Gov- Unit 3

What is politics?

The activities relating to governing a country ( or other body) especially the debate among individuals or groups that hold or want to hold power

Political spectrum

A tool used to visually compare political positions by placing the positions on one or more axes

• left, center, right ( in that order)

What does the spectrum tell us?

1. How much change in government a person is willing to allow ( and how fast that change should take place)

2. How much the government should intervene, or get involved in the lives of people ( ex. the economy)

General assumptions of left

• more government intervention

• gradual - rapid change in government/ society

• government action to change social or political things believed to be unfair

General assumptions of right

• less government intervention

• little to no change in status quo

• traditional values

• limited government

Order of common spectrum

Left: Radical, liberal, moderate, conservative, reactionary : Right

Radical

• revolution

• far left of the political spectrum

• Call for wide sweeping rapid change

• May be willing to resort to extreme methods to bring about change ( violence) Li

Liberal

• Active government

• gradual change within the existing political system

• reject violent revolution

Moderate

share viewpoints with both liberals and conservatives

Tolerant

Average>extreme

“ wait and see”

Conservative

• Favor keeping things where they are, or maintaining status quo

• Hesitant or cautious about adopting new policies especially if they mean government intervention

• Limited government

Reactionary

• Far right

• “ good ol days”

• Extreme methods such as repressive use of government power to achieve their goals

Populist

• Claims to represent the interests of ordinary people

• Empathizing with the public ( usually through rhetoric or unrealistic proposals) in order to increase appeal across the political spectrum

• Can be on left or on right

Libertarian

• Seek to maximize autonomy and freedom of choice, emphasizing political freedom, voluntary association, and individual judgment

• Difficult to place on political spectrum

Issue: Immigration/ ICE

Liberal: gone too far, call for the abolition of ICE, are more welcoming of letting people into the country

Conservative: Strong support of ICE and closing the boarder

Issue: Abortion

Liberal: Pro-choice, in favor of abortion being legal nationwide

Conservative: Pro-life, abortion should be illegal in most if not all cases

Issue: gun rights/ gun control

Liberal: More in favor of implementing gun laws/ stricter restrictions

Conservative: Owning a gun is their right under the constitution

Issue: Healthcare

Liberal: views healthcare as a basic human right, want the government to get involved w/systems, expanding public coverage

Conservative: Privatized care over government systems, free market competition

Issue: environment

Liberal: Want to put systems in place to try to combat climate change

Conservative: Don’t see climate change as top priority, want what will benefit their business even if it means hurting the environment

Issue: Education

Liberal: Increased funding for education ( higher salaries for teachers, better facilities, etc), student loan relief, separating education/ religion

Conservative: School choice in curriculum, parental oversight and regulations in what is taught

Issue: Data centers

Liberals: Disagree with environmental effects of these data centers ( water use, energy use, etc)

Conservative: Focus on competitiveness of A.I. worldwide, looks more at the benefits of A.I.

Issue: Drug legalization

Liberal: Supports cannabis legalization, decriminalization of possession of drugs, harm reduction

Conservative: Opposes drug legalization, strict enforcement,

Issue: Gov+ Religion

Liberal: Church and state separation, equal opportunity for everyone despite religious beliefs

Conservative: Religious expression in aspects of public life, organizations to operate with religious values

Issue: Iran War

Liberal: Prevent conflict/ big military moves, diplomatic solutions, congressional authorization

Conservative: Strong military moves, maximum pressure policies

Issue: Taxes

Liberals: progressive tax rates on higher earners to help funding

Conservatives: Lower tax rates to support finical freedom

Issue: LGBTQ rights

Liberals: anti discrimination, healthcare and resources for trans people

Conservatives: Traditional values, little to no resources for trans people

Issue: welfare

Liberal: views safety net programs as vital

Conservative: factors requirements for able bodied people, want to get away from government programs as to not become dependent

Issue: Voter ID

Liberal: opposes strict voting laws, are in support of different ways of voting

Conservatives: Strict voting laws/ who can vote, don’t like other ways of voting as to prevent fraud

Issue: Gov regulation

Liberal: strong regulation to protect workers from exploration

Conservatives: exclusive regulation, want government to butt out of business/ affairs

What is a political party?

a group of people with broad common interests and beliefs

• loosely formed around political ideologies

• Party members hold a range of views within the general framework ( ie, liberal v conservative, democrats or republicans)

Why did they organize to elect candidates to public office?

So they can

• control government

• influence public policy

What are the major political party functions?

• Developing a platform (issues to run on)

• Recruiting candidates to run for office

• Enlisting support from donors and volunteers

• Communicating a campaign message

• - GOTV ( getting out the vote)

Democrat ( basic knowledge)

Spectrum location: Left

Symbol: Donkey

Color: Blue

Republican aka Grand old party

Location of spectrum: Right

Symbol: Elephant

Color: Red

Democrat ( history)

• Oldest of the parties

• Democratic- republicans was one of the original political parties in the country

• With the election of John Quincy Adams in 1824 the Democratic Republican party split

• - supporters of Jackson= the democrats

Republican Party ( history)

• Formed in 1854 youngest major party

• Whig party dissolved; anti slavery members to meet to discuss new party

• The republican party is formed ; supported in north

• Lincoln elected in 1860 as first Republican president

One party system

A single political party controls the government. Other parties may or many not be allowed to operate, but they usually have no power.

ex. North Korea, Russia, China

Two party system

Two major parties compete to control the government

ex. The United States

Multiparty system

several parties compete for control. MOST COMMON

American Third Parties

• refers to political parties that are not Democrats or Republicans

• Represents ideas and stances that are different than the democrats or republicans

• Attempt to force the 2 major parties to focus on certain issues

• Rarely win elections

Green Party

• Very far left

• Strengthen environmental protection and social justice

Libertarian

• To the left

• Total individual freedom

• Pro: guns, choice, gay, drugs

Reform

• to the right

• Fiscally conservative

• Thinks government should stay out of social issues

Constitution

• Very right

• CONSERVATIVE

• Pro: gun, life

• Anti: gay, tax

Closed list

You vote for a party, not a candidate

ex. Spain

Open List

you vote for a person and your vote counts towards a larger party total determining how many seats a party gets

ex. Finland, Belgium, Denmark

Mixed- member proportional

You cast 2 votes, one for a person and one for a party. each district elects the 1 person and the rest of the reps spots are divided proportionally

ex. Germany

Ranked Choice

You rank multiple candidates. If your first choice is unpopular, they use your second choice. This continues until a candidate passes a required threshold

ex. Ireland, Some U.S. cities and states

Winner takes all ( in elections)

The idea that the candidate who wins/ their party gets all the representation, and they control everything.

What is an interest group?

• members who hold similar views on public issues

• Encourage or prevent changes in public policy through political processes

• Not trying to be elected

• ( aka advocacy group, lobbying group, pressure group or special interest group)

What does an interest group do?

• Engage in lobbying ( lobbyist)

  • conduct activities to persuade public officials to pass or defeat laws that reflect their positions

  • Endorse candidates

  • Donate: give money to candidates for office who support their positions ( through political action committees)

Lobbyist

an employee of an interest group who engages in lobbying activities

Lobbyists strategy…(SI)

SUPPLY INFO

• Help government officials make decisions using insider strategy

• Detailed, current answers to technical questions

• Provide political cues and ratings

• Work w/ favorable, undecided leaders

Lobbyists strategy…(GPS)

GENERATE PUBLIC SUPPORT

• ignite the "grassroots”

• Attack strategy

• Public pressure on leaders

  • Direct mail or publicity

How do interest groups and lobbyists connect to 1st amendment

• B/c they go to Washington/ other political places and speak freely for those who might not have a chance to

How many lobbyists work in Washington/ how much money is spent a year on lobbying?

• 11,500

• $$$ 3.5 billion

Sketchy lobbyists behavior

• By giving campaign contributions to legislators they hope to persuade

• Arranging junkets for legislators they want to persuade ( trips, etc)

Why have lobbyists gained a new importance?

There have been a decent amount of budget cuts in congressional offices and they are relying more on lobbyists for their info and expertise

The media

Plural of the word “medium”which is a method of communicating info, entertainment, or other messages

What does media refer to

The sources of our news and info about current events

Media constitutional connection

Amendment 1

• freedom of speech or the press ( protected)

Role of media- Gatekeeper

• decides which stories and issues are important enough to receive public attention and which aren't

Role of media- Agenda setter

the media is largely responsible for deciding what issues society discusses sphere (tied to its role as gatekeeper)

Role of media- Watchdog

Keeps watch on the government and others in power (C-SPAN)

The media is a business. What does this mean?

With the exception of PBS, most are commercial or non profit sources. They sell time or space to advertisers. These advertisers want their ads to be seen by as many people as possible ( EXCITING NEWS)

The media is biased. What does this mean?

The media is made up of human being who have political leanings. News outlets can also have political leanings.

Public opinion polling

measurement of public opinion often conducted by mail, telephone or online surveys

Universe

group of people being studied

e.g. all registered voters in Ohio, All juniors at TWHS

Representative Sample

small group of people typical of the universe

Most important reason for polling in politics?

Polls can help guide elected officials to better serve the public

Media outlets

to predict the future; report election trends; gauge popularity of politicians, issues and ideas, etc

Election related polls

survey of voters exiting their polling place; used to predict the winner of elections before voters are counted and to understand voter motivation/trends

Candidates/ campaigns

to test campaign messages; identify likely groups of supporters and opponents; track progress

ex. poli rad speaker

Polls help people look at

public opinion

What factors make a likely voter?

1. already voted ( last election)

2. thought about election

3. plan to vote

When looking at polls, you should consider the…

source

Good electoral poll will have

a. a random sample

b.properly ordered questions

c. representative sample

What is the ultimate poll?

the election

Margin of error

A statistical measurement of how much results are likely to differ from the universe

What do we need to keep in mind about sample size?

If its too large of too small

1,000- 1,500