Ch.10 Sec.2 Answers

1)   What is a lobbyist?  What do they do?

       i. A lobbyist is a representative from an interest group

           a. They try to influence government policy by making direct contact with lawmakers or other government leaders 

  

2)   What are some potential dilemmas involved with lobbyists?

       i. How accurate the information is

            a. Lobbyist might exaggerate information on their issue

      ii. whether or not lobbyist partner with politicians 

     iii. A better lobbyist might get more attention even if their topic isn't as pressing as another 

    

3)   Identify the kinds of people who become lobbyists.

       i. Members of congress 

      ii. Lawyers

     iii. Public relations experts

4)   Describe three methods lobbyist use to influence lawmakers.

       i. Drafting Bills 

          a. Organized interest groups will have research staff help members of congress draft proposed laws

      ii. Providing Election Support 

          a. Interest groups can promise campaign support or threaten withhold support depending on whether or not they support their policies 

     iii. Taking Court Action 

          a. Some interest groups go to court to meet their polices goals

                                                 

5)   Explain why Congress asks lobbyists to testify at hearings and to hear draft legislation.

       i. The lobbyists are used as representatives for these different groups or companies and help give more information on certain topics to help congress make a decision 

      ii. Because many interest groups helped create the drafts they could give input

 

6)   How do interest groups win public support?

       i. Media Campaigns 

      ii. writing letters to government officials

 

7)   Why is the Federal Regulation of Lobbying Act ineffective in controlling lobbying at the national level?

        i. Lobbyists only have to report money spent in direct contact with legislators

       ii. Only people or organizations whose principal purpose is to influence legislation needs to register 

      iii. Congress has not created an agency to enforce the lobbying law or to check the reports lobbyists file

8)   Do you believe interest groups have too much influence on the national government?  Why? 

         i. I do not think that interest groups have too much power in the government. Interest groups are just groups of people that think similarly, so they come together to make it easier to voice their opinions.  

Ch.10 Sec.1 Answers

 1)   Why was James Madison against special interest groups?

       i. James Madison was against special interest groups because he believes that these factions were "adverse to the rights of other citizens

           a. he thought that the Republican form of government was a good enough safe guard  

 

 2)   What is the difference between special interest groups and political parties?

        i. Interest group try to sway votes rather than actually having a candidate run

       ii. Interest groups only focus on a few issues or specific problems and don't want anyone with a different point of view. where as political parties accept almost everyone and work in many issues and problems

      iii. Interest groups are are organized on common values rather then geographical location

  3)   List three reasons why citizens join special interest groups?

        i. A group can promote an individuals economic self interests

       ii. A group ac center around an individual's beliefs, values, or attitudes

      iii. Some citizens join groups for nonpolitical reasons

            a. name

            b. whose in the groups

  4)   Describe the ways that leaders of an interest group unite the membership of the group.

        i. They keep members informed with newsletters, mailings, and telephone calls

       ii. They act as speakers it their group to try to improve their image in the media

      iii. They plan groups strategies

     iiii. They raise money to run the organization

            a. They over see all financial decisions of the group 

 .

 5)   Why are interest groups more effective in influencing government officials than are individual citizens?

         i. They help get their voice heard because there is power in numbers

        ii. It is easy to represent a group of people with common interests rather than individuals 

 6)   Why would a professional association such as the American Bar Association, organized to influence licensing and training of lawyers, become a political interest group?

          i. It brings people with specific occupations together to try and influence laws made that would affect the standards of their profession

 

  7)    List four special interest groups and describe what their interests are.

          i. National Association of Manufacturers 

             a. (NAM) works to lower individual taxes and corporate taxes, limit government regulation of business, and raise tariffs, or taxes on imported goods 

         ii. Committee on Political Education

             a. Their major goals are fundraising, voter registration drives, and support for political candidates 

        iii. American Farm Bureau Federation 

             a. Speaks for for the larger, more successful farmers and is closely associated with the federal Department of Agriculture 

       iiii. Ralph Nader's Public Citizens, Inc. 

             a. Devotes itself to consumer and public safety issues affecting the general population

  8)   If you were to join a special interest group what would it be and why? 

          i. Alaska Conservation Voters 

             a. I would join the (ACV) because they believe in unifying the voices of Alaskan citizen so they can be better heard, as well as supporting candidates that will conserve Alaska's wilderness   

Ch.9 Sec.4 Answers

1) What are three suffrage requirements?
 You need to be a citizen of the U.S., have residency of that state, and registered with that state.

2) Why do states have a residency requirement?
 So that you have time to become informed on state issues before you can take part in elections.

3) What is the profile of a Regular Voter?
 They are citizens that believe that their vote helps put their voice out. Also people that are well off financially as well as being of middle age are more likely to vote regularly. 

4) What is the profile of a Nonvoter?
 They are citizens that believe that it doesn't matter who becomes president because they think that nothing will change or will just get worse.

5) Define Initiative, proposition, referendum, and recall.
Initiative in an election is the procedure where voters propose a new state constitutional amendment or law.
Proposition is what a new law or amendment is called when it is being proposed.
A referendum is the way that voting citizens can approve or disapprove measures that the state legislature has passed.
Recall is the process by which voters can remove incompetent or untrustworthy elected officials

6) Discuss why some American citizens do not vote during elections.
Many citizens do not vote at all because the feel that in the long run that it does not matter. These citizens know that even if the the person they are voting for does get the popular vote it doesn't mean that the electoral vote isn't going to someone else. Also some people think that is doesn't matter who wins they are still going to be doing just about the same thing and that the elections just give the illusion of change.     

Ch.9 Sec.2 Answers

1) What the four major factors that influence voters decisions?
        Voter usually choose their candidate by their personal background of the voters, loyalty to political parties, issues in election campaigns, and the candidate's image.

2) Why do experts predict that campaign issues and the candidates' images may increasingly influence voters?
         Because  many voters are becoming more and more independent, so belonging to certain political parties will not win the candidate votes they will have to present the issues they plan to fix and what the hope to accomplish.  

Ch.9 Sec.1 Answers

1) Explain how the electoral system influences presidential campaigns.
       The electoral system can be swayed any way the electoral college wants, this means that they can vote for whom ever, even if it isn't what the majority of citizens in that state wanted.

2) Discuss how modern campaigns are funded.
      Modern campaigns can be funded by large corporations, which is usually shady. They can also be funded by donations from citizens as well as get funding from the federal government if they have 5% of the popular vote.  

3) What is the impact of mass media on elections?
       Media plays a huge role in elections, most Americans get the majority of their news from the television. This can be anything from news channels, commercials, or talk shows; many people don't even do their own research before making a decision and only uses the television as a source of information.   

The Green Party

          The Green Party supports the idea that we should have an environmentally conscience nation, that we should resolve our issues peacefully and without force, and they don’t believe in accepting donations from corporations that will try to influence their opinions. This party was created because the two major parties don’t support their ideals.

          I do believe that a two party system is flawed. I think that there should be many parties of equal power. This could eliminate issues such as the government shutdown where the two parties didn’t agree on an issue. With more government parties, there would be more variation of beliefs and less division. We can fix this by supporting third party groups that we agree with. Perhaps the third party groups could gain more support and more power and the two major parties would become less dominant. Over time the power would be distributed among these parties and there would be more variety in the government.

Drone Strikes: Right or Wrong?

          In my opinion the use of drones is a flawed program with potential to protect United States citizens. On one hand, military use is important to help keep innocent people from being killed. On the other hand, there was a case where the people controlling the drone mistook a truck of twenty-seven civilians for hostile enemies. There are other flaws on the military side; there is currently no efficient way to know how many people you’ve killed, if you’ve killed any civilians, or if you even got the target. 
          In relation to humanitarian law, the U.S. has found what I think is a loophole; they can take out a target without sending an entire squad of fighter jets to do the same job as one drone. Although I don’t agree with some of the uses and recognize its flaws, I believe that drones have a lot of potential and are not going anywhere.

Chapter 8 Review pg. 253

Reviewing Facts and Ideas
   1. Federalists & Republican Democrats, Republicans & Democrats
   2. Single-issue party such as the Liberty party who were strongly antislavery, ideological party like the Communist party, and splinter parties like Roosevelt's Bull Moose party. 
   3. Political parties are necessary because presidential candidates are chosen by these parties. They also help to give more than one point of view on an issue or topic, to keep from letting one group control the government.  
   4. A two major political party system is used used to present different view points, not just one as well as making it "easier" to come to a decision on an issue without having so many groups and offer candidates.
   5. In an open primary citizens can vote for any candidate they want regardless of whether or not they are registered for either party. In a closed primary you may only vote for a candidate from your registered party, these are based on state.
   6.There are four methods which are caucuses, nominating conventions, primary election, and petition. 


Applying Themes
   1. Parties select government officials, and the multi-party system allows diversity and equal representation for various groups of citizens.
   2. third parties have useful ideas that are usually use by the major parties, if people actually like them. also the can sometimes sway the vote for presidential candidates by taking votes away from others.
   3. the majority of the U.S. have dedicated themselves to either two parties and are not open to change. as well as the laws which makes it difficult to be able to nominate a presidential candidate, by requiring them to have many signature before putting them on the ballot.
   4. Citizens can show their support by voting in the parties favor or to donate money to help in their campaigns.