U.S. and Texas Politics and Constitution Political Ideologies and Polarization March 12, 2015 j. Bryan cole POLS 1336

Questions to Explore Today What is an ideology? What about political polarization? Is our nation politically polarized? Congress? The people? If so what are the consequences of political polarization?

Political Polarization Refers to the placement of people’s political/ideological views on a left-right scale Movement away from the center and toward one of the poles, leading people to take more extreme positions

Political Polarization We could place people’s political views along this number line Persons at or near zero would be moderates If, however, more people place themselves at either end (-3 or 3), then we would say that the electorate is highly polarized, i.e. it has moved toward the polls Political Polarization

What Is An Ideology? What is a political ideology? Political ideology: “a set of interrelated attitudes that fit together into some coherent and consistent view of or orientation toward the political world” (Flanigan and Zingale, p. 160) AND “any set of beliefs about the proper order of society and how it can be achieved” (Erikson and Tedin, p. 72)

Common Ideologies Liberal Conservative

Common Political Ideologies Liberal Conservative

NES Measurement of Americans’ Ideologies “We hear a lot of talk these days about liberals and conservatives. Here is a seven-point scale on which the political views that most people might hold are arranged from extremely liberal to extremely conservative.” “Where would you place yourself on this scale, or haven’t you thought much about it?”

Ideology In Our Class Extremely liberal Liberal Slightly liberal Moderate, middle of the road Slightly conservative Conservative Extremely conservative Don’t know Haven’t thought much about it

Partisan Sorting Important to distinguish from polarization Sorting refers to when people’s party ID match their ideological leanings as a result of taking cues from elites, e.g. conservative Republicans and liberal Democrats Increases in sorted voters often because political parties have grown increasingly homogenous

Partisan Sorting Liberal Democrats Conservative Republicans Sorted Electorate Unsorted Electorate Liberal Democrats Conservative Republicans Conservative Democrats (common in the South) Liberal Republicans

Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Inc. Affordable Care Act (“Obamacare”) and HHS rules require businesses and insurers to provide 20 different types of contraceptives to women Exemptions: Churches Religiously-affiliated institutions What about for-profit corporations?

The Ruling and Public Reactions Two companies, Hobby Lobby and Conestoga Wood Specialties, challenged this mandate The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in these companies’ favor "Hobby Lobby Ruling: Employers Don't Have to Cover Birth Control." From NBC News. June 30, 2014.

Group Discussion Activity Please read and discuss the editorial/op-ed/article that you have been assigned Be prepared to explain the following to the class: The reading’s thesis statement (the main point) The author(s) and publication in which it appeared Upon what evidence does s/he base this statement? Do you agree or disagree with the position advanced in the reading? Why or why not?

Articles to Read and Discuss "The Hobby Lobby decision isn't narrow." Irin Carmon. MSNBC. June 30, 2015. "Hobby Lobby Hysteria." Editors. The National Review. June 30, 2014. "Sandra Fluke: The Hobby Lobby case is an attack on women." Sandra Fluke. The Washington Post. June 30, 2014. Hobby Lobby ruling: Why the Supreme Court got it right." Robert Jeffress. Fox News. June 30, 2015. "Don't Take Birth Control Options Away From Moms -- The U.S. Supreme Court Is Wrong on Hobby Lobby." Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner. Huffington Post. July 1, 2014. "A Company Liberals Could Love." Ross Douthat. New York Times. July 5, 2014.

Clicker question (vote on the next slide) Do you think religious-affiliated organizations should have to cover the cost of prescription birth control for their female employees as part of their health insurance plans, or should religious-affiliated organizations be able to opt out of covering that, based on religious objections?

Religious-Affiliated Organizations Should have to cover Should be able to opt out Not sure

Clicker question (vote on the next slide) What about companies and non-religious organizations? Do you think these employers should have to cover the cost of prescription birth control for their female employees as part of their health insurance plans, or should these employers be able to opt out of covering that, based on religious objections?

Companies and Non-Religious Organizations Should have to cover Should be able to opt out Not sure

To what extent are the American people polarized? A controversial topic among political scientists Let’s look at some of the evidence: Positions on controversial issues Americans’ ideologies Americans’ voting behavior Geographic distribution of these opinions and behaviors

Polarization on Political Issues Naturally, we are especially interested in social issues, particularly abortion and those related to it Public Opinion on Obamacare and Contraception

Positions on Abortion

Abortion and Geography Recent Pew Research Study Finds Geographical Differences in Public Opinion Surrounding Abortion Could we as a nation be polarized by geography?

Ideology in 2008

States’ Margins of Victory in Selected Presidential Elections

2012 Presidential Election

By County

Red, Blue and Purple

Consequences of Political Polarization

Consequences of Increased Polarization