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Unit II
The Socialization of politics = The development of traditions, values and ideologies of
the American political animal. HOW is political socialization acquired? More through formal or informal learning?
Agents of political socialization? a. families b. mass media c. tradition + customs d. schools Which is the primary source?
American Political Culture
Equality of Opportunity
Individual Freedom
Representative Democracy
Equal Opportunity v Equal Results
Equality of Opportunity A view that it is wrong to
use race or sex either to discriminate against or give preferential treatment to minorities or women
Equality of Results A view that government
should do everything in its power to guarantee all a standard quality of life
America’s Demographics:Who are we?
Demographics = science of population changes Gender Occupation Race Religion social class
Three major demographic changes in U.S. Minority Majority Regional Shifts Graying of America
Census building - every 10 yrs since 1790 a “Nation of nations” LBJ said. . .
Immigrants: First wave, pre-Civil War -- NW Europeans 2nd wave, post-Civil War – S & E Europeans 3rd Wave, after WWII - Hispanics + Asians Current immigration policy?
Minority/majority is influencing the great melting pot In the next few decades – Whites predicted to no
longer be the majority of society Hispanics now the largest minority group.
Minority Majority
What will the growth of the Minority Majority mean for politics in the U.S.?
“Minority-Majority” emerging
Simpson/Mazzoli Act (1987) requires employers to document the citizenship of employees or face fines.Concerns?Should government benefits be denied to
people who are not legal residents?Act now viewed as a dismal failure
Asian influx has brought an educated elite into America. . .the SUPERACHIEVERS! the typical downtrodden immigrant now is
highly educated Even with casinos, Native Americans
maintain the most dismal ranking in acquiring the American dream.
America’s Demographics: Who are we?
REGIONAL SHIFTS- Demographics have changed with our mobility- From the Rust Belt…PA, OH, MI to the Sun Belt …South and West – FLORIDA- Dramatic changes in FL & TX from “Frost Belt”- Cause political changes every 10 years after census
- REAPPORTIONMENT of the 435 seats in the House- FL now has 27 House seats, 29 electoral votes!
GRAY POWER “Organized influence
exerted by seniors.” For 1st time in U.S. history, the
“senior” segment of the population has
become largest segment of the population Baby boomers now represent 26% of the population and 40% of the
economy They will collect approximately $5 trillion in Social Security benefits! AARP is the largest special interest group today & possesses the
most political clout
Group Factors that Affect Public Opinion & Political Ideology:
Race/Ethnicity: Affiliations are based on freedom-equality issues and socioeconomic conditions
White-Favor Republican Black-Overwhelmingly favor Democrats Hispanic
Overwhelmingly favor Democrats Except Cubans
Asian-relatively neutral
Progression of Race and Voting 15th Amendment (1870)
The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.
24th Amendment (1964) Prohibits a poll tax as
qualification to vote Voting Rights Act (1965)
Prevents states from denying citizens the right to vote based on race.
Helps enforce the 15th Amendment.
Group Factors that Affect Public Opinion & Political Ideology: The Gender Gap
Differences in political views and voting behavior of men and women
Men tend to favor Republicans Conservatives
Women tend to favor Democrats Liberals
Differences between Men and Women Role of Government: Doing
too much? Yes: women (50%); men
(66%) Social Programs: Favor
cuts? Favor: women (47%) men
(60%) Should more be done to
expand good, affordable child care, or should it be left to families and individuals? Do more: women (63%);
men (41%)
Should fed government guarantee medical care? Yes: women (69%) men
(58%) Poverty and homelessness
important: One of most impt probs:
wom(63%); men 44% Should affirmative action be
continued or abolished? Abolished: wom 36%, men 52%
Do you think women have equal job opps No: women 69% men 59%
Group Factors that Affect Public Opinion & Political Ideology:
FAMILY INCOME LEVELThe higher one’s income,the more likely they are to…
Register to vote Vote Vote Republican
Effect of Education: The more education one has the more likely they will:
Register to vote Vote Vote Democrat
(at least in the beginning)
Participate in various methods
Jewish persons & Black Protestants are generally the most liberal of all religious groups
Catholics Liberal EXCEPT on social
issues Protestants
Conservative, particularly in South / Bible Belt
Jews Liberal Democrats
Group Factors …..Religion
Urban v. Suburbanv. Rural America
Population Density The more people living in your
area, the more democratic your area tends to be
Higher populated cities tend to benefit more from federal spending
More government services are needed in densely populated areas
Regional Factors that Affect Public Opinion & Political Ideology:
Region South
Traditionally votes heavily Republican Many Christian conservatives
East Coast (Northeast) Large ethnic mix, heavily unionized, large urban areas Most liberal region of the country, Democrats
Midwest tends to be a mixture of the two ideologies Has heavy union activity….Democrats (MI, IL,) Also has large amount of rural areas/farmers … conservative
Republicans (IA, MO…) West Coast
Traditionally liberal; environmental concerns Some large urban areas Getting a bit more of a mixture due to migration patterns
Region
Summary of Voting trends by region Northeast
Democrat Midwest
Republican South
Republican West
Democrat Swing States
Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania
Democratic Party - a net loss of six electoral votes in safe states, for a national total of 242Republican Party - a net gain of seven electoral votes in safe states, for a national total of 181Swing states a net loss of one, for a national total of 115.
2012 ELECTORAL VOTES
How do we know how America is changing?
POLLING!
Public Opinion: An aggregate of
the individual views, attitudes, and beliefs about a particular topic, expressed by a significant proportion of a community
Public Opinion Polls are conducted by news organizations, politicians, candidates, interest groups
Early 1950’s George Gallup “polled” a microcosm of American political thought – a Sample
the more “random” the better. .o everyone should have a chance
of being selected. .
1,000 to 1,500 usually enough
Samples are not perfect – there is a sampling error of about 3-4% in a typical poll
Supporters: Polls assist politicians in “detecting” public preferences. . .Are there shifts in thinking . . . Should they create possible “shifts” in policy making?
Dectractors: It has become the issue of selling policy instead of possibly doing what’s right! - avoiding compromises to appease radical shifts. Politicians love polls when they agree with them, they hate them when they disagree.
Bandwagon effects. . .jump on board. . .instead of being prudent and doing your own research Elections too often tied to them. . .takes over issue
development. Exit poll can control elections.
For ex., the Florida debacle in the 2000 election. Gore won Florida, and then lost Florida. . .and then it was too close to call.…..
The questions are the key. . .and a major problem is that too often they are misleading!
Determining Poll Legitimacy Who conducted/sponsored the poll?
Neutral polling organizations would produce the most accurate results
Political parties or other biased organizations would not How many persons were interviewed?
Minimum 1,000 people Reduces the margin of error
Who was interviewed? Many people choose not to participate in polls; this can skew the
results How were the questions worded?
Pollsters must be careful how to ask the question When was the poll conducted?
Temporary passions can also skew the results How was the poll conducted?
Phone, Internet, On the street
Types of Polls Exit Polls
Questioned right after voting
Indicates who people voted for
Census Tracks/Tracking Polls Questioning specific
groups within the population
Indicates the public’s tendencies across a specific period of time
Our questions…Our questions… Who are we as a society?
More diverse, more spread out, and older! How we learn about politics?
Family, the media, and school, just to start. How do we measure what we believe as a society?
Through polls, which may or may not be accurate. What do we believe as a society?
That we’re all over the place and that sometimes labels mean more than anything else.
How do we participate in politics? From the inside or the outside: by trying to change the system or
protesting the system to make a change.
Political participation: The many forms--
HOW DO WE PARTICIPATE? 1. Voting. Only 50% vote in national elections.
Voters see a lack of political efficacy. . .not being able to have a political “effect” on society through the political process - they have no influence.
2. Join SIGS – special interest groups 3. Give $$$$ to SIGS thru PACS 4. Contacting gov’t officials on a regular basis 5. Working on a campaign 6. Civil disobedience – think Rosa Parks! 7. Violence ….. NOT a legal method of participation
WHO PARTICIPATES? Age and socio-economic status matters – those
with more participate more. . . and get more!
Types of Political Participation
POLITICAL IDEOLOGIES& POLITICAL PARTIES
DemocratsRepublicans
& &LiberalsConservatives
What is a Political Continuum?
A person’s views on the issues help determine where they fall on the political spectrum.
The labels used on the spectrum are not pure categories, but they make up a continuum, or value line, and citizens and politicians fall somewhere on that line depending on what they believe.
ATTITUDES REGARDING POLITICAL & SOCIAL IDEALS IN THE U.S. HAVE BEEN GIVEN LABELS:
LIBERALS or CONSERVATIVES
• These labels are part of a political spectrum that goes from the Left (extremely liberal) to the Right (extremely conservative).
• To determine your placement, you have to assess where you stand on a number of social (people-related), economic (money-related), and political (governmental) issues.
• Take the PBS Quiz at: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/2012/08/where-do-you-fit-introducing-the-pewnewshour-political-party-quiz.html
LEFT vs. RIGHT
The terms came from the French where the liberal parties traditionally sat to the left and the conservative parties sat to the right.
Two major factors shape political views: The first is how much change a person is willing
to have within their society and government. The second deals with how much government
involvement in the economy a person calls for.
LIBERAL vs. CONSERVATIVE IDEALS:
The federal government should take a very active and large role in the domestic affairs of all the nation’s citizens
The federal government’s role is too big & should not be expanded further – more control should be given to state and local governments over their own citizens
LIBERAL CONSERVATIVE
LIBERAL vs. CONSERVATIVE IDEALS:
• National Security:• Adequate military;
multilateralism; United Nations
• Economic Policy:• Fed. Gov’t
regulation of business; deficits when necessary; favor government spending
• National Security:• Strong military;
unilateralism• Economic Policy:
• Free markets; limited role of fed. gov’t in regulating business; balanced budget; low taxes; tax cuts
LIBERAL
CONSERVATIVE
LIBERAL v. CONSERVATIVE – Social Issues:
• Social safety net (gov’t)• Public Welfare• National healthcare• Pro-affirmative action• Pro-choice• Anti-prayer in school• Strict separation of church &
state• Tolerance for many religions• Protection of defendants’
rights• Gay marriage/civil unions• High value on change and
principles of tolerance & diversity.
• Individual responsibility• Private charity• Private health coverage• Anti-affirmative action• Pro-life• Pro-prayer in school• Traditional Judeo-Christian
religious values• Opposed to “coddling”
criminals• Traditional family and marriage• High value on principles of
community, tradition, law & order, family & religious values.
LIBERAL CONSERVATIVE
What is a Radical? Far left of the political
spectrum Call for wide-sweeping
rapid change in the basic structure of the political, social, or economic system.
Wlling to resort to extreme methods to bring about change, including the use of violence and revolution.
V.I. Lenin: Mastermind of the Russian Revolution and Father of the
Soviet Union
What is a Liberal? Liberals believe that the
government should be actively involved in the promotion of social welfare of a nation’s citizens.
Usually call for peaceful, gradual change within the existing political system.
Reject violent revolution as a way of changing the way things are, often called the status quo.
Dr. Rev. Martin Luther King
What is a Moderate? Moderates may share
viewpoints with both liberals and conservatives.
Seen as tolerant of other people’s views, and they do not hold extreme views of their own.
Advocate a “go slow,” “wait-and-see” approach to social or political change.
Sen. Joe Lieberman (D-CT) is generally seen as a moderate.
What is a Conservative? Favor keeping things the way
they are or maintaining the status quo
Conservatives are usually hesitant or cautious about adopting new policies, especially if they involve government activism in some way.
The less government there is, the better.
They agree with Jefferson’s view that “the best government governs least.”
Former California Governor and U.S. President Ronald Reagan
What is a Reactionary? Far right of the ideological
spectrum Want to go back to the way
things were—the “good ole’ days.”
Often willing to use extreme methods, such as repressive use of government power, to achieve their goals.
Scapegoating is common. The term “reactionary is
generally negative. A positive way to say the same thing is “arch-conservative.” Hitler’s Mein Kampf is a typical
reactionary manifesto
Expanded views of Liberals & Conservatives:
Classic Liberals Radical Liberals Blue Dog Democrats
Conservative Democrats
Dixiecrats anti-civil
rights
Democrats
True Conservatives Moderate
Conservatives Social Far Right Economic
Conservatives
““To be young and a conservative is to have no heart, to be old and a liberal is to have To be young and a conservative is to have no heart, to be old and a liberal is to have no mind.” no mind.” Winston Churchill
American Politicians on the Spectrum:
A historical worldview:
More views on the Political Spectrum