美国社会与文化课程第七章教学PPTChapter 7.Government and Politics in the United States.pptVIP

Major Organized Interest Groups American Politics and Interest Group Government Contents Political principle I Government structure II Political participation: 3.1 Election 3.2 Interest groups III 4 I. Political principle Individual freedom as one of the most important values for Americans Suspicion of strong government Thomas Paine: “Government even in its best state is but a necessary evil; in its worse state, an intolerable one.” Separation of powers II. Government structureA system of checks and balances 2.1 Separation of powers Vertical: Between the national government and states—federalism Horizontal: Among different government branches, and even within the branch The legislative branch The executive branch The judicial branch 2.2 Growth of big government Traditional partisan difference: Let the free enterprise system regulate itself in the marketplace. Use the government to regulate business, protect consumers and workers, and also to solve social problems. The Great Depression of the 1930s and “New Deal” under FDR Lyndon Johnson and the “Great Society” A danger to individual freedom? III. Political participation Election Interest group politics 3.1 A Most Election-Conscious Nation Presidential elections: every 4 years, nationwide Congressional elections: every 2 years 1/3 Senators: statewide All Representatives: in each constituency Elections for other offices, like in local school boards: every year Job description Representatives Senators President Age 25 30 35 US citizen 7 years 9 years Natural born, 14 years Residence state where he was elected state where he was elected No restriction Term 2-year 6-year 4-year Number of terms No restriction No restriction 2 Representation On the basis of population, at least one for each state 2 for each state Whole country Total number 435 100 1 * Presidential Election and Electoral College In the Electoral College, each state has a number of votes equal to the