American Government: Continuity and Change Chapter Fourteen American Government: Continuity and Change

Original Constitution designed to make new policy adoption difficult Introduction Original Constitution designed to make new policy adoption difficult How to explain contemporary big government? First 150 years, limited federal government Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Three restraints in 19th and early 20th centuries Restraints on Growth Three restraints in 19th and early 20th centuries Constitutional interpretation Popular opinion Potential interest groups Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Relaxing the Restraints Constraints on federal action have weakened or disappeared Public and elite opinion demanded federal expansion Political resources more widely distributed Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Relaxing the Restraints (Cont’d) The old system The new system (began in the 1930s and established its present form in the 1970s) Old vs. new systems—essential differences Two periods in U.S. politics changed political landscape Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

How the American System Affects Policymaking Four constitutional provisions have particularly powerful impact Creates an adversarial system; incentives greater to fight than cooperate Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Conclusion Copyright © Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.