Democratic Republic Of The United States

Linkage institutions can be defined as institutions that connect citizens with the government. Examples of linkage institutions include elections, political parties, interest groups, and the media. Elections specifically are supposed to encourage public participation in the selection of governmental officials. Unfortunately, low voter turnout has proved that elections are an imperfect linkage institution. Elections depend on voters to be successful, and some factors that relate to the likelihood of voting include age, education, and race. Although some people underestimate the power of the vote, voter turnout is

From the early 1840s to the present day, a democracy can be described as a flawed establishment which has been shaped by the power of wealth and control, complex social relations, and most importantly the people’s desire to live a fulfilling life. Throughout this time period the principles of democracy, such as equality, protection of the people’s interest, and promotion of human rights were shifting in order to increase the democracy efficiency. Therefore the continued importance of the Bill of Rights, the Declaration of Independence, and Constitution remain significant since, in American today, democracy is a system that is continuously being shaped by the people within it.

The political system of America is very different from other developed and developing democracies. Most notable is the increased power bestowed on the upper house of the parliament, the extensive power held by the Supreme Court and the dominance demonstrated by only two major parties. In the United States, third parties have the least influence on the world’s most developed democracy’s political structure. In this democracy, people are under the US Constitution of the governmental system as well as state government and other units of local government. Local government entails counties, districts and municipalities. The evolution of the American political party system has come a long way; with Hamilton and Jefferson being regarded as the founder fathers of the modern party system. These were heads of the Federalist and Anti-Federalist groups in the 18th century of American politics. Ever since, the country has maintained a party system that has two main parties that are relatively stable. These are Democrats and Republicans and have remained in contest for election every time since the 1860 presidential elections. Initially, the Republican Party was the dominant party but the Democrats later gained dominance. However, the two parties became closely competitive and neither of them has been notably dominant since the 1970s (O'Connor & Sabato, n.d).

Despite being one of the oldest and most consistently stable democracies in the Western world, the American government, and American democracy as a whole, has frequently come under fire in recent years. Whether it is political parties, pundits, bloggers or citizens, Americans and non-Americans are all lining up to take shots at what they diagnose as a storied democracy crumbling before their eyes. Two of Robert Dahl’s criteria for a healthy democracy are enlightened understanding: are citizens able to acquire the political information necessary to participate in their own democracy, and control of the agenda: do the American senators and members of congress have exclusive and

In our very own Pledge of Allegiance it states “and to the republic for which it stands”. In school we are taught that the United States could be both and in a way they are right. However the way we operate as a country shows all the signs of a republic. A republic is defined as a form of government that in which the supreme power is held by the people and their elected representatives, and which has an elected or nominated president rather than a monarch. While a democracy is defined as form of government in which the people decide policy matters directly--through town hall meetings or by voting on ballot initiatives and referendums. The United States of America’s government is a republic rather than a democracy.

“I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all." Although the United States is moving toward a more democratic political system, the framers of the constitution aimed at creating a republic government. The word democracy is never even mentioned in the United States Constitution. Our modern government is a blend of both democratic and republican ideals called the American Democratic Republic.

This source provides many definitions and concepts that make it easier to understand the terminology we hear about in our everyday life or in the sources that we use. Being able to relate back to a source that contains facts and examples helps us form our own opinion instead of jumping on somebody else’s bandwagon. This source is a reliable source because it was written by two political science professors that truly care about the subject of Analyzing American Democracy. Jon Bond and Kevin Smith are the main authors but used others to contribute to the book so that they would have the proper facts and

The Democratic Republic which the people of the USA live under today follows principles put in place by The Constitution. This is an example of a political text written to convey the ideals of government. Similarly two historically significant texts, The Federalist No.10 written by James Madison in 1787 addressed to the state of New York and The Second Treatise of Government by John Locke ( an English philosopher) in 1689 make complex assertions about the fundamentals of a government. While Madison and Locke make heavily similar claims on the importance of government in the protection of its members as well as the tenacious emphasis on majority vote, they don’t quite see eye to eye when it comes to the behaviors of bodies in a government.. Their two ideologies form parallel arguments that do happen to build off of each other as well as oppose, (the former more than the latter) while also giving a well rounded understanding of some of the building blocks of government.

When addressing the fallacies of the American government today, one should question whether it’s supposed, ideal principles are implemented justly. Theoretically, the people of the government and the government itself are to be held accountable for the installment of constitutional values. John Locke describes this political obligation as the social contract, in which those governed surrender their power in return for protection. In terms of democracy, however, the primary duty of the governed is to participate in popular sovereignty and the duty of the government is to fulfill the wishes of the people. Thomas Jefferson explains that democracy is “...a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly

Although the United States may seem democratic, the truth is not in a single person representing the country, but instead a leading group, making it an oligarchy. These powerful members such as economic elites and organized interest groups are responsible for influencing control over the general population and causing the most change to the American nation. The government system is structured a specific way where the average citizen is not directly contributing to its politics and legislature. The real people controlling the mass population in our states and country are an organized group of politicians that exercise the power and control over the country due to the natural instinct and tendency to seek power. For instance, common and public good distribution and regulation have been established by other higher officials and elites, not the people. Large-scale organizations tend to rise to oligarchies because they seek people with special qualities and elevated skills instead of the average uninformed and incompetent citizen who might not be capable to know how to benefit the nation. Most organizations and interest group leaders incline to education and have expertise, therefore the have an instinct to contribute to the power being enforced in our government. Americans do have some features central to the

American democracy may be winning but, are both democratic and non-democratic elements working for our good? Although, our government has become extremely corrupt, and inefficient, the American people still have hope. Unfortunately, this has been demonstrated many times when it comes to creating laws that benefit all citizens. Just as, the issues of our electoral process is also a concern, along with the impact of the media and interest groups. Consequently, the question is raised can government programs solve the issues we face?

In the United States, democracy has been a central component since our founding fathers. Although democracy promotes freedom and economic developments, it is also critiqued for its negative drawbacks. One critique involves high deficits, may be due to the rapid growth of citizens that creates income inequality, and a growing gap between the rich and poor. An additional critique is the decline of education due to very high tuition cost, unmotivated teachers and students, rigorous testing, and unmet performance measures. Further, the various components listed as critiques may be found to be valid, invalid, constructive or destructive. Lastly, the conclusion would be based on an individual’s evaluation of critiques of democracy.

The United States of America is one of the oldest contemporary democracies, is currently the second largest democracy, and is ranked the 16th best democracy in the world (Campbell et. Al, 2014). Yet there is a legitimate question over whether or not the United States can still truly be considered a democracy, with some studies even suggesting it has begun to resemble an oligarchy (Chumley, 2014). In this essay, I will use Dahl’s criteria of voting equality and effective participation to determine whether or not the United States are truly a democracy.

In the United States, the two major political parties are comprised of groups. These groups range in size and have monumental effects on parties’ success, depending on how large, wealthy, influential, and fervent the groups are. Some of the most powerful political groups in the United States are Catholics, labor union members, women, and social conservatives. The endorsement of these particular groups and others is what leads their respective parties to political victory.

The existence of interest groups and the government’s abilities have grown substantially; however, the accountability of the government has declined. The United States’ government relies on the fundamental checks and balances of the “three branches of government—the executive, the judiciary, and the legislature—corresponding to...the state, the rule of law, and democracy” (The Sources of Political Dysfunction). Nevertheless, the government has been exercising more power, allowing the judicial branch to become an “alternate instrument for the expansion of government” (The Sources of Political Dysfunction). As a result, interest groups have found