AMERICAN NATIONAL GOVERNMENT

POLS 110A/B

Spring semester, 2004

Bruce Stinebrickner

Room 305 Asbury Hall

Office phone: 658-4803

Home phone: 653-6225

Email: STINEBRI@DePauw.edu.

I. INTRODUCTION

This course will consist of an overview of USA national government. We shall treat a considerable amount of material in one semester and shall try to do so without succumbing to the tendency to cover too much too quickly or in insufficient depth.

An introductory course on the USA political system can be taught with a number of different emphases. In this course we shall be particularly concerned with how the USA compares and contrasts with other members of the set of political systems known as “representative (or western) democracies” (e.g., the United Kingdom, Canada, Costa Rica, France, Israel, Sweden, Australia, Japan).

One point of emphasis in the course will be the unusual characteristics of the USA party system and their impact on the practice of representative democracy in the United States. The 2004 presidential nominating process will serve as a case in point and we shall address this remarkable feature of the American party system on the very first day of class, 2 February 2004. By that day, of course, both the 2004 Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary will be “history,” and the delegate selection phase of the 2004 Democratic presidential nominating process will be underway.

A second point of emphasis will be the relation between legislative and executive branches in the USA national government and its consequences for the policy-making process. By the end of the semester, students should have acquired a good understanding of the peculiar shape of USA-style representative democracy.

Both lectures and class discussions will assume completion of assigned readings on schedule, and every effort will be made to integrate current happenings into the course as the semester unfolds. Students enrolled in POLS 110 will be held responsible for keeping up with in a serious and sustained way with current events in USA national politics. This will help us in making connections between what is learned in the course and what is currently happening in the USA political system. As a way of keeping up with current events, students will be responsible for reading assigned articles in The New York Times on a daily basis. (Details about how students can subscribe inexpensively will be provided in class.) The weeklies National Journal, CQ Weekly, and the New Republic—all available in R.O.W. Library—can also be helpful with timely information and analysis, as can the weekend political “talk shows” on television—“Washington Week in Review” (PBS), “Face the Nation” (CBS), “Meet the Press” (NBC), “This Week” (ABC), “Fox News Sunday (FOX), and “Late Edition” (CNN).

II. OUTLINE OF TOPICS TO BE TREATED IN THE COURSE

Topic 1 The 2004 Presidential Nominating Process and the Presidential Nominating Process in General

Topic 2 Introductory Matters: The Concepts of “Democracy,” “Political Culture,” and Comparing/Contrasting Selected Features of the USA with Those of Other Countries in the World

Topic 3 Presidential (and other) General Elections: 2004 and in general

Topic 4 Political Parties

Topic 5 Public Opinion and Related Matters

Topic 6 News and Other Media

Topic 7 Interest Groups

Topic 8 A. The Constitution of 1787, the “Separation of Powers,” Federalism, and the like

B. Congress

Topic 9 The Presidency

Topic 10 The Bureaucracy

Topic 11 The Supreme Court and Rest of the Judiciary

Topic 12 The Public Policy-Making Process and the Substance of Government Policy in Selected Areas

Topic 13 Assessment of the USA Political System

III. READINGS

Most required readings for the course will come from two books and The New York Times. The two books ordered through Fine Print bookstore (6 East Washington Street, Greencastle, 653-2665) are:

George C. Edwards, Martin P. Wattenberg, and Robert L. Lineberry, Government in America, Brief Seventh Edition (New York: Pearson Longman, 2004)

Bruce Stinebrickner, ed., American Government O3/O4 (Guilford, CT: McGraw-Hill/Dushkin, 2004).

With the exception of New York Times assignments, course readings will be organized into what are called “Reading Packages,” one “Package” for each topic or closely associated set of topics. The contents of each Reading Package will be provided in a separate set of handouts called “Reading Details.” Information about what is required and what is recommended reading and when particular reading and writing assignments will be due will be provided in class or by electronic communications. On average, students will be responsible for completing required reading assignments for about one Reading Package per week over the duration of the semester. But we shall not maintain a regular pace of one Topic and one Reading Package per week. That is, we may spend as much as two weeks on some Topics and Readings Packages—such as Topic 9 (Constitution and Congress) and its associated Reading Package—and perhaps no more than a single class session on others—such as Topics 5 (Media) and 6 (Public Opinion) and their associated Reading Packages.

IV. GUEST SPEAKERS/TELEVISION SPECIALS

Guest speakers addressing topics relevant to material treated in POLS 110 sometimes appear on the DePauw campus and attendance at their presentations may be “required” or “recommended” in the context of this course. In addition, sometimes televised candidate debates and presidential speeches or press conferences of special interest will be called to your attention. Short written papers in connection with guest speakers and/or televised specials may be assigned or suggested as extra-credit options.

V. GRADING

Subject to the possibility of modifications that would, of course, be announced to the class, course grades will be calculated on the following bases:

A. Contributions to class discussions, including attendance,

evidence of preparation for class, etc. 15%

B. One paper (probably 1000-1500 words) 15%

C. Two “one-hour” tests (15% each) 30%

D. Final exam (for which students will be responsible,

to some extent, for material covered over the entire

semester, although there will be more

emphasis on material covered after the second

one-hour test) about 20%

E. Miscellaneous bits-and-pieces (e.g., New York Times

quizzes, brief submissions on assigned questions that

require linking general or conceptual points from the

course to specified New York Times articles, brief

written reactions to guest speakers, etc) about 20%

END