AP Gov - Ch. 1

Many Americans - especially young people - are _______ about politics and government.

apathetic

A tremendous gap has opened up between the young ( defined as under age *) and the elderly ( defined as over* _ ) on measures of political interest, knowledge, and participation.

25,65

____________ has a substantial impact on the lives of all of us.

government

Government consists of those institutions that make authoritative ______ for society as a whole.

public policies

What are the four key institutions that make policy at the national level?

congress, president, the courts, and federal administrative agencies ( bureaucracy )

Regardless of how they assumed power, all governments have certain functions in _______

common

Governments maintain national ________

defense

Governments provide public _______ - things that everyone can share, such as clean air.

goods

Governments have police powers to provide _____ - as when the National Guards help in a crisis.

order

Police provide _____ . such as during a protest.

protection

Governments _______ the young into the political culture - typically through practices such as reciting the Pledge of Allegiance at school.

socialize

Governments collect taxes to ______ the services they provide.

pay for

Politics determines whom we select as ______ and what ______ they pursue.

governmental leaders, policies

Harold D. Lasswell defined politics as “ ___ gets __ __,__ when , and ____.”

who, what, how

Political participation refers to the ways in which people get _____ in politics.

involved

_______ groups are interest groups whose members will vote on a single issue, such as pro life and pro choice groups that ignore a politicians stand on everything except abortion.

single-issue

A policy making system is the _____ by which policy comes into being and evolves over time.

process

In a democratic society, parties, elections, interest groups and the media are key _________ between preferences of citizens and the governments policy agenda.

linkage institutions

What is the acronym to remember the linkage institutions and what do they stand for?

P - political parties I - interest groups M - media sources E - elections

When people confront government officials with problems they expect them to solve, they are trying to influence the governments policy _____ .

agenda

A political ______ arises when people disagree about a problem or about a public policy choice.

issue

The end product of government and politics is public ______.

policy

Policymakers stand at the core of the political system, working within the three policy making _____ established by the US Constitution: the congress, the presidency, and the courts.

institutions

Policy ______ are the effects policy has on people and on society’s problems.

impacts

There are many types of public policies, including congressional ______ , presidential actions, court decisions, budgetary choices and regulations.

statutes

Having a policy implies a ____: people who raise a policy issue usually want a policy that works.

goal

Translating people’s desires into public policy is crucial to the workings of _______ .

democracy

Policies can be established through _____ as well as action.

inaction

The ____ writers of the US constitution were suspicious of democracy.

writers

In his gettysburg address, Abe Lincoln defined democracy as “ government __ the people, *the people, and _ the people.*

of, by, for

The basic definition used throughout the Government course is: democracy is a means of ___ __policymakers and of__ ______ government so that policy represents and responds to the public’s preferences.

selecting, organizing

Traditional democratic ____ rests upon several principles that specify how a democratic government makes its decisions.

theory

Democratic theorist ______ refers to five criteria that are essential for “ an ideal democratic process”

Robert Dahl

Equality in _____ - the principle of “ one person, one vote “ is basic to democracy.

voting

Effective participation- political participation must be _____ . 

representative

_______ understanding - free press and free speech are essential to civic understanding.

enlightened

Citizen control of the ____ - citizens should have the collective right to control the governments policy agenda.

agenda

_______ - with few exceptions, rights must be extended to all who are under the laws of a nation.

Inclusion

In addition, democracies must practice ____ __and preserve__ ___ .

majority rules, minority rights

The relationship between the few leaders and the many followers is one of ________ .

representation

The closer the ____ __between representatives and their electoral majority, the closer the__ ______ to democracy.

correspondence, approximation

Most americans also feel that it is vital to protect ____ rights, such as freedom of speech.

minority

What are the three contemporary theories of American democracy?

Pluralist theory, elite and class theory, and hyper-pluralism

______ theory contends that many centers of influence compete for power and control.

Pluralist

Groups ______ with one another for control over public policy, with no one group or set of groups dominating.

compete

There are multiple access points to our government, with power dispersed among the various ______ and levels of government.

branches

Bargaining and ______ are essential ingredients of our democracy and should be practiced whenever possible.

compromise

Electoral majorities rarely ___ : rather, as Dahl puts it, “ all active and legitimate groups in the population can make themselves heard at some crucial stage in the process. “

rule

The recent increase in _____ activity is cited by pluralists as evidence of pluralism.

interest

Elite and class theory contents that our society ( like all societies ) is divided along _____.

class lines

_______ is the basis of class power: a few powerful Americans are the policymakers.

wealth

______ and it’s power is at the center of most elite and class theories.

big business

_______ is pluralism gone sour.

hyper pluralism

Many groups are so strong that government is __unable to ____.__

act

There are _____ groups with access to the different levels and branches of government: these groups have multiple ways to both prevent policies they disagree with and promote those they support.

too many

When politicians try to ____ every group, the result is confusing, _ , and muddled policy or no policy at all.

placate

Political _____ is key to understanding American government.

culture

America is unified by ______ and political culture - which is unusual compared to most countries with strong nationalistic characteristics and a longer history.

ideology

What are the fives elements of political culture that shape American democracy?

Liberty, Egalitarianism, individualism, laissez-faire, and populism

______ is one of Jefferson’s inalienable rights and a cornerstone of Bill of Rights.

liberty

______ : Equality of opportunity, especially social equality, has promoted increasing political equality.

egalitarianism

_________ : american individualism developed in part of the western frontier and the immigrants fight from government oppression.

individualism

_______ economics : the american government taxes and regulates less than most countries at its equivalent level of development.

Laissez-faire

_______ : the common, ordinary citizens are idealized in american politics, and both liberals and conservatives claim to be their protectors.

populism

National, state, and local governments in america collectively spend _____ percent of our gross domestic product.

29

what is gross domestic product?

the value of all goods and services produced annually by the United States

The national government alone spends more than _____ trillion annually.

2\.8

The national government alone employs nearly ___ billion people and ones _ of the land in the US. 

two, 1/3

The american government has been more willing to spend than tax, creating a national debt of ____ trillion.

8