2011-12-13
United States Government
Political parties & interests groups
Political Parties * American political parties do not have clear programs, regular members, annual meetings, party leaders don’t decide who will run for election, etc. – the ideology of American parties is not very distinctive – they are electoral machines – they help people get elected to Congress and help us organize our thinking. * Political parties have existed since the first decade of the new government’s existence. Americans have always had ambivalent feelings about them. * Parties are necessary, and they perform vital functions, they are crucial institutions when it comes to organizing competition when it comes to elections, structuring the thinking of the society. If they help us distinguish various political sides, we can start identifying with them (liberal, conservative) * Ad-hoc coalitions – built in order to pass a specific bill.
Party functions: * Organize the competition * Unify the electorate * Inspire and inform voters * Translate preferences into policy * Provide loyal opposition * Organize Government * Help Govern * Act as Watchdogs * Nominate Candidates * Ensure Candidate Quality * Winner takes all election system – if you have to be big to win, it makes no sense for small parties to function. * Party systems – Multiparty and Two Party System. * Minor parties: Persistence and Frustration * American parties are fairly loose coalitions of people who think that together, they share broad world views (ideology). * American society is very religious, but they share a conviction that public space should be free of religious symbols (wall of separation between Church and State). Conservatives think this wall should not be too thick. * Social security plan was introduced by the Government during Bush’s administration. Democrats – political elites will decide what to do w/ the money vs. Republicans – private people will decide what to do with it. * Democrats – “tax and spend party” * Republicans “we are the party of economic freedom” (Democrats say “you are the party of the rich, because your approach to taxes benefits the upper classes”) * The majority of general public identifies themselves as middle class – Republicans identify that class differently than Democrats do, they think people who earn 200,000$ are still middle class. In 2000 Al Gore (democrat) said the highest mark of income for middle class is 80,000$, Obama now thinks it’s 250,000$! It’s a very loose spectrum. * Lifestyle issues define American Political Public into liberal and conservative. For democrats, individualism and freedom of choice is more important than for republicans. * The class distinctions are not visible in the way that political parties speak – all of them address middle class, although they define it differently. * Democrats are more for multiculturalism, while Republicans hold stricter views concerning immigrations. * Republicans – mostly the party of white Anglo-Saxon Protestants. * Most ethnic groups/minority groups support the Democrats (however there is a very conservative portion of the Hispanics from Cuba). * Socio-economic status does not necessarily define who you’ll vote for – world views are more important. * When the two parties are in congress, they tend to cooperate much more than parties do in Poland. * There is no membership when it comes to political parties in the US; there are just people who identify with Democrats or Republicans. * The US has many minor parties, but only two of them have a chance to win elections. (mostly they’re called “third parties”) * Libertarian Party, Green Party, Reform Party, etc. * Tea Party is mostly a social movement, not a party, but it is a Third Voice out there. * Barriers to minor-party success: * Institutional: * Single-member district, first-past-the-post-system * Electoral College, winner-takes-it-all system * Ballot access laws * Attitudinal Barriers: * Wasted votes syndrome * History * Tradition * Consensus * Liberal (Social-Democratic in Europe) vs. Conservative * Democrats and Republicans sort of overlap each other in the center, representing middle class. * Most people hold mortgages. * The voters don’t feel like supporting political movements which are not stable if they do not feel stable themselves – since both Democrats and Republicans are more or less in the center, the get voting support. * Umbrella parties/ catch-all parties – both Democrats and Republicans. * It’s easier for the electorate to choose between just two parties. * Occasionally third parties emerge in situations when Republicans move further right and Democrats move further left, they leave a ‘hole in the center’ for a new party to fill out the gap. * Minor parties: * Ideological Parties * Protest Parties * Single Issue Parties * Splinter Parties
History of American Political Parties * First Parties * Political parties emerged largely out of practical necessity. Federalists vs. Anti-Federalists. * In 1787, parties began to form as citizens debated the ratification of the US Constitution. * The original constitution stated a rule according to which the person who got most votes became president and the runner-up became vice-president ( because of that rule Andrew Jackson became president and Thomas Jefferson became his vice-president even though their views were basically opposite – that was corrected after those four harsh years). * Democrats vs. Jeffersonian Democrats. * Realigning Elections * 1824 Andrew Jackson and the Democrats * 1860 The Civil War and the Rise of the Republicans (mid 1850s) * 1896 A Party in Transition * 1932 FDR ad the New Deal Alignment * Divided Government. * National Convention (nominates candidates for the presidency every four years) * Republican National Committee * Democratic National Committee * The Watergate Scandal (President Nixon sent burglars to steal campaign plans from the Democratic National Committee in 1970s) * One of the functions of political parties is to make public policies, which is a trait they share with Interest Groups (well, Interest Groups can just have influence over public policy, however, this influence is crucial)
Interest Groups * Play a pivotal role in American Politics * Sources of: * information, * funding, * educators of public, * votes, * Controllers on the enforcement side of politics. * Interest Groups are more important in the American System than in any other one. * Spheres of society – Civil Society: * political sphere (decision-making), * public sphere (where institutions function which are a transmission belt of interests private people have), * private sphere (citizens) * A society that has a bottom-up spontaneous organization of interests. * Interest Groups = NGOs in Poland (Non-Government Organizations) * Civic Culture – a term coined by G. Almond and S. Verba – the democratic political culture, a culture in which people are positively oriented towards themselves as citizens, they see themselves as active participants of the political system, they know they CAN be important. It does not mean politicians will do anything people want, but at least citizens have high ethicacy. * “Making Politics Work” * Social Capital – willingness to work with other people towards the fulfillment of our goals which we share, it’s an attitude that politicians in order to “make politics work”. Cooperative attitude is required in order to create a Civil Society. Without Civil Society, there would be no Civic Culture. * Interest Groups play a crucial role, much bigger than political parties in the US, as transmission belts in American Democracy. However, this does not mean they’re always viewed as good and necessary institutions, since they’re excesses. * Role of interest groups. * The founders of the Republic referred to what are present day interest groups as Factions. * James Madison foresaw “factions” as an inevitable development, with a tendency toward “instability and injustice”. * Interest groups are also sometimes called “special interests” in 50s and 60s it was used to describe business interest groups, but today we use it to describe single-issue interest groups. * Some Americans identify with groups distinguished by race, gender, ethnicity, age, occupation, or sexual orientation. * Others form groups based on common issues or interests, i.e. gun control, tax reduction, education. Such groups or associations that seek to influence government in some way are called Interest Groups. * Political parties must have broad views about everything, while this is not required for interest groups who may focus on narrow interests. * Social movements – a large body of people who are interested in a common issues, idea, or concern that is of continuing significance and who are willing to take action to support or oppose it. * Interest Groups sometimes begin as movements. * Social movements represent groups that have felt unrepresented by government. * How do they differ? * Interest Groups usually work within the framework of government and employ tactics such as lobbying to achieve their goals. * Movements seek to change attitudes or institutions, not just policies. * Types of Interest Groups: * Economic Interest Groups, * Trade and Other Associations * Business * Labor organizations * Single-issue Interest Groups / Ideological * Public-Interest Groups – they seek to influence policy on Capitol Hill and in several state legislatures on environmental issues, safe energy, and consumer protection, access to Health Care in order to benefit all people. * Watchdogs – citizens against government waste. * Foreign Policy interest Groups * Nongovernmental Organizations (NGOs). * Government and Government Employee Interest Groups * Governments are themselves important interest groups. * Government employees form a large and well-organized group. * Public employees are increasingly important to organized labor because they constitute the fastest-growing unions. * Other Interest Groups: * Veteran’s groups * Nationality groups * Religious Organizations * Environmental groups * In every issue, because the system is open and competitive, we have a countervailing power – groups which want opposite things. * As long as the competitions are fair, there’s nothing wrong with that. However, it’s a theoretical concept, because naturally, a group which has more money will be more influential than any group with less money. * Saliency of the issue – how important an issue is. * In 1970s, one of the most prominent interest groups emerged – MADD – Mothers against Drunk Drivers. The strength of that group lied in its issue – they wanted to punish drunk drivers harsher, impose slower speed limits at highways, installation of clearer markings on the roads, more police patrolling, etc. * Potential power – the power to mobilize the power to vote. * Watchdogs – consumer protection organization or campaigners, like AARP (American Association of Retired Persons – most powerful interest group – 36 million members!), ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now). * Interest Groups are important because they can influence voters to vote one way or another. For example, The Christian Coalition distributes voter guides before presidential elections as one means of influencing politics. * The National Rifle Association * American-Israel Political Action Committee (AIPAC) * Council on Foreign Relations * Sources of Interest Groups Strength: * Size and resources * Incentive to participate * Cohesiveness * Leadership * Technique examples: * Publicity and mass media appeals * Mass mailing * Direct contact with government * Testifying at legislative hearings. * Contacting government officials directly to present their point of view * Helping to draft legislation * Alerting state legislators to the fact of the effect of a bill in their districts * Having influential consultants contract legislator’s office (such as celebrities) * Lobbyists are usually former public servants, experienced in government, who attempt to influence decisions made by officials in the government, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. * Federal Register – an official document, published every weekday, listing the new and proposed regulations of executive departments and regulatory agencies. Organized groups have access to this to influence Congress.