Chap 1 Flashcards
What are we exploring in this class
Who governs and to what end they govern
Politics is about who has _______
Power
If you have power you have ______
Authority
Things are legitimate because of the _______
Constitution
Direct democracy
Citizens participate directly
Representative democracy
Leaders make decisions
Government is where _____ is made
Policy
Public policy is
Choices the gov makes in response to an issue
Why the scope of American government is small
Individualism
________rule and ______ rights are most important to most people
Majority; Minority
Elitism
Top leaders make decisions
Thomas Hobbes
Social contract theory
John Locke
Natural rights and PROPERTY
Rousseau
Power from people
Montesquieu
Checks and balances
Appointed civil servants control the government without consulting the public
Bureaucratic
Competition among affected interests shapes public policy decision making
Pluralist
Too many groups get too much of what they want so there is a government policy that is often contradictory and lacking in direction
Hyperpluralist theory
Who said: “the democratic method is that institutional arrangement for arriving at political decisions in which individuals acquire power to decide by means of a competitive struggle for the People’s vote.”
Schumpeter
Republics?
Elected officials to represent the people
Formal power
in CONSTITUTION
The people have the last say
Popular sovereignty
