Political Parties, the Media, and Elections

Political Parties, the Media, and Elections

26thAmendment (and traditional turnout levels among 18-21 year-olds)

Base Vote of each political party (role of Jews, African-Americans, White Southerners)

Congressional District Boundaries (When Drawn and By Whom)

Conventions (role of, types of people serving as delegates to)

Divided Government (as recent pattern, effects)

Election Laws (Bi-Lingual Requirements on Campaign Materials)

Electoral College (Effect on the Strategies of Presidential Candidates, Relationship w Two-Party System, What Happens if No Candidate Has Majority)

Media (day-to-day “horse race” campaign coverage, agenda-setting role of, concentration of media ownership)

Money in Politics (which types of races receive federal funding,Buckley v. Valeocase, how government regulates campaign finances)

"Motor Voter"

Nominating Process for President (change since late-1960’s, change from conventions to direct primaries, effect on cost, party control, # of candidates)

Participation in Politics (most common form of)

Party Identification / Party ID (and its relationship to voting behavior)

Plurality vs. Majority Elections

Political Action Committees / PAC’s (what they are, what they do, rise in # of PACs, esp. business PACs)

"Political Efficacy"

Political Parties (as “linkage institutions” promoting democracy, whether addressed in Constitution)

Political Socialization (what it means, role of parents)

Primary (open vs. closed, kinds of voters who participate vs. general elections)

Read Tables of Demographic and Voter data

Realignments and “Critical Elections”

Rise of the Independent Voter (“de-alignment”)

Structure of Political Parties (National, State and Local Levels)

Straight-Ticket vs. Split-Ticket Voting

Superdelegates

Turnout (what it is, United States vs. other nations, levels of it in primaries and general elections, groups that tend to have higher/lower turnout)

Vice-Presidential Selection Process (criteria used by presidential nominee)

The Founding and the Constitution, Federalism, Congress, the Presidency and the Executive Branch

10thAmendment (what it says, and reserved powers)

Amendment Process (how it works, how it reveals federal structure of U.S. Government)

Articles of Confederation (specific reasons why unsuccessful)

Attorney General (role of)

Block Grants (and state flexibility with, difference between them and Categorical Grants)

Budget Impoundment and Control Act

Bureaucracies and Bureaucratic Discretion

Cabinet (what it is, who serves, conflict between goals of president/agency)

Census

Checks and Balances (what they are, examples of)

Cloture and Filibuster

Commerce Clause (and how used to expand federal power, why often challenged)

Conference Committees (what they do)

Confirmation Process (as a check and balance, who does/doesn’t need confirmation)

Congress (specific constitutional powers of, when likely to defer to president, how communicate with constituents)

Congressional Committees (what House Rules Committee does, Jurisdiction of Ways and Means Committee in House, Why Committee System is more important in House than Senate, What a Standing Committee is, seniority system, role of committee chair)

Cooperative Federalism

Delegate vs. Trustee View of Representation

Devolution

Direct Democracy

Discharge Petition

Divided Government (definition, consequences)

Entitlements

Executive Agreements

Executive Orders (what they are, why used)

Federalism (defined)

Federalist #10 ( Madison ’s point about factions)

Federalists vs. Antifederalists (what they disagreed about)

Fiscal Federalism

Framers of the Constitution (beliefs about functions of government, intentions about speed of legislative process)

Franking Privilege

Gerrymandering (definition and impact)

Grants from Federal to State and Local Governments (how amount has changed over the years)

House vs. Senate (major differences between in responsibilities and rules, where revenue bills originate)

Impeachment (what it is, reasons for, how process works)

Incumbency (why so many congressional incumbents are re-elected, House vs. Senate statistics and reasons for differences)

Inherent Powers of the President

Legislative Veto (why unconstitutional according to Supreme Court inINS v. Chadhacase)

Line-Item Veto (what it is, why supporters support, constitutionality of)

McCulloch v. Marylandcase (significance of)

Necessary and Proper Clause (effect on size and scope of federal government)

Office of Management and Budget (what it does)

Oversight (what it is, tools used by Congress in, role of standing committees in conducting)

Pork Barrel

Presidential Powers (formal ones outlined in Constitution, what president can do w/o Congressional approval, informal powers and why influential, why presidential power has grown post-1945)

Redistricting (what it is, who does it, when)

Regulatory Agencies

Senatorial Courtesy

Shays Rebellion (historical significance of)

Single-Member Districts

Trust in Government (why it has declined / role of divided government in)

Unfunded Mandates (what they are, examples of - Americans with Disabilities Act)

Vetoes (when they’re likely to be upheld, when they’re likely to be overridden, how often overridden, pocket veto)

War Powers Act/Resolution

White House Office (as source of presidential staff)

White House Staff (what presidents primarily look for in, who is/is not on it)

Interest Groups, The Federal Judiciary, Civil Rights and Liberties

14thAmendment (due process and equal protection, as rebuttal to Dred Scott)

Amendment Process (as only practical check on Supreme Court decisions, as example of federal system)

Amicus Curiae Briefs (what they are, how used by interest groups)

Appellate Jurisdiction (as source of most of Supreme Court caseload)

Baker v. Carr (1962)

Bill of Rights

Robert Bork (1987 nomination to Supreme Court)

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

Caseload of Supreme Court (discretion over)

Civil Rights Act of 1964 (what it says, as implementation of 14thamendment)

Clear and Present Danger Test

Coalition-Building by Interest Groups

Criminal vs. Civil Cases (differences between, which courts hear them)

Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857)

Exclusionary Rule

Federal Courts (who creates them, their jurisdiction and # of judges on them, checks on powers of, no direct popular control over, different types)

Federal Judges (typical experience, role of past political experience in predicting judicial behavior of, how appointed and seated, why given life tenure)

First Amendment (what it says, rights protected by)

"Free Rider" Phenomenon

Freedom of Information Act

Freedom of Religion (Establishment Clause vs. Free Exercise Clause –Engel, Lemon, Oregon v. Smith, Reynolds v. U.S.)

Freedom of Speech (Americans’ attitude toward in theory and in practice, exceptions to, inclusion of free expression as well)

Gitlow v. New York

Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)

Incorporation Doctrine

Interest Groups (why on the increase, specificity of, why # has grown while parties have declined, on what areas of government they are most/least influential, influence in narrow vs. broad issue areas, as “connective” institutions with political parties)

Iron Triangles (definition)

Issue Networks

Judicial Activism vs. Judicial Restraint

Judicial Review

Lobbyists (areas of government they are most/least likely to affect/influence, as sources of information – and thus influence – for legislators)

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

Miranda v. Arizona (1966)

Original Intent Doctrine

Plea Bargaining (frequency of)

Plessy v. Ferguson

Pluralist Theory vs. Elite Theory

Political Action Committees (what they are, change in number of over recent years, rise in business PACs, primary function of)

Right to Privacy (what it is, why constitutionally controversial)

Roe v. Wade (1973)

Solicitor General (what he/she does, influence of)

Stare Decisis (definition, re: precedent)

New York Times v. Sullivan

24th Amendment

Voting Rights Act of 1965 (what it said, effects of)

“Wall of Separation”

Warren Court (important issues dealt with by)

Women’s Rights (Equal Pay Act of 1963, Education Amendments Act of 1972, Equal Rights Amendment)

Writ of Certiorari (what it is, how many justices needed to grant, how often granted)