CHAPTER 5: POLITICAL PARTIES

CHAPTER 5: POLITICAL PARTIES

I. Development of Political Parties Political Party Group with similar ideology with the goal of winning control of government Who was the first Democrat president? Who was the first Republican president? The Republican Party (G.O.P.) began as the anti-slavery party and the party of Big Business The Democratic Party began as the working class party and saw support among white South

I. Development of Political Parties Realignment: 1932 election of Franklin D. Roosevelt New Deal programs brought African Americans into the Democratic Party 1960 s democratic party began to push for Civil Rights Pres. L.B.J. predicted the democratic party would lose the south for a generation White southerners joined the Republican Party 1970 s response to the hippie generation The Republican Party gains the values voters and religious right Opposed Roe v. Wade

II. The DNC and the RNC The two major political parties operate like large companies Elites vs. Rank and file The DNC & RNC help raise money & work to get out the vote Party chairperson chief strategist and spokesperson Seek funding Recruit/support candidates Convey the party s message 2016: Reince Priebus (RNC) & Debbie Wasserman Schultz (DNC)

National Convention Party delegates draft a platform and nominate candidates for president & vice president Early national conventions were often brokered convention Delegates vs. Superdelegates? II. The DNC and the RNC

The United States is a two-party system Third Parties can bring important issues to the public The role of the spoiler Why it s difficult for the 3 rd party to win: Winner take all system Money Ballot Access Exposure Not included in debates III. Third Parties

Types of Elections Critical/Realigning Elections A political parties coalition changes and the new patterns of voting will "persist for several succeeding elections." Does not just deviate but marks the start of a new pattern Maintaining Elections - No disruption to electoral patterns Deviating Elections - Minority party wins the presidential election but no further disruption to electoral patterns exist Reinstating Elections - Result in a return to normal voting patterns and would occur after a deviating election. (Political Scientists have not identified one of these in the last century.)

Chapter 10: Campaigns and Elections

I. Campaigning for votes Elections are held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November on even years. Presidential every 4 years but there are midterm elections between the president s term Incumbents usually win House incumbents win 90% of the time Why? 1. Name Recognition 2. Money 3. Presence In midterm election the president s party tends to lose seats in Congress.

I. Campaigning for votes Typical Campaign divided into 3 phases: The Biography The Issues The Attack lot of opposition research Most time spent competing for independent voters

These are elections between candidates all of the same political party Primary Elections: Most state hold primaries Secret voting II. Primaries and Caucuses Closed Primary: Only members of that party may vote Open Primary: Open to any voter (You may not vote in both)

II. Primaries and Caucuses Winner Take All OR Proportional New Hampshire is the FIRST For candidates it s all about the domino effect Some states have begun moving their date sooner (front loading)

II. Primaries and Caucuses Caucuses Much LONGER process (up to 2 hours) and NOT secret Voters meet together to discuss candidates and walk about convincing others Most are winner take all but some are proportional Some voters don t feel comfortable with this type of voting Iowa is the FIRST and the state gets a lot of media attention

II. Primaries and Caucuses At the end of the primary/caucus season delegates from each states are determined (winner take all or proportional) Superdelegates (only Democratic side) can choose whatever candidate they want

Need 1,237 out of 2,472 Trump: 1,543 Cruz: 559

Clinton: 2807 Sanders: 1894 2,383 delegates needed to win Total: 4,765

III. The General Election The two candidates and their VP s make stops across the country Focusing on Swing States Debates can make or break a candidate Electoral College System Framers created as a safe guard against the masses States have the number of electors as it has members of Congress

III. The General Election There are 538 Electors 270 are needed to win! If no one reaches 270 House of Representatives decides Most states are winner take all - Only ME and NE are proportional 5 times the winner of the electoral votes has not won the popular vote Some have criticized the system

Discussion Questions: Should political candidates be able to collect as much money as they can from their donors with no limit? Should a person be able to give as much money to a campaign as they want to, with no limit? Should a person giving money to a campaign be able to do it anonymously? Should corporations and other large organizations be allowed to donate to candidates campaigns? Should taxpayers and the government pay for campaigns, as long as candidates agree to not collect any other donations and as long as all candidates get the same amount of money?

IV. Campaign Finance Reform Raising money is a high priority for candidates In the 1970 s Focus on fighting abuse of $$ in politics Federal Elections Commission (FEC) Limited the amount individuals can give to a candidate Limited the amount Political Action Committees (PACs) can give to a candidate PACs are committees within a corporation that accepts donations for political causes Corporations are not allowed to spend their own money Capped the amount a candidate could spend on own campaign All campaign donations reported to FEC This information provided to public

IV. Campaign Finance Reform Buckley v. Valeo (1976) Do these campaign finance restrictions violate free speech? Court upheld the limits on individuals and PACs Congress can NOT limit a candidate spending on his own campaign The FEC rules only addressed Hard Money Soft Money Donations not directly to a candidate McCain/Feingold Act (Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act 2002) Banned soft money Required candidates to say I am and I approve this message Limit PACs ads 30 days before an election

IV. Campaign Finance Reform Citizens United made Hillary: the Movie Did this violate McCain-Feingold? Citizens United v FEC (2010) Corporations have a right to free speech Can buy ads anytime Now corporations can give of their own money (SuperPACs) Creation of the SuperPAC Can raise & spend unlimited amount Must not coordinate with candidates or campaign Stephen Colbert proved how easy to make a SuperPAC Some argue for a ban on these SuperPACs Clinton & Sanders said that they would have fought to overturn Citizens United Money available to presidential candidates from gov t If you accept the $$ you have to abide by spending limits

The Media

I. Free Press Zenger Case Established idea of free press during Colonial America Media Gatekeeper Media decides what is newsworthy This can cause government to act Scorekeeper Media judges successes & failures of government officials Watchdog Media exposes what government may want to keep hidden

II. Growth of Media Big Three Networks NBC, CBS, ABC Republican FOX vs. Democrat MSNBC Vietnam War & Watergate Scandal Adversarial Press C-SPAN Cameras display action in Congress without commentary

II. Growth of Media The President & the Press Press Secretary (Currently Sarah Huckabee Sanders) Bully Pulpit Take message directly to the people FDR used radio fireside chats

III. Limits of the Press Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulates media Fairness Doctrine Attempt to balance coverage Conservative argued it violated free press (Removed in 80 s) Nancy Pelosi has argued for its return Limits on malicious lies Libel Printed falsehoods against a person Slander - Spoken falsehoods against a person

III. Limits of the Press Can a president limit what is printed due to national security? New York Times v. United States Pentagon Papers printed in the NY Times Court ruled that government can not use prior restraint The leaker was prosecuted, however, under the Espionage Act Trial Balloons Sometimes a president will intentionally leak information

IV. Media Influence Telecommunications Act (1996) allowed media corporations to merge Ex: Viacom owns CBS, MTV, Paramount Pictures and book publishing groups Creates a corporate conflict of interest? Birth of Cable News = All day news cycle CNN, FoxNews and MSNBC Selective Attention Consuming news that adheres to your beliefs Internet Preferred source for those under 30

IV. Media Influence Media losing the public s trust 2015 Brian Williams Media Bias? Prominent journalists tend to vote Democrat Journalism schools (Columbia and UC) overwhelming liberal Talk Radio Dominated by Conservatives http://factitious.augamestudio.com/#/

Chapter 7: Interest Groups

I. Influencing Government Multitude of views competing for attention Interest groups protected under 1 st Amendment (Free Speech, Free Association and Petition) Formed based on common concerns Charge member fees Free Rider

I. Influencing Government Lobbying Influence peddling Monitor Congress members votes Target those undecided Provide research on issues Provide endorsements of candidates Grade government officials (A to F)

I. Influencing Government Laws in place to limit gifts & ban bribery Churches and religious institutions that are tax exempt cannot lobby or donate to campaigns Lobbyists often have a negative reputation K Street in Washington DC Revolving Door Many former Congress members turn to lobbying

II. Targets of Interest Groups Congress Encourage members to write/call Congress members President Gain access to set agenda Martin Luther King, Jr. (NAACP) met with President LBJ Courts Interest groups employ expert attorneys Represent clients whose case represents their cause NAACP s legal defense fund ACLU Amicus curiae briefs