GPOSC 225 1st Edition Lecture 23 Outline of Last Lecture I. 1795 Casea. 11th AmendmentII. Supreme Court a. Appellate Jurisdictionb. Granting the Writ and Rule of Fourc. What factors help the Court determine granting Cert?d. Once a Case has been Accepted:e. Types of opinions:i. Majorityii. Concurringiii. Dissentingf. Constraints on Judge’s Decision Makingi. Legalii. Strategiciii. AttitudinalOutline of Current Lecture - The Judiciary continuedI. Constraints on the Federal CourtsII. Public OpinionA. Political CultureB. Political SocializationIII. Main Agents of SocializationA. ParentsB. TeachersC. MediaIV. Nature of Public Opinion in AmericaA. Class, Race, Gender differencesV. Properties of American Political OpinionCurrent Lecture - The Federal Courts- cont’dConstraints on Federal Courts (cont’d) These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor’s lecture. GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes, not as a substitute.What constraints are on the federal courts? What stops them from acting like policy makers? Well, judges are aware of public opinion--they must be seen as legitimate. BUt constitutionally, the supreme court doesn’t have the last word== congress can amend the constitution in response.Should judges be elected? Concern because they would have to CAMPAIGN which requires private funding.Which means lawyers, businesses, etc could fund judges which leads to corruption.Public Opinion: “The distribution of citizen opinion on matters of public concern or interest”. Where does this come from- what shapes our opinions?1. Political Culture: “A system of shared political traditions, customs and beliefs widely held in a society and refer to how citizens think about their relationship to their government and each other.”American Creed → (in no order and a nonexhaustive list) religious liberty, equality, capitalism, democracy, NOTE: Americans are unclear about this and don’t often recognize the ambiguity or conflict of these terms.2. Political Socialization: the process b y which the main aspects of political culture are taught from those immersed in the culture to those who aren’t.Main agents of socialization: (aka where do we learn political culture?)● Parents - most important. Vast majority of married couples share the same party affiliation. Children tend to adopt their parent’s party affiliation (analogous to religion)○ NOTE: party identification is stable and the most reliable predictor of how peoplevote● Teachers○ teach rituals (e.g. the pledge of allegiance)○ American history civics etc○ tend to be patriotic not critical (e.g. reaffirming american exceptionalism)● Media○ is pervasive, all around you. ○ is really important as to how they report things but also WHAT is reported■ agenda setting power : What they say is important is what americans think is important. Choosing to cover an issue creates a temporary public opinion. This is the main objective for a candidate running for president. They want the media to focus on issues that americans view favorably regarding his/her party.■ media coverage often report problems not so much solutions.Nature of Public Opinion in AmericaThere are some observable patterns based on Class, Race and Gender. ● Poor and working class tend to be less involved in politics because schools teach the children of the working class to minimize themselves as public opinionmakers, making them more submissive.● Deep systematic difference between white and black opinion ○ host of issues: Fair treatment of African American community, money spent on training, education, and welfare of the African American community etc.● There is also difference of public opinion is based on gender○ narrower set of issues but women tend to support higher gun control, more money spent on education and healthcare etc.Properties of American POlitical OpinionAmerican political opinion is:A. not very detailed. B. There is a big difference between elite and mass opinions- elites know a lot about policy,follow public affairs closely since their interests and livelihood depend on the government. Elites set assumption and standards by which the public understand and interpret the political world. Most americans know little about politics, policy, or politicalleaders.C. There is tension between general principles and “real” choices. a. e.g. while 95% of americans polled support things like “majority rule”, minority rights, or free speechb. only 44% were prepared to let a communist speak in the communityc. and 63% were prepared to let an atheist speak.D. is ambivalent. a. see textbook re: abortion, trust in government etc.