PO 226 Midterm Review
PO 226 Midterm Review
2/9/2013 3:44:00 PM
Gridlock
The inability of the government to act because rival parties control different parts of the government
Is a necessary consequence of a system of representative democracy Opposite of direct democracy
Tonkin Gulf Resolution
Joint resolution that the US congress passed in response to Gulf of Tonkin incident Gave Lyndon Johnson authorization without formal declaration of war by congress for the use of conventional military force
Authorized the president to do whatever necessary in order to assist any member or protocol state
The Three Audiences
Because of the sketchy constitutional powers given to the president and the lack of an assured legislative majority, the president must rely heavily on persuasion if he is to accomplish much
The presidents persuasive powers are aimed at three audiences: o 1. Washington DC, audience of fellow politicians and leaders- reputation among these affect how much deference his views receive and thus how much power he can yield o 2. Party Activists and Officeholders outside DC partisan grassroots these people want the president to exemplify their principles, trumpet their slogans, appeal to their fear and hopes, and help them get reelected o 3. “The Public”- really, many publics with a different view or set of interests
Bully Pulpit
Presidents have made fewer impromptu remarks since FDR o Rely on more on prepared speeches
Hoover and FDR held 6 or 7 press conferences a month but every president from Nixon to Clinton has held barely one
Modern presidents instead make formal speeches Use of these speeches is called the bully pulpit
o Means taking advantage of the prestige and visibility of the presidency to try to guide or mobilize the American people
Ability to take an issue and make it their own o Ex. Gun control
Filibuster
A type of parliamentary procedure where debate is extended, allowing one or more members to delay or entirely prevent a vote on a given proposal
Also known as talking out a bill Characterized as a form of obstruction in a legislature or other decision making body
the constitution gives the president the power to veto legislation most presidents have asserted the right of executive privilege or the right to withhold info that congress may want to obtain
these efforts are not only a way of blocking action but also a way of forcing congress to bargain with him over the substance of policies
if a president disapproves of a bill passed by both houses of congress he may veto it in one of two ways:
Veto
o Veto message: a statement that the president sends to congress accompanying the bill, within 10 days after the bill has been passed In it he sets for his reasons for not signing the bill o Pocket Veto: if the president does not sign the bill within 10 days and congress has adjourned within that time, then the bill will not become law Can be used only during a certain time of year A bill not signed or vetoed within 10 days while congress is in session it automatically becomes law A vetoed bill can be passed over the presidents objections if at least 2/3rds of each house votes to override it Line Item Veto
The president must accept or reject the entire bill Presidents do not have the power, possessed by most governors, to exercise a line item veto o With which the chief executive can approve some provisions of a bill and disapprove others
Congress could take advantage of this by putting items the president did not like into a bill he otherwise favored, forcing him to approve these provisions
Jay Treaty
Treaty between US and Britain Credited with averting war, resolving issues remaining since the end of the American Revolution, and facilitating 10 years of peaceful trade
Contested by Jeffersonians- feared that close economic ties with Britain would strengthen the federalist party, promote aristocracy and undercut republicanism
Executive Privilege
The constitution says nothing about whether the president is obliged to divulge private communications between himself and his advisors o But they have acted as if they do have a privilege of confidentiality
Based on two grounds: o 1. Doctrine of the separation of powers means that one branch does not have the right to enquire about another o 2. The principles of statecraft and prudent administration require that the president has the right to obtain confidential advice from subordinates
supreme court did not require the disclosure of confidential communications until Nixon
Signing Statements
A presidential document that reveals what the president thinks of a new law and how it ought to be enforced
Members of congress are upset by this practice o Because to them t often blocks the enforcement of a law congress has passed and so it is equivalent to an unconstitutional line item veto
These documents not only clarify how the law should be implemented but also allow the president to declare what part of the law is in his view unconstitutional and thus ought not to be enforced at all
Fiscal Cliff
Sharp decline in the budget deficit that could have occurred beginning in 2013 due to increased taxed and reduced spending as required by previously enacted laws
Would have likely led to a mild recession with higher unemployment, followed by strengthening in the labor market with increased economic growth
Debt Ceiling
Is a legislative restriction on the amount of national debt that can be issued by the treasury
Since expenditures are authorized by separate legislation, the debt ceiling does not actually restrict deficits
Only restrains the treasury from paying for expenditures that have already been incurred
Legislative Veto The authority of congress to block a presidential action after is has taken place The supreme court has held that congress does not have this power First authorized by the Reorganization Act in 1939 Could be used to change, but not create or abolish an executive agency Two years later the supreme court declared all legislative vetoes unconstitutional - today any presidential reorganization plan would have to take the form of regular law Impeachment
One other way besides death, disability, or resignation by which a president can leave office before his term expires
President, VP, and all civil officers can be removed this way Changes against a president approved by a majority of the House of Representatives Only two presidents have been impeached o Johnson and Clinton o Neither were convicted
Entitlement Money
Programmed already o Social security
Programs people have paid into over the years and are entitled to in a certain way Can’t be touched when government spending is cut To coordinate all budgets for all departments
The Bureaucracy
Bureaucracy
A large, complex organization composed of appointed officials Authority is divided among several managers o No one person is able to make all decisions
Large corporations, big universities, government agencies An out-growth of representative democracy The constitution permits both the president and congress to exercise authority over the bureaucracy
Proxy Government
Washington pays state and local government and private groups to staff and administer federal programs
Much of the federal bureaucracy operates on this principle In representative governments, the voters elect legislators who make laws o But in the US bureaucrats after pay “other people” to do the work
“other people” include state and local governments, business firms and non profit organizations o programs run this way:
social security and Medicare
Discretionary Authority
The power of the bureaucracy depends on the extent to which appointed officials have this
It is the extent to which appointed bureaucrats can choose courses of action and make policies not spelled out in advanced by law
- power of the federal bureaucracy cannot be measured by the number of employees Competitive Service
Many appointed federal officials belong to this The government offices to which people are appointed on the basis of merit, as ascertained by a written exam or by applying certain selection criteria (training, education attainments, an prior experience)
Agency must usually appoint one of the three top ranking candidates Has become decentralized- each agency hires its own people without a referral and exams have become less common
Caused by: o Old OPM system, need for more professionally trained employees, pressure for a better racial composition
Excepted Service
Employees hired outside of the competitive service Now make up almost half of all workers Also hired in a non partisan fashion Some hired by agencies- CIA, FBI, and the Postal Service
Name-Request Job
for the recruit of civil servants, especially in middle and upper level jobs o more complicated and slightly more political
- a job filled by a person whom an agency has already identified
in this respect, the federal government is not so different from private businesses
Executive Agency
Part of a government department that is treated managerially and budgetary separate in order to carry out some part of the executive function
Machines of government Head can be removed at any time Commission on civil rights Arms control NASA All cabinet departments Executive office of the president
Independent Agency
Is a public authority or government agency responsible for exercising autonomous authority over some area of human activity in a regulatory or supervisory capacity
Regulatory agency that is independent from other branches or arms of the government Members serve for a fixed time Federal Reserve Board Federal Trade Commission
Iron Triangle
A close relationship between an agency, a congressional committee, and an interest group
Some bureaucracies seek constraints in order to cement a useful relationship with a committee or IG
The department would do what the committees wanted and in return get political support and budget appropriations
The committee members would do what the IG wanted and in return get votes and campaign contributions -iron triangles are an example of client politics
much less common today; politics have become too complicated
Issue Network typical government agencies are now embedded in this rather than an iron triangle - a network of people in DC- based interest groups, on congressional staffs, in universities and think tanks and in mass media, who regularly discuss and advocate public policies Authorization Legislation
Legislative permission to begin or continue a government program or agency States the maximum amount of money that any given agency may spend on a given program
Authorization may be permanent for a fixed number of years, or annual
Appropriation
A legislative grant of money to finance a government program or agency Funds cannot be spent unless they are appropriated Usually made annually Originated with the House Appropriations Committee May be and often is less than the amount authorized o Appropriations committees actions tend to have a budget cutting effect
Trust Funds
Funds for government programs collected and spent outside the regular government budget
Created by congress to pay for the benefits many people receive - social security trust fund= $695 billion in 2008
appropriations committee have no control over these expenditures
Committee Clearance
The ability of a congressional committee to review and approve certain agency decisions in advance and without passing a law
Informal way by which congress can control the bureaucracy Though it is not usually legally binding on the agency, few agency heads will ignore the expressed wish of a committee chair that he or she be consulted before certain actions are taken
Congressional Investigation
The most visible and dramatic form of congressional supervision of an agency Investigative power is not mentioned un the constitution, but has been inferred from the power to legislate
Upheld by the supreme court o Though, such investigations should not be solely for the purpose of exposing the purely personal affairs of private individuals must not operate to deprive citizens of their basic rights - designed to control the exercise of bureaucratic discretion Red Tape
Refers to the complex rules and procedures that must be followed to get something done
Excessive regulation or rigid conformity to formal rules that is considered redundant or bureaucratic and hinders or prevents action or decision making
Includes: filling out paperwork, obtaining licenses, having multiple people or committees approve a decision and various low level rules that make conducting one’s affair slower, more difficult or both
Foreign Policy Foreign Policy
a country’s official positions, practices and procedures for dealing with actors outside its borders
Types of Foreign Policy
Crisis Policy
o Deals with emergency threats to our national interest or values o Usually come as a surprise and the use of force is the response
Strategic Policy o Lays out the basic US stance toward another country or a particular problem o For example, containment was the key strategy for dealing with the Soviets
Structural Defense Policy o Focuses largely on the policies and programs that deal with defense spending and military bases
Isolationism
a foreign policy view that nations should stay out of international alliances and activities and focus on domestic matters
US tried to pursue this after WWI o Seen as a failure
Interventionism
A foreign policy view that the US should actively engage in the affairs of other nations in order to try to shape events in accordance with US interests
Opposition to isolationism
US has a long history of this o In the Americas and Asia in the 1800 o WWI and II o Since September 11 in the Middle East
Protectionism
The imposition of trade barriers, especially tariffs, to make trading conditions favorable to domestic producers
Designed to allow “fair competition” between imports and goods and services produced domestically
Contrasts with free trade o where government barriers to trade are kept to a minimum
Deterrence
Maintaining military might so as to discourage another actor from taking certain action
ex. US spending a great deal on weapons from the end of WWII-1989 to deter the Soviet Union from attacking Western Europe
Compellence
Using foreign policy to persuade, or force, an actor to take a certain action Ex. US imposed strict economic sanctions prohibiting other countries from trading with them until they complied
Coercive Diplomacy
The calibrated use of threats of the use of force aimed to make another stop or undue an aggressive action
“Forceful persuasion” diplomatic strategy that relies on the threat of force rather than the use of force
Preventative War
To use force without direct provocation in order to assure that a chain of events doesn’t unfold that could put you at immediate risk at some later date
Aims to forestall a shift in the balance of power by strategically attacking before the balance of power has a chance to shift in the direction of the adversary
Preemptive war undertaken without the approval of the UN is illegal
Diplomacy
The formal system of communication and negotiation between communication Oldest tool of the US Importance has been lessened because of the technological revolution and increasing scrutiny by media
Nuclear Triad
The military strategy of having a three pronged nuclear capability- land, sea, air Idea that if any one destroyed or disabled the others would be able to retaliate Used to increase a nation’s nuclear deterrence
Peace Dividend
The expectation that reduced defense spending would result in additional funds for other programs
Popularized by George Bush Sr. and Margaret Thatcher
Frequently used at the end of the Cold War, when many Western nations significantly cut spending
2/9/2013 3:44:00 PM
2/9/2013 3:44:00 PM
2/9/2013 3:44:00 PM
Gridlock
The inability of the government to act because rival parties control different parts of the government
Is a necessary consequence of a system of representative democracy Opposite of direct democracy
Tonkin Gulf Resolution
Joint resolution that the US congress passed in response to Gulf of Tonkin incident Gave Lyndon Johnson authorization without formal declaration of war by congress for the use of conventional military force
Authorized the president to do whatever necessary in order to assist any member or protocol state
The Three Audiences
Because of the sketchy constitutional powers given to the president and the lack of an assured legislative majority, the president must rely heavily on persuasion if he is to accomplish much
The presidents persuasive powers are aimed at three audiences: o 1. Washington DC, audience of fellow politicians and leaders- reputation among these affect how much deference his views receive and thus how much power he can yield o 2. Party Activists and Officeholders outside DC partisan grassroots these people want the president to exemplify their principles, trumpet their slogans, appeal to their fear and hopes, and help them get reelected o 3. “The Public”- really, many publics with a different view or set of interests
Bully Pulpit
Presidents have made fewer impromptu remarks since FDR o Rely on more on prepared speeches
Hoover and FDR held 6 or 7 press conferences a month but every president from Nixon to Clinton has held barely one
Modern presidents instead make formal speeches Use of these speeches is called the bully pulpit
o Means taking advantage of the prestige and visibility of the presidency to try to guide or mobilize the American people
Ability to take an issue and make it their own o Ex. Gun control
Filibuster
A type of parliamentary procedure where debate is extended, allowing one or more members to delay or entirely prevent a vote on a given proposal
Also known as talking out a bill Characterized as a form of obstruction in a legislature or other decision making body
the constitution gives the president the power to veto legislation most presidents have asserted the right of executive privilege or the right to withhold info that congress may want to obtain
these efforts are not only a way of blocking action but also a way of forcing congress to bargain with him over the substance of policies
if a president disapproves of a bill passed by both houses of congress he may veto it in one of two ways:
Veto
o Veto message: a statement that the president sends to congress accompanying the bill, within 10 days after the bill has been passed In it he sets for his reasons for not signing the bill o Pocket Veto: if the president does not sign the bill within 10 days and congress has adjourned within that time, then the bill will not become law Can be used only during a certain time of year A bill not signed or vetoed within 10 days while congress is in session it automatically becomes law A vetoed bill can be passed over the presidents objections if at least 2/3rds of each house votes to override it Line Item Veto
The president must accept or reject the entire bill Presidents do not have the power, possessed by most governors, to exercise a line item veto o With which the chief executive can approve some provisions of a bill and disapprove others
Congress could take advantage of this by putting items the president did not like into a bill he otherwise favored, forcing him to approve these provisions
Jay Treaty
Treaty between US and Britain Credited with averting war, resolving issues remaining since the end of the American Revolution, and facilitating 10 years of peaceful trade
Contested by Jeffersonians- feared that close economic ties with Britain would strengthen the federalist party, promote aristocracy and undercut republicanism
Executive Privilege
The constitution says nothing about whether the president is obliged to divulge private communications between himself and his advisors o But they have acted as if they do have a privilege of confidentiality
Based on two grounds: o 1. Doctrine of the separation of powers means that one branch does not have the right to enquire about another o 2. The principles of statecraft and prudent administration require that the president has the right to obtain confidential advice from subordinates
supreme court did not require the disclosure of confidential communications until Nixon
Signing Statements
A presidential document that reveals what the president thinks of a new law and how it ought to be enforced
Members of congress are upset by this practice o Because to them t often blocks the enforcement of a law congress has passed and so it is equivalent to an unconstitutional line item veto
These documents not only clarify how the law should be implemented but also allow the president to declare what part of the law is in his view unconstitutional and thus ought not to be enforced at all
Fiscal Cliff
Sharp decline in the budget deficit that could have occurred beginning in 2013 due to increased taxed and reduced spending as required by previously enacted laws
Would have likely led to a mild recession with higher unemployment, followed by strengthening in the labor market with increased economic growth
Debt Ceiling
Is a legislative restriction on the amount of national debt that can be issued by the treasury
Since expenditures are authorized by separate legislation, the debt ceiling does not actually restrict deficits
Only restrains the treasury from paying for expenditures that have already been incurred
Legislative Veto The authority of congress to block a presidential action after is has taken place The supreme court has held that congress does not have this power First authorized by the Reorganization Act in 1939 Could be used to change, but not create or abolish an executive agency Two years later the supreme court declared all legislative vetoes unconstitutional - today any presidential reorganization plan would have to take the form of regular law Impeachment
One other way besides death, disability, or resignation by which a president can leave office before his term expires
President, VP, and all civil officers can be removed this way Changes against a president approved by a majority of the House of Representatives Only two presidents have been impeached o Johnson and Clinton o Neither were convicted
Entitlement Money
Programmed already o Social security
Programs people have paid into over the years and are entitled to in a certain way Can’t be touched when government spending is cut To coordinate all budgets for all departments
The Bureaucracy
Bureaucracy
A large, complex organization composed of appointed officials Authority is divided among several managers o No one person is able to make all decisions
Large corporations, big universities, government agencies An out-growth of representative democracy The constitution permits both the president and congress to exercise authority over the bureaucracy
Proxy Government
Washington pays state and local government and private groups to staff and administer federal programs
Much of the federal bureaucracy operates on this principle In representative governments, the voters elect legislators who make laws o But in the US bureaucrats after pay “other people” to do the work
“other people” include state and local governments, business firms and non profit organizations o programs run this way:
social security and Medicare
Discretionary Authority
The power of the bureaucracy depends on the extent to which appointed officials have this
It is the extent to which appointed bureaucrats can choose courses of action and make policies not spelled out in advanced by law
- power of the federal bureaucracy cannot be measured by the number of employees Competitive Service
Many appointed federal officials belong to this The government offices to which people are appointed on the basis of merit, as ascertained by a written exam or by applying certain selection criteria (training, education attainments, an prior experience)
Agency must usually appoint one of the three top ranking candidates Has become decentralized- each agency hires its own people without a referral and exams have become less common
Caused by: o Old OPM system, need for more professionally trained employees, pressure for a better racial composition
Excepted Service
Employees hired outside of the competitive service Now make up almost half of all workers Also hired in a non partisan fashion Some hired by agencies- CIA, FBI, and the Postal Service
Name-Request Job
for the recruit of civil servants, especially in middle and upper level jobs o more complicated and slightly more political
- a job filled by a person whom an agency has already identified
in this respect, the federal government is not so different from private businesses
Executive Agency
Part of a government department that is treated managerially and budgetary separate in order to carry out some part of the executive function
Machines of government Head can be removed at any time Commission on civil rights Arms control NASA All cabinet departments Executive office of the president
Independent Agency
Is a public authority or government agency responsible for exercising autonomous authority over some area of human activity in a regulatory or supervisory capacity
Regulatory agency that is independent from other branches or arms of the government Members serve for a fixed time Federal Reserve Board Federal Trade Commission
Iron Triangle
A close relationship between an agency, a congressional committee, and an interest group
Some bureaucracies seek constraints in order to cement a useful relationship with a committee or IG
The department would do what the committees wanted and in return get political support and budget appropriations
The committee members would do what the IG wanted and in return get votes and campaign contributions -iron triangles are an example of client politics
much less common today; politics have become too complicated
Issue Network typical government agencies are now embedded in this rather than an iron triangle - a network of people in DC- based interest groups, on congressional staffs, in universities and think tanks and in mass media, who regularly discuss and advocate public policies Authorization Legislation
Legislative permission to begin or continue a government program or agency States the maximum amount of money that any given agency may spend on a given program
Authorization may be permanent for a fixed number of years, or annual
Appropriation
A legislative grant of money to finance a government program or agency Funds cannot be spent unless they are appropriated Usually made annually Originated with the House Appropriations Committee May be and often is less than the amount authorized o Appropriations committees actions tend to have a budget cutting effect
Trust Funds
Funds for government programs collected and spent outside the regular government budget
Created by congress to pay for the benefits many people receive - social security trust fund= $695 billion in 2008
appropriations committee have no control over these expenditures
Committee Clearance
The ability of a congressional committee to review and approve certain agency decisions in advance and without passing a law
Informal way by which congress can control the bureaucracy Though it is not usually legally binding on the agency, few agency heads will ignore the expressed wish of a committee chair that he or she be consulted before certain actions are taken
Congressional Investigation
The most visible and dramatic form of congressional supervision of an agency Investigative power is not mentioned un the constitution, but has been inferred from the power to legislate
Upheld by the supreme court o Though, such investigations should not be solely for the purpose of exposing the purely personal affairs of private individuals must not operate to deprive citizens of their basic rights - designed to control the exercise of bureaucratic discretion Red Tape
Refers to the complex rules and procedures that must be followed to get something done
Excessive regulation or rigid conformity to formal rules that is considered redundant or bureaucratic and hinders or prevents action or decision making
Includes: filling out paperwork, obtaining licenses, having multiple people or committees approve a decision and various low level rules that make conducting one’s affair slower, more difficult or both
Foreign Policy Foreign Policy
a country’s official positions, practices and procedures for dealing with actors outside its borders
Types of Foreign Policy
Crisis Policy
o Deals with emergency threats to our national interest or values o Usually come as a surprise and the use of force is the response
Strategic Policy o Lays out the basic US stance toward another country or a particular problem o For example, containment was the key strategy for dealing with the Soviets
Structural Defense Policy o Focuses largely on the policies and programs that deal with defense spending and military bases
Isolationism
a foreign policy view that nations should stay out of international alliances and activities and focus on domestic matters
US tried to pursue this after WWI o Seen as a failure
Interventionism
A foreign policy view that the US should actively engage in the affairs of other nations in order to try to shape events in accordance with US interests
Opposition to isolationism
US has a long history of this o In the Americas and Asia in the 1800 o WWI and II o Since September 11 in the Middle East
Protectionism
The imposition of trade barriers, especially tariffs, to make trading conditions favorable to domestic producers
Designed to allow “fair competition” between imports and goods and services produced domestically
Contrasts with free trade o where government barriers to trade are kept to a minimum
Deterrence
Maintaining military might so as to discourage another actor from taking certain action
ex. US spending a great deal on weapons from the end of WWII-1989 to deter the Soviet Union from attacking Western Europe
Compellence
Using foreign policy to persuade, or force, an actor to take a certain action Ex. US imposed strict economic sanctions prohibiting other countries from trading with them until they complied
Coercive Diplomacy
The calibrated use of threats of the use of force aimed to make another stop or undue an aggressive action
“Forceful persuasion” diplomatic strategy that relies on the threat of force rather than the use of force
Preventative War
To use force without direct provocation in order to assure that a chain of events doesn’t unfold that could put you at immediate risk at some later date
Aims to forestall a shift in the balance of power by strategically attacking before the balance of power has a chance to shift in the direction of the adversary
Preemptive war undertaken without the approval of the UN is illegal
Diplomacy
The formal system of communication and negotiation between communication Oldest tool of the US Importance has been lessened because of the technological revolution and increasing scrutiny by media
Nuclear Triad
The military strategy of having a three pronged nuclear capability- land, sea, air Idea that if any one destroyed or disabled the others would be able to retaliate Used to increase a nation’s nuclear deterrence
Peace Dividend
The expectation that reduced defense spending would result in additional funds for other programs
Popularized by George Bush Sr. and Margaret Thatcher
Frequently used at the end of the Cold War, when many Western nations significantly cut spending
2/9/2013 3:44:00 PM
2/9/2013 3:44:00 PM
