“A community is like a ship; everyone ought to be prepared to take the helm.”

– Henrik Ibsen

Henrik Ibsen

• • • • • •

Henrik Ibsen

Born: 20 March 1828 Birthplace: Skien, Norway Died: 23 May 1906 Best Known As: Norwegian "Father of Modern Drama" Norwegian Henrik Ibsen is among the most famous modern playwrights, the author of such dramas as A Doll's House (1879) and When We Dead Awaken (1899). During his lifetime he earned an international reputation for his psychological dramas that frequently commented on social issues of the day. His plays are still among the most frequently performed in the world.

What is Government?

• Institutions and processes through which public policies are made for a society.

– Examples of institutions in the US government • Congress • The President • The courts • The federal administrative agencies (the bureaucracy) • State and local governments • The approximately 50,000 elected officials in America – Functions of national governments • Maintain national defense • Provide public services • Preserve order • Socialize the young • Collect taxes

What is Politics?

• • The process by which we select our governmental leaders and what policies these leaders pursue. Politics produces authoritative decisions about public issues Lasswell’s definition of politics – Who gets what, when, and how?

Government and Politics: What’s the Difference? SOURCE: www.usconstitution.net

What is Politics?

Who gets what, how and when?

The University of Chicago made Lasswell an assistant professor in 1927. During World War Two he served as the director of war communications research at the Library of Congress and taught at the New School of Social Research in New York City and Yale Law School. In 1946 he began lecturing at Yale. 1903-1978

The Lasswell Model

• Harold Lasswell a well known political scientist along with other influential liberals of his period, argued that democracies needed propaganda to keep the uninformed citizenry in agreement with what the specialized class had determined was in their best interests. We must put aside "democratic dogmatisms about men being the best judges of their own interests" since "men are often poor judges of their own interests, flitting from one alternative to the next without solid reason“.

WHO ?

(The Participants)

INDIVIDUALS

•

Voters

•

Supporters

•

Candidates

•

Office Holders

• • • • • • • • •

GROUPS

Business Labor Farmers Racial/Ethnic/Gender Socioeconomic Religious Affiliation Gun owners Universities Others. . .

ORGANIZATIONS

• • • • • • • • Major and Minor Parties National Organization for Women AARP United Auto Workers AFL-CIP National Association of Manufacturers American Legion Others. . . . .

WHAT

(The Values) – basically, advantages for oneself or one’s group

Recognition Contracts Influence Prestige Public Policy desires Status Quo Maintained Justice/Equity Access Jobs Public Interest

HOW

• • • • • • • Voting Lobbying Platforms Speeches Bargaining Intimidation Bribery

(the methods)

Violence Logrolling Public relations Campaigns Rallies Media exposure Campaign Contributions

When?

Now. . . or later?

What is public policy?

A course of action taken to solve a problem

Who makes public policy?

Congress Courts President Bureaucrats

Courts-

Brown v Board of Education

President –

Executive Order-Internment

Congress -

passes a law

Bureaucrats –

add the details Congress left out

Policy Making in the United States

• A problem that disturbs people gives rise to demands for relief • Individual or groups work to get the problem noticed and placed on the government’s agenda • Formulation or alternative solutions for solving the problem follow • Formal approval of a solution is reached by the government • Budgeting provides funding for the new policy • Policy implementation requires actual administration to its targets • Policy evaluation determines success or failure of the policy • Evaluation leads to restructuring of the policy

– A problem that disturbs people gives rise to demands for relief: • Healthcare, Hurricane Katrina, Immigration • Brown v Board of Education/Americans with Disabilities

Individuals or groups work to get the problem noticed and placed on the government’s agenda: • • • Examples: Political parties Interest groups Media/agenda setting/Polling

Formal approval of a solution is reached by the government: • • • • Legislative process President signs bill into law Executive orders Supreme Court decisions

Budgeting provides funding for the new policy: • Congress, the Executive departments and the bureaucrats all work on budgeting monies for the programs.

• • • Budget process by the President Data analysis by the bureaucrat s Taxing and spending committees

Policy implementation, evaluation, and restructuring.

• • Executive Branch agencies- add details to the legislation Bureaucracy – works to enforce or complete the work • Management collects data about success or failure • Flow of information back up to the policymakers – Cabinet Secretaries, President and Congress

Assignment

• Find a newspaper of magazine article that demonstrates Lasswell’s definition of politics.

Types of Government Systems

Types of Government Systems

Government Systems Who is allowed to participate?

Definition

Individual ruler with hereditary authority holds absolute governmental power

Examples

Monarchy Constitutional Monarchy Dictator Oligarchy Pluralism

How are decisions reached?

Pure Democracy Representative Democracy Totalitarian Regime Authoritarian System Constitutional System