Summary

INTRODUCTION

Politics and government matter-that is the single most important message of this book. Despite the fact that government substantially affects each of our lives, youth today are especially apathetic about politics and government. And while political apathy isn't restricted to young people, a tremendous gap has opened up between the young (defined as under age 25) and the elderly (defined as over age 65) on measures of political interest, knowledge, and participation. Of course, today's youth have not had any policy impact them the way that Medicare has benefited their grandparents or that the draft and the Vietnam War affected their parents. Also, growing up in a fragmented media environment with dozens of TV channels and thousands of Internet sites has offered today's youth a rich and varied socialization experience, but also one that has enabled them to easily avoid political events.

Throughout Government in America, students are asked to assess American democracy. Chapter 1 raises two fundamental questions about governing that will serve as themes for the textbook: How should we govern? and What should government do? This chapter introduces the fundamental concepts of government, politics, and public policy, and defines the ways in which the three are interrelated. GOVERNMENT consists of those institutions and processes through which public policies are made for a society. Regardless of how their leaders assume office, all governments have certain functions in common: They maintain national defense, provide public goods, use police powers to maintain order, furnish public services, socialize the young into the political culture, and collect taxes to pay for the services they provide.

Politics determines whom we select as our governmental leaders and what policies they pursue. Political scientists still use the classic definition of politics offered by Harold D. Lasswell: "Who gets what, when, and how." People engage in politics for a variety of reasons, and all of their activities in politics are collectively called political participation.

A policymaking system is the process by which policy comes into being and evolves over time. In a democratic society, parties, elections, interest groups, and the media are key linkage institutions between the preferences of citizens and the government's policy agenda. Policymakers-Congress, the presidency, courts, and the bureaucracy-stand at the core of the political system.

When people confront government officials with problems they expect them to solve, they are trying to influence the government's policy agenda. A government's policy agenda changes frequently: if public officials want to get elected, they must pay attention to the problems that concern the voters. Public policy is a choice that government makes in response to some issue on its agenda. Public policy includes all of the decisions and nondecisions of government: policymakers can establish a policy by doing something or by doing nothing, as can be seen by the government's original response of "inaction" to the AIDS crisis. Translating people's desires into public policy is crucial to the workings of democracy.

DEMOCRACY

In his famous Gettysburg Address, Abraham Lincoln referred to democracy as "government of the people, by the people, and for the people." Although Lincoln's definition imparts great emotional impact, such a definition is subject to many different interpretations. For example, what do we mean by "people"? No democracy permits government by literally every person in society. Throughout this textbook, the authors define democracy as a means of selecting policymakers and of organizing government so that policy reflects citizens' preferences.

Traditional democratic theory rests upon several principles that specify how a democratic government makes its decisions. Democratic theorist Robert Dahl lists five criteria that are essential for "an ideal democratic process": equality in voting; effective participation; enlightened understanding; citizen control of the agenda; and inclusion, which means that government must include (and extend rights to) all those subject to its laws.

Democracies must also practice majority rule and preserve minority rights. The relationship between the few leaders and the many followers is one of representation. The closer the correspondence between representatives and their electoral majority, the closer the approximation to democracy.

Theories of American democracy are essentially theories about who has power and influence. This chapter focuses on three contemporary theories of American democracy. Pluralist theory contends that many centers of influence compete for power and control over public policy, with no one group or set of groups dominating. Pluralists view bargaining and compromise as essential ingredients in our democracy. In sharp contrast to pluralist theory, elite and class theory contends that society is divided along class lines and that an upper-class elite rules. Wealth is seen as the basis of power, and a few powerful Americans are the policymakers. Hyperpluralism is "pluralism gone sour." Hyperpluralists contend that the existence of too many influential groups actually makes it impossible for government to act. When politicians try to placate every group, the result is confusing, contradictory, and muddled policy (or no policy at all). Both hyperpluralist theory and elite and class theory suggest that the public interest is rarely translated into public policy.

Traditional democratic theory holds that ordinary citizens have the good sense to reach political judgments and that government has the capacity to act upon those judgments. However, it has become increasingly difficult to make knowledgeable decisions as human knowledge has expanded. There is evidence that Americans actually know very little about policy decisions or about who their leaders are. Today, the elite are likely to be those who command knowledge-the experts.

Many observers also worry about the close connection between money and politics. Candidates have become increasingly dependent on Political Action Committees (PACs) to fund their campaigns. Critics charge that PACs have undue influence on members of Congress when it comes to the issues that the PACs care about.

The rapid rate of change of politics over the last three decades makes it more difficult for government to respond to demands. Some feel that this can lead to inefficient government that cannot adequately respond to challenges.

The large number and diversity of interest groups coupled with the decentralized nature of government makes it easy to prevent policy formulation and implementation, a condition known as policy gridlock.

THE SCOPE OF GOVERNMENT IN AMERICA

One goal of Government in America is to familiarize the student with different ways to approach and answer the crucial questions that the authors raise. In particular, the text focuses on one of the most important questions facing modern American democracy: Is the scope of government too broad, too narrow, or just about right?

Our governments (national, state, and local) spend about 29 percent of the gross domestic product.

National defense takes about one-sixth of the federal budget, a much smaller percentage than it did three decades ago. Social Security consumes more than one-fifth of the budget. Medicare is another big-ticket item, requiring a little over one-tenth of the budget. State and local governments also get important parts of the federal government's budget.

If viewed in a comparative perspective, we find that the United States devotes a smaller percentage of its resources to government than do other economically developed nations. Moreover, the tax burden on Americans is also small, when compared to other democratic nations.

American individualism, which developed from the desires of immigrants to escape government oppression and from the existence of a western frontier with little government, helps account for the relatively small scope of government in America.