American Government and Politics Today
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Transcript American Government and Politics Today
1
Chapter
One:
The
Democratic
Republic
Learning Objectives
2
Understand why governments exist.
Be familiar with and use appropriately the
terms: politics, government, and institutions.
Understand the concepts of order (or security)
and liberty.
Understand the concepts of authority and
legitimacy.
Learning Objectives
3
Briefly describe several forms of government
(totalitarianism, authoritarian regime,
aristocracy, democracy).
Understand the difference between direct
democracy on the one hand and a democratic
republic (a representative democracy) on the
other.
Explain why the United States is a democratic
republic.
Learning Objectives
4
Explain the key features of democracies
(universal suffrage, consent of the governed,
majority rule, limited government).
Describe competing theories of how the U. S.
democracy works (majoritarianism, elite
theories, and pluralism).
Describe the trade-off between order and
liberty, and between equality and liberty (in the
form of property).
Learning Objectives
5
Define the concept of ideology and explain the
dominant ideologies in the United States
(liberalism and conservatism).
Distinguish between economic liberalism and
conservatism and cultural liberalism and
conservatism. Provide some distinguishing
characteristics of selected totalitarian
ideologies, specifically communism, fascism,
and radical Islamism.
Learning Objectives
6
Understand current demographic trends in the
United States and assess the possible impacts
of these changes on the political system.
Identify and explain the significance of the
cultural values and ideologies that support the
American political system.
Evaluate the challenges to the U.S. system
posed by globalization and environmental
change.
Politics and Government
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What is Politics?
Process of resolving conflicts
Struggle over power or influence within an organization
or informal groups
Politics and Government
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What Is Government?
Institution
that resolves conflicts
Institution
that allocates benefits and privileges
Why Is Government Necessary?
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Security
Liberty
Authority
Legitimacy
Why Choose Democracy?
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Types of Regimes
Totalitarian
Authoritarian
Oligarchy
Democracy
Anarchy
Why Choose Democracy?
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Direct Democracy as a Model
Political decisions are made by the people directly,
rather than by their elected representatives.
Attained most easily in small political communities
Why Choose Democracy?
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Direct Democracy Today
Initiative
Referendum
Recall
Teledemocracy
Why Choose Democracy?
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Dangers of Direct Democracy
Although the founders believed in government based
on the consent of the people, they were concerned
about mob rule.
Devised institutions to filter the popular will through
elected elites.
Why Choose Democracy?
14
Republic: sovereignty rests with the people.
Democratic republic: power rests with the
people, but policy decisions are made by
elected officials.
Why Choose Democracy?
15
Principles of Democratic Government
Universal suffrage
Majority rule
Free and competitive elections
Limited government based on a constitution
Who Really Rules in America?
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Theories About “Who Really Rules in America?”
Majoritarian Theory: government ought to do what the
majority wants.
Elite Theory: small cohesive group makes nearly all
political decisions.
Pluralist Theory: various groups compete for power.
Fundamental Values
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• What Is Political Culture?
• Political culture is a set of ideas, values, and
ways of thinking about government and politics
that are shared by all citizens.
Fundamental Values
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What Is Political Socialization?
Political socialization is the process by which
beliefs and values are transmitted to new
immigrants and children.
Fundamental Values
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Fundamental Political Values
Individual freedom
Security
Equality
Order
Security
Property
Fundamental Values
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Political Ideologies
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What Is Political Ideology?
A political ideology is a set of beliefs about
politics that provides a well-organized theory
about the goals for a society.
Political Ideologies
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Political Ideologies
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Political Ideologies
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Liberalism: set of beliefs that maintains that
government should improve people’s lives,
support civil rights, and tolerate social change.
Conservatism: set of beliefs that maintains that
government should have a limited role in
helping people, support for traditional values
and lifestyles, and a cautious response to
change.
The Challenge of Change
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Demographic Changes:
Aging population
Low birthrate
Ethnic changes: growth of Hispanic population
The Challenge of Change
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The Challenge of Change
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The Challenge of Change
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Globalization:
Impacts employment
Impacts flow of goods and people
Diminishes power of government
The Challenge of Change
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Environmental Changes:
Global warming
Pandemics
Pollution
Web Links
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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
information about the rules and requirements
for immigration and citizenship:
www.uscis.gov/graphics/index.htm
U.S. Government
access to federal government offices and
agencies: www.usa.gov
What If…Citizens Were Required to Vote?
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In the 2008 election, only 30% of the voting age
population elected Barack Obama.
Groups that are less likely to vote include
younger voters, less-educated citizens, and
those who are economically disadvantaged.
Mandatory voting could lead to policies that
help all citizens.
What If…Citizens Were Required to Vote??
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Unintended consequences of mandatory
voting:
Increase in uninformed voters
Voting would not be considered voluntary