Political Science 1: Introduction to American Politics and Government UC Berkeley, Summer 2013 Instructor: John Hanley Syllabus Class

Meetings: Monday-Thursday 10am-noon, 100 Lewis Office Hours: 790 Barrows Hall, Monday-Tuesday, 1-2; Wednesday-Thursday 9-10; or by appointment Email: jihanley@gmail.com Twitter: @jh_cal Course Website: https://bspace.berkeley.edu/ Graduate Student Instructor: Travis Johnston tmjohnst@berkeley.edu Course Texts 1) Morris Fiorina, Paul Peterson, Bertram Johnson, and William G. Mayer 2010. Americas New Democracy (Abbreviated as & below). Pearson. 6th edition. This is quick, clear, and inexpensive. Reading it will allow you to follow more closely whats going on in lecture, and to understand the other readings. 2) Robert Dahl. How Democratic is the American Constitution? 2002. There are other readings, all of which will be available through bspace. Readings in The Americas New Democracy (&) should be done before the applicable lecture. Whether you do the other readings before or after lecture is up to you. All readings mentioned in lecture are fair game for examinations. Validation of Course Course assignments will be weighted as follows. Reading quizzes Two short memos Final 1/3 1/3 1/3

Special provisions: (1) Your lowest reading quiz grade will be dropped. (2) However, should the lowest quiz grade be higher than your final exam grade, it will replace one-fourth of the final (i.e., 1/12th of the total grade). (3) Participation in section may raise a students grade by onethird of a letter (such as from B- to B), at the discretion of the GSI or Instructor. It is important that you attend all lectures, as some material for exams will be discussed in lecture but not covered in the readings. You are responsible for all material in assigned readings and discussed in class. The course also requires you to attend an assigned discussion section once a week. Quizzes will take place during section. Makeup quizzes will be given only for documented absences.

The memos will be due on July 31 and August 7. Incomplete grades, changes in exam dates, and extensions of written assignments will be approved only by the instructor, and only upon evidence of extenuating circumstances. Students with DSP accommodations should contact me immediately so that we may make the proper arrangements. Our deadline for making arrangements with DSP for proctoring is two weeks before the final. Academic dishonesty will result in a failing grade for the course. Academic dishonesty is defined as cheating, plagiarism, unauthorized collaboration, falsifying academic records, and any other act designed to avoid participating honestly in the learning process. Academic dishonesty also includes, but is not limited to, providing false or misleading information to receive a postponement or extension on a test or assignment, or the submission of essentially the same written assignment for two different courses without prior permission of faculty members. Schedule of Material Part I. Introduction and the Constitution In recent years, the meaning of the Constitution has taken on increased relevance in political debates. We will study the problems which the Constitution was created to address, the struggles to reach agreement and achieve ratification, obvious and lurking defects in the document, and its legacy today. Monday, July 8 Introduction Logistics, what is politics and what we hope to gain by studying it, brief introduction to game theory and collective action problems

Readings: &, Chapter 1 Aristotle, Politics, Selections from Book I Robert Dahl, What is Politics 7/9-10 Early America and the Constitution How did our system of government come into being? We will look at the principal debates from the Constitutional convention and the explanations made in The Federalist; and we will look at what the Framers missed. Readings: &, Chapter 2 &, Federalist 10 &51 (James Madison) the language in these will take some time to digest. Robert Dahl, How Democratic is the American Constitution? (Chapter 2: What the Framers Couldnt Know) Adam Liptak. Smaller States Find Outsize Clout Growing in Senate, New York

Times, March 11, 2013. 7/11 Federalism does limited government mean one with narrow powers, strictly enumerated; or with specific limits on broad powers? How has the operation of federalism changed over time? &, Chapter 3 Wickard v. Filburn Gonzales v. Raich Martha Derthick. 2007. Where Federalism Didnt Fail. Public Administration Review. pp 36-47. Part II. Government Institutions. Many people assume that a course in American politics will involve mostly learning about the three branches. These are definitely very important, but virtually impossible to understand without reference to other aspects of American politics. Study of the branches is also a prelude to learning about influences on government, and how well government performs. 7/15-16 Congress (Article I) Introduction to the legislative branch, and how it has changed over time. The mechanics of legislating, starting with how a bill becomes a law. Who ends up in Congress, and what motivates them.

&, Chapter 10 Jeffrey Toobin, Barneys Great Adventure, The New Yorker, January 12, 2009. Ryan Lizza, Getting to Maybe: Inside the Gang of Eights immigration deal, The New Yorker. June 24, 2013. Military to Continue Sports Advertising. Associated Press, July 18, 2012. Kathryn Pearson and Eric Schickler. The Transition to Democratic Leadership in a Polarized House Congress Reconsidered, 9th ed. 7/17-18 Political Parties Parties are important for linking elected officials and the public, organizing activity in the legislature, and structuring competition among aspiring politicians. The Founders triedand failedto prevent them. Here, well look at the emergence of American political parties and their importance to Presidential nominations.

&, Chapter 9, but only pp. 203-217 Ryan Lizza, The House of Pain, The New Yorker, March 4, 2013. Dahl, How Democratic is the American Constitution?, Chapter 5. 7/22-3 President and the Presidential Branch (Article II) emergence of the President as a national leader despite limited institutional power; advisors and Cabinet as policy-makers Dahl, Chapter 4: Electing the President &, Chapter 11

Robert Caro, The Johnsons in Johnson City from Passage to Power (The Years of Lyndon Johnson, 2012) Richard J. Ellis, Evaluating Presidents 7/24 Bureaucracy growth of the executive branch over time; expertise, institutional loyalty and problems for democratic accountability; Congresss attempts to re-gain influence. &, Chapter 12 James Q Wilson. 1975. The Rise of the Bureaucratic State. Paul Krugman, The Intimidated Fed, New York Times, April 28, 2011. 7/25&7/29 Judiciary (Article III) the least dangerous branch is today the most respected branch of government. Introduction to the federal court system and the Supreme Court; the genius of Marbury v. Madison; the Courts struggles with legitimacy in the 19th and 20th centuries.

&, Chapter 13, but only pp. 328-352 (you can read about state courts if you want) Marbury v. Madison Antonin Scalia, Constitutional Interpretation the Old Fashioned Way. March 14, 2005. Adam Liptak. Shadow of Roe v. Wade Looms Over Ruling on Gay Marriage New York Times, March 24, 2013. Part III. Influencing Institutions. Just as we want to uncover patterns and rules for how the governmental institutions operate, it benefits us tremendously to understand the forces acting on government. 7/30-31 Public Opinion In a republic, public opinion plays a critical role in what governmental institutions do. We will look at how public opinion is measured, and what it is like. Memo #1 Due &, Chapter 5 Louis Menand, The Unpolitical Animal: How Political Science Understands Voters, The New Yorker, August 30, 2004. David W. Moore. The Opinion Makers, pp. 102-118 Political Culture and National Identity We will look beyond ordinary public opinion towards the hypothesized existence of a set of distinctly American values; speculate on how particular characteristics of the American people influence electoral behavior, policy choices, and institutions; and assess whether this culture is in the midst of challenge or change.

August 1

&, Chapter 4 Alexis de Tocqueville, Seymour Martin Lipset, excerpts in Andreas Hess, ed.,

American Social and Political Thought: A Reader, pp. 33-44. Jack Citrin et al. 2007. Testing Huntington: Is Hispanic Immigration a Threat to American Identity? Perspectives on Politics. 8/5-6 Campaigns and Elections At first glance, political campaigns appear to respond very effectively to popular demands. However, specific choices of electoral institutionsin the US, plurality voting, primary elections, and private financing of campaignsshape the political landscape. (Mondays class will consist of the documentary Housequake) &, Chapter 8 Jim Rutenberg and Nicholas Confessore. A Wealthy Backer Likes the Odds on Santorum. New York Times, February 8, 2012. David Weigel, Meet the Hip Geeks Who Beat Mitt Romney, Slate, December 3, 2012. 8/7 Interest Groups (Associations, lobbies, unions, and PACs) the seamier side of political organizations, the special interests. We will talk about how the U.S. political system facilitates interest group activity, theories about why groups form, and the history of campaign financing. Memo #2 Due &, Chapter 9, pp. 218-231 Dahl, How Democratic is the American Constitution?, Chapter 5. Robert D. Putnam. 1996. The Strange Disappearance of Civic America Policy pp. 3-15. Brody Mullins and Russell Gold, Under Attack, Big Oil Finds Reserves of Clout Running Low, Wall Street Journal, May 24, 2006. The Media Political actors frequently complain about media bias, but what basis is there to believe that journalists influence what people think? What drives changes in how we receive our news?

8/8

&, Chapter 6 John Zaller, Monica Lewinskys Contribution to Political Science, PS: Political Science and Politics, June 1998, pp. 182-189. Rick Edmonds et al. Newspapers: Stabilizing, but Still Threatened http://stateofthemedia.org/2013/newspapers-stabilizing-but-still-threatened/ May 7, 2013. Part IV. Policy. Finally, we put together the pieces together in a few examples. What is the character of American politics and government? What changes might we consider? 8/12 Civil Rights How does a democratic republic confront its own prejudices and end its mistreatment of others? We will reflect on how the Founding generations deep ambivalence on human rights became embedded in the Constitution. We will examine the muddle of the First Reconstruction, the rise of state-sanctioned segregation, and multiple factors behind the

success of the Civil Rights Movement. &, Chapter 15 Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas Celia McGee, Recalling Green Book, Guide for Black Travelers, NYT, August 22, 2010 Nate Silver, Gay Marriage Opponents Now in Minority, NYT, April 20, 2011 8/13 Public Policy and Current Challenges Who wants what? Are they likely to get it? When? How? Where do you fit into the picture? &, Chapter 16 Report of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform http://www.fiscalcommission.gov/sites/fiscalcommission.gov/files/docum ents/TheMomentofTruth12_1_2010.pdf Gary S. Becker et al., Time for a Budget Game-Changer, WSJ, April 4, 2011 http://media.hoover.org/sites/default/files/documents/Time-for-BudgetGame-Changer_WSJ-4-4-11.pdf Paul Krugman, The Austerity Delusion, NYT, March 24, 2011. Dahl, How Democratic is the American Constitution? Chapter 7. Annie Lowrey, Do Millennials Stand a Chance in the Real World?, New York Times, March 26, 2013. 8/14 8/15 Conclusion & Review Final Exam, in lecture