Transcript Slide 1

“A community is
like a ship;
everyone ought to
be prepared to
take the helm.”
– Henrik Ibsen
Henrik Ibsen
•
•
•
•
•
Henrik Ibsen
Born: 20 March 1828
Birthplace: Skien, Norway
Died: 23 May 1906
Best Known As: Norwegian "Father of Modern
Drama"
• Norwegian Henrik Ibsen is among the most famous modern
playwrights, the author of such dramas as A Doll's House
(1879) and When We Dead Awaken (1899). During his lifetime
he earned an international reputation for his psychological
dramas that frequently commented on social issues of the
day. His plays are still among the most frequently performed
in the world.
What is Government?
• Institutions and processes through which public policies are made
for a society.
– Examples of institutions in the US government
•
•
•
•
•
•
Congress
The President
The courts
The federal administrative agencies (the bureaucracy)
State and local governments
The approximately 50,000 elected officials in America
– Functions of national governments
•
•
•
•
•
Maintain national defense
Provide public services
Preserve order
Socialize the young
Collect taxes
What is Politics?
• The process by which we select our
governmental leaders and what policies these
leaders pursue. Politics produces authoritative
decisions about public issues
• Lasswell’s definition of politics
– Who gets what, when, and how?
Government and Politics: What’s the Difference?
SOURCE: www.usconstitution.net
What is Politics?
Who gets what, how
and when?
The University of Chicago made Lasswell an assistant
professor in 1927. During World War Two he served as the
director of war communications research at the Library of
Congress and taught at the New School of Social
Research in New York City and Yale Law School. In 1946
he began lecturing at Yale. 1903-1978
The Lasswell Model
• Harold Lasswell a well known political scientist
along with other influential liberals of his
period, argued that democracies needed
propaganda to keep the uninformed citizenry
in agreement with what the specialized class
had determined was in their best interests.
We must put aside "democratic dogmatisms
about men being the best judges of their own
interests" since "men are often poor judges of
their own interests, flitting from one
alternative to the next without solid reason“.
WHO ?
(The Participants)
INDIVIDUALS
• Voters
• Supporters
• Candidates
• Office Holders
GROUPS
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Business
Labor
Farmers
Racial/Ethnic/Gender
Socioeconomic
Religious Affiliation
Gun owners
Universities
Others. . .
ORGANIZATIONS
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Major and Minor Parties
National Organization for Women
AARP
United Auto Workers
AFL-CIP
National Association of Manufacturers
American Legion
Others. . . . .
WHAT
(The Values) – basically, advantages for
oneself or one’s group
Recognition
Contracts
Influence
Public Policy desires
Prestige
Status Quo Maintained
Justice/Equity
Public Interest
Access
Jobs
HOW
(the methods)
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Voting
Lobbying
Platforms
Speeches
Bargaining
Intimidation
Bribery
Violence
Logrolling
Public relations
Campaigns
Rallies
Media exposure
Campaign Contributions
When?
Now. . . or later?
What is public policy?
A course of action taken
to solve a problem
Who makes public policy?
Congress
Courts
President
Bureaucrats
Courts- Brown v Board of Education
President – Executive Order-Internment
Congress- passes a law
Bureaucrats – add the details
Congress left out
Policy Making in the United States
•A problem that disturbs people gives rise to demands
for relief
•Individual or groups work to get the problem noticed
and placed on the government’s agenda
•Formulation or alternative solutions for solving the
problem follow
•Formal approval of a solution is reached by the
government
•Budgeting provides funding for the new policy
•Policy implementation requires actual administration
to its targets
•Policy evaluation determines success or failure of the
policy
•Evaluation leads to restructuring of the policy
– A problem that disturbs people gives rise to
demands for relief:
• Healthcare, Hurricane Katrina, Immigration
• Brown v Board of Education/Americans with
Disabilities
Individuals or groups work to get the
problem noticed and placed on the
government’s agenda:
Examples:
• Political parties
• Interest groups
• Media/agenda setting/Polling
Formal approval of a solution is
reached by the government:
•
•
•
•
Legislative process
President signs bill into law
Executive orders
Supreme Court decisions
Budgeting provides funding for the
new policy:
• Congress, the Executive departments and the
bureaucrats all work on budgeting monies for
the programs.
• Budget process by the President
• Data analysis by the bureaucrats
• Taxing and spending committees
Policy implementation, evaluation,
and restructuring.
• Executive Branch agencies- add details to the
legislation
• Bureaucracy – works to enforce or complete the
work
• Management collects data about success or
failure
• Flow of information back up
to the policymakers –
Cabinet Secretaries, President and Congress
Assignment
• Find a newspaper of magazine article that
demonstrates Lasswell’s definition of politics.
Types of Government Systems
Types of Government Systems
Government Systems
Definition
Who is allowed to
participate?
Individual ruler with
hereditary authority holds
absolute governmental
power
Monarchy
Constitutional Monarchy
Dictator
Oligarchy
Pluralism
How are decisions
reached?
Pure Democracy
Representative Democracy
Totalitarian Regime
Authoritarian System
Examples