American National Government

Topic 1
American Government: An Introduction
Assessment 1
Chapter 1

Directions: Answer the following questions after viewing the assigned Power Point presentation and reading related materials in the text. Be sure to use complete sentences.

1. Define government and politics. Compare these two terms and cite examples of each. Explain how the two terms are distinct but related to each other.
· Government is the people who run the country. Politics is the process followed by the leaders of political groups who rule the country. Government implements the policies of the lands, such as with the judicial branch to enforce the laws, the legislative branch to create the laws, and the executive branch to perform national security duties. And politics are the tool utilized by the government. They both utilize political science which is the study of government and politics. While they both perform and aid the same basic function of running the country, politics is just the process while the government is the actual facility performing the tasks.
2. What is anarchy? Can anarchy ever a viable alternative to government, in your opinion? Why or why not?
· Anarchy is living in a state of lawlessness. I believe it cannot, because humans do not function correctly without some type of structure. Without structure there will be total chaos. Murders and other unmentionable crimes will occur with no repercussions being put into place.

3. What are the three main levels of government in the U.S.? Which level is the most powerful? Which level is the most important, in your opinion? Defend your answer.
· Federal is the level that runs the whole country, they have three branches: Judicial, legislative, and executive.
· State is each individual’s state government, modeled after the federal government with three branches as well. Under the tenth commandment all powers not granted to the Federal level are granted to the state.
· Local is the level of government for each city, town, or village in every state. They are granted their powers from the state. Mayors, city councils, and other governing bodies make up the local level.
· The Federal level is the most powerful, but the Local level is definitely the most important level of the government. They facilitate everything the individual citizen needs. Police, fire departments, roads, taxes, transportation, and public works (sewage and such). They are in charge of daily life functioning to go smoothly.
4. What are the three main branches of the American national government? What are the main roles of each branch? Which branch of government at the national level is the most important, in your opinion? Defend your answer.
· Judicial is headed by the Supreme Court. Its powers include interpreting the Constitution, reviewing laws, and deciding cases involving states' rights.
· Legislative is headed by Congress, which includes the House of Representatives and the Senate. The main task of these two bodies is to make the laws. Its powers include passing laws, originating spending bills (House), impeaching officials (Senate), and approving treaties (Senate).
· Executive is headed by the president who carries out federals laws and recommends new ones. He directs national defense, foreign policies, and performs ceremonial duties. Powers include directing government, commanding the Armed Forces, dealing with international powers, acting as chief law enforcement officer, and vetoing laws.
· I believe that the Executive branch is the most important because they not only are in charge of defending our country, but it is also their final say on any laws being passed. They deal with the armed forces, protect national security. They also deal with international relations and such. However, they are not the most powerful branch though because every branch takes from another with checks and balances.
5. What are political institutions? What are the most important institutions of each branch of the federal government? Which of three major political institutions of the federal government should be the most powerful, in your opinion?
· Political Institutions are the organizations, norms, and rules that structure political action.
· Legislative is the U.S. Congress.
· Judicial is the U.S. Supreme Court.
· Executive is the office of the President of the USA.
· The President of the USA should be the most powerful of all the institutions, however, none of them are more powerful than the other due to checks & balances.
6. Each of the three branches of the federal government plays an important role in the lawmaking process. Briefly explain the role of Congress and the President in the formation of laws.
· The president is in charge of vetoing or passing the laws Congress presents to him/her. He is the head of the executive branch. The congress is built up of two houses: the senate and the house. They vote together on a bill and if it is approved it is sent to the president to pass and if it is passed then it will come into effect. However, the congress has the power to revote on the bill if the president vetoes and they don’t approve of the veto.
7. What are checks and balances? Cite at least three examples. How do checks and balances influence the process of formulating and sustaining laws in the U.S. government?
· Checks & Balances are the system that keeps the government branches from becoming too powerful.
· Examples: Executive branch can veto a bill from the Legislative branch. The Legislative branch can however override this veto. The head of the Executive branch, the president, elects the judges in the judicial branch. The court can declare the presidents acts as unconstitutional. The court can also declare laws as unconstitutional.
· Checks and balances are utilized in formulating and sustaining laws in the way that when Congress approves a bill the president can veto, however, if the president vetoes and if Congress disagrees with it they can revote and override his decision. The Judicial branch can also use checks and balances by deciding if laws are unconstitutional. So the Legislative branch has to carefully decide which bill will not be vetoed and is not considered unconstitutional in order for the other branches to not utilize checks and balances to rid the bill.
8. Explain how politics can influence debates over government programs such as Social Security and Medicaid. Does politics exist outside of government? Explain. · Since politics involves deciding who receives benefits and who is excluded from receiving them, this sparks debates. In these debates they decide who should receive what, when they should receive it, and why they should receive what others do not. · Yes politics exist everywhere. ( ex. workplace politics)
9. What is political culture? What are America’s most important core values, according to the power point presentation? Rank these values from your own vantage point. Explain why you selected one for the top, and another for the bottom, of your values hierarchy. · Political Culture is the deep-seated beliefs & values of a particular set of people. It is the orientation of citizens of a state towards politics. Developed over time, it is shaped by history and experience. · Equality, liberty, individualism, family & community, limited government, American dream, capitalism, democracy, consent of the self-governed, and religion. · I chose the top because without equality then most of the other values on this list are useless, and I chose the bottom to be religion because religion is not necessary for a government but we still have it involved.
10. What is liberty? How are liberty related to the concepts of power, authority, and tyranny?

· Liberty is the principle that individuals should be free to act and think as they choose, provided they do not infringe unreasonably on the rights and freedoms of others. · Liberty is related to the concepts of power and authority because those are the concepts that enable liberty to exist. Power (the ability of persons or institutions to control policy) is related because they need to be able to control policy in order for individuals to act and think freely as they choose without infringing on the rights of others. Authority (the recognized right to exercise power) is related because without the authority then there would be no power to enact liberty. Tyranny (unrestrained political power by a government) is the complete opposite of liberty.
11. Differentiate between power and authority. How are these terms related to tyranny and democracy? · Power is the ability of persons or institutions to control policy while Authority is the recognized right to exercise the power wielded. They are related to Tyranny because without them there would be tyranny. With Democracy they are the way it is able to exist like liberty.
12. How is liberty related to individualism? Distinguish between the concepts of positive and negative liberty and cite at least one example of each. Which type of liberty is more important, in your opinion? Defend your answer. · Liberty is related to Individualism (the idea that people should take the initiative and be self-sufficient) because people should be able to think and act freely coincides right with individualisms own definition. · Negative Liberty is freedom in the absence of constraints. Society’s responsibility, from this perspective, is to make sure that others do not interfere with individuals pursuing their own goals. For example, the Bill of Rights contains mostly negative liberties telling the government what they should not do. Freedom of speech is also an example. · Positive Liberty the freedom to pursue ones goals. However people cannot be truly free unless they have the basic necessities of life. What the government should do. An example of a positive liberty is freedom from want or freedom from fear. · I feel as if Positive Liberty is most important because without the basic necessities of life there truly is no way to have freedom or happiness or to live the American dream. When fear, hunger, and want cloud your daily life there really is no way to feel free or follow your own goals or act anyway you want. You are controlled by your wants and needs when you are without them.
13. President Franklin Roosevelt delivered an important speech on liberty in 1941. What was main phrase or name of this speech? Briefly describe the content of the speech, and how it relates to the concepts of negative and positive liberties. · The name of the speech was the “Four Freedoms” · He talked about freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear. The first two are negative liberties because they go along with not having any constraints and no interference with the goals. The last two are positive liberties because it goes along with having the basic necessities of life, without want or fear interfering with their life.
14. What is meant by the “consent of the governed”? How does the concept relate to American government? · What they mean by this phrase is that the government cannot do anything without the consent of its people. · This relates to the American government because it is basically their motto and how the government is run.
15. What is democracy? What are the origins of the term? Briefly distinguish between direct and indirect forms of democracy, and explain the meaning of a republic. · Democracy means rule by the many and originates from Ancient Greece. · Direct Democracy is a form of democracy in which the citizens vote on policy initiatives directly. Also known as pure democracy. However, Indirect Democracy (representative) is when the people elect representatives to vote for policy initiatives for them. A Republic is a form of representative democracy where power resides in elected individuals representing the citizen body.
16. What is capitalism? How does the concept relate to American government? How has the relationship of the U.S. government to capitalism evolved over the decades? Explain. · Capitalism an economic system in which the means of producing wealth are privately owned and operated to produce profits. Also known as free market or enterprise. · The American Government has a mostly capitalist economy. · Originally the government was established as a mercantilism (monopolizing markets) government and slave labor. However, this changed when the founding fathers were directly influenced towards the capitalist economy because the government should keep their hands off the economy. By the 19th century the economy had become increasingly capitalistic and the Industrial Revolution spurred this on as well. However the concern for the markets caused antitrust laws to be put in place. After the Great Depression the government had to step in and have some control over the economy, but it still remains mostly capitalistic.
17. What is equality? Differentiate between political equality and economic equality, and between equal opportunity and equal outcome. · Equality is the notion that all people are equal in their moral worth and therefore entitled to equal treatment under the law. · Political Equality is when all citizens are born as equal under the law. Economic Equality is when everyone is economically the same in a capitalist economy. The difference is the U.S. has political equality but we do not have economic equality. · Equal Opportunity is having an equal chance at life. Equal Outcome is having roughly equal economic circumstances.
18. How might liberty conflict with equality? Cite at least one example. If you had to pick between the two, which would be most important to you – liberty or equality? Explain your position. · Liberty is focused mainly on individual freedom while Equality is focused on group empowerment. For example, expanding Medicaid coverage to poorer people (greater equality) could result in higher taxes for the more affluent people (less liberty). · I feel liberty is most important to me because to be able to focus on yourself and to make yourself better, you can then help others. Everyone needs the freedom to work on themselves and reach their own goals. Bring yourself to the top, and then equality can be put into place.
19. What are the three major benefits of government? Define and cite examples of each. In your opinion, what is the most important benefit or service of government? What is the least important? Explain. · Maintaining Order is preserving life and protecting property. (Ex. Law enforcement, fire departments, emergency management, and courts and legal systems.) · Providing Public Services are government services that potentially benefit anyone, based on need rather than power. (Ex. Public education, roads, bridges, parks, libraries, public libraries, and water.) · Promoting Equality is redistributing power and wealth by removing barriers to upward mobility. (Ex. Laws protecting civil rights, minimum wage laws, welfare benefits, healthcare benefits for the poor and elderly, and unemployment benefits.) · The most important benefit would be Maintaining Order and the least would be Providing Public Services. Maintaining Order is the most important because without it there would be mass chaos. Without maintaining order there would be no way of getting people the help they need right away or facilitating laws to prevent tyranny and other negative thing. Providing public services is the least important because we could truly do without them and form our own way of achieving them on our own.
20. What are the two primary sources of political conflict? Pick a political issue and explain how these two sources of conflict have influenced the political debate over that issue. · Scarcity leads to conflict over the distribution of resources (who gets what, when, and how) · Differences in Values are where people see political issues differently as a result of their disparate backgrounds and issues. · With healthcare reform there is a debate on whether or not those receiving the free healthcare in place deserve it. With the Scarcity of funds to support the healthcare there is not much that can go around. Many believe the ones receiving it are lazy and out of jobs. This goes along with Differences in Values because individuals, in different areas of the economic spectrum, believe others do not deserve what they are receiving as a result of their disparate backgrounds and issues.
21. What are political issues? Cite two issues that presently concern or affect you. Explain and defend your position on these two issues. · Political Issues are perceived topics and problems that have at least “two sides”. · College Debt is one of the current issues affecting me as of right now; I believe that all community colleges at least should be free. There is no sense in telling children their whole lives to go to college when once they are in they bury themselves in debt. We are told that the only way to succeed in life is to go to college. We will not be able to get anywhere at all if we are smothered in college debt from the beginning, thus making it close to impossible for us to even start our own lives after college. · Same Sex Marriage is another current issue that affects my family and I. Two of my sisters identify as bisexual and with the legalization of same sex marriage they are able to live their life freely finally. This does not stop the social stigma or negative reactions though. I strongly stand for their rights as individuals and to have liberty and equality.
22. What are the major “actors” in the American political system? Briefly define these actors. Rank the actors according to importance, in your opinion. Explain your rationale. · Political Actors are active participants in the political process. · U.S. Citizens Members of a political community who through birth or naturalization, enjoy the rights, privileges, and responsibilities attached to membership in a given nation. · Government Workers work in the federal bureaucracy. · Politicians they are elected to fixed terms in the office. · Registered Voters Government is based upon political participation by citizens who have registered to vote. · They are ranked in the way I see them of importance. This is because without the citizens there is no one to govern so they are of upmost importance, then the government workers come next because they need to run the country, then politicians because they are have less power, and then finally the registered voters who individually have no power.
23. What does it mean to be a citizen? What is naturalization? Is citizenship important in your opinion? Explain your rationale. · Members of a political community who through birth or naturalization, enjoy the rights, privileges, and responsibilities attached to membership in a given nation. · Naturalization means becoming a citizen by means other than birth – as in the case of immigrants. · Citizenship is important in order to receive the benefits of being a citizen. Without citizenship there is no proof of you in the country and if something were to happen to you then you would be able to receive help but with consequences. It is best to be a citizen altogether.
24. Briefly list and describe the four major theories concerning American government. Cite practical examples for each one of the four theories. · Pluralist theory (pluralism) emphasizes the positive side of interest groups. · Elite theory (elitism) holds that a “ruling class” of wealthy educated elites holds most of the power in government. · Bureaucratic theory argues that the real political power lies with government bureaucrats. · Social movement theory asserts that mass popular uprisings have the potential to induce great changes, regardless of who is in control of ordinary day-to-day politics.
25. In your opinion, who actually governs America? Which one of the four major theories provides the best explanation for how the U.S. government actually functions, in your opinion? Explain your position. · I believe the people run America. Social Movement Theory, because I have seen it occur with my own eyes. Uprisings can truly change the way things are done. Such as Martin Luther King and his boycotting the buses.