315
Ladd http://www.skidmore.edu/~bturner
Office
Hours MW 1:20-3, by appointment
or if my door is open
Government 222
Fall 2008
State and local governments touch our lives
everyday. They pick up our garbage,
educate us, keep us safe from criminals, and perform a whole host of other
vital services. They regulate a wide range of business activities, from
generating electric power to cutting hair. State governments are also the
single largest employer in every state.
But state and local government is not in the forefront of the minds of
the
There
are three basic themes in this course:
1.)
Diversity among the states- What are the differences among the states and what
difference do these differences make?
2.)
Revitalization of state governments- How have state government institutions
enhanced their capacity to govern in the past 30 years?
3.)
Institutions affect policy- How does the way state government and political
organizations are set up and operate affect public policy?
This course also has three ulterior motives. First, I want to develop your appreciation of
state and local government and hopefully stimulate your interest in the process
by bringing in a series of guest speakers from various political
institutions. Secondly, I want to
encourage you to think clearly and systematically about political phenomena, to
think theoretically and focus on explanations, and to understand the importance
of empirical verification. Third, I
emphasize your ability to work collaboratively and communicate effectively,
both orally and in writing, regarding political issues. These skills will serve you in good stead in
other courses and careers long after you have forgotten most of the specifics
of state politics you have learned in my course.
REQUIREMENTS
& GRADING
As befitting your status at one of the
“New Ivies”, I have high expectations of student
performance. Grades will be determined
by student performance on all of the following:
A well functioning class that
promotes learning requires good attendance. Students should inform me prior to
class if they must miss class on a specific day. You are allowed two personal days (absences),
after that I will deduct 2.5% from your final grade. For example, you receive a 90% as your final
grade, but have missed four classes; your final grade is an 85%. I stress attendance not only for your
benefit, but also for the benefit of your classmates.
Alan
Ehrenhalt, Out in the States, It’s Not the 1930s Anymore
Hal
Hovey, The Challenges of Flexibility
NCSL: States Legislatures
Face Unsettled Conditions in 2008, p. 1-5
The
Federalist, No. 17, Alexander Hamilton, The Federalist Papers, 1787.
The
Federalist, No. 45, James Madison, The Federalist Papers, 1788.
Nature
of the
Weber
and Brace, Chapter 1, State and Localities Transformed, p. 1-9
The
Devil in Devolution, John D. Donahue, The
American Prospect, May/June 1997
Power
Grab, Eliza Newlin Carney, National
Journal, April 11, 1998.
Richard
P. Nathan, There will always be a New Federalism, Rockefeller Institute.
Virginia
Gray, The Socioeconomic and Political Context of the States, Chapter 1, p. 1-22
Daniel
Elazar, The Three Political Cultures in American Federalism, A View from the
States
Sep
12 The Social Diversity Argument
Rodney Hero and Caroline Tolbert, A Racial/Ethnic
Diversity Interpretation of Politics and Policy in the States of the
Class
Presentation #1: Socio-Economic and
Demographic Analysis
Electoral Competition
Brace
and Ward, Ch 10, Charles Bullock, The Opening Up of State and Local Election
Processes
Joseph
Zimmerman, Alternative Local Elections, p. 134-45.
VO
Key, Southern Politics (1949), p 15-19, 298-314, 664-675
Egan,
T. In
Class in Library BI Room
Class Presentation #2: The Causes and Consequences of Interparty Competition
Brace
and
Charles
Mahtesian, The Lure of the Cards, Governing
16-21
Charles
Mahtesian, The Uprising of the Prison Guards, Governing, August 1996, 38-40
Thomas
and Hrebenar, Who’s Got Clout, NCSL
Class Presentation: Who is powerful and why? Who are the 600-pound gorillas in your state?
Oct
3 Guest Lecturer
Barbara
Bartoletti, Lobbyist, NY League of Women Voters
Alana
Jeydel, The Business of Lobbying in
Reform
in
Stonecash,
J. “Field Assessment: State Politics Literature” (Polity 28: 1996).
Nicholson-Crotty
and Meier, “Size Doesn’t Matter: In Defense of Single-State Studies,” SPPQ
(2002): 411-422.
Ehrenhalt, The New Governing
Class, The
Bledsoe,
I Spent a Winter in Politics: Confessions of a Farmer after his First Season in
a Statehouse
Mahtesian,
The Sick Legislature Syndrome and How to Avoid It, Governing, February 1997
Senate.
Flake, Effects of Term Limits in AZ:
Irreparable Damages, Spectrum,
2005
Greenblatt,
The Truth About Term Limits, 67-71, Governing
Jan 2006
Marjorie
Sarbaugh-Thompson et al, Democracy among Strangers: Term Limits' Effects on Relationships between State Legislators
in
Kousser,
Thad. The Limited Impact of Term Limits:
Contingent Effects on the Complexity and Breadth
of Laws, SPPQ, Winter 2006
Guest Speaker Assemblyman Tedesco
Oct
17 State Legislature Presentations
Rosenthal,
Heavy Lifting, Chapters 1-3
Rosenthal,
Heavy Lifting, Chapters 4-7
Weber
and Brace, Chapter 6. The Governors
Oct
29 The Legislative – Governor Relationship
Alan
Rosenthal, Heavy Lifting, Ch 8-9
Oct 31 Governors – What Make a Governor Powerful
Eichstaedt, No, No, Two Hundred Times No, State Legislatures 21:7, 1995, 46-49.
Ehrenhalt,
It Pays to Know Where the Bodies Are Buried, Governing, June 1998. 104-5
Crew
and Hill, Gubernatorial Influence in State Government Policy-Making
Trip
to Judith Kaye.
The Politics of Gay and Lesbian Rights: Expanding
the Scope of the Conflict
Donald P. Haider-Markel; Kenneth J. Meier The Journal of Politics,
p. 332-349.
Haider-Markel, Donald P. "Policy diffusion as a geographical expansion
of the scope of political conflict: same-sex marriage bans in the 1990s". State Politics & Policy Quarterly,
5-26.
Guest Lecturer Scott Johnson
James Svara, Institutional Powers and Mayoral
Leadership
Nobody
in Charge, Rob Gurwitt, Governing,
September 1997.106-9
Guest
Lecturer, Members of City Council
Susan
McManus, Chapter 8, The Resurgent City Councils 166-185
Wiltrout, Playing the Political Game
Mahtesian,
The Politics of Ugliness