American Politics Today - Essentials (3rd Ed)

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a criminal case it often involves an
admission of guilt in return for a reduced
charge or sentence.
pluralism The idea that having a variety of
parties and interests within a government
will strengthen the system, ensuring that
no group possesses total control.
plurality voting A voting system in which
the candidate who receives the most votes
within a geographic area wins the election,
regardless of whether that candidate wins
a majority (more than half ) of the votes.
pocket veto The automatic death of a bill
passed by the House and Senate when the
president fails to sign the bill in the last
ten days of a legislative session.
police patrol oversight A method of
oversight in which members of Congress
constantly monitor the bureaucracy to
make sure that laws are implemented
correctly.
policy agenda The set of desired policies
that political leaders view as their top
priorities.
policy mood The level of public support
for expanding the government’s role
in society; whether the public wants
government action on a specifi c issue.
political action committee (PAC) An
interest group or a division of an interest
group that can raise money to contribute
to campaigns or to spend on ads in
support of candidates. The amount a
PAC can receive from each of its donors
and the amount it can spend on federal
electioneering are strictly limited.
political appointees People selected by an
elected leader, such as the president, to
hold a government position.
political machine An unoffi cial patronage
system within a political party that seeks
to gain political power and government
contracts, jobs, and other benefi ts for
party leaders, workers, and supporters.
political socialization The process by
which an individual’s political opinions
are shaped by other people and the
surrounding culture.
politico A member of Congress who acts as
a delegate on issues that constituents care
about (such as immigration reform) and as
a trustee on more complex or less salient
issues (some foreign policy or regulatory
matters).
politics The process that determines what
government does.
population The group of people that a
researcher or pollster wants to study, such as
evangelicals, senior citizens, or Americans.
pork barrel Legislative appropriations that
benefi t specifi c constituents, created with
the aim of helping local representatives
win re-election.

power of the purse The constitutional

power of Congress to raise and spend

money. Congress can use this as a negative

or checking power over the other branches

by freezing or cutting their funding.

precedent A legal norm established in court

cases that is then applied to future cases

dealing with the same legal questions.

presidential approval rating The

percentage of Americans who feel that the

president is doing a good job in offi ce.

president pro tempore A largely symbolic

position usually held by the most senior

member of the majority party in the

Senate.

primary A ballot vote in which citizens

select a party’s nominee for the general

election.

prime time Evening hours when television

viewership is at its highest and networks

often schedule news programs.

priming The infl uence on the public’s

general impressions caused by positive or

negative coverage of a candidate or issue.

principal–agent game The interaction

between a principal (such as the president

or Congress), who needs something done,

and an agent (such as a bureaucrat), who is

responsible for carrying out the principal’s

orders.

prior restraint A limit on freedom of the

press that allows the government to

prohibit the media from publishing certain

materials.

privacy rights Liberties protected by

several amendments in the Bill of Rights

that shield certain personal aspects

of citizens’ lives from governmental

interference, such as the Fourth

Amendment’s protection against

unreasonable searches and seizures.

privatization The process of transferring

the management of a government program

(like Social Security) from the public

sector to the private sector.

privileges and immunities clause Part of

Article IV of the Constitution requiring

that states must treat nonstate residents

within their borders as they would treat

their own residents. This was meant to

promote commerce and travel between

states.

problem of control A diffi culty faced by

elected offi cials in ensuring that when

bureaucrats implement policies, they follow

these offi cials’ intentions but still have

enough discretion to use their expertise.

progressive Taxes that require upper-

income people to pay a higher tax rate

than lower-income people, such as income

taxes.

proportional allocation During the

presidential primaries, the practice of

determining the number of convention

delegates allotted to each candidate based

on the percentage of the popular vote

cast for each candidate. All Democratic

primaries and caucuses use this system, as

do some states’ Republican primaries and

caucuses.

protectionism The idea under which

some people have tried to rationalize

discriminatory policies by claiming

that some groups, like women or African

Americans, should be denied certain

rights for their own safety or well-being.

public goods Services or actions (such as

protecting the environment) that, once

provided to one person, become available

to everyone. Government is typically

needed to provide public goods because

they will be underproduced by the free

market.

public opinion Citizens’ views on politics

and government actions.

public policy A law, rule, statute, or edict

that expresses the government’s goals and

provides for rewards and punishments to

promote their attainment.

purposive benefi ts Satisfaction derived

from the experience of working toward a

desired policy goal, even if the goal is not

achieved.

rational basis test The use of evidence to

suggest that diff erences in the behavior

of two groups can rationalize unequal

treatment of these groups.

realignment A change in the size or

composition of the party coalitions or in

the nature of the issues that divide the

parties. Realignments typically occur

within an election cycle or two, but they

can also occur gradually over the course of

a decade or longer.

realism The idea that a country’s foreign

policy decisions are motivated by self-

interest and the goal of gaining more power.

recess appointment Selection by the

president of a person to be an ambassador or

the head of a department while the Senate

is not in session, thereby bypassing Senate

approval. Unless approved by a subsequent

Senate vote, recess appointees serve only to

the end of the congressional term.

redistributive tax policies Policies,

generally favored by Democratic

politicians, that use taxation to attempt to

create greater social equality (i.e., higher

taxation of the rich to provide programs

for the poor).

redistricting Redrawing the geographic

boundaries of legislative districts.

This happens every ten years to ensure

that districts remain roughly equal in

population.

GLOSSARY