American Government and Politics

Political Science 220

Class Meets Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10:30am-11:50am, in Leverone Auditorium.

Course Description
This course explores the structure and process of American government and politics. We move beyond mere description of the rules by which political institutions operate and probe how the motivations of political actors drive the dynamics of government. We begin the course by examining how American political ideas developed as part of a liberal constitutional tradition and puzzle over why this liberal tradition has engendered enduring problems of race. Second, we ponder the ways citizens attempt to influence or change their governments, with a focus on interest groups, political parties, opinion surveys, elections, and social movements. Third, we investigate the inner workings of formal political institutions, with particular attention to Congress, the President, federal courts, bureaucratic agencies, and local governments. Finally, we attempt to disentangle the messy processes through which ideas, institutions, and conflicts are synthesized into public policies. The course concludes with a case study of President Clintons failed attempt to change national health care policy in 1993-94.

Teaching Assistants
Teaching assistants are vital participants in the instruction of this course. They are responsible for facilitating the discussion sections held at the end of each week, evaluating (in consultation with the instructor of the course) student performance, and holding regular office hours. TAs are advanced graduate students with substantial expertise in the area of American government and politics and are available to aid students in the learning process. This quarter we are joined by the following teaching assistants: 1. 2. 3. 4. Crina Archer, e-mail: [email protected] Henry Dougan, e-mail: [email protected] Lida Maxwell, e-mail: [email protected] Mara Nelson, e-mail: [email protected] 1

Requirements
1. The class requires regular attendance at lectures and constructive participation in discussion sections. Discussion sections are particularly important, as they expand the opportunity to refine your thinking on many issues raised in the course. All students register for one and only one discussion section: Sect. 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 Day Thursday Thursday Thursday Thursday Friday Friday Friday Friday Friday Friday Thursday Thursday Time 2:00pm 2:00pm 1:00pm 1:00pm 10:00am 11:00am Noon 1:00pm 2:00pm 3:00pm 3:00pm 3:00pm Location Tech Inst L168 Parkes Hall 215 Parkes Hall 212 Fisk Hall 114 Parkes Hall 215 Parkes Hall 213 Parkes Hall 212 Parkes Hall 213 Kresge 303 Kresge 303 Tech Inst L168 Kresge 103 Teaching Assistant Mara Nelson Henry Dougan Henry Dougan Lida Maxwell Crina Archer Crina Archer Henry Dougan Lida Maxwell Crina Archer Mara Nelson Mara Nelson Lida Maxwell

2. Two short papers will be required. Papers should be two to three pages in length, typed, double-spaced, with normal margins and fonts. Papers must be the original work of the author and must give proper attribution to all sources consulted. The first short paper topic will be distribution in sections during Week 2 (i.e., October 4 or 5) and will be due in sections during Week 3 (i.e., October 11 or 12). The second short paper topic will be distributed in sections during Week 7 (i.e., November 8 or 9) and will be due in sections during Week 8 (November 15 or 16). 3. Two exams will be given. The midterm exam will be given in class on Thursday, October 25. The final exam will be given in Leverone Auditorium on Monday, December 10 from 3pm to 5pm. Exams are closed book and must be taken without consulting notes or the opinions of other students.

Evaluation
Materials will be evaluated by teaching assistants in consultation with the instructor. Final grades will be based on: 1. 2. 3. 4. Attendance and Participation 20% Two Short Papers 30% (15% each) Midterm exam 20% Final Exam 30%

Required Reading
The following books are available for purchase at Norris Bookstore and SBX Bookstore: 1. Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay, The Federalist Papers (New York: Bantam Books, 1982). 2. Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America, ed. J. P. Mayer (Harper Perennial, 1969). 3. Theda Skocpol, Boomerang: Health Care Reform and the Turn Against Government (New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 1997). 4. David Canon, Anne Khademain, and Kenneth Mayer, The Enduring Debate: Classic and Contemporary Readings in American Politics (New York, 1997). Additionally, a READING PACKET is required and is available for purchase at Quartet Copies. All readings are on regular reserve at the Main University Library

Course Outline
Week 1 Foundations of American Government and Politics September 25 (Tuesday) Introduction to the Course Discussion of course requirements and expectations. Responding to terrorism as a case study in American politics.

September 27 (Thursday) The Separation of Powers System Required Reading: The Declaration of Independence, The Constitution of the United States of America, and Amendments to The Constitution in The Enduring Debate, pp. 633-663. Hamilton, Jay, and Madison, The Federalist Papers, Editors Introduction and Numbers 6, 10, 14, 15, 37, 39, 46, 47, 48, 49, 51, 52, 54, 55, 57, 62, 63, and 70.

Discussion Section: Terrorism and American politics. What are we learning about politics, government, and citizenship from local, national, and international responses to the events of September 11, 2001?

Week 2 Culture, History, and Politics October 2 (Tuesday) The Liberal Tradition Required Reading: Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America, Authors Introduction and pp. 173-245 and 503-528. Robert Putnam, Bowling Alone: Americas Declining Social Capital, Journal of Democracy, Vol. 7 (1995), pp. 65-78. IN READING PACKET.

October 4 (Thursday) The Enduring Question of Race Required Reading: Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America, pp. 340-413. Michael C. Dawson, Race, Class, and African-American Economic Polarization, pp. 15-44 in Behind the Mule (U of Chicago Press, 1994). IN READING PACKET.

Discussion Section: Can a stronger democracy be built in the United States? How? FIRST SHORT PAPER TOPIC DISTRIBUTED IN SECTION. Week 3 Intermediary Organizations in Politics October 9 (Tuesday) Interest Groups Required Reading: E. E. Schattschneider, pp. 20-59 in The Semisovereign People (Harcourt Brace, 1975). IN READING PACKET. Mancur Olson, The Logic of Collective Action, in pp. 413-431 in The Enduring Debate. Jonathan Rauch, The Hyperpluralism Trap, pp. 440-447 in The Enduring Debate.

October 11 (Thursday) Parties Required Reading: E. E. Schattschneider, pp. 60-94 in The Semisovereign People (Harcourt Brace, 1975). IN READING PACKET. Morris P. Fiorina, The Decline of Collective Responsibility in American Politics, pp. 359-369 in The Enduring Debate.

Carl M. Canon, A Pox on Both Our Parties, pp. 383-389 in The Enduring Debate. American Political Science Association, A Report on the Committee on Political Parties: Toward a More Responsible Two-Party System, pp. 392396 in The Enduring Debate.

Discussion Section: Whom do parties and interest groups represent? FIRST SHORT PAPER DUE IN SECTION. Week 4 Public Opinion and Elections October 16 (Tuesday) Public Opinion and Media Required Reading: George Gallup, Polling the Public, pp. 279-285 in The Enduring Debate. Richard Morin, Choice Words, pp. 287-291 in The Enduring Debate. Michael Nelson, Why Americans Hate Politics and Politicians, pp. 292-297 in The Enduring Debate. Benjamin I. Page and Robert Y. Shapiro, Rational Public Opinion, pp. 1-36 in The Rational Public: Fifty Years of Trends in Americans Policy Preferences (University of Chicago Press, 1992). IN READING PACKET.

October 18 (Thursday) Campaigns and Elections Required Reading: V.O. Key, The Voice of the People: An Echo, pp. 316-320 in The Enduring Debate. John A. Boiney, Who Cares About Campaign Conduct? pp. 331-340 in The Enduring Debate. Vic Gresham, Why Didnt Conservatives Turn Out? pp. 341-344 in The Enduring Debate. Walter Berns and Gordon S. Black, Third Parties and the Presidential Race, pp. 378-382 in The Enduring Debate. Stephen Ansolabehere and Shanto Iyengar, The New Political Fault Line, pp. 1-16 in Going Negative: How Attack Ads Shrink and Polarize the Electorate (Free Press, 1995). IN READING PACKET.

Discussion Section: Bush v. Gore

Week 5 Campaign Finance Reform October 23 (Tuesday) The Pros and Cons of Reform Required Reading: Norman Ornstein, Five-Point Reform Proposal Would Fix Campaign System, pp. 351-354 in The Enduring Debate. Peggy Ellis, Ten Big Lies About Campaign Finance Reform, pp. 354-358 in The Enduring Debate. Current newspaper/magazine articles to be announced.

October 25 (Thursday) IN-CLASS MIDTERM EXAM Discussion Section: The Fate of McCain-Feingold Week 6 Social Movements October 30 (Tuesday) Civil Rights Required Reading: Martin Luther King, Jr., Letter from a Birmingham Jail, 1963, pp. 79-86 in The Enduring Debate. Brown v. Board of Education (1953), pp. 612-614 in The Enduring Debate. Frances Fox Piven and Richard A. Cloward, The Civil Rights Movement, pp. 181-263 in Poor Peoples Movements: Why they Succeed, How they Fail (Vintage Books, 1979). IN READING PACKET.

November 1 (Thursday) Womens Movements Required Reading: Jane Mansbridge, pp. 1-19 and 118-148 in Why We Lost the ERA (University of Chicago Press, 1984). IN READING PACKET.

Discussion Section: Can social movements still make a difference? Week 7 Legislative and Executive Politics November 6 (Tuesday) Congress Required Reading:

Kenneth A. Shepsle, The Changing Textbook Congress, pp. 238-266 in John E. Chubb and Paul E. Peterson (eds.), Can the Government Govern? (Brookings Institution Press, 1989). IN READING PACKET. David Mayhew, Congress: The Electoral Connection, pp. 109-112 in The Enduring Debate. Steven Stark, Too Representative Government, pp. 113-127 in The Enduring Debate. Sean Paige, Rolling Out the Pork Barrel, pp. 138-141 in The Enduring Debate. Jonathan Cohn, Roll Out the Barrel: The Case Against the Case Against Pork, pp. 141-150 in The Enduring Debate.

November 8 (Thursday) The Presidency Required Reading: Richard Neustadt, The Power to Persuade, pp. 151-160 in The Enduring Debate. Barbara DaFoe Whitehead, The Clinton Affair, pp. 161-163 in The Enduring Debate. Herbert Stein, Presidents and Economics: One-Star Generalizations, pp. 165-171 in The Enduring Debate. Charles O. Jones, Perspectives on the Presidency, pp. 172-178 in The Enduring Debate.

Discussion Section: Gridlock or good government?: Can Congress and President Bush work together? SECOND SHORT PAPER TOPIC DISTRIBUTED IN SECTION. Week 8 Bureaucracy and the Courts November 13 (Tuesday) Bureaucracy Required Reading: Michael Lipsky, pp. 3-25 in Street-Level Bureaucracy: Dilemmas of the Individual in Public Services (Russell Sage Foundation, 1980). IN READING PACKET. Woodrow Wilson, The Study of Administration, pp. 191-199 in The Enduring Debate. James Q. Wilson, Bureaucracy: What Government Agencies Do and Why They Do It, pp. 200-208 in The Enduring Debate. Robert Worth, Reinvention Lite, pp. 209-218 in The Enduring Debate.

November 15 (Thursday) Federal Courts Required Reading: Hamilton, Madison, and Jay, The Federalist Papers, Numbers 78 and 81. Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America, pp. 99-105. Court cases from The Enduring Debate: n n n n n Marbury v. Madison (1803), pp. 595-600. Barron v. Baltimore (1833), pp. 605-607. Roe v. Wade (1973), pp. 607-612. United States v. Nixon (1974), pp. 614-619. Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992), pp. 619-625.

Discussion Section: Does judicial activism undermine the Constitution? SECOND SHORT PAPER DUE IN SECTION. Week 9 Decentralized Politics November 20 (Tuesday) Federalism, States, and Local Government Required Reading: Steven P. Erie, Rainbows End: Machines, Immigrants, and the Working Class, pp. 236-266 in Rainbows End: Irish-Americans and the Dilemma of Urban Machine Politics, 1840-1985 (University of California, 1988). IN READING PACKET. Paul Peterson, The Price of Federalism, pp. 43-51 in The Enduring Debate. Robert Katzman, Guns, the Commerce Clause, and the Court, pp. 52-54 in The Enduring Debate. Court cases from The Enduring Debate: n McCulloch v. Maryland (1819), pp. 600-605. n United States v. Lopez (1995), pp. 625-632. November 22 (Thursday) THANKSGIVING DAY NO CLASS Discussion Section: THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY NO SECTIONS

Week 10 Public Policy November 27 (Tuesday) The Public Policy Process Required Reading: Charles E. Lindblom, The Science of Muddling Through, pp. 451-459 in The Enduring Debate. Theodore J. Lowi, American Business, Public Policy, Case Studies, and Political Theory, pp. 460-466 in The Enduring Debate. E.J. Dionne, Jr., The Era of Big Government: Why Youd Miss It If it Went, pp. 521-528 in The Enduring Debate.

November 29 (Thursday) Case Study: The Clinton Health Plan Required Reading: Theda Skocpol, Boomerang: Health Care Reform and the Turn Against the Government , entire book.

Discussion Section: Patients Rights and the New Politics of Health Care Week 11 READING PERIOD December 4 (Tuesday) Instructor and TAs to hold office hours during class time. December 6 (Thursday) Optional review session to be held in Leverone Auditorium. During usual class time. Week 12 FINALS WEEK December 10 (Monday) FINAL EXAM, 3-5pm, Leverone Auditorium.