UAPP Reading Notes 225 PDF

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Notes from the HW readings. Large part of exam. I had KC Morrison...

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Rinfret Definitions/Notes Chapters 1 and 2 - Myths: We rely on these things to help us better understand our surroundings. Proverbial sayings, pervasive attitudes, and other narratives to help understand the world around us. They are neither true or false. Usually called “conventional wisdom” which are widely held beliefs - Government: Those institutions and officials whose purpose it is to write and enact laws and to execute and enforce public policy Americans rely on government to: ● Maintain order through the rule of law, ● Provide goods and services that benefit the lives of all citizens ● Promote equality among members of society - Politics: refers to activities aimed at influencing or controlling government for the purpose of formulating or guiding public policy. Without politics, government can become undemocratic and even authoritarian. - Authority: The capacity to make and enforce public policies that is possessed by individuals who occupy formal governmental roles. - Democracy: A belief in government in which authority is based on the consent and will of the MAJORITY. - Republic (Or representative democracy): A system which people govern indirectly by ELECTING certain individuals to make decision on their behalf. - Power: The capacity and ability to influence the behavior and choices of others through the use of politically relevant resources. Views of Power - Majoritarian view of power: The view that political power should be distributed as equally as possible in a political system to facilitate meaningful majority rule - Elitist view of power: Those who advocate this system argue that the general public is best served when a basic consensus regarding fundamental issues exists among the COUNTRY'S TOP LEADERS. - Pluralist view of power: Many elites, not just one influence government.

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Membership is open to all in society. Beliefs: They differ from reasoned analysis because they do not rely on empirical evidence but instead are based on assumptions and attitudes, Ideologies: Conceptually coherent beliefs used to help us think about whether government is doing what it should be doing. Articles of Confederation: The first constitution in the United States Legitimacy: The belief of citizens in a government's right to pass and enforce laws Unitary System: Government which the authority lies on the national government Concurrent: NATIONAL AND STATES HAVE POWER Reserved powers: Powers for the state

CHAPTER 1 Rinfret ● Public Policy - “a confusing game of players, dynamics, processes, and stages” or “a relatively stable, purposive course of action followed by government in dealing with some problem or matter of concern” or Government actions to solve a public problem ○ Public - encompasses ordinary people or communities ○ Policy - a course of action adopted or created by the Government in response to public problems ● Power - the ability to alter or influence a course of action ● Politics - Who gets what, when and how ○ Defines the communication between the branches and levels of Government ○ Part of policy making ● Pluralism - the notion that we all have equal access to influence policy making ● Elitism - suggests only a select few, the elite, have the power to influence policymaking in a Democratic society ● Federalism - a system in which power is divided between national government and the state ● Federal Government - Declares war, coin money, oversee foreign relations ● State Government - Establish Public Schools, create local government, conduct elections ● Local Government - powers set forth by the state Public Policy divided into three broad categories ● Distributive - allocation of resource

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Redistributive - deliberate effort by the government to shift an allocation of resources Regulatory - Restriction or limitation on behavior or individuals or organization

The Process - Stages heuristic approach ● Problem identification and definition ● Agenda Setting ● Policy formulation ● Policy Legitimation ● Policy implementation ● Policy Evaluation Actors ● Congress - Agenda Setting, Policy Formulation, Policy Legitimation ● President - Agenda Setting Policy Formulation, Policy Legitimation ○ Bully Pulpit - Speeches, radio addresses, youtube, etc to engender public support ● Courts - Policy evaluation ● Bureaucracy - Policy Implementation, Policy evaluation ● Interest Groups - Agenda Setting, Policy formulation ○ Lobbyist - a person who is hired by an organization to meet with congressional representatives to persuade them to pass policies to benefit their interests ● Media - agenda setting ● Us - All stages of the process ● ● ●

Public Law - deals with constitutional and administrative questions related to Government Actions Criminal Law - regulates the conduct of individual Civil Law - Deals with disputes between individuals or organizations

CHAPTER 2 Rinfret ● Focusing Event - significant episodes or experiences that catapult particular issues to prominence on the public’s agenda ● Risk Assessment (in Stage 6 of the Heuristic Model) - the question of risk when discussing costs and benefits ○ Risk - refers to the likelihood that an adverse situation will occur and evaluating its magnitude ● Effects on Politics ○ Political environment ○ Economic Environment ○ Social and Cultural Environment ○ Administrative Environment ● Theory ○ Punctuated Equilibrium - Policy making is often described in periods of stability

and incrementalism while other times it can be described in rapid and massive changes ■ Incrementalism - “Muddling through” ■ Non incrementalism - swift action in policy ■ Policy subsystems - network of actors working to achieve policy goals Multiple Streams Framework - the messy nature of the policy process

○ Actors ● Official actors - individuals and organizations in the policy process that have a constitutionally defined role in creating legislation ● Unofficial actors - any other people involved in policy making...