Chapter 11 Flashcards
(50 cards)
What is bureaucracy?
People in government, carrying out the work
Implementation
Effort by bureaucrats to translate laws into specific rules and actions
2 reasons congress needs bureaucracy
They’re more specialized
Their rules and stuff work faster than legislation and can keep up more with the changing society
What act created the merit system?
The Civil Service Act of 1883
What is the merit system?
The idea that bureaucrats need to be qualified for the job, not just have connections
3 Types of Bureaucratic organizations
Cabinet departments, agencies, and bureaus
Department (what can they be broken down into?)
the largest subunit of the executive branch broken into smaller subunits, consisting of agencies and bureaus
What is the head of a department called in the US?
Secretary
Independent agencies
Set up by congress outside of departments (like NASA, CIA) that have broader powers to provide public services
Government corporations
(like Amtrak) more like private businesses
Independent regulatory commissions
(like the interstate commerce commission) they’re like “mini-legislatures” mostly put in already existing bureaus
What 3 types of agencies based on the purpose they serve the American public?
Seek to promote public welfare
Maintain a strong economy
Promote national security
Difference between Medicaid and Medicare
Medicaid: low-income, elderly, disabled
Medicare-health insurance for most elderly people
Regulatory agencies
Departments, bureaus, and agencies whose primary mission is to impose limits that further public well-being
What makes an agency regulatory?
If congress delegates relatively broad powers over a sector of the economy or a type of commercial activity and authorizes it to make rules
Iron triangle
the stable, cooperative relationships that develop between congressional committees, administrative agencies, and one or more interest groups
What 2 categories of security agencies are located in national government?
Internal threat security, and external threat security
What Department was created in reaction to 9/11?
Department of Homeland Security
What 2 departments occupy center state in keeping up national security?
Department of Defense and State Department
What is State Department’s primary mission?
Diplomacy
What percentage of government employees who work abroad work for State Dept.?
Less than 20%
Where is the Department of Defense headquartered?
The Pentagon
Who appoints the Secretary of Defense?
The President
What does the Office of the Secretary of Defense do?
Plans and carries out national security policies and executes civilian oversight of the military
