Unit 3.4
Political
Behavior and
Civil Liberties/Rights
I. Political Parties
(Ch. 5)
political party – control government through winning elections
faction – a group of persons forming a cohesive, usually contentious
minority within a larger group.
A. Development of major American Political Parties
1. After George Washington
a. Federalists
John Adams
b. Democratic-Republicans
Thomas 2. Before the Civil War
Jefferson
a. Democratic-Republicans
b. Whigs (nat'l Republicans)
c. Democrats (N. & S.)
d. Republicans
Andrew
Jackson
Abraham
Lincoln
William
Harrison
I. Political Parties
(cont.)
5. Minor Parties
a. 3rd parties
b. types
1. single-issue
2. ideological
3. splinter
c. impact
1. influence elections
2. promote ideas major parties adopt
d. obstacles
1. difficult to get on ballot
2. $$
3. regional
I. Political Parties
(cont.)
B.
1. POLITICAL IDEOLOGY – a comprehensive set of
beliefs about the nature of people and about the role of
an institution of government.
Left
Right
I. Political Parties
(cont.)
B.
1. POLITICAL IDEOLOGY – a comprehensive set of
beliefs about the nature of people and about the role of
an institution of government.
Left
Yellow Dog
Right
Democrats
Supports a strong military
Advocates government action on social and social issues (antiprograms (welfare, redistribute wealth abortion, same-sex
to reduce poverty); support for
marriage); oppose taxes,
tolerance of social change
redistribution of income
Blue Dog
conservative on social issues
Republicans
B. (cont.)
Forward, progressive;
gov. promotes new
ideas & policies to
improve citizens’ lives,
tolerance on cultural
issues. Dem
skepticism &
opposition toward
almost all gov.
activities. Most likely
GOP maybe Dem
gov. should promote
economic equality and
traditional values.
May be GOP or
Blue Dog Dem.
pro-private sector, limit
gov. econ. programs;
promotes, strong sense
of patriotism
traditional values. GOP
I.
C. Interest Groups/Mass Media/Elections
1. Interest Groups (Ch. 9) –
a. do NOT nominate candidates
b. put pressure on all levels of government
c. purpose – bridge gap between gov. & people
d. political power - “strength in numbers!!”
I. C. Interest Groups
(cont.)
2. Public Policy –
a. lobbying –
b. Political Action Committees (PACs) –
“Super PACs” -Citizens United v. FEC
c. Politics – effort to influence policies
and conduct of government
d. Grass roots – voluntary actions at local
level
C. Interest Groups/Mass Media/Elections
3. Mass Media (Ch. 8)
The Formation of Public Opinion
a. Family
b. School
c. Mass Media
d. Peer Groups
e. Opinion Leaders
f. Historic events
(cont.)
C. Interest Groups/Mass Media/Elections
4. Elections (ch. 7)
e. Campaigns
1. direct primary – an intra party election
2. caucus – like minded people meet to
select candidates
3. national convention – delegates from
across the country meet to nominate
candidates
4. petition – thousands of signatures are
collected to get on the ballot
5. general – The election for the office
C. Interest Groups/Mass Media/Elections
4. Elections
e. Campaigns (Ch. 7)
6. organization
7. $$$$$
8. candidates
a. incumbent – current office holder
b. challenger – runs against incumbent
c. open seat – no incumbent
C. Interest Groups/Mass Media/Elections
4. Elections
e. Campaigns (Ch. 7)
9. strategy
b:
a:
+
low key/image/
OR
aggressive/attack/
slogan
AND/OR
theme/issues
-
AND/OR
symbols
6.2 understand how groups can effect change at the local, state national and world levels.
6.6 understand the role of individual leaders who have affected policies, case laws, and
legislation.
C. Interest Groups/Mass Media/Elections
4. Elections
f. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
1. 435
2. Terms - every 2 years (Entire House).
3. Diane Black, R – 6th Congressional District of Tenn.
4. census – a population count.
a. Congressional district –an area a Congressman
represents; about 711,000 people.
b. constituents – people an elected official represents
C. Interest Groups/Mass Media/Elections
4. Elections
f. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
5. reapportionment – movement of Congressional
representation from one state to another
6. Every 10 years State Legislatures redraw
districts; sizes of the districts could change
(redistricting).
7. gerrymandering – odd shaped boundaries, for
the political advantage of majority party in state
legislature.
C. Interest Groups/Mass Media/Elections
4. Elections
f. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
C. Interest Groups/Mass Media/Elections
4. Elections
f. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
You are here!
C. Interest Groups/Mass Media/Elections
4. Elections
g. The Electoral College (TSS 3.1, 3.3, 4.3, 4.4, 6.6)
1. electors = each state’s # of members in Congress.
2. 538 electoral votes – 435 from House, 100 from
Senate and 3 Washington D.C.
(23rd Amendment).
3. Need a majority of electoral votes to win:
270
C. Interest Groups/Mass Media/Elections
4. Elections
g. The Electoral College (TSS 3.1, 3.3, 4.3, 4.4, 6.6)
4. Winner takes all except for Maine and Nebraska
5. Candidates must address concerns of the states.
C. Interest Groups/Mass Media/Elections
5. Elections
f. influence
1. personal background
a. Family
b. Socioeconomic status
c. Age
1. least likely: 18-24 yr olds
2. most likely: 60+
2. issues
3. candidate's image
4. propaganda
5. regular voters
6. non-voters – idiotes
II. Civil Liberties/Rights
A. The Bill of Rights (1-10)
1.
st
1
Amendment:
a. FREEDOM OF RELIGION
JEFFERSON- “Wall of Separation”
The Lemon Test
(Lemon v. Kurtzman, 1971)



The purpose must be nonreligious.
Can neither advance nor inhibit religion.
Must not excessively entangle the government with religion.
b. FREEDOM OF SPEECH
• Freedom is NOT absolute (Schenck v. United States)
• Obscenity (Miller v. California)“community standards”
• Symbolic speech (Texas v. Johnson)
• Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission
c. FREEDOM OF THE PRESS
d. RIGHT TO ASSEMBLE
e. RIGHT TO PETITION THE GOVERNMENT
II. Civil Liberties/Rights
[con’t.]
2. 2nd Amendment: a well regulated militia, being
necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to
keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.
a. militia - a body of citizen soldiers as distinguished
from professional soldiers.
b. Powers v. Rights
RIGHT – District of Columbia v. Heller
3. 3rd Amendment: protections against housing troops
in private homes
II. Civil Liberties/Rights
[con’t.]
4. 4th Amendment: protections against unwarranted
searches and seizures

Probable cause
 Exclusionary Rule
The 5th Amendment provides that “no
person … shall be deprived of life, liberty, or
property without due process of law…”.
5.
th
5
Amendment:
a. DUE PROCESS (proper legal procedures)
1. Substantive due process
2. Procedural due process
3. 14th Amendment - extends due process to
State and local governments.
• Process of Incorporation – most of the Bill of
Rights now apply to the States.
5. 5th Amendment: [con’t.]
b. DOUBLE JEOPARDY
c. SELF-INCRIMINATION
d. EMINENT DOMAIN
KELO V. NEW LONDEN, CT
II. Civil Liberties/Rights
[con’t.]
6. 6th Amendment: right to council and jury in criminal
trials
th
7
7.
Amendment: right to jury in civil trials
th
8. 8 Amendment: protections against cruel and
unusual punishment
II. Civil Liberties/Rights
[con’t.]
9. 9th Amendment: rights are not
restricted to those listed in Amendments 1-8.
a. RIGHT TO PRIVACY
●
●
Established in Griswold v. Connecticut, 1965,
outlawing birth-control was unconstitutional.
Uses IX, I, III, V & XIV amendments
b. ABORTION
• provoked controversy when Roe v.
Wade, 1973, applied the right to privacy
to a woman’s right to an abortion.
II. Civil Liberties/Rights
[con’t.]
10. 10th Amendment: those powers not stated are
reserved to the states and the people
II. Civil Liberties/Rights
[
con’t.]
B. Slavery and Involuntary Servitude
1. The 13th Amendment, ratified in 1865, ended slavery
in this country. It also protects against involuntary
servitude, or forced labor.
–
Neither the draft nor imprisonment can be classified
as involuntary servitude.
2. Unlike any other part of the Constitution, the 13th
Amendment covers the actions of private individuals
as well as the government.
C. Affirmative Action
the encouragement of increased representation of women
and minority-group members, esp. in employment.
1. Cases and Measures
a. Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, 1978
Allan Bakke sued the University of California for reverse discrimination
and won. This case shows that the
Constitution does not allow
race to be used as the only factor in the making of
affirmative action decisions.
b. Adarand Constructors v. Pena, 1995
The Supreme Court’s decision in this case holds that racial
classifications imposed by the national government
must be analyzed under a standard of “strict scrutiny”
and that preferential treatment based on race is “almost
certainly unconstitutional,” even if it is intended to benefit
minority groups suffering from past injustices.
D. Citizenship
citizen – a member of a state who owes allegiance to it by
birth or naturalization and is entitled to full civil rights.
1. by BIRTH
a. Jus Soli
●
●
law of the soil, or
where one is born.
The 14th Amendment
confers citizenship to
any person born
within the United
States.
b. Jus Sanguinis
●
●
the law of the blood, or to
whom one is born.
A child who is born
abroad to at least one
citizen, and who has at
some time lived within the
United States, can petition
for citizenship.
2. by NATURALIZATION
Naturalization – the legal process by which a citizen of one
country become a citizen of another