Transcript Political Parties in America

Political
Parties in
America
What is a
Political Party?
• A political party is a group of political
activists who organize to win elections,
to operate the government, and to
determine public policy.
• A faction is a group in a political party
acting together in pursuit of some
special interest or position
Assignment:
Political Parties
• Using the alternative textbooks, list and
explain the functions of political parties
• Using the alternative textbooks as well
as your ability to think critically, create
a T-chart identifying the advantages
and disadvantages of political parties
Functions of
Political Parties
•
Watchdog Function: Party out of power scrutinizes and criticizes the
actions of government officials; They force officials to be more
responsive to public
•
Informer-Stimulator Function: Parties take stand on issues and criticize
their opponents; They use the media to perform their educational
function
•
Nominating Function: Parties recruit and choose candidates; They
provide nominees with a solid support base
•
Government Function: Parties appoint state and national officials on a
partisan basis; They encourage cooperation between the branches
•
Seal of Approval Function: Parties try to nominate people that are
qualified and of good character; They work to ensure the elected
officials perform their duties well
Purpose of
Political Parties
• To serve as a link between the people
and government
• To allow the public to have a say in
who runs the government
• To allow the public to have a say in
public policy
• To recruit, nominate and elect officials
Purpose of
Political Parties
• To recruit, nominate and
elect officials
• To allow the public to
have a say in who runs
the government
• To allow the public to have a say in public policy
• To serve as a link between the people and
government
Why do we have a
two-party system?
• The Electoral System: single member
districts preserve the two-party system;
state election laws discourage third
parties
• The American Ideological Consensus:
the US is a pluralistic society but most
agree on fundamental issues; major
parties tend to be moderate
Why do we have a
two-party system?
• Historical Bias: the Framers were
opposed to political parties; however,
ratification of the Constitution led to
the first political parties
• Force of Tradition: most Americans
support the two-party system because
it has always existed
Components of
Political Parties
• Party in the Electorate: the members of the general
public who identify with a political party or who
express a preference for one party over the other
• Party in Government: all of the elected and
appointed officials who identify with a political party
• Party Organization: the formal structure and
leadership of a political party including election
committees, local, state, and national executives and
paid professional staff
Did you know?
The party in power in the House gets to:
– Choose the Speaker of the House
– Make any new rules for the House
– Have a majority of the seats on committees
– Choose the chairperson of the committees
– Hires majority of congressional staff
Many polls are conducted based on
party identification
Many polls are conducted based on
party identification
Survey Methods
• Results are based on telephone interviews with 1,625
national adults, aged 18 and older, conducted June 1519, 2008. For results based on the total sample of
national adults, one can say with 95% confidence that
the maximum margin of sampling error is ±3 percentage
points.
• Interviews are conducted with respondents on land-line
telephones (for respondents with a land-line telephone)
and cellular phones (for respondents who are cell-phone
only).
• In addition to sampling error, question wording and
practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce
error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls.
History of
Political Parties
• 1800-1860: Era of the Democrats
– A coalition of farmers, planters, debtors and pioneers
backed the Democrats who dominated the
government; Democrats were opposed by the
Federalists, Whigs and finally the Republicans
• 1860-1932: Era of Republicans
– Republicans received support from Northern and
Western farmers, financial and business interests and
African Americans. During this time the Democrats
controlled the “solid south.”
History of
Political Parties
• 1932-1968: Return of the Democrats
– During the Depression, FDR built a new coalition with
support from Southerners, small farmers, organized
labor, minorities, and big-city political organizations;
The New Deal shifted the public’s attitude about
government
• 1968: The Start of a New Era
– Since 1968, Republicans have dominated the White
House while Democrats have controlled Congress but
the situation has reversed in recent elections. The
era of DIVIDED GOVERNMENT is unprecedented in
out history
What if everyone
had to join a
political party?
What would be the
advantages?
What would be the
disadvantages?
Minority Parties in the US
Minority Parties in the US
Role of Third Parties
– They introduce useful
innovations in American
politics
– A strong candidate can
play the role of “spoiler”
in close elections
– They play an important
role as critics/reformers
– When their ideas gain
popular support, the are
often adopted by one or
both of the major parties
Single-Issue
Parties
Ideological
Parties
Splinter
Parties
Economic
Interest
Parties
Minority Parties in the US
Examples of Third
Party Contributions
Women’s Right to Vote
Child Labor Laws
Immigration Restrictions
Reduction of Working
Hours
– Income Tax
– Social Security
– Tough on Crime
Single-Issue
Parties
Ideological
Parties
Splinter
Parties
Economic
Interest
Parties
–
–
–
–
Special Interest Groups
Interest Groups: private organizations that try to persuade public officials
to respond to the shared attitudes of their members.
Public Policy: all of the goals that a government sets for itself as well as
the course of action it follows to obtain those goals.
Advantages of Special
Interest Groups
Disadvantages of Special
Interest Groups
1. They help stimulate interest
in public affairs
2. They are based on shared
attitudes not geography
3. They provide information to
the government
4. They provide information to
their members
5. They allow people to get
politically involved
6. Participation in interest
groups is both practical and
democratic
7. Membership is constitutionally protected (Bill of Rights)
1. They may not have the best
interest of the nation at heart
2. They may have influence that
is far out of proportion to
their size
3. It can be difficult to figure out
which people some groups
represent
4. Some of groups do not represent the views of the people
who they claim to represent
5. Some groups use illegal or
unethical tactics
6. They spend huge amounts of
money
Interest Groups
Compare and Contrast
Political
Parties
1. Nominate candidates for
public office
2. Mostly interested in
winning elections
3. Mostly interested in
controlling government
(interested in the who –
i.e. the candidates)
4. Concerned about the
whole range of public
affairs (i.e. whatever
concerns the voters)
5. Are accountable to the
general public (voters)
Similarities
1. Both consist of people
who unite for a political
purpose
2. Both work to influence
public policy (law)
3. Both use various tactics
to appeal to the people
4. Both allow the public to
have a say in public
policy
5. Both serve in the
Informer-Stimulator role
Special Interest
Groups
1. Do not nominate
candidates for public
office but they do try to
affect elections
2. Mostly concerned with
controlling or influencing
the policies of government (interested in the
what – i.e. the issues)
3. Typically concentrate on
issues that directly
affect their members
4. Not accountable to the
general public (private)
Content from Article: Bipartisanship
• The Republican Party
– More Conservative
• The Democratic Party
– More liberal
• The two parties
disagree on issues
such as taxes,
terrorism,
immigration, abortion,
global warming, etc.
• The political
landscape has grown
more polarized since
the 1990’s
Arguments For and
Against Bipartisanship
For Bipartisanship
• Without it, Congress is all but
crippled
• Cooperation and compromise
are needed for the good of the
nation
• Most of America is moderate
(and feel disconnected by
bipartisan politics)
• It would attract more interest
in government
• Reverse the trend toward
“ugly” and “mean” politics
• Blame media for the extreme
polarization of the parties
• It has lead to good legislation
Against Bipartisanship
• It will not “cure” the problems
that ail America
• It is a natural and healthy of
democracy (disagreement)
• Claims “bipartisanship” is a
buzzword (slogan)
• Leads to watered-down
legislation
• Change required parties to
stand firm (“rock the boat”)
• Bipartisanship does not lead to
good legislation (slavery)
• To remove partisan politics
removes choice from people
• It’s tradition (230 years)
The Nominating
Process
Primaries: Are open to all
registered voters.
“I know how to reach out
to independents and I’ve
got Republican
support… And that’s
what we are going to
need to win,” said
Obama in February 2008.
– Participants may vote for any
registered candidate or choose
to write a candidate in
– Participants do not actually vote
for their candidate but for
delegates to represent them at
the National Convention
– Voting is by secret ballot
– Can be open or closed
The Nominating Process
Caucuses: Open to all
registered voters of the
party
– Voters divide themselves by
candidates
– Voters give speeches and try
to persuade others to support
their candidate
– At the end, the number of
delegates a candidate is
determined by overall support
The Nominating Process
• Delegates are selected at
primaries and caucuses
to attend the National
Convention for their
respective party.
– Delegates can be pledged
or unpledged
– Democrats use
proportional distribution of
delegates
– Republicans typically use a
winner take all system.