AP U.S. Government: Political Culture, Polling, Ideologies, and Economic Policy

Political Culture

shared beliefs and values about government politics

Individualism

Belief that individua;s should be responsible for their own success

Laissez-faire

Idea that government should play as small a role as possible in economic affairs.

Rule of law

No one is above the law. principle that the law applies to everyone, even those who govern

Political socialization

Process through which people develop their political beliefs and values

Political ideology

A persons set of beliefs about government and politics

Life-cycle effect

Changes in political beliefs as people get older

Globalization

Growing connection between countries through trade, technology, and communication.

Outsourcing

A company hires another company to do certain jobs

Focus group

Small group of people asked about their opinions on political issues

Scientific poll

Poll that uses research methods to accurately measure public opinion

Sample

Smaller groups of people selected to represent a larger population

Random selection

Choosing participants so everyone has an equal chance of being selected

Representative sample

Group that accurately reflects the characteristics of the population

Weighting

Adjusting poll results to better represent the population

Sampling error

Difference between poll results and the actual populations opinions due to sampling

Mass survey

Poll that asks large number of people questions about their opinions

Entrance survey

Survey given to voters as they enter a polling place

Exit Poll

Survey given to voters after they vote to learn who they voted for and why

Benchmark Poll

Initial poll used to measure public opinion before a campaign.

Tracking Poll

Poll conducted repeatedly to measure changes in public opinion

Random Digit Dialing

selecting phone numbers randomly to conduct surveys

Question order

The order of questions which can influence peoples answers

Question wording

How a question is written can affect responses

Right (politics)

Political beliefs that favor traditional limited government and free markets

Party Ideology

The shared political beliefs and values of a political party

Party identification

A persons attachment to a political party

Conservatisim

Ideology that supports lower taxes, and traditional values. (republicans)

Liberalism

Supports social equality, individual rights and government involvement to address economic inequality

libertanianism

Supports maximum individual freedom

Free enterprise

Economic system where individuals and businesses operate with limited government interference

Command-and-control economy

Economy where the government makes most major economic decisions

Mixed economy

Economy that combines private businesses with government involvement

Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

Total values of goods and services produced in the country

Economic recession

Economy experiences a decline

Unemployment Rate

percentage of people who are looking for work

INflation

Increase in prices

Consumer Price Index

Measurement of changes in the prices consumers pay for goods and services

Fiscal Policy

Government use of taxes and spending to influence the economy

Keynesian economics

belief that government spending and tax changes can help stimulate the economy

Supply-side economics

economic theory that lower taxes and fewer regulations anchorage businesses to invest and produce more.

Federal Reserve System

The central banking system of the US

Monetary policy

Actions taking by the federal reserve to influence interest rates and the money supply

Medicare

federal health insurance program mainly for people 65 and older

Medicaid

government health insurance program for eligible low-income individuals and famiies

Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992)

The supreme court upheld the constitutional right to absorption established in ROE V Wade but allowed states to place certain restrictions as long as they did not create an undue burden.

Zelman v. Simmons-Harris (2002)

The supreme court rules that school voucher programs could bee used at religious schools without violating the establishment clause, as long as families independently chose where to use the vouchers.

Obergefell v. Hodges (2015)

The Supreme Court rules that same sex couples have a constitutional right to marry under the Fourteenth Amendment.

Describe an action other than congressional legislation that can be taken to fight against discriminatory voting laws.

The supreme court can review voting laws and declare them unconstitutional if they violate the constitution or voting rights

Looking at this section of the Democratic Party's platform, explain how the action taken to fight against discriminatory voting laws could impact voting rights.

The supreme court could strike down discriminatory voting laws, making it easier for eligible citizens to vote and protecting equal voting rights.

Explain how the Republican Party's ideology could be affected by this Democratic Party platform proposal.

They may oppose some of these proposals because it generally supports state control over elections and stricter voter identification requirements. This could create disagreements between the two parties over voting rights and election policies.

Which of the following would a supporter of supply-side economics favor?

Government stimulation of the economy

An increase in the borrowing of money by the government

Management of the economy by the government

Large tax cuts by the government

Large tax cuts by the gov