Politics and Government Matter
 List of ways government has affected your life:
 Public Schools
 Drivers license and driving
 Age you can drink, smoke, vote
 Social Security and your job
Politics and Government Matter
 Why do young people not care about politics and
government?
 Do you feel like you can make a difference?
 Why don’t young people vote?
Politics and Government
Matter
Politics and Government
Matter
Presidential Election Turnout
Rates by Age
Politics and Government Matter
 Why should you stay informed about public affairs?
 1. Fosters civic virtues such as political tolerance.
 2. Helps citizens to identify which policies would
benefit them and incorporate them in their voting
behavior.
 3. Promotes active participation in politics.
Politics and Government Matter
 Why does voter turnout matter?
 Those who participate in the political process are more
likely to benefit from government policies and
programs.
 Media in politics today. Presidential speeches.
Government
 The institutions that make authoritative decisions for
any given society are collectively known as
government.
 In our own national government these consist of
Congress, the president, the courts, and federal
administrative agencies.
 Roughly 500,000 elected officials in the United States.
Government
 Two fundamental questions about governing:
 1. How Should We Govern?
 2. What Should Government Do?
 Maintain a national defense
 Provide public services
 Preserve order
 Socialize the young
 Collect taxes
Politics
 Politics determines whom we select as our
government leaders and what policies these leaders
pursue.
 The Lasswell Model:
-“Who gets what, when, and how.”
Politics
 “WHO”………..
 At a minimum this includes voters, candidates, groups,
and parties.
Politics
 “WHAT”………
 Refers to the substance of politics and government
benefits such as medical care for elderly, and burdens
such as taxes.
Politics
 “HOW”………
 How people participate in politics. Through voting,
supporting, lobbying.
Politics
 The way in which people get involved in politics make
up their political participation.
 Voting
 Run for office
 America has one of the lowest rates of voter
participation in the world.
 Low voter turnout has an effect on who holds political
power.
Politics
 Single-issue groups: groups so concerned with one
issue that members cast their vote on the basis of that
issue only, ignoring a politician’s stand on everything
else.
 Example: Abortion
The Policy Making System
The Policy Making System
 What do people do to express their opinions in a
democracy?
 Vote
 Join political party
 Form interest groups
In this way, people’s concerns enter the linkage
institutions.
The Policy Making System
 Linkage Institutions: the political channels through
which people’s concerns become political issues on the
policy agenda.
 Parties and interest groups strive to ensure their
members concerns receive appropriate political
attention.
 Elections provide citizens with a chance to make their
opinions heard.
The Policy Making System
 All these institutions help to shape the government’s
policy agenda, the issues that attract serious
attention of public officials and other people actively
involved in politics.
 If a politician wants to get elected, they must pay
attention to the problems that concern voters.
 Political issues: an issue that arises when people
disagree about a problem and how to fix it.
The Policy Making System
 Policymaking Institutions:
 Congress
 Presidency
 The Courts
 Bureaucracies
 Very few policies are made by a single policymaking
institution.
The Policy Making System
 Public Policy: Every decision the government makes,
budget it establishes, and ruling it hands down.
 Many different types of policies:
 Congressional Statute
 Presidential Action
 Court Decision
 Regulation
The Policy Making System
 Public Policy:
 Some issues remain low priority until they gain media
attention. Example: AIDS Magic Johnson
The Policy Making System
 Once policies are made and implemented, they affect
people.
 Policy impacts are the effects that a policy has on
society’s problems.
 Translating people’s desires into effective public policy
is crucial to the workings of democracy.
The Policy Making System
Democracy
 Democracy: a system of selecting policymakers and
of organizing government so that policy represents
and responds to the public’s preferences.
 Traditional democratic theory rests on a number of
key principles that specify how government decisions
are made in a democracy.
Traditional Democratic Theory
 Key Principles:
 Equality in voting
 Effective participation
 Enlightened understanding
 Citizen control of the agenda
 Inclusion
Traditional Democratic Theory
 Key Vocabulary:
 Majority rule: the will of over half the voters will be
followed.
 Minority rights: Basic principles such as freedom of
speech and assembly. The majority cannot infringe on
these rights.
 Representation: Describes the relationship between
the few leaders and many followers.
Contemporary Theories of
American Democracy
 Pluralist Theory: states that groups with shared
interests influence public policy by pressing their
concerns through organized efforts.
 Example: NRA, NOW, UAW
Contemporary Theories of
American Democracy
 Elite and Class Theory: states that upper-class elite
pulls the strings of government.
 Tax cuts for wealthy, helping big business.
Contemporary Theories of
American Democracy
 Hyperpluralism: states that many groups, not just
the elite ones, are so strong that government is unable
to act.
 Government is a servant to these groups.
Challenges to Democracy
 -Increased Technical Expertise
 -Limited Participation in Government
 -Escalating Campaign Costs
 Diverse Political Interests
American Political Culture
 Political Culture: an overall set of values widely shared
within a society.
 Examples:
 Liberty
 Egalitarianism
 Individualism
 Laissez-faire
 Populism
Challenges to Democracy
 Increased Technical Expertise
 Limited Participation in Government
 Escalating Campaign Costs
 Diverse Political Interests (policy gridlock)
Democratic Theories
 Criteria of traditional democratic theory as formulated
by Robert Dahl consists of :
 Citizenship must be open to all within a nation.
 Those who participate in political organizations must
be representative of the general population.
 freedom of speech and press
 One person gets one vote.
Democratic Theories
 B. Berelson in “Democratic Practice and Democratic
theory” concluded that an effective democratic system
requires some citizens to be apathetic, while others to
be interested and active.
Democratic Theories
 According to E.E. Schattschneider, politics can also be
defined as conflict expansion.