Western Political Thought Dr. John Paul Tabakian

Political Science 5 Fall 2012 – Power Point #8

COURSE LECTURE: WEEK 8 (1)

Today’s Lecture Covers The Following: • Graft & Pandering

• Homestead Act of 1862 • Transcontinental Railroad Act of 1862

• Elite Consensus • Liberty, Private Property, Limited Government

• Andrew Carnegie “The Gospel Of Wealth” • Muckrackers

• Upton Sinclair “The Jungle”

COURSE LECTURE: WEEK 8 (2) This Week’s Lecture Covers:

• Foundation Of California Politics • California Republican Party • Democratic Party Of California • Power Structure Of Both Major Parties • Interest Groups In The Golden State

• Aerospace • Environmental and “Green” Companies • Media – Music, Film, Television • Agriculture • Healthcare • Computer Technology • Transportation

HOMESTEAD & TRANSCONTINENTAL RAILROAD ACT OF 1862

Industrialists looked to the Northwest Territory as a market for manufactured goods.

• Homestead Act opened more land to settlers.

• Transcontinental Railroad Act gave the railroads incentives to link the east and west coasts.

TRANSCONTINENTAL RAILROAD ROUTE

RAILROAD TOWN: KORBEL CITY

SACRAMENTO BROTHEL

TURNER FROM “THE FRONTIER” (1)

•Turner’s thesis: “The existence of an area of free land, its continuous recession, and the advance of American settlement westward, explain American development.”

•As a type of determinism, Turner’s thesis ties geography to national ideology/culture, defining the character of Americans and American society: a type of “primitivism” where “[T]he wilderness masters the colonist.” (“meeting point between savagery and civilization.”).

•American social development “continually beginning over again on the frontier.” (“perennial rebirth,” “fluidity of American life”).

TURNER FROM “THE FRONTIER” (2)

•“European life entered the continent” and “America modified and developed that life and reacted on Europe.”

•“New Product” “away from the influence of Europe, a steady growth of independence on American lines.”

•“Composite Nationality”; “tides of continental immigration”; “mixed race”

•Dangers of individualism out of control; relate to DeToequeville.

•What endures? The notion of going west for opportunity, ground for new ideas? Consider that the real move was to the towns and cities along with the expansion into free, wilderness land.

“GREEN” COMPANIES – TESLA California influences the nation. If the state were its own country it would be the 6th most economically powerful. The Golden State also influences national as well as world opinion. Californians are known to be pro-conservationist. “Green” policy is also profitable. Tesla is a relatively new car company located in San Carlos, California. They are leading the rebirth of the electric car. This is a “Nightline” report of the Tesla Roadster that aired May 25, 2007.

CALIFORNIA AGRICULTURE Agriculture is a major industry for the Golden State. With 88,000 farms and ranches, California agriculture is nearly a $32 billion dollar industry that generates $100 billion in related economic activity. This enormous achievement is possible through a combination of tradition and innovation that has secured California's status as the most productive agricultural state for more than 50 years. Farmers and ranchers blend old-fashioned notions of patience and perseverance with cutting-edge technologies and advanced agricultural practices. The result is a highly adaptable and diverse industry encompassing more than 350 plant and animal commodities.

(Source: California Department of Food & Agriculture)

Mainstream media generates over $60 billion in related economic activity. Some put the estimate at over $80 billion. Various aspects apply to making this estimate. Big budget films for instance first generate box-office receipts then carry over to “Pay-Per-View” and DVD sales. Students need to take into account the various players of the industry to realize Hollywood’s impact on California’s economy.

MAINSTREAM MEDIA

PARTISANSHIP

Variables can help determine partisanship like the religion, social status and place of residence of the individual. For example, Catholics tend to be Democrats and Protestants tend to be Republicans. Those individuals having a low social status tended to associate with the Democrats and those holding high social status tended to be Republican. Rural citizens tend to be more closely associated with the Republican Party and those residing in the urban areas tended to lean towards the Democratic Party. A conglomeration of variables or even a particular characteristic can assist us in determining individual behavior. Though this is true, it is the degree of partisanship one holds that remains the best predictor for determining how one may vote on Election Day.

MASS AUTHORED CAMPAIGN RHETORIC

Official Campaign Rhetoric is being challenged due to advances in technology allowing for cheap distribution via the Internet. It has also become cheaper to produce material due to the ability to produce high quality video at a greatly reduced cost. Enjoy this example of “Obama Girl”.

CALIFORNIA REPUBLICAN PARTY

1.Financial Conservatives

2.Social Conservatives

3.Moral Conservatives

There are three conservative factions within the Republican Party. Individuals may identify themselves with more than one. These are:

Moral Conservatives are the most partisan and ideological who impact statewide office seekers during a primary.

CRP - MORAL CONSERVATIVE IMPACT

Governor Davis faced considerable opposition during his re-election campaign for governor. Richard Riordan was viewed as the most formidable opponent if he were to be the Republican nominee. Gray Davis’s strategy was to attack Richard Riordan during the primary so the more conservative opponent, Bill Simon acquires the nomination. These campaign commercials from Gray Davis were directed towards moral conservatives to nominate Bill Simon.

DEMOCRATIC PARTY OF CALIFORNIA

The Democratic Party Of California is not split into three distinct factions. It is known as the “Big Tent” or “Big Umbrella” Party. Though the party consists of various interest groups that are in a constant pursuit for power, it does not have the same problem as the California Republican Party.

MAJOR PARTY POWER Even though the national parties have become weaker and less active, that the same cannot be said of state and local party organizations. Parties at the sub-national level are stronger and more active than they were in the 1950s, which was at the peak of partisanship. It was discovered that as partisanship continued to erode that they shifted gears in order to bolster their membership base.

National Party

State Party

Local City / County Party Local City / County Party

Local City / County Party Local City / County Party

Local City / County Party Local City / County Party

PLURALISM

BUSH IN 30 EXAMPLE OF PLURALISM

AMERICA’S TWO PARTY SYSTEM Our system maintains a process where unsuccessful parties are discarded or forced to join with other minor parties, which in this case has resulted in the formation of two major parties. Many of the rules pertaining to elections in the United States have been designed to weed out nuisance candidates. Only those candidates who have demonstrated a good deal of public support are allowed access. America continues to enjoy a stable political system that is maintained with its two party system. Enjoy this video of Frank Grimes, the 2004 nominee of the American Fascist Union for the Presidency!

CANDIDATE IMAGE Candidate image depicts situations in which voters decide whether to support a candidate depending on the image they portray and whether they are appealing or unappealing.

CARNEGIE FROM “WEALTH” Andrew Carnegie (18351919) was a massively successful business man - his wealth was based on the provision of iron and steel to the railways, but also a man who recalled his radical roots in Scotland before his immigration to the United States. To resolve what might seem to be contradictions between the creation of wealth, which he saw as proceeding from immutable social laws, and social provision he came up with the notion of the "gospel of wealth". He lived up to his word, and gave away his fortune to socially beneficial projects, most famously by funding libraries. His approval of death taxes might surprise modern billionaires!

UPTON SINCLAIR’S “THE JUNGLE” •Upton Sinclair was a poor reformer who sought to write the Great American Novel.

•“The Jungle” examined the unsanitary methods of Chicago’s meatpacking industry of Chicago. It was released in 1906.

•President Theodore Roosevelt received advanced copy. Used his influence to push Congress to pass a law establishing the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Roosevelt coined the term “muckrakers” to describe Sinclair and other reformist crusaders.

•Roosevelt’s phrase was not meant to be wholly complimentary.

•Muckrackers are journalists who expose political and commercial corruption.

HOW THE MASSES PERCEIVE THE PARTIES

Activists are most likely to participate in campaign activities. These are the most partisan among typical voters. Two of the most common activities aside from voting is donating personal labor and financial resources. Political pandering refers to how parties cater to their core base of activists. Those found in the Republican Party tend to be more conservative than the average Republican voter. Democratic activists on the other hand tend to be more liberal than the average Democratic voter.

HOW THE MASSES VIEW THE PARTIES

Let us now see how Hollywood views the parties from the perspective of the average Joe or Jane. Our example comes from the movie “Bulworth” starring Warren Beatty. Two scenes are shown to demonstrate pandering as seen from the perspective of Hollywood. What are your thoughts after watching these clips? Do they coincide with your personal belief systems in any way?

Hollywood + Religion Race Based Politics

OBAMA & APPLE Constituents have witnessed influential campaign advertisements that are authored by the average person. The clip on the left was created from an Obama supporter with commonly available computer equipment who manipulated the famous 1984 Apple commercial that introduced the world to Macintosh.