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POLS 21 The American Political System. Introductory Remarks. What do these things have in common?. Root canals NFL replacement refs Head lice Nickelback Colonoscopies Traffic jams Cockroaches Donald Trump France Genghis Khan Used-car salesmen Brussels sprouts. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
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POLS 21 The American Political System
Introductory Remarks
What do these things have in common?• Root canals• NFL replacement refs• Head lice• Nickelback• Colonoscopies• Traffic jams• Cockroaches• Donald Trump• France• Genghis Khan• Used-car salesmen• Brussels sprouts
All of these things are more popular than CONGRESS
At least Congress remains more popular
than…
North Korea
The Kardashians
Schoolyard bullies
Meth labs
Gonorrhea
Word Cloud constructed from the responses people gave to a Pew Research Center poll in March 2010:
“One word that best describes your impression of Congress"
Presidential Job Approval, 2001-2008
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Percent responding "approve"
Presidential Job Approval, 2009-2013
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Percent responding "approve"
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
Confidence in American Institutions, 2012
Source: CNN/USA Today/ Gallup poll, June 7-10, 2012.
"I am going to read you a list of institutions in American society. Please tell me how much confidence you, yourself, have in each one--a great deal, quite a lot, some, or very little?"
Confidence in government institutions
is comparatively low.
The militarySmall business
The policeThe church
Medical systemThe presidency
The Supreme CourtPublic schools
Criminal just ice Newspapers
Television newsOrganized labor
BanksBig business
HMOsCongress
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
Percent responding "great deal" or "quite a lot"
1964
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ost 9
/11
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Percent responding "most of the time" or "j ust about always"
Trust in the Federal Government, 1964-2011"People have different ideas about the government in Washington. These ideas don't refer to
Democrats or Republicans in particular, but just to government in general. We want to see how you feel about these ideas. How much of the time do you think you can trust the government in Washington to do what is right—just about always, most of the time, or only some of the time?"
What message are these political cartoons trying to convey?
“Politics is corrupt.”
What message are these political cartoons trying to convey?
“Politicians lie.”
What message are these political cartoons trying to convey?
“The system is rigged.”
What message are these political cartoons trying to convey?
“Money always wins.”
What message are these political cartoons trying to convey?
“Why should we care?”
What message are these political cartoons trying to convey?
“Our votes don’t matter.”
What message are these political cartoons trying to convey?
“Democracy is broken.”
Evaluating Government
How well does the American system of government work? What are the most appropriate indicators?What do citizens really want from government? Are those expectations reasonable?