Module 2: Lecture Materials -- The Policy-Makers A

Module 2: Lecture Materials -- The Policy-Makers and Their Environment (Chapter 2) Online Lecture - The Policy-Makers and their EnvironmentChapter 2 is an examination of the multitude of public policy-makers and their environment. It begins with an overview of the American political system. By constitutional principle and political practice, power in the United States is fragmented and dispersed. This is primarily due to a separation of power among three branches (executive, legislative, and judicial) with a system of checks and balances. The effects are the decentralization of power, the need for compromise, and an inefficient operation of government. Power is further dispersed by federalism, which gives separate national and state governments power derived from the Constitution. The national government is granted delegated and implied (necessary and proper) powers, whereas the states are given unspecified reserved powers. The Constitution also limits the powers of government over the people. Over time, the scope of the national government has expanded into the domain of state governments, but state and local governments continue to be significant policy-makers for many issues. Because analyzing policymaking at three levels of government is too extensive, the focus of the book is on the national government’s domestic policy.Additional Lecture