Daniel Patrick Moynihan observed:  “Some . . .  deny the existence of evil and others the existence of grace.  The art of  politics is to live with the reality of both.”  With this comment in mind, we take a realistic overview of American politics.  This course aims to:

• Help you understand past and present political events.
• Lay the groundwork for further study of government.
• Sharpen your thinking, writing, and speaking.

Classes

Classes will include lecture and discussion.  Finish the readings before class because our discussions will involve those readings.  We shall also talk about breaking news, so you must read a good news source such as the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times or
ABC "The Note" (http://abcnews.go.com/sections/politics/TheNote/TheNote.html)

Grades

The following will make up your course grade: 

• Three 4-page papers 20% each
• One sit-down final   30%
• Class participation  10%

• The papers will develop your skills in research, writing, and political analysis.  When grading, I do take the quality of writing into account, applying the standards of Strunk and White.  If you object to this approach, do not take this course – or anything else that I teach.

• The final examination will test your factual knowledge and comprehension of the readings.

• In addition to the required readings (below), I may also give you handouts and web links covering current events and basic factual information.  The final will cover this material.

• Class participation will hone your ability to think on your feet.  This grade hinges on class discussions and a brief oral presentation on breaking news.  I will call on students at random, and if you often miss sessions or fail to prepare, your grade will suffer.

• As a courtesy to your fellow students, please arrive promptly and refrain from eating in class.

• Carefully check the due dates for papers, as well as the date of the final exam.  Arrange your schedule accordingly.  Do not plan on seeking extensions or make-up work.

• Plagiarism or any other academic dishonesty will mean referral to the Academic Standards Committee.  See: http://registrar.claremontmckenna.edu/acpolicy/plagiarism.asp

Required Books

• Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay, The Federalist Papers (New York: Signet, 2003  [1788]).

• Marc Landy and Sidney M. Milkis, American Government: Balancing Democracy and Rights (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2004).

• Chris Matthews, Hardball, rev. ed. (New York:  Touchstone, 1999).

• Bruce Stinebrickner, ed., American Government 05/06 (Guilford, Connecticut, 2005).

• William Strunk and E. B. White, The Elements of Style, 4th ed.  (New York:  Simon and Schuster, 1999).

• Alexis deTocqueville, Democracy in America, trans. George Lawrence, ed. J.P. Mayer (Garden City, New York:  HarperCollins, 1969 [1835/40]).
   

Schedule (subject to change, with advance notice).

In addition to the readings below, I may also supply you with various handouts and Internet links.

Jan 18:  Introduction

"Our forefathers were blowing people up because they taxed their breakfast beverage, for God's sake. And it wasn't even coffee. They weren't even jittery. It was tea." -- Dennis Miller

How does the United States resemble other nations?  How does it differ?

Jan 23, 25:  Principles of the American Political Order

"Another final straw in the camel's pack was when Britan tried to bar colonists from crossing the Appelation Mountains.  Many Colonists became convicted patriots after reading Horse Sense by the escaped Englishman Thomas Pain." --actual blue book answer in Non Campus Mentis, by Anders Henriksson  

What is natural law?  What is self-evident truth?  Did the signers intend the Declaration to apply to everyone, or just property-owning white males?

• Landy and Milkis, ch. 1-2 and Appendix 1 (The Declaration)
• Federalist # 31
• Martin Luther King, “Letter from the Birmingham Jail,” at http://www.stanford.edu/group/King/popular_requests/frequentdocs/birmingham.pdf
• Tocqueville, 31-60.
• Fifth Lincoln-Douglas debate (excerpts) at http://govt.mckenna.edu/jpitney/lincdoug.html

"Whereas resolution of the Cyprus problem is also consistent with American values, as enshrined in the rights guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States, which guarantees the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness..." -- S. Con. Res. 22 (107th Congress)

Why did the Framers establish federalism, bicameralism, and the separation of powers?  What did they see as the major threats to liberty?

• Landy and Milkis, ch. 3, and Appendix 2 (The Constitution).
• Federalist # 1, 9, 10, 47, 48, 51.

"As long as we're apportioning blame in the Katrina fiasco, here's another culprit: federalism, by which I mean a) the U.S.'s interpolation of an unnecessary level of government (states) between cities and the national government and b) the non-hierarchical, `sovereign' nature of this unnecessary level, so that the national government can't just give its Louisiana subdivision orders the way, say, General Motors can give its Pontiac division orders." -- Mickey Kaus

Is Kaus right?  That is, does federalism interfere with effective public policy, or do its benefits outweigh its costs?

• Landy and Milkis, ch. 4, 5.
• Federalist # 14, 37, 39, 45, 46.
• Stinebrickner, readings 5 (daddy state), 8 (national power).
• Jonathan Walters and Donald Kettl, "The Katrina Breakdown," Governing, December 2005, at http://governing.com/articles/12disast.htm

Feb 13, 15:  News Media and Public Opinion

Mitch: "We’re not sure what’s exactly is going on inside the town of Beaverton, Tom, but we’re reporting that there’s looting, raping and, yes, even acts of cannibalism."

Tom: "My God, you’ve actually seen people looting, raping and eating each other?"

Mitch: "No, no we haven’t actually seen it, Tom. We’re just reporting it."

-- South Park, October 19, 2005

How do people form political opinions?  What do they know about politics?  What kinds of news media can we trust, and when?

• Landy and Milkis, ch. 12.
• Tocqueville, pp. 180-188
• Stinebrickner, readings 7 (political ignorance), 43 (journalism & democracy), 44 (media reform), 45 (lying), 46 (attitudes toward the press)
• Barb Palser, "Journalism's Backseat Drivers," [on blogs] American Journalism Review, August/September 2005, at                          http://www.ajr.org/Article.asp?id=3931
• John Zogby, "The Polls, The Pundits, and the Elections of 2004," at http://usinfo.state.gov/products/pubs/election04/polls.htm
• Take the “Where Do You Fit?” test at http://people-press.org/fit/

SECOND 4-PAGE PAPER ASSIGNED FEB 15, DUE MAR 1.

Feb 20, 22: Elections

"James Carville, everyone's favorite analyst/bald ... gnome, is declaring smashing exit polls for Dems, we hear third or fourth or maybe fifth hand." -- Wonkette, Election Day 2004. 

Why are American election procedures so complicated?  What determines who wins and who loses?

• Tocqueville, 196-203
• Federalist  # 52, 68
• Stinebrickner, readings 28 (political scientists and campaign finance), 37 (election system), 38 (redistricting), 39 (Bush strategy), 40 (campaign finance), 41 (online ads), 42 (black and Latino vote)
• Bill Bishop, "The Great Divide," at http://www.statesman.com/specialreports/content/specialreports/greatdivide/
• Matt Bai, "Who Lost Ohio?" New York Times Magazine, November 21, 2004, at http://www.entenman.net/misc/NYT-2004-11-21.html

Feb 27, Mar 1: Parties and Interest Groups

"Democrats are the party of government activism, that says government can make you richer, smarter, taller, and get the chickweed out of your lawn.  Republicans are the party that says government doesn't work, and then they get elected and prove it." -- P.J. O'Rourke

What are the differences between Republicans and Democrats?  What is an interest group?  Which groups align with which party?  Do interest groups have too much power over politicians, or is it the other way around?

• Landy and Milkis, ch. 11.
• Tocqueville, on parties (174-179) and associations  (188-195, 503-528)
• Stinebrickner, readings 33 (chieftains & church), 34 (GOP), 35 (Democrats), 36 (religious conservatives).

Mar 6, 8: Citizenship, Political Culture, and Religion

“Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits flame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power. America is great because she is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, she will cease to be great.” -- Not Tocqueville 

According to Tocqueville, religion is the first of our political institutions.  Why?

• Tocqueville 220-245, 246-315, 442-458, 528-530.
• Kenneth Keskel, "The Oath of Office," Air and Space Power Journal, Winter 2002, at http://www.airpower.maxwell.af.mil/airchronicles/apj/apj02/win02/keskel.html
• Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address at http://showcase.netins.net/web/creative/lincoln/speeches/gettysburg.htm
• Abraham Lincoln, Second Inaugural, at http://www.bartleby.com/124/pres32.html
• Stinebrickner reading 18 (Bush rhetoric).

Mar 13, 15: Spring Break

Mar 20, 22:  Civil Liberties and Civil Rights

"The main civil liberty I'm looking to protect is the 'me not getting blown up' one. I don't know if it's written down anywhere in Tom Paine's crib sheets, but that's my big one." -- Dennis Miller

Why did the Framers originally reject a bill of rights?  Can efforts to protect civil liberties and civil rights actually backfire?  Could one say that war has helped civil rights while jeopardizing civil liberties?

• Federalist # 84.
• Stinebrickner, readings 10 (terrorism and civil liberties), 11 (terror suspects), 12 (racial preferences), 13 (gay marriage), 14 (free-speech zones), 52 (PATRIOT Act)

Mar 27, 29:  Congress

“When one enters the House of Representatives at Washington, one is struck by the vulgar demeanor of that great assembly.”-- Tocqueville 

Do lawmakers actually read or write the bills that they pass?  How do the House and Senate differ? What accounts for the current lack of civility on Capitol Hill?

• Landy and Milkis, ch. 7
• Federalist # 55, 57, 58, 59, 62, 63.
• Tocqueville, 497-500.
• Stinebrickner, readings 20 (class of 1994),  21 (partisanship in roll-call voting), 22 (women) , 23 (the case for Congress), 24 (participation rates), 25 (leadership and procedure).

April 3, 5:  The Presidency 

"I'd like to address my remarks tonight to Mr. Osama bin Laden. Buddy, you screwed up big time. Guess what, Amigo. I'm coming to get you. I'm not alone, either. The American people are right behind me. You see, you made a big mistake. If you had any brains, you would have challenged me to a game of Scrabble. Or maybe a Beard-Off. You might have won that because I don't have a beard. And when I do, it comes in patchy." -- Will Ferrell as President Bush, on Saturday Night Live

Why does the presidency tend to grow stronger in wartime?  How do presidents make decisions?

• Landy and Milkis, ch. 8
• Federalist # 65, 66, 67, 69, 70, 72.
• Tocqueville, pp. 121-138, 690-695.
• Stinebrickner, readings 15 (imperial presidency), 16 (Bush policy), 17 (Bush personality), 19 (presidential dishonesty)

April 10, 12:  Judiciary

"There's no justice like angry-mob justice." -- Principal Skinner

How well can judges decide complex social issues?  Should judges rely only on the original understanding of the Constitution, or apply more flexible interpretations?

• Federalist # 78
• Tocqueville, pp. 99-105.
• Edwards v. Aguillard (482 U.S. 578 (1987)).
• Landy and Milkis, ch. 9
• Stinebrickner, readings 26 (O'Connor), 27 (religion and courts), 29 (extra-judicial roles)

THIRD 4-PAGE PAPER ASSIGNED APRIL 10, DUE APRIL 24.

April 17, 19: Bureaucracy and Public Policy

"When a storm hits, the best place to be is out of the path of the storm." – DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff, on what he's learned from Katrina, "Good Morning America," 9/21/05

In each year, federal regulations take up tens of thousands of pages.  Why?  How does the government raise and spend money?

• Landy and Milkis, ch. 6, 10
• Stinebrickner, readings 30 (contracting), 32 (intelligence reform), 48 (clean air), 49 (pork)
• IRS, "Understanding Taxes" at http://www.irs.gov/app/understandingTaxes/jsp/s_student_lessons.jsp; student tutorials at http://www.irs.gov/app/understandingTaxes/jsp/s_student_tutorials.jsp; and one of the simulations at http://www.irs.gov/app/understandingTaxes/jsp/s_student_simulations.jsp

April 24, 26:  Hardball I

"Anger is more useful than despair." -- Arnold Schwarzenegger, in Terminator 3

How do ambitious young people rise in the political world?

• Matthews, ch. 1-7.

May 1, 3:  Hardball II

“We’re not Spartans, we’re Americans! With a capital ‘A,’ huh? And you know what that means? Do you? That means that our forefathers were kicked out of every decent country in the world!” -- Bill Murray, in Stripes

How can political figures recover from damaging episodes?

• Matthews, ch. 8-14.

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