P SC 1113 1st Edition Exam 1 Study Guide Lectures 1 9 These notes cover all of the material the Lecture Concepts for Exam 1 given to us in discussion guides us to focus on Please consult the textbook for more concepts more terms and a better understanding of the material I Lecture 1 January 15 A Potential explanations for the right track wrong track survey results 1 The number one indicator of how people feel about the track the united States is on is the economy 2 The split in opinion doesn t vary much with good or bad news 3 Diffuse support vs specific support i Diffuse support How we feel about the system we ve chosen ii Specific support How we feel about those who are running the system iii We like democracy diffuse but we are unhappy with who s running it how they re running it and their decisions specific II Lectures 2 and 3 January 20 and 22 A Definitions of presidential power and reasons why it has grown 1 Presidents in the past i Literalists a I can only do what the constitution says I can do specifically mindset ii Reactive instead of proactive 2 Today s president i Extensive policy ideas and policy infrastructure ii More proactive than reactive a More wars b U S has become a superpower c President s staff expands iii Takes advantage of vaguely described power iv Independent but slightly insulated v Has the power to appoint power to command military power to veto power to make treaties vi Stewards a Proactive define what a president could be b If the constitution says I can t then I won t but if it doesn t say anything about it then I ll try to do it III Lecture 3 January 22 A Levels of government and the pros and cons of having so many levels 1 Federalism i Idea Government s powers are shared by the national government and the states ii Reality Power shared by many many entities 1 Federal 2 States 3 Counties 4 Municipalities 5 Townships 6 Special districts 7 School districts a Pros 1 Deals with the largeness of our nation 2 Experimentation 3 Respects subcultures 4 Opportunities for citizens to get involved have access b Cons 1 Small units potentially dominated by factions 2 Laws not uniform from one place to the next 3 Legal red tape more governments means more laws possibly difficult to get things accomplished 4 Confusion for citizens over where to turn to solve problems III Lecture 4 January 27 A The expanding definition of representation 1 According to Warren Miller and Donald Stokes representation is congruence or how well what an elected official does matches public opinion 2 Sociotropic big issues relevant to a lot of people vs pocketbook small issues only relevant to me 3 Heinz Eulau and Paul Karpes i Said you could judge them based on other forms of service a How they respond to specific needs wants or problems in your area b If they re concerned with your tiniest little problems c Whether they bring a lot of money into the district allocation d If they do any of these things the district may look more kindly to them e Symbolic ways they can earn your support getting things on the agenda done listening to all voices building relationships getting the ball rolling on things you care about 4 Collective i Your location may differ from state dynamics or national dynamics 5 Symbolic vs allocative vs service vs policy representation 6 Descriptive government looks like the people vs substantive are you doing what the people want you to do IV Lecture 5 January 29 A How the First Amendment has been interpreted over time and the implications 1 Not as straightforward as it seems 2 A pendulum swinging between freedom and protection i Shifts based on state of affairs Are we at war Protection Is it peacetime Freedom 3 Historical and Modern Examples i Founders didn t always live up to these ideals a Alien and Sedition Acts 1 Attempting to curb discussion that s against the government b Earliest major speech case 1919 s Schenck Case 1 Handing out pamphlets to encourage avoiding the draft 2 Clear and present danger as a test of 1917 Espionage Act c Near vs Minnesota of 1931 1 Near was a disliked newspaper editor critical of people in power attempted to expose corruption in the federal government 2 Key case in frame of free expression by newspapers d New York Times vs United States 1971 Leaked classified documents on state of Vietnam War 1 Public was being fed one thing about the war and these documents said something else that was much more negative 2 NYT thought the public needed to know that the war wasn t as agreeable as they thought 3 NYT won proving that the courts do what they can to protect Freedom of Expression 4 Shift from the balancing doctrine balancing the pendulum between freedom and protection to what some call fundamental freedoms doctrine where government has to meet heavy burden only limit speech in extreme cases B What makes Americans more or less tolerant 1 More Good economy no crisis more education 2 Less current terrorist threat attack crisis 3 Vague questions like do you believe in freedom of speech lead to strong support i Start naming groups and support drops ii Sullivan Piereson and Marcus the least liked group changes over time a Communists atheists etc aren t as feared lately b Why Threats change new issues pop onto agenda C Types of prejudice and how prejudice affects who we re willing to vote for 1 Explicit vs Implicit Prejudice i Explicit Consciously endorsed negative attitudes based on group membership ii Implicit associations that come to mind unintentionally whose influence on thought and action may not be consciously recognized and can be difficult to control iii Examples above known as The Bradley Effect a Individuals say they re open to diversity in office but when it s time to vote they actually vote differently V Lecture 6 and 7 February 3 and 5 A Trends in willingness to vote for some types of candidates 1 Least willing to vote for Muslims and atheists but more willing to vote for other groups over time B Post WW2 changes in how we organize how we interact Post 1960s changes in how we organize how we interact 1 The 1950s and 1960s i Post depression number of community groups increases each year ii Increasing affluence and education as well iii Church attendance booms iv The threat of leisure a More free time how are they going to use it v Heeding the call of Kennedy The torch has been passed vi Number of parents who would like to see children go into politics doubles 2 Participation Transformation Post 1970s i From joiners to loners