U.S. Political Culture,
U.S. Political Institutions
September 14, 2007
The Pledge
Who is this?
Tyranny and Democracy were thought to
be undesirable extremes
King George III
George Washington
Colonial Life
• Under British
control for 100+ years
• Property, free
religion & other
rights
•Had about 4 million
non-natives
•We were “born
Lockean”
Truth
Government
Aristocracies
Religious Institutions
The People
Truth
Government
Aristocracies
Religious Institutions
“We” The People
Rugged Individualism:
“Success in life is pretty much determined by forces
outside of your control.”
• Pew Global Attitudes Survey, 44 nations,
2002.
• Nigeria: 33% “completely agree”
• Nigeria: 32% “mostly or completely
disagree.”
• Nigeria: ratio is 32/33 or 0.96
“Success in life is pretty much determined by forces
outside of your control.”
• South Africa
• 24% disagree with the statement
• The ratio is 24/38, or 0.63
So the general sense in South Africa is –
failure is someone else’s fault.
“Success in life is pretty much determined by forces
outside of your control.”
• India, 14% disagree, ratio 0.39
• Japan, 52% disagree, ratio 3.47
• Egypt, 42% disagree, ratio 2.00
• Jordan, 39% disagree, ratio 2.60
• Turkey, 17% disagree, ratio 0.37
• Uzbekistan, 36% disagree, ratio 1.80
• China, 25% disagree, ratio 1.74
“Success in life is pretty much determined by forces
outside of your control.”
• Great Britain, 48% disagree, ratio
3.43
• France, 44% disagree, ratio 2.32
• Germany, 31% disagree, ratio 1.35
• Poland, 29% disagree, ratio 1.45
• Ukraine, 35% disagree, ratio 1.30
• Russia, 36% disagree, ratio 2.25
• United States, 65% disagree, ratio
7.22
What’s the proper role of the state?
• “It is the responsibility of the (state or
government) to take care of very poor
people who can’t take care of
themselves.”
• % Completely Agree….
• Turkey, 73%
• Uzbekistan, 70%
• India 74%
“It is the responsibility of the (state or government) to
take care of very poor people who can’t take care of
themselves.”
• % completely agree
• Great Britain, 59%
• Germany, 45%
• Poland, 59%
• Ukraine, 57%
• Russia, 70%
• United States, 29%
It’s a Small
Welfare State
After All
Low spending…
Low taxes…
Colonial Life
•Was there an ethos
of the “frontier”
• Governments most
closely related to
English Shires
The Articles of Confederation
(1781-1787)
Shared beliefs:
 Government in the
hands of people
 Strong legislature
Articles of Confederation:
 State representation
 No executive
 Weak national gov
Constitution
Constitutional Design
•
Article I: Legislative
•
Article II: Executive
•
Article III: Judicial
•
6 other articles
•
Only 8,000 words!
Checks & Balances
(Separation of Powers)
Federalism in the US
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
·
1 Federal Government
50 States & the District of Colombia
Puerto Rico & 4 Insular Areas
561 Federally-Recognized Indian Tribes
3034 County Governments
13,506 School Districts
16,504 Townships and Towns
19,429 Municipal Governments
35,052 “Special Districts”
Anyone care to guess how
many people hold elected
office in the United States?
Ohio Congressional Districts
Changing Locations of “Government”
• 1807
• 1907
• 2007
Why Two Parties?
U.S. Voter Turnout is Low
Minor Parties in U.S. History
Single Member Districts
Plurality Rule
Grovner
Patterson
Aquino
Philips
Hartpense
Mackerson
27%
21%
18%
14%
11%
9%
Grovner
27%
Patterson, Aquino, Mackerson
48%
Philips
14%
Hartpense
11%
Grovner, Philips, Hartpense
(Party 1)
52%
Patterson, Aquino, Mackerson
(Party 2)
48%
Denmark -- Proportional Representation
Ok, time for a break
• When we come back…. Quickly….
– Congress
– The Executive Branch
– The Courts
Two Brains
The Basics
• House
–
–
–
–
435 Members
2 Year Terms
Committee Dominant
Majority Party
Dominant
– 110th Congress
– Lots of Staff
• Senate
–
–
–
–
100 Members
6 Year Terms
Committees Important
Majority Party
Important
– 110th Congress
– Even More Staff
Representation
Representation
 Representatives far more independent
of party influence in the U.S.
 Delegate v. Trustee
 States usually more heterogeneous than
districts
• How A bill Becomes a Law….
http://youtube.com/watch?v=mEJL2Uuv-oQ
http://youtube.com/watch?v=3xPXOr40XhI
How a Bill Becomes a Law
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Introduction & Referral
Committee Hearings
Committee Markups
Committee Reports
Schedule Floor Action (Rules, UCRs)
Floor Votes
Conference Committee
Conference Report & Floor Vote
Presidential Signature (or Veto)
Committees
•
•
•
•
Chairs based on committee seniority.
Membership is party proportional.
Staff dominated by majority party
Committee Hierarchy
– Exclusive
– Non-Exclusive
• Appropriations vs. Authorizing
The 2.6 Trillion Dollar Budget
The Basics
• Presidents elected to 4 year terms.
• May serve no more than 2 terms. (22nd
Amendment)
• Must be a U.S. born citizen, at least 35
years old, who has lived in the U.S. for a
minimum of 14 years.
Formal
Formal Presidential
Presidential Powers
Powers
• Administrative head of government
• Commander-in-Chief of military
• Veto (or sign) legislation
• Nominate judges, cabinet secretaries
• Treaties, pardons, convene Congress
Limits on Presidential Power
• May not introduce legislation (cf. prime minister)
• May not declare war
• Legislative oversight
• Judicial review
• Impeachment possible
• Must use “bully pulpit” and persuasion
• “Go public”
Presidential Roles
1. Chief of State (ceremonial)
2. Chief Legislator (State of the Union)
3. Chief Executive
4. Opinion Leader (set national priorities)
5. Chief Diplomat
6. Commander in Chief
7. Party Leader
Review of Various Powers
• Congress (Article 1, Section 8, “elastic
clause.”
• States (10th Amendment -- reserves powers
to the states)
• President (Inherent Powers -- largely
through Congressional delegation of
powers.)
Presidency is
Many People
EOP: OMB, NSC,
CEA, “czars,” VP,
and WHO
WHO: close advisors,
no Senate approval
Civilian Employees in Cabinet Departments
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Agriculture
Commerce
Defense
Education
Energy
Health and Human Services
Homeland Security
Housing and Urban Development
Interior
Justice
Labor
State
Transportation
53,420
Treasury
Veterans Affairs
99,045
40,166
666,923
4,343
14,850
63,627
165,435
9,606
69,383
104,958
15,275
9,847
119,474
235,735
The Basics
• Article 3 creates the Supreme Court, but
specifics of design were left to Congress
• 9 Justices on the Supreme Court, and they
may serve for life
• State & Federal Courts are Separate
• Civil and Criminal treated differently
– 300,000 federal cases filed annually, 80% are
civil.
Current Justices
Breyer, Thomas, Ginsburg, Alito
Kennedy, Stevens, Roberts, Scalia, Souter
Qualifications
• Federal judges serve for life (“good behavior”)
• Chosen by president with “advice and consent”
of the Senate
• No age limits or other requirements
• Size of Court? age? citizenship? education?
Powers
• Original jurisdiction: ambassadors, U.S.
is a party, where states are the parties
• Appellate jurisdiction: all other cases (99%)
(court of last resort, final interpreter)
• Judicial review?
• Lower courts to be created by Congress
Judicial Review
Greatest Supreme Court power not in Constitution!
Established by Marbury v. Madison (1803)
Judicial Review has come to encompass:
– Power to declare national, state and local Laws invalid
if they violate the Constitution
– Supremacy of federal laws or treaties
– Role of Supreme Court as final authority on the
meaning of the Constitution
Structure of Federal Judiciary
State
courts
Supreme Court
9 Justices
Mostly appellate
Hears about 100
out of 5,500 requests
U.S. Courts of Appeals
13 districts with 170 judges
3-judge panels hear appeals
33,000 cases per year
U.S. District Courts
94 district courts with 650 judges
Trial courts with original jurisdiction
225, 000 cases per year
State Courts
• Each state has its own court system
• States handle 100 million cases per year
• 98% of criminal cases handled by states
Types of Cases
 Criminal = charged by gov for breaking law
 Civil = dispute between parties
How the “Constitution” Changes
• Amendments (27 of them)
– Amendment is proposed by a vote of at least
2/3rds of both houses of Congress
– Amendment is ratified by the legislatures of at
least 3/4ths of the states (process for 26 of 27
amendments)
• Judicial reinterpretations
– Stare Decisis
Judge-Made Law
• We are under a Constitution, but the
Constitution is what the judges say it is, and
the judiciary is the safeguard of our liberty
and our property under the Constitution.
– Chief Justice Hughes, 1907
U.S. Political Culture,
U.S. Political Institutions
September 14, 2007