Politics, Power, and GovernmentAn Economy of Influence

What is Politics?• Politics: the process of who gets what,

when, and how (Harold Lasswell)– the economics of interaction and conflict

resolution … distribution of resources (tangible and human) through the currency of influence

– desire to obtain wealth, prestige, and security

Power• What is power? What makes one powerful?

In what ways can one be powerful?– The ability to get someone to do something that

they otherwise would not do– May be derived by position, prestige, coercion– Authority: power recognized to be accepted as

binding (legally, morally, institutionally)

What is Government• A political institution that:

1.) Makes rules determining who gets society’s valuable resources 2.) Regulate the use of legal force

• Basic Functions1. Maintain Order2. Protect/Defend citizens3. Provide services4. Control economy

• Two Questions:1. Who governs?2. To what Ends?

Why is government political?• Need to find acceptable solutions to political conflict:

disputes over society’s valued resources between both individuals as well as interest groups

• Must set rules, create institutions, and execute policies (through force if necessary)

• Inevitably certain groups benefit from government actions while others suffer because of them

Democracy• Political power is vested in the people

“The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter”

Democracy in Action

» Direct democracy: direct participation by the citizens in all government actions

» Democratic republic: based on popular sovereignty, citizens elect representatives to create and execute government policy

» Representative Democracy: similar to republican government, but may share sovereignty with a monarch or despot

Principles of Democracy

» Popular sovereignty: people entrusted with the ultimate power over government

» Limited Government: powers of government bound by institutional checks

» Universal Suffrage: Free elections, right of all adults to vote

» Majority rule, Minority rights: rule of law based on majority decisions, protection

» Competing political parties: acceptance of oppositional and peripheral ideologies

Constitution vs. Constitutional Gov’t

Constitution:• Identifies basic principles of government• Establishes basic structure, powers, and duties

of government • Supreme law

Constitutional government:• constitution has the authority to place limits on

government– “Limited Government”– Rule of law

How Is Political Power Distributed?

• Majoritarian politics – elected officials are the delegates of the people, acting as the people

• Political elite – 4 descriptions– elites reflect a dominant social class– a group of business, military, labor union, and

elected officials control all decisions– appointed bureaucrats run everything– representatives of a large number of interest groups

are in charge

How Is Political Power Distributed?• Class view–the government is

dominated by capitalists• Power elite view–the

government is dominated by a few top leaders, most of whom are outside of government

• Bureaucratic view–the government is dominated by appointed officials

• Pluralist view–the belief that competition among all affected interests shapes public policy

What Explains Political Change?

• Government and its policies are shaped by – Economic interests– Powerful elites– Entrenched bureaucrats– Competing pressure groups– Morally impassioned individuals

• The dominant political problem of the time shapes the nature of day-to-day political conflict through– Deep-seated beliefs– Major economic

developments– Widely shared (or

competing) opinions

The Nature of Politics

• Judgments about institutions and interests can be made only after one has seen how they behave on a variety of important issues or potential issues, such as– economic policy– the regulation of business– social welfare– civil rights and liberties– foreign and military affairs