Public Opinion Chapter 7

Public Opinion and Constitutional Underpinnings There is a disconnect between what the people want and the policy that is enacted by our elected representatives The framers of the Constitution did not intend for the government to always do what the people wanted. Form a more perfect union Establish justice Ensure domestic tranquility Provide for common defense Promote the general welfare Secure the blessings of liberty Is this for the people, by the people like Lincoln suggests?

Federalism and Public Opinion The framers did not believe there could just be one public opinion Competing factions would = many different public opinions Checks on public opinion Representative government, federalism, separation of powers, Bill of Rights, independent judiciary Protecting the people from themselves Protecting the minority from tyranny of the majority Do you agree with the framers? Do we need to be protected from ourselves or from the majority?

Polling Polls cannot give us a clear understanding of the overall public opinion unless they are done using random sampling Any given voter or adult has an equal chance of being interviewed Sampling Errors – difference in2 polls on the same issue conducted using random sampling Most accurate polls are exit polls Polls conducted at voting booths on election day

Political Socialization Opinion Saliency Some care more about certain issues Opinion Stability Opinions steady on certain issues, but volatile on others Opinion-Policy Congruence Some government policies match opinion, others do not Genes and the family: About ½ of our political views come from our base personality(40%) and parental influence (10%) Other ½ from personal experiences Political beliefs do not equal party affiliation Genes don’t really affect party affiliation (learned from parents and experiences) Youth are less partisan Religion Also a family tradition Opinions pronounced with social issues – abortion, gay marriage Gender Gap Men deserting democrats in favor of Republicans

What separates us? Class differences Region Race and ethnicity Upper-class v. working-class Differences in class voting has declined in recent years Unskilled workers more likely to be democrats, white-collar – republicans Economy isn’t only determining issue – some white-collar lean left because of social issues Region Southerners more likely to be conservative on social issues compared to the Coasts Not Attached to Democratic party Coasts generally more supportive of liberal ideals and the democratic party Race and ethnicity African-Americans overwhelming democrat – younger ones more closely identify with republicans Latinos now largest minority group However, public opinion studies on Latino and Asian- American opinion are rare Polls in California say that Latinos widely identify as Democrat, but less so than African-Americans and Asian-Americans identify more with Republican party than Anglo-White voters There is polarization among Asian-Americans and Latinos Local conditions also affect their views Are you surprised by any of these demographics? Why or why not?

Political Ideology A consistent set of beliefs about what policies government ought to pursue i.e. liberal, conservative, socialist, radical, moderate Ideological self-identification surveys show 37-40% - conservative or moderate 20% - Liberal However, most people do not think of their opinions in an ideological way

Political Elites The terms liberal and conservative do capture the political views held by our political elites People with a disproportionate share of political power Elected officials, campaign workers, journalists, interest groups, activists These people usually stick to the conventional conservative- liberal spectrum Think back to the “Bipolar Disorder” Article – Who do you think the elites represent?

Review