Chapter 3 Politics Among the States The Texas Political Culture The Concept of Political Culture Political culture is a shared framework of values beliefs and habits of behavior in regard to government and politics Texas political culture is distinctive for a variety of reasons The state s great size and its relative geographic isolation until the 20th century are important factors Texas was an independent republic before joining the United States Its mixture of the Old South and the West of the frontier contribute to the state s distinctiveness The Texas Political Culture The Concept of Political Culture Though some Texans particularly African Americans and Mexican Americans tend to be separate from the political culture of the dominant Anglo majority history and political institutions have shaped the assumptions that most Texans bring to politics The intense patriotism of Texans is shaped by the myth that Texas is the most wonderful place to live that ever existed on the planet The Texas Political Culture The Concept of Political Culture The experience shared with other Southern states of slavery defeat in a civil war and postwar occupation and denying African Americans full citizenship undergird the state s conservative political culture Reinforcing the state s southern cultural conservatism is an extreme individualism derived form the myth of the frontier Based on the cultural patterns of the fifty states identified by Daniel Elazar Texas is located at a midpoint between traditionalist and individualist political cultures Political Culture Individualistic Political Culture It is an approach to government and politics that emphasizes private initiative with minimum government interference This political culture stresses the importance of the individual and private initiative It emphasizes a role of government limited to protecting individual rights ensuring that social and political relationships are based upon merit rather than tradition family ties or personal connections Moralistic Political Culture It is an approach of government and politics in which people expect government to intervene in the social and economic affairs of the state promoting the public welfare and advancing the public good This political culture regards participation in political affairs as one s civic duty Political Culture Traditional Political Culture It is an approach to government and politics that sees the role of government as the preservation of tradition and existing social order In this view government leadership lies in the hands of the established social elite and the level of participation by ordinary citizens in the policymaking process is relatively low According to this political culture the role of government is to protect and preserve the existing social order Political Culture Texas Political Culture Professor Elazar believes that the political culture of Texas is a hybrid that includes both traditionalistic and individualistic elements Texas s traditional political culture is represented in the state s long history of one party rule low levels of voter turnout and social and economic conservatism Texas s individualistic political culture is represented in the state s strong support for private business opposition to big government and faith in individual initiatives Political culture is a useful concept because it focuses on a state s history and development as important factors influencing politics and policy Figure 3 1 Political Cultures in the United States WA OR ID AK MT WY HI NV UT CA CO KS MO AZ NM OK ND SD NE TX ME NY VT NH MA CT RI MN IA WI MI IL IN OH WV KY TN PA MD NJ DE VA NC SC GA MS AL AR LA FL Moralistic Moralitic and Individualistic Traditionalistic and Moralistic Individualistic Traditionalistic and Individualistic Traditionalistic Figure 3 2 Voting Turnout in Elections for Governor r o n r e v o G r o f n o i t c e E n l l i t u o n r u T n o i t a u p o P e g A g n i t o V 6 0 0 2 70 60 50 40 30 20 r 79 MO ND WA SD MT DE MN VT ME WV WI MI WY OH NC IN OR AK ID RI IA NE MA LA CO MS PA MD CT KS AL NM NH IL KY SC VA FL TN AR AZ CA HI OK NJ NV NY GA TX UT 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 Voting Age Population Turnout in Election for Governor 1994 Purposes of Government 1 Maintain Order Establish law to preserve life and protect property 2 Provide Public Goods Benefits and services available and beneficial to everyone Benefits the market is unable to provide Externalities Education Sanitation Street lights Parks Utilities 3 Promote Equality Help the poor newest and most controversial use of government The Role of Government Totalitarian Anarchy Totalitarianism government should have unlimited power Hitler with Nazis Stalin with Communist Russia Anarchy no government power no government The Role of Government in the Economy Socialism Capitalism Equality Efficiency Socialism government owns the basic goods and services provided to members of the society Capitalism individuals own the basic goods and services provided to members of the society and do with them as they please As resources become more abundant and society becomes more civilized government moves closer and closer to socialism It works much better under these circumstances The Role of Government in the Economy Argument for Socialism labor in a market system becomes less and less valuable as it becomes more productive Argument against Socialism when everything is divided equally there is no incentive for the individual to produce Argument for Capitalism wealth it maximizes economic growth and promotes freedom of individual Argument against Capitalism it leaves less intellectually and socially privileged without means for quality of life The Role of Government in Society Freedom Order places a high value on individual liberties even at the expense of having an orderly society Social Freedom Social Order places a high value on public stability and decency even at the expense of individual freedom Political Ideology Liberal Conservative Left Wing Right Wing Economic Issues T A L C Social Issues L C A T Political Ideology 2 Dimensional Liberal Freedom A Order T Civil Liberties Conservative Restrict Behavior Equality Efficiency Social Welfare Programs Free Market It is often the case that the dimensions are not consistent with one another In other words if a person values social freedom they will not necessarily value equality also Conservative high value for social order and economic efficiency Govt power must be used to
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