copyright © 2011 pearson education, inc. publishing as longman over view for the day government...

Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman

Over View for the Day

• Government• Politics• The Policymaking System• Democracy• The Scope of Government in America• Summary


Government• Government makes public policies made for

society.• 4 Key institutions make policy at the

national level…• Congress, President, the Courts and the

federal administrative

To Learning Objectives


• Regardless of how governments assumed power, all governments have certain functions in common

• Governments must perform five basic functions.• Maintain a national defense.• Provide public services.• Preserve order.• Socialize the young.• Collect taxes.


Politics

• Politics is the process by which we select our governmental leaders and what policies they pursue.

• Harold Lasswell defines politics as the struggle over who gets what, when, and how.• The who of politics is the voters, candidates, parties, and groups • The what is the benefits and burdens of government • The how is the various ways in which people participate in

politics.



• Political Participation Refers to the ways in which people get involved

• Single-issue groups are interest group whose member will vote on a single issue, such as pro-life and pro-choice


The Policymaking System• Policymaking system Is the

process by which policy comes into being and evolves overtime • People Shape Policy• Policies Impact People


LO 1.3



The Policymaking System

• People Shape Policy• People have interests, problems, and concerns.• In a democratic society, parties, election, interest

groups and media are key linkage institutions between government’s policy agenda and the people • The four linkage institutions are political parties,

elections, mass media, and interest groups.• People expect government officials to solve problems…

this in turn influences the government’s policy agenda

LO 1.3




• People Shape Policy (cont.)• Policy agenda is the issues that attract the

serious attention of public officials.• The four policymaking institutions are the

legislative branch, executive branch, judicial branch, and the bureaucracy.

• The end product of government politics is public policy

LO 1.3




• Policies Impact People• Public policy is a choice that government

makes in response to a political issue.• Many types of public policies statues,

presidential actions, court decisions, budgetary choice and regulation

• Policy impacts are the effects a policy has on people and problems.• Translating people's desires into public policy is

crucial to the workings of democracy

LO 1.3


LO 1.3



Democracy• Traditional Democratic Theory• Three Contemporary Theories of

American Democracy• Challenges to Democracy• American Political Culture and

Democracy• A Culture War?• Preview Questions about Democracy



Democracy

• Traditional Democratic Theory• Rests upon several principles that specify how a

democratic government makes its decisions

• Democracy • is a system in which policy represents and responds to the

public’s preferences.

• Five components of Traditional Democratic Theory are equality in voting, effective participation, enlightened understanding, citizen control of the agenda, and inclusion.

LO 1.4



Democracy

• Three Contemporary Theories of American Democracy• Pluralist Theory • Is a theory of government and policies emphasizing that

politics is mainly a competition among groups, each one pressing for its own preferred policies.• Aka Groups compete with one another for control over

public policy, with no one group or set of groups dominating.• Bargaining and compromise are essential ingredients of

our democracy.

LO 1.4



Democracy

• Three Contemporary Theories of American Democracy (cont.)• Elite and Class Theory • Contends that societies are divided along class

lines and that an upper-class elite will rule.• Big Business and it power is a the center of

most elite and class theories• Policies benefit those with money and power.

LO 1.4



Democracy

• Three Contemporary Theories of American Democracy (cont.)

• Hyperpluralism (pluralism gone sour)

• Is a theory of government and politics contending that groups are so strong that government is weakened. ( too many groups)• Confusing and contradictory policies result from

politicians trying to please every group.

LO 1.4



Democracy

• Challenges to Democracy• Increased complexity of issues make it

harder for citizens to make decisions.• Limited participation in government,

especially voting.• Escalating campaign costs stop people

from running for office.• Diverse political interests result into policy

gridlock.

LO 1.4



Democracy

• American Political Culture and Democracy• Political culture is an overall set of values

widely shared within a society.• Five elements of American political culture

are liberty, egalitarianism, individualism, laissez-faire, and populism.

LO 1.4



Five elements of political culture shape American

democracy.


Democracy

• Preview Questions about Democracy• Are people knowledgeable about matters

of public policy?• If there are choices, do the media help

citizens understand them?• Is Congress representative of American

society, and is it capable of reacting to changing times?

LO 1.4



The Scope of Government in America

• How Active Is American Government?• Spends $3.8 trillion yearly.• Employs 2.8 million civilians and 1.4 million in the

military.• It owns one-third of the land in the United States.• It occupies 2.6 billion square feet of office space.• National, state, and local governments in America

collectively spend 29 percent of our gross domestic product (the value of all goods and services produced annually by the United States).

LO 1.5



LO 1.1Summary

• Describe the key functions of government and explain why they matter.• All governments include maintaining a national

defense, providing public services, preserving order, socializing the young, and collecting taxes.

• These functions matter because they impact our lives.



Which of the following is an example of a public good?

A. College education

B. Automobile insurance

C. Home ownership

D. National defense

LO 1.1



LO 1.2Summary

• Define the various aspects of politics.• Politics determines who our leaders are and

what policies they pursue.• The who of politics is the voters, candidates,

parties, and groups; the what is the benefits and burdens of government; the how is the various ways in which people participate in politics.



Politics determines who we select as our governmental leaders and policies these leaders pursue.

A. who

B. what

C. when

D. how

LO 1.2



LO 1.3Summary

• Assess how citizens can have an impact on public policy and how policies can impact people.• Citizens’ interests and concerns are

transmitted through linkage institutions to the policy agenda of the policymaking institutions.

• The policies that are made then influence peoples’ lives.



All of the following are considered linkage institutions EXCEPT

A. the media.

B. interest groups.

C. political parties.

D. courts.

E. elections.

LO 1.3



LO 1.4Summary

• List the key principles of democracy, theories regarding how it works in practice, and challenges it faces today.• Key principles of democracy are equality in

voting, effective participation, enlightened understanding, citizen control of the agenda, and inclusion.



LO 1.4Summary

• List the key principles of democracy, theories regarding how it works in practice, and challenges it faces today.• The theories regarding how democracy works

in practice are the pluralist theory, elitist and class theory, and hyperpluralist theory.



LO 1.4Summary

• List the key principles of democracy, theories regarding how it works in practice, and challenges it faces today.• Challenges democracy faces today are

complexity of issues today, citizens’ limited participation, escalating campaign costs, and the policy gridlock resulting from diverse political interests.



According to Robert Dahl’s traditional democratic theory, an ideal democratic process should satisfy all of the following criteria EXCEPT

A. equality in voting.

B. effective participation.

C. enlightened understanding.

D. majority rule.

LO 1.4



LO 1.5Summary

• Explain the debate in America over the proper scope of government.• Politicians debate if the scope of government

responsibilities is too vast, just about right, or not comprehensive enough.

• This debate concerns whether the goals that are agreed to be important are best achieved through government action or rather through means other than government.


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