral ArgumentsIII. Conference Discussion of Argued CasesIV. Opinion Assignment and Crafting of OpinionsV. Opinion Announcement

Opinion

a detailed explanation of the legal thinking behind a court's decision in a case

Majority Opinion

a statement that presents the views of the majority of supreme court justices regarding a case

Dissenting Opinion

A statement written by a justice who disagrees with the majority opinion, presenting his or her opinion

Concurrent Opinion

A statement explaining why a justice agrees with the decision of the court, but for reasons different from those stated in the majority opinion.

Stare Decisis

Let the decision stand; decisions are based on precedents from previous cases

Public Opinion

those opinions held by private persons which governments find it prudent to heed

Micro Public Opinion

public opinion of the average individual

Macro Public Opinion

public opinion of an entire electorate (behaves reasonably, cancels out individual noise and error)

Static Public Opinion

public opinion at a fixed moment in time

Dynamic Public Opinion

public opinion measured in movements over time

Random Sampling

a sample that fairly represents a population because each member has an equal chance of inclusion

Key Components of Random Sampling

randomness of a sample, sampling errors, the wording of questions, response rate, and intensity measurement

Attitudes

they form survey responses; sometimes elaborate/consistent, more often loose/rudimentary

Framing

when the way an issue is posed affects the way it is answered

Priming

the activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing one's perception, memory, or response

Key Considerations in Public Opinion

group attachments (race, gender, income, education), political socialization, economic conditions, religious beliefs, and PID

PID

a person's ingrained loyalty to a political party and emotional attachments to it

Online Processing

the ability to receive and evaluate information as events happen, allowing us to remember our evaluation even if we have forgotten the specific events that caused it

Political Ideology

a more or less consistent set of beliefs about what policies government ought to pursue

Liberal

favors more active government intervention

Conservative

favors less active government intervention

Cross-Cutting

when an issue causes one cleavage to overlap with another over a social issue (the Civil Rights Era saw an end this when political parties aligned themselves with social beliefs)

Thermostatic Change

the amount of liberalism in the United States fluctuates, often against the party of the president

Symbolic Ideology

the ideological label that people use to describe themselves

Operation Ideology

the ideological label applied to people based on their true beliefs and views

Main Perspectives on Campaigns

press, advertising/professional strategists, and political science

Information Flow

the goal of campaigns; citizens start to tune in and are affected by campaign information and the state of the nation

Debates

little evidence to show they greatly affect voters' minds during a campaign, but they are an important campaign tradition

Presidential Approval

affected by four main characteristics: crisis, economy, honeymoon, and equilibration

Trust in Government

follows general approval rates, significantly related to Congress and the President

The Passionate

voters who have already made up their minds about an election

The Uninvolved

voters (or nonvoters) who are random statistical noise in elections

The Scorekeepers

voters who shift from party to party and affect public opinion heavily (independents/moderates)

Negative Campaigning

The act of attacking an opposing candidate's platform, past political performance, or personal characteristics.

Electoral Mobilization

an election strategy that relies on getting a candidate's supporters to the polls

Incumbency

what causes some candidates to have a significant advantage over their opponent before a race begins (tied to their position)

Voting

links public opinion to government officials and government policy

Considerations of Rational Voting

I. Probability one's vote will matter in an electionII. How much one cares about the outcome of an electionIII. The cost of voting

Low Turnout

causes policy to respond to a wealthier, older electorate that isn't fully representative of all eligible voters

Political Parties

widely considered a threat to good government and public order (i.e. Madison's 'factions')

Electoral System

it is single member, winner-takes-all

Regular Change

widespread change in the dominant party control in government over time

Abrupt Change

party changes caused by divisive issues in society, usually within 1-2 election cycles

Durable Changes

unseen since the Civil Rights era, historically many years between changes in party systems

Enforcement Power

the ability to ensure laws and precedents are followed; lacking in the Judicial Branch

Briefs

written litigant documents submitted prior to oral arguments

Amicus Curiae

briefs submitted by/from an external party for oral arguments

Oral Arguments

strictly-timed sections of a Supreme Court hearing, where each side is allotted thirty minutes and Justices can interrupt with questions

Press

a perspective in elections: daily observations by the public online, in print, and on TV

Advertising and Professional Strategists

a perspective in elections: all about the image of the candidate and the wider campaign

Political Science

a perspective in elections: the state of the country and the economy, known as “the facts”

Third Parties

organizations that have little national influence, but can still sway major elections (i.e. the 1912 and 2000 presidential elections)

Short-Term Changes

public opinion changes caused by scandals, news cycles, speeches, and crises

Long-Term Changes

public opinion changes caused by economic conditions and gradual shifts in the prevailing ideological sentiment of the mass public

Best Methods of Random Sampling

sampling using phone surveys, random address selection, and academic polls

Article III

within the Constitution, extremely vaguely forms the Judicial Branch