Summary of Jessamyn Conrad & Martin Garbus's What You Should Know About Politics . . . But Don't, Fourth Edition

Everest Media

Description

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book.
Sample Book Insights:
#1 The American voting system is made up of both national and state elections, and there is a lot of variability between them. The voter registration process is thought to disproportionately affect minority, disadvantaged, and younger voters.
#2 Every election is influenced by the 2000 presidential race between Republican Texas governor George W. Bush and Democratic vice president Albert Al Gore. The Electoral College, which elects the president and vice president, is one of America’s least-loved and least understood institutions.
#3 The Electoral College was created by the founding fathers as a last-ditch compromise on how to choose the president, one of the most hotly debated questions faced by the Constitutional Congress in 1787. Some wanted Congress to choose the president, thinking that they would be best informed and would choose the most qualified candidate, while others argued for direct election by the citizens as a more democratic and egalitarian method.
#4 The Supreme Court’s decision in Bush v. Gore halted the recount, deeming it unconstitutional. The Court stated that there was not enough time to come up with a new result. The real nail in the coffin was the Court’s conclusion that there wasn’t enough time to determine whether or not votes were valid.

Sujets

• Politique
• Political opportunity
• Politics Magazine

Informations

• Publié par: Everest Media LLC
• Date de parution: 07 avril 2022
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781669381532
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

Insights on Jessamyn Conrad & Martin Garbus's What You Should Know About Politics... But Don't, Fourth Edition
Contents Insights from Chapter 1 Insights from Chapter 2 Insights from Chapter 3 Insights from Chapter 4 Insights from Chapter 5 Insights from Chapter 6 Insights from Chapter 7 Insights from Chapter 8 Insights from Chapter 9 Insights from Chapter 10 Insights from Chapter 11 Insights from Chapter 12 Insights from Chapter 13
Insights from Chapter 1

#1

The American voting system is made up of both national and state elections, and there is a lot of variability between them. The voter registration process is thought to disproportionately affect minority, disadvantaged, and younger voters.

#2

Every election is influenced by the 2000 presidential race between Republican Texas governor George W. Bush and Democratic vice president Albert Al Gore. The Electoral College, which elects the president and vice president, is one of America’s least-loved and least understood institutions.

#3

The Electoral College was created by the founding fathers as a last-ditch compromise on how to choose the president, one of the most hotly debated questions faced by the Constitutional Congress in 1787. Some wanted Congress to choose the president, thinking that they would be best informed and would choose the most qualified candidate, while others argued for direct election by the citizens as a more democratic and egalitarian method.

#4

The Supreme Court’s decision in Bush v. Gore halted the recount, deeming it unconstitutional. The Court stated that there was not enough time to come up with a new result. The real nail in the coffin was the Court’s conclusion that there wasn’t enough time to determine whether or not votes were valid.

#5

After the 2000 election, in which George W. Bush became president, Congress passed the Help America Vote Act, or HAVA, which helped precincts replace punch-card voting systems and established voting standards.

#6

Voter suppression and intimidation are two different things. With voter suppression, misinformation is spread about how elections work, and with intimidation, people are physically challenged as they try to vote.

#7

The Voting Rights Act of 1965, passed under Lyndon B. Johnson’s administration, extended the franchise to African Americans in the South. However, no blanket right to vote is guaranteed by the Constitution.

#8

The history of electoral controversy is long and rife with examples of both parties being accused of wrongdoing. While Republicans are more commonly accused of voting irregularities, Democrats have been more likely to allege voter fraud and support tighter restrictions on voting.

#9

Vote dilution and vote packing are two ways that districts can be packed. Vote dilution means that a representative can ignore significant numbers of constituents from the opposing party.

#10

There are many organizations that advocate for a different kind of voting or districting that would be more democratic and fair. One group, Range Voting, designed a system that draws districts using a mathematical formula and the state’s physical boundaries.

#11

The way we cast our votes is extremely important for free and fair elections, and it varies from state to state. While punch cards leave a paper trail, they can be destroyed or hidden by someone trying to commit voter fraud. Direct recording machines, or DREs, rely on accurate recording and reporting by election staff.

#12

The use of DREs has been controversial, and some argue that they are susceptible to fraud. Others argue that DREs are just as functional as other methods, and that they are far less prone to fraud than paper-based systems.

#13

The history of campaign finance reform in the United States is long and controversial. In 1971, the Supreme Court ruled that any restriction on a candidate’s spending was a violation of First Amendment rights.

#14

After McCain-Feingold, fundraising became more difficult. It made bundlers, who can get a lot of other people to donate, more important. In 2005, Republican Tom DeLay had to resign as House majority leader when he was indicted on allegations of campaign finance misconduct.

#15

Reformers have argued that McCain-Feingold has been a mixed blessing, as it has led to an increase in small-dollar donations. However, 527s - another result of the law - have been criticized for being too opaque.

#16

The process of choosing a presidential candidate is different in the two major parties. At the Democratic National Convention, voters choose delegates who go on to the county convention, where they choose delegates for the state convention, and finally, the national convention.

#17

Superdelegates are party insiders who can swing the nomination to either candidate. They are more likely to pick a candidate with broad appeal, but they may also judge a candidate’s coattails ability to lift up other party candidates to victory.

#18

There are differences between the Democratic and Republican procedures, as well as between the various types of primaries and caucuses. Primaries are run by each party, administered on a state level, and overseen by state governments.

#19

New Hampshire, unlike Iowa, has a plurality of independent voters, which makes it important as a national indicator. New Hampshire is a libertarian state, and its voters have historically chosen outsider candidates.

#20

The Democratic National Committee decided to boycott Florida and Michigan’s 2008 primaries as a form of retribution for the states’ decisions to move their primaries forward, which the DNC believed went against the party’s best interests.

#21

The most basic and decisive reform would be to abolish the Electoral College altogether and move to a direct popular vote. This would require a constitutional amendment, which demands ratification by three-fourths of the states.

#22

One plan that has begun to receive support is the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, which would effectively shift the election of the president to the popular vote through the Electoral College and by the authority of the states.
Insights from Chapter 2

#1

The government’s goal is to grow the economy at a moderate pace in order to prevent recessions and depressions. Fiscal policy is controlled by both Congress and the president.

#2

The American economy is a complex system that’s constantly changing. The government manages it to keep it from getting too hot or too cold, and to keep it humming along at moderate warmth.

#3

The American economy is inherently set against the Great Depression of 1930-39, which was caused by the stock market crash of 1929. Government borrowing and spending on World War I made it harder for the economy to recover.