A view of the political spectrum (the left-right thing)

Communists Ex.) The old Soviet Union Complete government control Ultimate goal = utopian society with no need for gov’t … this is the closest anyone came to “communism” Extreme form of socialism

Socialists Socialism = the government owns the basic means of production, determines the use of resources, distributes the products and wages, and provides social services such as education, health care, and welfare through democratic processes. Ex.) Sweden Govt organizes / controls more social programs in order to ensure that all have equal access = higher taxes to pay for all programs

Liberals Democratic Party Believes that gov’t. should actively promote social reform (promotes health care, education, justice, and equal opportunity)  leads to bigger federal gov’t.

Moderates “middle of the road” Tolerant of others opinions (agrees with ideas / concepts from both sides) Where a candidate ends up in order to be elected president  - a way to get the most votes

Conservatives Republican Party Believes gov’t should be limited, except in supporting traditional values and promoting freedom of opportunity (laissez faire business) Very little to no progressive change

Libertarian Libertarians support maximum liberty in both personal and economic matters. Advocate a much smaller government Embrace individual responsibility, oppose government bureaucracy and taxes, promote private charity, tolerate diverse lifestyles, support the free market, and defend civil liberties Liberals: gov’t control econ Conservatives: gov’t control social behavior and institutions Libertarian: gov’t control neither.

Reactionary Favors a return to a previous state of affairs “back to the good old days” and may be willing to go to extremes to attain that goal Political society characteristics: discipline, respect for authority, honor, etc. Ex) The Tea Party

Fascist Ex.) The Nazi Party Radical authoritarian nationalism (nationalism to the extreme to protect the state and its values) Unify the nation (by race & culture & military) and displace weak and inferior nations

Solid Liberal Faith & Family Left Next Generation Left  strongly support the social safety net and take very liberal positions on virtually all issues, promote change, rather than its reliance on long-standing principles. Diplomacy – rather than military strength – is the best way to ensure peace. SOC AND ECON LIBERAL Faith & Family Left  strong support for activist government with conservative attitudes on many social issues., support social safety net but religion and family SOC CONSERVATIVE, ECON LIBERAL Next Generation Left very liberal attitudes on many issues, including homosexuality and abortion, the environment and foreign policy. They are supportive of an activist government, but wary of expanding the social safety net SOC LIBERAL, ECON LIBERAL WITH SOME CONSERVATIVE IDEAS Hard-Pressed Skeptic Deeply financially-stressed and distrustful of government, lean toward the Democratic Party but have reservations about both political parties, cynical about the ability of individuals to improve their lot through hard work, Only about a third (32%) say they work-full-time ECON LIBERAL, SOC MODERATE

Business Conservative Young Outsiders young, largely independent group holds a mix of conservative and liberal views, views government as wasteful and inefficient, lean more toward republican ECON CONSERVATIVE, SOC LIBERAL (BOTH MODERATE) Business Conservative traditional small-government, it is wasteful, stay out of business,  immigrants strengthen the country and take a positive view of U.S. global involvement. They are less socially conservative than Steadfast Conservatives. ECON CONSERVATIVE, SOC MODERATE Steadfast Conservative overwhelmingly Republican, very conservative attitudes across most issues, including social policy and the size and scope of government, Critical of business and Wall Street, express highly negative attitudes toward immigrants and take a skeptical view of U.S. global involvement ECON AND SOC CONSERVATIVE Bystander on the sidelines of the political process, either by choice or because they are ineligible to vote. None are currently registered to vote. Most follow government and public affairs only now and then (32%) or hardly at all (32%) APATHETIC TO ISSUES

Quick Reference for Republicans & Democrats Red or Blue? Conservative or liberal? Right or Left Wing? More or less taxes? Poor or wealthy? Strong 2nd amendment support w/no gun control or support stricter gun control? Pro life or Pro choice? For or against capital punishment?

Participating in Government “Half of the American people never read a newspaper. Half never voted for President. One hopes it is the same half.” – Gore Vidal (novelist) http://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-fight-for-the-right-to-vote-in-the-united-states-nicki-beaman-griffin

Voting Basics Suffrage: the right to vote Enfranchisement: to admit to the privileges of a citizen and especially to the right of suffrage 15th amendment: prohibits the federal and state governments from denying a citizen the right to vote based on that citizen's "race, color, or previous condition of servitude."

Voting Basics 19th amendment: gave women the right to vote 24th amendment: eliminated having to pay a poll tax in order to vote 26th amendment: moved the voting age down to 18 years old

Precinct a district of a city or town as defined for police purposes such as voting In especially highly populated urban areas, voting locations are organized into precincts Precinct – election district with one voting location Ward –small area that a city has divided for the purpose of local elections

Making it Easier to Vote! National Voter Registration Act 1993: voting registration now done when you renew or apply for a driver’s license All government offices that offer public assistance have voter registration You can register to vote my mail or online All of this is enforced by federal law! National voter registration act – allows states to register people to vote through driver license renews and registration

Voting Ballots Australian Ballot: secret ballot Absentee Ballot: vote by mail if you cannot get to your precinct Australian ballot – secret ballot

Mass Media http://www.livingroomcandidate.org/ Print Media: newspapers, books, magazines Broadcast Media: TV, Radio, movies Group Media: internet, social media Mass Media: Television, radio, newspapers, magazines, the Internet and other means of popular communication Effective communication through media is key to political success. Media Events: events purposely staged for the media that nonetheless look spontaneous -- Media events can be staged by almost anybody. 60% presidential campaign spending is TV ads (Two-thirds is negative.) Image making and news management is important, especially for presidents.

Mass Media 1st televised debate 1960 (Nixon & JFK) http://video.pbs.org/video/2149644185/

Propaganda: information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote or publicize a particular political cause or point of view. information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote or publicize a particular political cause or point of view. DBQ on propaganda – if time allows do an activity

Mass Media Sensationalism & Negativism Sensationalism: Economic interests of the mass media—the need to capture and hold audience attention—creates a bias toward “hype” in the selection of news, its presentation, and its interpretation—ie stories that are “sensational” in nature

Mass Media Sensationalism & Negativism Sensationalism: Economic interests of the mass media—the need to capture and hold audience attention—creates a bias toward “hype” in the selection of news, its presentation, and its interpretation—ie stories that are “sensational” in nature http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2014/09/12/seinfeld_to_maher_on_media_bias_to_blame_it_all_on_fox_news_doesnt_seem_fair.html

Mass Media Political Action Committee (PAC) Interest group Organization that raises money privately for candidate campaigns to influence legislation Interest group Lobbying / lobbyist Partisan / bipartisan Sensationalism: Economic interests of the mass media—the need to capture and hold audience attention—creates a bias toward “hype” in the selection of news, its presentation, and its interpretation—ie stories that are “sensational” in nature PAC = an organization formed to collect money and provide financial support for political candidates Interest group = a group of people with common goals who organize to influence government Lobbying = direct contact made in order to persuade govt officials to support the policies their interest group favors Partisan (think part – not agreeing) Bipartisan - of or involving the agreement or cooperation of two political parties that usually oppose each other's policies.

Two Party System vs. One Party System Most typically found in authoritarian govt / dictatorships The political system in the US Two party system = description of the US political party system One party system = are most typically found in authoritarian govt

The United States Two Party System Democrats Republicans Symbol = donkey Founder = Andrew Jackson Symbol = elephant 1st Pres = Abraham Lincoln Party Platforms = statement of principles, beliefs, and positions on key issues

Third Parties Independents: don’t identify with an official political party Single-issue party: focus on one main issue (Green Party = environment) Splinter party: break away from a party over a disagreement (Bull Moose Party of 1912 with Teddy Roosevelt, Democrats win! Why?) Independents = a voter who does not support any particular political party Single issue = a party that focusses on one major social, economic, or moral issue Splinter party = party that has broken away from another party (they sometimes tend to split the vote in an election) – think bullmoose party of 1912

Crash Course! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxiD9AEX4Hc