poli sci section 2

public opinion

describes what the population thinks about politics and government— what they’re doing, how they should be doing something

latent opinions

an opinion formed on the spot when it is needed; constructed only when needed; like a survey question or deciding on election day

policy mood

level of support for expanding the government’s role in society: whether the public wants government action on a specific issue

party organization

the structure of national, state, and local parties, including party leaders and workers

party in government

made of the politicians who are elected as candidates of the party

party in the electorate

all citizens who identify with the party

party system

periods in which the names of the major political parties, their supporters, and the issues dividing them have remained relatively stable

party principle

the idea that a party is not just a group of elected officials but an organization that exists apart from its candidat

realignment

a change in one or more of the factors that define a party system, including the issues that the parties, the nature and function of the party organizations, the composition of the party coalitions, and the specifics of government policy

national committee

political party’s principal organization, comprising party representation from each state

constituency groups

organizations within the party that work to attract demographic groups

issue ownership

candidates from a party tend to concentrate their campaigns on issues that are part of their party’s brand name and ignore issues that belong to the other party

unified government

congress and president are controlled by the same party

divided government

one party controls presidency and the other controls congresss

negative partisanship

(affective partisanship) based on what you dislike about a party

party coalitions

groups of citizens who identify with each party

nominating convention

where delegates vote to choose the party’s presidential and vice presidential nominees

party platform

set of promises explaining what candidates from the party will do if elected

Duverger’s Law

principle that in a democracy with single-member districts and plurality voting, only 2 parties’ candidates will have a realistic chance of winning political office

single member districts

electoral system in which every elected official represents a geographically defined area

plurality voting

voting system in which candidate who receives most votes within geographic area wins the election

Gridlock

(the enemy of party theory) inability to enact legislation— within congress or between congress and president

party cartel theory

majority party in congress gains super-proportional share of legislative purposes

interest groups

organizations in society that seek to influence government policy

lobbying

involves persuasion and monitoring policy development by using methods to convince an elected official or bureaucrat to help enact a law or regulation

linkage institution

channels through which individuals can communicate their preferences to policy makers

what are the 2 main models of interest group structure?

centralized groups and confederation

centralized groups

the organzation’s leadership is concentrated in its headquarters

confederation group

largely independent, local organizations

revolving door

movement of individuals from government positions to jobs with interest groups or lobbying firms, and vice versa

iron triangles

An informal alliance of elected officials, bureaucrats, and interest groups designed to let these groups and individuals dominate the policy-making process in a given area

mass associations

interest groups that have a large number of dues-paying individuals as members

peak associations

businesses or other organizations rather than individuals

solidary benefits

satisfaction from working with like-minded people

purposive benefits

satisfaction from working toward a goal

what are the two tactics of lobbying

inside strategies (in the government) and outside strategies (indirect actions outside the government)

direct lobbying

attempt to influence policy by speaking with elected officials or bureaucrats; helps legislators enact policies they already prefer

what are some inside strategies for interest groups?

research, hearings, litigation, and working together

grassroots lobbying

lobbying strategy that relies on participation by group members, such as protest or letter-writing

astroturf lobbying

any lobbying method initiated by an interest group that is designed to look like the spontaneous, independent participation of many individuals

electioneering

involvement in elections through contributions to candidates, mobilizing people, helping in campaigning, or funding ads

salience

amount of public attention

bicameralism

system of having 2 chambers within one legislative body (house and senate in congress)

permanent campaign

continual quest for reelection that is rooted in high-cost professional campaigns that are increasingly reliant on consultants and expensive media campaigns

pork barrel

legislative appropriations that benefit specific constituents, created with the aim of helping local representatives win reelection

descriptive representation

representation in which a member of congress shares the characteristics of the constituents (gender, race, religion)

substantive representation

how a congress member serves constituents’ interests and shares their policy concerns

politico

member of congress who acts as a delegate on issues that constituents care about and as a trustee on more complex or salient issues

trustee

represents the interests of constituents from a distance, weighing numerous national, collective, local, and moral concerns

electoral connection

the idea that congressional behavior is centrally motivated by members’ desire for reelection

incumbency advantage

the relative infrequency with which members of congress are defeated in their attempts for reelection

redistricting

re-drawing the geographic boundaries of legislative districts— every ten years

apportionment

process of assigning the 435 seats in the House to the states based on increases or decreases in state population

gerrymandering

attempts to use redistricting for political advantage

universalism

is the norm that when benefits are divided up, they should be awarded to as many districts and states as possible

logrolling

reinforces universalism with the idea that “if you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours”

earmarks

federally funded local projects attached to bills passed thorugh the congress

seniority norm

choosing the member who has served the longest on a particular committee to be the committee chair

speaker of the house

head of majority party and influences the legislative agenda, committee assignments, scheduling, and overall party strategy

majority leader

national spokesperson for the party and also helps with the day-to-day operation of the legislative process

whip system

info gathering, info dissemination, and coalition building

president pro tempore

largely symbolic position usually held by the most senior member of the majoirty party in the senate

party unity

the extent to which members of congress in the same party vote together on party votes

standing committees

permanent part of the house or senate structure, holding more importance and authoirty than other committees

select committees

created to address a specific issue for one or two terns

joint committees

contain members of both the House and Senate but have limited authority

conference committees

formed as needed to resolve specific differences between house and senate versions of legislation that are passed in each chamber

distributive theory

idea that congress members will join committees that best serve the interests of their district and that committee members will support one another’s legislation

informational theory

committee made of experts on specific policy areas helps ensure well-informed policy decisions

markup

establishment of the final language of the bill determined in this collaborative process

pocket veto

automatic death of a bill when president does not sign it

omnibus legislation

large bills that often cover several topics and may contain extraneous/pork-barrel projects

cloture

procedure through which the senate can limit the amount of time spent debating a bill if majority of 60 senators agree

fillibuster

tactic used by senators to block a bill by continuing to hold the floor and speak until the bill’s supporters back down

reconciliation

not subject to filibusters in the senate and may be passed with simple majorities

proximity voting

players prefer policy located as close as possible to their ideal point

candidate-centered politics (CCP)

candidates operate as independent political entrepreneurs

party-centered politics (PCP)

candidates run as a party team, emphasizing national issues

what are the explicit powers of the president

commander-in-chief, head of state, chief executive

what are the implied powers of the president

executive orders, executive agreements, budgeting, signing statements

constitutional authority

powers derived from constitution

statutory authority

powers that come from laws

vesting clause

“the executive power shall be vested in the president”

recess appointment

an appointee is temporarily given a position without senate vote and holds the office until the beginning of the next congressional section

executive orders

proclamations that unilaterally change government policy without subsequent congressional consent

executive agreement

deal between executive branch and foreign government without senate approval

state of the union address

president reports country status and makes recommendations to congress

executive privilege

ability to shield themselves and subordinates from revealing White House discussions, decisions, or do comments to members of the legislation or judicial branches of government

Executive Office of the President (EOP)

the group of policy-related offices that serve as support staff to the president

cabinet

the group of 15 executive department heads who implement the president’s agenda in their respective positions

unilateral action

changing policy on their own without consulting anyone else— despite congress opposition

unitary executive theory

the idea that resting clause of the Constitution gives the president the authority to issue orders and policy directions that cannot be undone by congress

signing statements

a document issued by the president when signing a bill into law, explaining the president’s interpretation of the law, which often differs from the interpretation of Congress, in an attempt to influence how the law will be implemented

going public

president’s use of speeches and other public communications to appeal directly to citizens about issues the president would like the House and Senate to act on

faithless electors

electoral college members that don’t vote for their pledged candidates

original jurisdiction

authority of the court to handle a case first, as in the supreme court’s authority to initially hear disputes between 2 states

judiciary act of 1789

the law in which congress laid out the organization of the federal judiciary

district courts

lower-level trial courts of the federal judicial system that handle most US federal cases

appellate jurisdiction

the authority of a court to hear appeals from lower courts and change or uphold the decision

constitutional interpretation

determines the law goes against the consititution