The federal bureacracy organizes employees to achieve specific goals.The federal bureaucracy, like many, falls into to organizational categories—line agencies and staff agencies. Line agencies execute policy and provide services while staff agencies gather information for use by the chief executive officer. In the federal government, line agencies are executive departments, government agencies, government corporations, independent regulatory commissions, and other central services and control agencies. Staff agencies in the federal government are the president’s cabinet and the Executive Office of the Presidency. the size of the federal bureaucracy grew from 1,000 employees in 1790 to over 2,800,000 in 1979, the number of civilian employees began to decline after the end of the cold war and has since decreased to about 2,600,000. Federal bureaucrats serve in a wide variety of positions and geographic locations both in the United States and around the world.
Although the Federal bureaucracy is large it is still able to be effective.It has many important objectives which is why it is necessary to be so large.
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
US capitol field trip
I was unable to attend the field trip to the US capitol on March 24th, though i have been there before. The US capitol building is one of the most important buildings in the United States. The capitol building was created in 1793 and since then it has been built, burnt, rebuilt, extended and restored.The Capitol building is actively used by the congress and is also a museum of art and history.
Trips to the US capitol building are often fun and educational.
Trips to the US capitol building are often fun and educational.
Thursday, March 25, 2010
In light of the nation's experience over recent decades, has the presidency grown too powerful or too weak?
Over recent decades, the president has lost power in government. The earliest presidents had more power to make their choices and did not have to get their choices approved by many different groups.
The president himself has lost power but the government has grown stronger and they relize the impact of their decisions. The government is separated into different houses and groups which are in charge of different parts of the US government. If the groups want to make any laws they have to ultimately be approved by the president but the proposal of the law takes pressure off the president to make all the decisions.
The role as president has grown more complicated and difficult as the United States has expanded and the population has grown. Because the presidents position becomes more complex daily his work is delegated to other workers within the government and he does not have to make as many choices concerning the United States.
The president can have the amount of power that is deemed necessary without creating a monarchy. By no means has the presidency grown too weak which is made clear by the importance of the presidential election to US citizens.
The president himself has lost power but the government has grown stronger and they relize the impact of their decisions. The government is separated into different houses and groups which are in charge of different parts of the US government. If the groups want to make any laws they have to ultimately be approved by the president but the proposal of the law takes pressure off the president to make all the decisions.
The role as president has grown more complicated and difficult as the United States has expanded and the population has grown. Because the presidents position becomes more complex daily his work is delegated to other workers within the government and he does not have to make as many choices concerning the United States.
The president can have the amount of power that is deemed necessary without creating a monarchy. By no means has the presidency grown too weak which is made clear by the importance of the presidential election to US citizens.
Federalist 51 and Madison's checks and balances
Madison believes that each branch of the government (legislative,judicial, should be independent. He thinks that members of braches should not be dependent on members of the other two branches. He also believes that there should be restrictions on power in the government.He says that “if men were angels, no government would be necessary.” Government should beable to control itself and the people.
Madison ends with the idea that majority must agree on justice and general good for society to be balanced.To prevent one branch from becoming supreme, protect the "opulent minority" from the majority, and to induce the branches to cooperate, governance systems that employ a separation of powers need a way to balance each of the branches. Typically this was accomplished through a system of "checks and balances.Checks and balances allow for a system based regulation that allows one branch to limit another, such as the power of Congress to alter the composition and jurisdiction of the federal courts.
Madison ends with the idea that majority must agree on justice and general good for society to be balanced.To prevent one branch from becoming supreme, protect the "opulent minority" from the majority, and to induce the branches to cooperate, governance systems that employ a separation of powers need a way to balance each of the branches. Typically this was accomplished through a system of "checks and balances.Checks and balances allow for a system based regulation that allows one branch to limit another, such as the power of Congress to alter the composition and jurisdiction of the federal courts.
Friday, March 12, 2010
March 11, 2009 AP Government Samantha Kuhn
Group B
In this era of electronic mass media, television commercials, image makers and spin control do voters get a true picture of the candidates and what they stand for? Is image more important than substance? How are political campaigns organized? Has the internet changed the nature of American elections? How do campaigns calculate the
preferences of voters? What role do the issues play in a campaign? What is the role of negative campaigning in election campaigns? What role do the debates play in American primary and presidential elections? How do professional campaign staffs affect American elections? Where does the money come from?
In the era of electronic mass media, television commercials, image makers and spin control voters are able to learn more about the candidate they plan on voting for because they have more access to information .The media often is responsible for false information being released and it could affect the view of the voter. Today’s mass media has negative and positive affects on political campaigns. Politicians have to be more careful about what they say and do in this era because they will be exploited by the media if they are not careful. The image that is displayed of the candidate through the media becomes more important to voters because it is what they see more often. The image displayed by the candidate can change a voters opinion on who they are. The substance behind the image and what the candidate stands for will always be more important that simply the image. The image and the substance combined is what will make a voter sure about the candidate he/she plans on voting for.
A political campaign is an organized attempt with the objective to manipulate the decisions of a specific group. Political campaigns are mainly used for electoral campaigns. The campaign tries to get the candidates ideas across to the voters. The candidate wants to make a lasting impression on the voter and will frequently repeat his/her main ideas in order to do so. The majority of campaigns try to keep their message general so that they can draw in prospective voters. Political campaigns are organized by the political campaign staff who works together as a small business. The campaign manager manages the campaign operations. Political consultants advise the campaign on their activities.
The Internet has affected and changed the nature of American campaigns because more information is available and easily accessible to the potential voters about the candidates. A potential voter can find out more about the candidate than is probably wanted by the candidate. Slanderous and false information may also be posted about a candidate and could change the opinion of the voter about the candidate leading him/her to dislike the candidate because of false information. People are gullible when it comes to reading gossip and most of what is put on the internet or that can be read about someone people will believe, especially if there is some sort of picture evidence. The internet had ruined the careers of some politicians and some are able to use it to their advantage.
Campaigns calculate the preferences of voters by the reaction that the campaign gets from the people. The campaign also calculates the preferences of voters by the opinion polls that are taken and looking back at the past preferences of states. Candidates can go to the states that they see needs more focus and can get the votes by calculating those preferences.
Debates allow the voters to see the different perspectives of the candidates against each other and how they react to some one disagreeing with them. The debates are important as the candidates are narrowed down. The money for campaigns comes from donations and campaign supporters as well as from the government supported by each political party.
The media has a large affect on the political world. These effects are both negative and positive. The internet, radio, and television is where major campaigning takes place for the candidates, but these things can also hurt there career by the things that are released for the world to know about them and the mudslinging and negative campaigning that is done.
Group B
In this era of electronic mass media, television commercials, image makers and spin control do voters get a true picture of the candidates and what they stand for? Is image more important than substance? How are political campaigns organized? Has the internet changed the nature of American elections? How do campaigns calculate the
preferences of voters? What role do the issues play in a campaign? What is the role of negative campaigning in election campaigns? What role do the debates play in American primary and presidential elections? How do professional campaign staffs affect American elections? Where does the money come from?
In the era of electronic mass media, television commercials, image makers and spin control voters are able to learn more about the candidate they plan on voting for because they have more access to information .The media often is responsible for false information being released and it could affect the view of the voter. Today’s mass media has negative and positive affects on political campaigns. Politicians have to be more careful about what they say and do in this era because they will be exploited by the media if they are not careful. The image that is displayed of the candidate through the media becomes more important to voters because it is what they see more often. The image displayed by the candidate can change a voters opinion on who they are. The substance behind the image and what the candidate stands for will always be more important that simply the image. The image and the substance combined is what will make a voter sure about the candidate he/she plans on voting for.
A political campaign is an organized attempt with the objective to manipulate the decisions of a specific group. Political campaigns are mainly used for electoral campaigns. The campaign tries to get the candidates ideas across to the voters. The candidate wants to make a lasting impression on the voter and will frequently repeat his/her main ideas in order to do so. The majority of campaigns try to keep their message general so that they can draw in prospective voters. Political campaigns are organized by the political campaign staff who works together as a small business. The campaign manager manages the campaign operations. Political consultants advise the campaign on their activities.
The Internet has affected and changed the nature of American campaigns because more information is available and easily accessible to the potential voters about the candidates. A potential voter can find out more about the candidate than is probably wanted by the candidate. Slanderous and false information may also be posted about a candidate and could change the opinion of the voter about the candidate leading him/her to dislike the candidate because of false information. People are gullible when it comes to reading gossip and most of what is put on the internet or that can be read about someone people will believe, especially if there is some sort of picture evidence. The internet had ruined the careers of some politicians and some are able to use it to their advantage.
Campaigns calculate the preferences of voters by the reaction that the campaign gets from the people. The campaign also calculates the preferences of voters by the opinion polls that are taken and looking back at the past preferences of states. Candidates can go to the states that they see needs more focus and can get the votes by calculating those preferences.
Debates allow the voters to see the different perspectives of the candidates against each other and how they react to some one disagreeing with them. The debates are important as the candidates are narrowed down. The money for campaigns comes from donations and campaign supporters as well as from the government supported by each political party.
The media has a large affect on the political world. These effects are both negative and positive. The internet, radio, and television is where major campaigning takes place for the candidates, but these things can also hurt there career by the things that are released for the world to know about them and the mudslinging and negative campaigning that is done.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
test essay
Free Response
a) Define the elite theory, pluralist theory and hyper-pluralist theory of interest groups in government. (15)
Elite theory is the theoretical idea that the majority of all political power is held by one group of wealthy people who share common goals, morals, values and interests. The main idea of elite theory is that the leaders of big organizations dominate all large scale societies including the Unites States. Pluralism is rooted in the general theory of society made by liberal theorists. This idea is that there is more than one center of power. Hyper pluralist theory is that too many groups are trying to influence the political process, resulting in political chaos and contradiction among government policies.
b) Apply one of the theories above to the current debate over health care legislation. (10)
Hyper pluralist theory applies to the current debate over health care legislation because, there are too many groups that are trying to make health care go in all different directions. All of the disagreements between the groups is only causing chaos and leading to more problems. The different influences are making it difficult to decide what form of health care is best for the greater amount of people.
a) Define the elite theory, pluralist theory and hyper-pluralist theory of interest groups in government. (15)
Elite theory is the theoretical idea that the majority of all political power is held by one group of wealthy people who share common goals, morals, values and interests. The main idea of elite theory is that the leaders of big organizations dominate all large scale societies including the Unites States. Pluralism is rooted in the general theory of society made by liberal theorists. This idea is that there is more than one center of power. Hyper pluralist theory is that too many groups are trying to influence the political process, resulting in political chaos and contradiction among government policies.
b) Apply one of the theories above to the current debate over health care legislation. (10)
Hyper pluralist theory applies to the current debate over health care legislation because, there are too many groups that are trying to make health care go in all different directions. All of the disagreements between the groups is only causing chaos and leading to more problems. The different influences are making it difficult to decide what form of health care is best for the greater amount of people.
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