NOTES 8/27/26

8/27/26:

US EXCEPTIONALISM

  • illustrates how the U.S. is very different from other countries

LIPSET US EXCEPTIONALISM

- big question: “why is the us the only country without a socialist/labor movement or party

  • why so liberal from founding to present?

definition: the american ideology meaning: anti-statism (1890s def)

  • not contemporary definition

  • US IS CLASSICAL LIBERAL, that’s why unique

social democratic, classical liberal: part of western enlightenment tradition, but very different

  1. freedom

  2. equality

freedom: tyranny, from the state, anti-statist, anything that can oppress (government, undemocratic means, making changes), freedom to choose our leader as a people, freedom of press

  • largely liberal democratic ideals


FREEDOM

LIBERAL DEMOCRACY: “negative” freedom, not in bad sense, but something that is not there (freedom FROM, obstacles, barriers, tyranny of the state/church)

  • “without interference by others”-Isaiah Berlin

  • trying to help freedom in the way they define freedom: gov off back of people


SOCIAL DEMOCRATIC CONCEPTION: “positive” freedom, freedom TO something, self determination, flourish, capability to take over your own life

  • less of an anti-statist dimension, state often is a contributor to freedom rather than an oppressor

  • constrain our freedom-poverty, healthcare and resources, lack of education, lack of ignorance and knowledge

  • europeans have universal healthcare, less poverty (like prague)

  • empowering government to help others


EQUALITY

  • US represents Liberal Conception across the board

LIBERAL CONCEPTION: “procedural” equality: equality under the law, equal opportunity/access, equal employment and lender


SOCIAL DEMOCRATIC CONCEPTION: “substantive equality”: basic needs ie: food, security, health and education that are deemed necessary for development


  • in the charts, US is always lowest

    • taxes: US is lowest, France is highest

  • bottom 50% owes smaller share than the top 1% comparing from 1980s when it was the opposite

    • dont have large social spending to promote equality unlike european countries


LIPSET EXPLANATION FOR LIBERAL EXCEPTIONALISM?

  1. US is a young country (1776, 250) so we revolutionized and figured out the def of liberalism ourselves compared to Asian and European countries

    1. “it started from a revolutionary event and defined its raison detre ideologically”.

  2. other countries had feudalism, broke the shackles. The us did NOT have that. (subjects, not citizens, nobility, ruled by virtue of blood)

    1. no need for central power to destroy it

    2. developed a hatred of centralized authority from the European (british)

    3. much stronger counter class

  3. they had stronger state that rallied: if you’re going to change the feudalism, you need that, but for us, not the case


  1. “free gift of suffrage” and its impact on weak labor/socialist movement: european workers had to org socially and politically for their rights (industrialization)

    1. even before industrialization, people were given a suffrage; took air out of politically rallying cry for people to organize

    2. NOT TALKING ABOUT UNIVERSAL SUFFRAGE AS WE KNOW TODAY; og property owners, male owners, white and male voters

    3. US was the first modern universal white male democracy that emerged prior to the formation of any strong labor union


  1. political variables: checks and balances to make sure state didn’t get too strong

    1. federalist system: fed gov has powers, and state has other powers (different variations of different states and what they are doing)

    2. united kingdom and japan: unitary system, central gov decides to the state and it trickles down

    3. presidential system: relationship between exec. and legis.

      1. difficult for gov to pass veto and legislative

    4. parliamentary system: prime minister elected from majority party in the parliament, no separation of powers

      1. if party controls majority in legis, it will control exec.


  1. electoral institutions: winner takes all/first past the post electoral system and diff. of third parties

    1. winner take all: for any electoral district whoever wins the most votes, gets the seat

    2. proportional rep: number of seats you receive at the polls, you will receive, multi party system