Defining Interest Groups and Political Parties What is an Interest Group? an organized group of individuals who share common goals or objectives who attempt to influence policymakers in all three branches of government, and at all levels What is a political party?
Why was Congress Created? founders feared tyrannical rulers founders also had experienced the weakness of the congress under the Articles of Confederation bicameralism attempts to balance the power among large and small states
Who Is Eligible to Run for office there are few eligibility requirements to run for most U.S. offices President must be a natural born citizen must be 35 years old must be a resident of the country for 14 years before inauguration Vice President must be a natural born citizen must be 35 years old
Defining Public Opinion Public Opinion-the- aggregate of individual attitudes or beliefs shared by some portion of the adult population -Consensus opinions-when there is general agreement among the citizenry on an issue - Divisive opinionswhen- public opinion is polarized between two quite different positions
Civil Liberties versus civil Rights civil liberties involve restraining the government's action against individuals civil rights are rights all individuals share as provided for in the 14th amendment, which guarantees equal protection under the law
The Policy Making Process agenda building --identifying a problem and getting it on the agenda policy formulation -the debate that occurs between government officials, and between the public in the media, and in campaigns
The Nature of Bureaucracy a large organization that is structured hierarchically to carry out specific functions private bureaucracies exist within organizations like corporations has a single set of leaders public bureaucracies exist within organizations like
What is politics? The struggle or process that people engage in to decide which members of society get certain benefits or privileges and which members of society are excluded from benefits or privileges
