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47 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Prisoner's Dilemma
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Occurs when one party engages in behavior that is detrimental to their own interests because they do not trust another party to work with them to work out a solution that would benefit both of them. For example, fishermen living along the same river all know that if the river is fished incessantly by all of them, eventually there will be no more fish and they will all go hungry, yet, they all continue to over fish because the reason that the others will do the same so there is no point in conservation. Thus, everyone loses collectively even as they are trying to satisfy individual interests.
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Coordination problem
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A situation where the interests of agents collide or when multiple choices are available to individual, that, probabilistically, they would need an outside force to help solve. (coordination problems are a challenge to collective action). Thee framers faced a collective action problem in deciding what the structure of the new government would be –weighing out the interests of the Federalists and Anti federalists is another example, how the different houses (House of Reps vs. Senate) enact policy is a third. Eg. Farmers need to build a road but can’t agree on how or who should pay for it. Thus, the outside government must step in and do it for them.. In the end it ends up being better for everyone, but the framers couldn’t come up with it themselves. pg. 109
The more people are involved, the more possibility there is for coordination. eg. symphony needs a conductor. |
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Collective good (or public good)
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Non-rival, non-excludable – a collective good is a public/social good that is delivered by the government for social policy, financial/tax reasons. Public goods are sub-optimally provided by the private market primarily because of their non-rival and nonexclusive nature, you cannot limit consumption to those who have paid for them.
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Free rider problem (or collective action problem)
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A problem that arises when individuals realize that their contribution to the overall collective effort is small and inconsequential and that if they defect from the agreement they will still be able to enjoy the benefits. For example, if one person out of the whole state doesn’t pay taxes that go towards building new freeways, the freeways will still get built and they will be able to use them. But if too many individuals realize this, no one will contribute to the effort and the whole thing will collapse.
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Selective incentives
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Private goods or benefits that induce rational actors to participate in a collective effort to provide a collective good. Large organizations circumvent collective action problems by offering selective incentives, because benefits can be denied to individuals who do not join and contribute.
Example: Attorneys become members of state bar associations in order to practice law. |
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Transaction costs
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Every cost that goes into making a political decision, such as people, time money, and other resources. eg. calling a congressional session, court costs, costs of elections etc. Democracies have some of the highest transaction costs because so many people are involved in decision making and because the checks and balances system.
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Continental Congress
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a convention of delegates called together from the Thirteen Colonies that became the governing body of the United States during the American Revolution. Congress established the Continental Army and appointed George Washington as commander-in-chief in June of 1775. On July 4th 1776 Congress issued a Declaration of Independence, ending all American efforts at reconciliation. Congress designed a new government in the Articles of Confederation, which operated as the nation's constitution.
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Articles of confederation
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the first constitution of the United States and specified how the Federal government was to operate, including adoption of an official name for the new nation, United States of America.
This first constitution allowed of great state autonomy and power; under it, the national government was very weak. States were sovereign unto themselves, and the articles were more of UN framework. Participation was voluntary, and legislation could be blocked by a single state veto. |
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Shay's Rebellion
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In 1787, a group of about a thousand farmers who had lost land and assets in the depression that followed the revolutionary war marched on a government arsenal in Springfield Massachusetts to protest the way government was handling the depression its unforgiving nature of farmers debts. Led by William Shay, a bankrupt farmer, they were eventually dispersed by a state funded militia. This incident, showed just how weak national government was, because congress was unable to rally enough support from the states to provide Massachusetts with any funding or troops to put down a small rebellion of 1,000 men.
This event was not isolated; other small rebellions broke out across the country and caused a scare. This in part influenced the fledgling united states to adopt a new system with a more powerful central government. |
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James Madison
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Madison emerged as the most articulate defender of the constitution and said it was necessary to meet the challenges of government. He proposed strengthening National government at the expense of states, and giving larger, more populous states a larger share of power under the articles. He wanted Federal government to be even huger than what we ended up with, and to insulate government from popular passions. To sum up, he wanted a very strong national government in which representation was based on sate population. Madison did not get his way on many counts, and much of the itellectual defense of the constitution he makes is more pragmatic than philosophical. He was defending a constitiuon very different from what happened.
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Connecticut Compromise
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After both the Virginia plan and the new jersey plan were rejected, a compromise that split control of the legislature between the house and the senate emerged. The senate kept many of the features the congress had under the articles; each state sending two senators to serve six year terms, regardless of state population. The House was more in line . The house alone was allowed to originate revenue legislation.with Madison’s idea of of population based legislation Unanimous agreement of the states to pass legislation under the articles was replaced by a majority of each chamber being required to pass legislation, which completely ignored the states as autonomous voting entities.
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Supremacy Clause
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The clause establishes the U.S. Constitution, Federal Statutes, and U.S. treaties as "the supreme law of the land." The text decrees these to be the highest form of law in the U.S. legal system, mandating that all state judges must follow federal law in the face of conflicting state law or when a conflict arises between federal law and a state constitution
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Elastic Clause (necessary or proper clause)
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Interpretation of the Necessary and Proper Clause has been controversial, especially during the early years of the republic. Strict constructionists interpret the clause to mean that Congress may make a law only if the inability to do so would cripple its ability to apply one of its enumerated powers. Loose constructionists, on the other hand, interpret the Necessary and Proper Clause as expanding the authority of Congress to all areas tangentially-related to one of its enumerated powers. It is often known as the "elastic clause" because of the great amount of leeway in interpretation it allows; depending on the interpretation, it can be "stretched" to expand the powers of Congress, or allowed to "contract," limiting Congress. In practical usage, the clause has been paired with the Commerce Clause in particular to provide the constitutional basis for a wide variety of federal laws.
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Checks and Balances
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The system of the united states that is meant to ensure that no branch of government can gain too much power over another. For example, congress can pass legislation without the president’s approval, but he can veto it, but then they can turn around and override it with a 2/3rd majority votes, but the supreme court has the final say etc etc. Very complex, but generally keeps ambition in check.
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"Take Care" Clause
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The clause giving Presidents more authority implicit in the Constitution’s mandate that the president “take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed”. In lawsuits challenging presidents’ broad use of executive orders, federal courts have at times interpreted this authority as clearly justifying a president’s action; at other times they have rejected presidential claims. (Jacobson et al 332)
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Federalist 10
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an essay written by James Madison and the tenth of the Federalist Papers, a series arguing for the ratification of the United States Constitution. No. 10 addresses the question of how to guard against "factions," or groups of citizens, with interests contrary to the rights of others or the interests of the whole community. He wanted to diversify interests by making the united states bigger - more interests = less faction. He wanted ot increase diversity to limit the capacity for strong factions to form.
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Ambition-to-counter-Ambition
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This is a quote from the Federalist Papers, #51 and was in regards to the separation of powers amongst the legislative, executive and judicial branches. While Madison was involved in "great compromises" in forging this government, it is unclear how creating a separation of powers is a compromise. The ambitions of Presidents must be checked by the ambitions of both the legislative branch and the judicial branch. The ambitions of legislators must be checked by the executive and judicial branches and the ambitions of judges must be checked by the ambitions of legislators and Presidents. How the idea that Adam Smith advocates compromise is unclear as well. Adam smith predicted that if people were left alone to act in their own best interest that a greater good is easier accomplished.
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10th amendment
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“The powers not delegated to the US but the constitution, nor prohibited by it it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.” This amendment offers the most explicit endorsement of federalism in the constitution, but still fails to fend off federal authority over the states because the supremacy clause and the elastic (or necessary and proper) clause are so widely interpreted.
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Judicial review
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The court’s authority to overturn federal laws and executive actions it deems unconstitutional. There has been controversy about allowing an unelected branch of government who has not much accountability (judges are appointed for life) the final say in contested legislation.
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Division of war powers (power to declare war; Commander-in-Chief)-
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war powers divided between congress and presidency; intended by the framers to ensure that wars would not be entered into easily; President has some exclusive powers, such as decisions on the field of battle; Congress has other powers, such as ability to declare war and appropriate dollars to support war effort; concurrent powersà congress might limit presidential power, but in the absence of congressional limitations, the president is free to act; throughout history, presidential power has been more important, due to modern need for quick responses to foreign threats and in part due to the many-headed nature of congress; supreme war has little to say about war powers
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Federal vs. unitary system
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Federal ; Constitution divides power between central and lower level governments like states, provinces and cities. Meaningful power and automony exist for the lower and upper levels, unlike unitary.
Unitary : Power vested in central govt, lower level units like state, provincial or city governments are created as tools of central governments (like france and Britain) |
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Dual federalism vs. Cooperative federalism (or shared federalism)
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Dual Federalism - Dual federalism, in theory looks like a layer cake, with clearly defined powers and responsibilities delegated to the states and central govt. respectively.
Shared or Cooperative Federalism - looks more like a marble cake, with federal and state responsiblities and powers intermingled and shared. They work jointly to supply services to the citizenry |
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Laboratories of Democracy
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This concept explains how within the federal framework, there exists a system of filtration of governments. Within this filtration, state and local governments act as “laboratories,” where law is created and enacted from the lowest level of the democratic system, up to the top level. The Tenth Amendment of the United States Constitution makes all “powers not delegated by the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.” This is a large basis for the Laboratories of democracy concept, because the Tenth Amendment hands an infinite number of responsibilities down to the state and local governments. In fact, most policy is experimented on the state level first, before it is on the national level, and since these governments are only tied together by the federal level government, a diverse patchwork of lower government practices is created.
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Civil liberties vs civil rights
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civil liberties--constitutional and legal protections from government interference into personal rights and freedoms such as freedom of assembly, speech and religion
civil rights--the powers or privileges that are conferred on citizens by the Constitution and the courts and that entitle them to make claims upon the government. Civil rights protect individuals from arbitrary or discriminatory treatment at the hands of the government |
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Missouri compromise
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an agreement passed in 1820 between the pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions in the United States Congress, involving primarily the regulation of slavery in the western territories. It prohibited slavery in the former Louisiana Territory north of the parallel 36°30' north except within the boundaries of the proposed state of Missouri.
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Wilmot proviso
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One of the major events leading to the Civil War, would have banned slavery in any territory to be acquired from Mexico in the Mexican War or in the future, including the area later known as the Mexican Cession, but which some proponents construed to also include the disputed lands in south Texas and New Mexico east of the Rio Grande.
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Compromise of 1850
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passed in September 1850, defusing a four-year confrontation between the slave states of the South and the free states of the North that arose following the Mexican-American War (1846–1848). The compromise, drafted by Whig Henry Clay and brokered by Democrat Stephen Douglas, avoided secession or civil war at the time and reduced sectional conflict for four years.
The Compromise was greeted with relief, although each side disliked specific provisions. Texas surrendered its claim to New Mexico but received debt relief and the Texas Panhandle, and retained the control over El Paso that it had established earlier in 1850. California was permitted to be admitted to the Union as a free state, instead of being split at the Missouri Compromise Line. In addition, the South avoided the [1] Wilmot Proviso. As compensation, the South received the possibility of slave states |
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Free soil party
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Its main purpose was opposing the expansion of slavery into the western territories, arguing that free men on free soil comprised a morally and economically superior system to slavery. They opposed slavery in the new territories and sometimes worked to remove existing laws that discriminated against freed African Americans in states such as Ohio.
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Abolitionism
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A movement to end slavery
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Dred scott case
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a ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that people of African descent imported into the United States and held as slaves (or their descendants,[2] whether or not they were slaves) were not protected by the Constitution and could never be U.S. citizens.[3] The court also held that the U.S. Congress had no authority to prohibit slavery in federal territories and that, because slaves were not citizens, they could not sue in court. Furthermore, the Court ruled that slaves, as chattels or private property, could not be taken away from their owners without due process
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14th amendment
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As one of the reconstruction amendments, the “citizenship clause” of the 14th amendment provides a broad definition of the word thus overruling the decision of Dred Scott v. Sanford that black people could not be citizens of the US. The “due process” clause states that fairness should be at the forefront of decisions made in relation the states decisions with its citizens life, property and liberty. The “equal protection clause” requires each state to provide equal protection to all people within its jurisdiction (brown vs. board of education 1954)
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15th amendment
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Prevents/prohibits the US govt. from denying a user suffrage based on the citizens race/color/servitude condition. The 15th amendment is one of the reconstruction amendments to the constitution.
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grandfather clause
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originated in late-19th-century legislation and constitutional amendments passed by a number of U.S. Southern states which created new restrictions on voting, but exempted those whose ancestors (grandfathers) had the right to vote before the Civil War.
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Plessy v Ferguson
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The case that declared the South’s Jim Crow system as constitutional. Plessy a shoemaker claimed to be 7/8th white but physically looked black was convicted for sitting in a whites only Louisiana railroad car. The supreme court used a very narrow understanding of the 14TH amendment (equal protection of the law = only POLITICAL equality, thus Af. Americans being socially inferior to whites, the laws could reflect this inferiority. This further was justified by the separate but equal doctrine, i.e facilities for both races were equal whites prohibited from the black section and vice versa. Though the discrimination very ostensibly was only one way.
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Brown v Board of education
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The supreme court decision that precipitated the dismantling of racial segregation in the US (overturned Plessy v. Ferguson which allowed state sponsored segregation). Ruling that separate educational facilities were inherently unequal.
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going public
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Engaging in intensive public relations to promote the president’s policies to the voters and thereby induce cooperation from other elected officeholders in Washington.
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Brown v Board of Education
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The supreme court decision that precipitated the dismantling of racial segregation in the US (overturned Plessy v. Ferguson which allowed state sponsored segregation). Ruling that separate educational facilities were inherently unequal.
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unilateral action
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Decisions made by a single branch of government, mostly referring to the executive branch, that are insulated from the decisions made by the other two branches. Unilateral action by the executive branch includes executive orders, centralized administration and broad assertions of executive privilege.
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Speaker of the house
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the presiding officer of the House of Representatives. the Speaker is elected at the beginning of each congressional session on a party-line vote. As head of the majority party the Speaker has substantial control over the legislative agenda of the House
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committee government
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The Committee on Open Government is responsible for overseeing and advising with regard to the Freedom of Information, Open Meetings and Personal Privacy Protection Laws
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party polarization
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A situation that occurs in the United States when the two parties become ideologically controlled. When that happens, the result is that relatively few moderates staff Congress, leading to difficult in making legislative compromises.
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costless filibuster
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Time constraint in the modern political scene make the filibuster much more difficult because the majority cannot keep 50 members present long enough to wait out the minority because there are many other bills that need to be passed.
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cloture rule
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A senate rule requiring a three-fifths majority of the Senate membership (sixty votes) to invoke, which allows a maximum of thirty additional hours of debate on a bill before a vote must be taken. (for cloture to halt a filibuster)
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dual principal problem
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with both Congress and the president seeking to control policy, outcomes may reflect the demands of either?or neither?of these branches.
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Spoils system
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-Proposed by President Andrew Jackson, this system was one in which positions in government leadership were awarded to those who had served the winning party most faithfully and ably during the campaign. The logic was that those who had helped the party get into office would be good at helping to lead it. However, officials were often chosen based on loyalty rather than experience or competence, so were not always great leaders.
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Pendleton act
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reformed the federal Civil Service Act (1823) . The Pendleton Act provided that Federal Government jobs be awarded on the basis of merit and that Government employees be selected through competitive exams. The act also made it unlawful to fire or demote for political reasons employees who were covered by the law. The law further forbids requiring employees to give political service or contributions. The Civil Service Commission was established to enforce this act.
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Logic of agency design (incentives shaping design of bureaucracy in U.S.)
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The logic of agency design is basically in response to this dual principles problem. Agencies are
designed with a lot of red tape - i.e., the President doesn't trust Congress and Congress doesn't trust President. |
