Power Games in Washington 4219-RS289
The purpose of this class is to examine in some depth the process of policy making in Washington. We shall see public policy as a product of dynamic interplay of numerous actors (people and institutions) who compete for access and influence inside the beltway. In the process, we shall focus on a variety of "games": the agenda game, the media game, the coalition game. We will look at the roles played by elected and the unelected actors. In short, the course will try to explain how power flows, where it is located, how it manifests, and what forms it takes in modern day Washington.
Schedule of class topics) (NOT particular classes). At times we will do more than one topic in one class. We must make room for consultations on your research projects.
ONE. Introduction to the course
TWO. Theories of the policy process
Sabatier: 3-13
THREE. Power in the White House
Smith
FOUR. Political dynamics on the Capitol Hill
Smith
FIVE. The unelected: staff and aides
Smith; King: 59-92
SIX. Political parties as (un)disciplined actors
Davis: 119-139; 43-62 (Presidential-Congressional party interaction)
SEVEN. The media as establishment
Sparrow: 55-72
EIGHT. Interest group politics
Smith
Petracca: 130-150 (iron triangles); 201-220 (interest on the Hill); 221-241 (in the White House)
NINE. Powersharing
Warshaw: 228-233 (staff-cabinet relations); 198-227 (inside the Clinton White House)
TEN. Building coalitions
Thurber: 86-99 (presidential coalitions); 170-188 (Clinton as a coalition builder)
ELEVEN. Inside view of the legislative process
Redman: National Health Service Act; Elroy: Medical Leave Act
TWELVE. The Permanent campaign in Washington
Ornstein: 108-128 (Presidency in permanent campaign); 134-157 (Congress); 75-104 (money chase)
THIRTEEN. Gridlock and deadlock in Washington
Brady: 1-10 (theoretical foundations); Thurber: 1-7 (divided democracy)
FOURTEEN. Post-electoral politics
Ginberg: 1-36
Type of course
elective courses
Mode
Remote learning
Prerequisites (description)
Course coordinators
Learning outcomes
Educational purpose: upon completing the course students should become familiar with basic methodologies of analyses of written text and audiovisual materials and be able to apply these methodologies to a chosen area of American political culture. It is expected that they should also be able to recognize fundamental and secondary determinants of the behavior of various actors in American politics and, by applying a chosen methodology, be able to explain these phenomena
ABILITIES: collection and presentation of results of individual research
SKILLS: group work, presentation of opinions and exposure to criticism
Assessment criteria
term paper (15 or 8 page long) (50%); in class presentation of research project leading to the term paper, with focus on methodology, causality and hypothesis building; (30%); attendance and participation in class discussions, occasional small homeworks (20%)
Bibliography
A selection of texts, often journalistic, and documentary films, illustrating current events in Washington, D.C. The literature is intended primarily to assist in situating the previously described current events within the context of American democracy. It is also intended to aid in the development of theories and models of public policy.
Suzanne Garment, Scandal. The Culture of Mistrust in American Politics, Anchor Books, 1992
Benjamin Ginsberg, Martin Shefter, Politics by other Means, basic Books, 1990
Norman Ornstein, Thomas Mann (eds.), The Permanent Campaign and Its Future, AEI, 2000
T.R. Reid, Congressional Odyssey. The Saga of a Senate Bill, Freeman and Company, 1980
Hedrick Smith, The Power Game. How Washington Works, Random House, 1988
Bartholomew Sparrow, Uncertain Guardians. The News Media as Political Institutions, Johns Hopkins university press, 1999
James Thurber, Divided Democracy. Cooperation and Conflict Between the President and Congress, CQ Press, 1991
Additional information
Additional information (registration calendar, class conductors, localization and schedules of classes), might be available in the USOSweb system: