August 25-August 30
American Federal Government
• Introductory Themes
• American Political Culture
Introductory Themes and
American Political Culture
•Political Power
Authority
Legitimacy
Conceptions of Democracy
• Democratic Centralism
• Direct Democracy
• Representative Democracy
popular sovereignty
citizen demands and government action
participation
deliberation
majority rule
Majority Rule: Good or Bad?
• No guarantee of good decisions
• Majority tyranny can threaten minorities
• Apathy toward politics
Who Really Governs?
• Different approaches
Marxist
Elitist
Bureaucratic
Pluralist
Political Culture
• Definition
A basic set of shared values, attitudes and
beliefs that differentiate Americans from
citizens of other countries
Myths about the Founding of the
American Republic
•
•
•
•
British as tyrranical
All the colonists favored independence
Colonists were militarily superior
American Revolution as a symbol of
freedom for the world
• Constitution was divinely inspired
Characteristics of American
Political Culture
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Equality of opportunity, not outcome
Individual responsibility
Mistrust of government & governmental power
Limited government
Religion and faith
Providence, abundance, and Manifest Destiny
Associationalism and civic duty
• Greater inclusion of “out-groups”?
American Political Culture
Compared
• High confidence in political institutions
• Lower confidence in people running
political institutions
• Religiosity
• Declining sense of political efficacy
Confidence in Institutions:
America and Europe Compared
90
83
86
84
85
77
80
69
70
Percent
60
US
Great Britain
50
Germany
40
France
Spain
30
20
10
0
Congress
(Parliament)
Courts
Press
Business
Armed
Forces
Church
Confidence in People Running
American Institutions
60
55
50
50
42
41
Percent
40
1966
29 29 28
30
1971-79
29
1980-89
23
20
19 20
19
22
18
16
16
1990-96
18 18
12
10
10
0
Congress
Supreme
Court
Federal
Bureaucracy
Press
Major
Companies
Religiosity:
The United States Compared
Respondents who say they are a religious person
29
Sweden
48
France
Germany
54
55
UK
64
Spain
69
Canada
Mexico
72
US
82
0
10
20
30
40
Percent
50
60
70
80
90
Population of the US by Race and Ethnicity, 2000
(Census Bureau)
Latino
10%
Native
Asian
American American
1%
4%
African
American
12%
White
73%
Population Change in the US
1980-2000
Changes in U.S.
Occupational Structure
Race & Ethnicity
• Blacks/African-Americans
– migration, political protest, civil rights
– issue divisions
• Latinos/Hispanics
– diversity as a group
– low political mobilization
• exception? South Florida
Race & Ethnicity
• Asian Americans
– recent immigration
– considerably diverse group
– issue foci
• Native Americans
– scattering of distinct cultures
– conquered nations, poverty, and protest
– new economic devlopment: casino gambling
1996 Presidential Vote
by Ethnicity
84
90
72
80
70
Percent
60
44
49
45
42
50
40
21
30
12
20
10
0
White
Black
Clinton
Hispanic
Dole
Asian
2000 Presidential Vote
by Ethnicity
90
90
80
65
Percent (%)
70
54
55
60
50
42
41
35
40
30
20
9
10
0
White
Black
Gore
Hispanic
Bush
Asian
Class in American Politics?
• Most Americans believe they are in the
middle class
– What is the definition? Gingrich vs. Clinton
• Tolerance for income inequality
Income Distribution:
The U.S. Compared
Gender in American Politics
• The Gender Gap
– a distinctive pattern of voting behavior
reflecting differences in views between men
and women
• Example:
--> Sexual Harrassment in the workplace
– 24% of men say it is a serious problem
– 38% of women say it is a serious problem
(ICPSR /ANES 1992 pre/post election surveys)
Gender Gap in Voting:
1992/96 Vote for Clinton
48
50
41
37
38
Percent
40
30
Men
Women
20
10
0
1992
1996
Gender Gap in Voting:
2000 Election, Gore/Bush
60
54
53
50
43
42
Percent
40
30
20
10
0
Bush
Gore
Men
Women
Religion in American Politics
• Secularism and protest
• Values, culture, and moral issues
– abortion
• Rise or Demise of the Christian Right?
– The GOP connection
Number of Members
Membership in the Christian Coalition,
1989-95
1800000
1600000
1400000
1200000
1000000
800000
600000
400000
200000
0
1989
1990
1991
1992
Year
1993
1994
1995
Ideology: Moderates Carry the Day