American Democracy 2004

1
American Democracy - 2004

• Ideas
• Political Culture
• Institutions
• Global Context

2
Ideas - 1

• Popular Consent/ Popular Sovereignty
• Legitimacy and Authority
• Lockes social contract theory
• Active consent vote
• Tacit consent voter apathy

3
Ideas - 2

• Majority Rule
• Republic representative democracy
• Importance of voting rules
• Protection of minority rights
• Who rules?
• Elite
• Interest Group Pluralism
• Technocrats - Bureaucrats

4
Ideas - 3

• Individualism
• Locke vs. Hobbes
• Rational individual
• Possessive individualism
• Collective good Federalist 10

5
Ideas - 4

• Liberty
• Locke and Jefferson life, liberty and
  property
  
• Freedom from government interference civil
  liberties
  
• Freedom to - civil rights
• Limited government

6
Ideas - 5

• Equality
• Jefferson All men are created equal
• One person, one vote
• Political, economic, social equality
• Equality of opportunity
• Equality of results

7
Ideas - 6

• Rule of law
• Locke
• No person is above the law
• Against arbitrary and capricious power
• Due process of law
• Form and manner in which decisions are made

8
Political Culture - 1

• Attitudes/orientations
• Socialization
• Divided or United
• Culture conflict culture wars
• Polarization
• Experience politics differently

9
Political Culture - 2

• Demographics
• Racial and ethnic diversity
• Age distribution
• Family size
• Urban/Rural/Suburban
• Socio-Economic Indicators

10
Political Culture - 3

• Political Ideology
• Coherent set of values and belief
• Non-ideological nature of America
• No feudal past
• Absence of class conflicts
• Labels are misleading
• Conservatism
• Liberalism
• Libertarianism

11
Political Culture - 4

• Views of Government
• Ambivalence
• Frustration and discontent
• High expectations little knowledge
• Low realization
• Trust in government declining since 70s
• Young people Always 2 Most 21 Some or never
  77

12
Institutions - 1

• Great deal of confidence (2000)
• Congress 7
• Executive Branch 15
• Press 12
• Business 9
• Colleges 37
• Medicine 39

13
Institutions - 2

• Capacity
• Effectiveness
• Examples
• Appropriations Bills
• Iraq
• Economy
• Abortion
• Affirmative Action

14
Global Context -1

• Economical
• Capitalism free markets
• Trans-national corporations
• Inter-dependencies
• Social
• Export of American Products
• Cultural imperialism
• Political - Diplomatic

15
Global Context - Cont

• Political Diplomatic
• Role of superpower
• New World Order
• United Nations
• Anti-Americanism
• Terrorism

16
American Democracy - 2004

• Where does this leave us?