AMERICAN GOVERNMENT GVPT 170 0201 0212 Fall 2004 Lecture M W 10 10 50am Skinner 0200 Linda Faye Williams Telephone 405 4153 Office hrs Mondays Wednesdays 11am 12 30pm Office Tydings 1140G or by appointment Email lwilliams gvpt umd edu Teaching Assistants David Garcia Sections 0201 0203 0209 Gil Peleg Sections 0207 0208 0210 Jesse Matthewson Sections 0204 0206 0211 Christopher Whitt Sections 0202 0205 0212 See Schedule of Classes for meeting times places of discussion sections The central goal of GVPT 170 is to improve your ability to understand think speak and write conceptually and analytically about the world of American politics and government It is also hoped that the course will encourage you to become more active politically and civically The course is divided into four main parts Part one introduction to the American system focuses on establishing who is and who is not a part of the American political community the broad contours of American political culture the constitutional framework and the federalist system Thus we begin the course by exploring who are we the people How do and how should the American people be defined How has this definition changed over time Why has defining the American people often engendered such bitter conflict How inclusive is the United States today What central battles over inclusiveness engage the American people currently What core American political beliefs and values influence these battles What is the relationship between economic power and political power and how have economic relations influenced the evolution of the American political community We then turn to Who were the framers of the Constitution What kind of system did they seek to fashion Whose interests were at stake and whose interests were served How has the Constitution evolved Which interests have benefitted in this evolution and which have lost What is the basic structure of the American political system today In particular how has federalism changed Part two examines how we the people influence the institutions of the federal government through politics What is public opinion and how is it formed How do we measure public opinion today When should we believe the results of a poll and why Has the media s role in politics become so prevalent that it is almost another branch of government What is the role of entertainment and advertising media as well as the news media in shaping political views attitudes and beliefs How is the media changing What do we mean when we talk about the old versus the new media What is the role of elections parties and interest groups How has party politics changed over time Why has there been an explosion of interest groups How did the rise of political action committees PACs change American politics What effect might campaign finance reform have on interest group and party politics How do we understand the presidential and congressional campaigns and elections of 2004 To what extent do youth vote and what is their impact Why do so few Americans bother to exercise that most democratic of rights the vote How does the vote stack up in comparison to other forms of participation What is civil society Does it need rebuilding What can be done about declining voter and other forms of participation Is the nation on the verge of a post electoral political era in which elections will be eclipsed in importance by politics by other means If so whose interests are likely to be served and whose not Part three examines the key institutions of national government Congress the Presidency the Federal Courts and the Federal Bureaucracy What forces help to determine the balance of power among the branches of government What is the changing role of the President Why does it often seem like so little gets done in Congress Is the federal judiciary really above politics Is the federal bureaucracy accountable to the people it serves and controls How do institutions shape policy and politics Finally part four addresses liberties rights and social policy How do civil liberties differ from civil rights What freedoms do Americans have that cannot be taken away from them by government How have these freedoms evolved and have they become more limited since 9 11 How have civil rights evolved What factors explain their birth and evolution How has the rights revolution changed American policy and life How do American conceptions of liberties and rights influence policy making What can be learned from the case of social policy Who gets what when how and why from the nation s social policy regime Whose interests are served by recent sweeping changes altering the American welfare state What explains these changes What do these changes imply about the future of liberty equality and democracy in America Two themes are addressed throughout the course first the ideals versus the practices of American politics and government and second politics as both a distributive good the embodiment of conflict and struggle about who gets what when how and why and as a productive good a means of diverse classes ages genders religions ethnic groups and races settling disputes by purposely looking beyond themselves to the common good and becoming community The approach to understanding politics as distributive and productive can be called political economy Thus politics will be seen as a concentration of economics In effect the culture of American politics the institutions of American government and the evolution of politics and policy will be viewed within the shifting economic context that influences and is influenced by their developments Given that this is a presidential election year insights from the readings lectures and discussions will be used to illuminate current developments in the campaign and election For example is the constitutional requirement for the electoral college to choose the president still the best means or should the popular vote decide What can be learned about the campaign as well as election results by increasing one s knowledge of American political theory and the American political process What if anything is likely to change regarding the balance of power between Congress and the presidency as a result of the election and what changes might we expect in the federal judiciary How about civil liberties civil rights and social policies how were they treated during the campaign and what impact will the election likely have on them These and many other questions about the