P SC 1113 1st Edition Final Exam Study Guide Lectures 19 26 These notes cover all of the material that the Lecture Concepts for the Final Exam Exam 3 which was 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 19 April 7 A What does it mean for a president to go public and why would a president do it 1 In Kernell s Going Public he points out that presidents go increasingly public to promote themselves and their policies i The goal is to place the man and the message in front ii It draws upon campaign techniques iii Press conferences addresses speeches visits and ceremonies are examples 2 The public can be leverage for persuading Congress 3 Presidents goes over the heads of congress and addresses people directly II Lecture 20 April 9 A To what extent does going public work 1 More entertainment options means fewer people watch presidential addresses and less attention in the media 2 Big going public movements often fall on deaf ears i Important part of power is getting heard ii President would be more successful at getting heard if government was unified 3 Cynical and biased media 4 Presidents compete for space but get on the agenda and only make up 1 3 of the agenda i Presidential ideas are more likely to pass than Congressional ideas III Lectures 20 and 21 April 9 and April 14 A When why and how do presidents get their issues on the congressional agenda 1 Bond and Fleisher President in the Legislative Arena i A competent and skillful leader can overcome Congress or is that a myth ii Reality is that only some things are in the President s control some variables are out of the president s control iii Congress Members Fit Into One of Four Groups a Base B b Cross pressured partisans CPP c Cross pressured opposition CPO d Opposition base OB e President with majority in congress holds onto group 2 f President with minority in congress focuses on group 3 2 How i One Building Coalitions Through Elections a President helps get people into office coattails b Presidents also make efforts during the midterm c Go public to mobilize voters ii Two Leading the Party a Co partisans reluctant to embarrass the president b President is said to have strategic position as party leader c Constantly reinforces shared policy goals d Deputize leaders in Congress to keep party members in line iii Three Using Personal Support a Congress might respond when they fear public backlash 1 Might get afraid of getting booted out of office b Popular presidents may get a small boost in success rates 1 Success at the margins according to George Edwards 2 10 points of approval 2 of legislative success iv Four Treat Successful Elections as Mandates a Explained below IV Lecture 21 April 14 A What is a mandate and why do presidents claim them 1 Fourth Way to Get Leverage Treat Successful Elections as Mandates i Mandate authority granted by voters to act a Presidents portray elections as messages 1 You voted for me so now support me 2 Saying I was going to do these things is what got me elected the voters want what I stand for so let me do it 3 The message voters want what winners proposed 4 Directive enact the winner s ideas b Using the mandate 1 Presidents tries to convince Congress mandate exists 2 Studies show Congress enters mandate state 3 Power of mandate dissipates quickly 4 Pressure of first hundred days honeymoon period 5 Act while election outcome is still fresh in minds B Why might we blame the Supreme Court for the low levels of legal knowledge most Americans possess 1 Americans and the Courts i Little knowledge of the players the decisions and their meanings ii Feeling that much of what courts do doesn t affect the daily life iii Media coverage should be especially important given this a In a typical year supreme court gets less than one hour of coverage on an average major network CBS NBC ABC iv Court related reasons that Americans might not know very much about the Supreme Court a Decisions tough to understand tough to make relevant b Court doesn t help the media out technical writing no PR wing c Justices vary widely in public nature d Calendar driven nature of Court leads to uneven stream of info competition for coverage v Supreme court is secretive V Lectures 21 and 22 April 14 and April 16 A Why might we blame the media for the low levels of legal knowledge most Americans possess 1 Avoiding grappling with details of decisions 2 Focusing on litigant political local reaction 3 Are journalists equipped to understand courts i Doesn t know how to read legal language 4 The media is a bad nuance VI Lecture 22 April 16 A What are the pros and cons of learning about the judicial system through popular culture 1 Effect of Reality TV Legal Courts i Late 1990s survey 2 in 5 Americans said shows like these helped inform them about the legal system ii Pros and Cons of learning about the law from TV a Pro 1 Build trust and confidence in legal system b Con 1 False advertising about what the judiciary looks like how complicated cases might be i TV judiciary is much more diverse than the real judiciary c CSI Effect 1 At its peak CSI had around 30 million viewers in the U S 2 Judges notes increased juror knowledge standards for making a case 3 Citizens expect investigators to use sophisticated methods have perfect evidence 4 Reality Falls short d Should we allow TV cameras in the courtroom 1 Invasion of privacy of both the accuser and the accused 2 Can make it difficult for jurors to be impartial B Why should we want the public to know more about the legal system 1 Legitimacy i We want people to comply with laws rulings a If we don t know how courts work will we accept them as legitimate b If we think courts are biased will be accept them as legitimate C Why are Supreme Court nominations so important 1 Nominating Supreme Court Justices an important and difficult presidential duty i Nominating Justices a A way for presidents to leave a lasting legacy 1 A supreme court justice will be in office until they die probably b President has to be worried about getting policies through public opinion congress and implementation c The dilemma selecting a nominee that can be confirmed d The fear high profile rejection leaves its mark e Tension between focusing on the legacy and the here and now f Bork an example of considering the legacy g When he failed Anthony Kennedy an example of considering the here and now 1 Decided to