ELECTIONS
AND
POLITICAL
PARTIES
Political Science 231, Spring
2000,
Professor Scott McLean, Phone:
203-281-8686 (office)
Email:
scott.mclean@quinnipiac.edu
FINAL
EXAM QUESTIONS -- DUE MARCH 20
Click
here to see our class featured on C-SPAN!!!!
FINAL EXAMINATION
Due by Monday, March 20
Directions:
This is a take-home
exam. Write a 3 page essay in response to each question. Your exam length
should therefore be six pages long, typed, with page numbering. Use
examples and quotes from course texts and also use logical analysis and
your political experience where relevant. Make proper use of footnoting
for all sources. Absolutely no use of sources beyond current news
and the assigned course texts is allowed on the exam.
Due Date and Submission
guidelines:
Completed exams may
be submitted at any time, but NO LATER than 5 pm Monday, March 20.
Submit your completed exam to Prof. McLean at Pine Grove 2, Room 308, or
e-mail to scott.mclean@quinnipiac.edu
Answer both questions:
1. Discuss why the
framers of the Constitution in 1787 thought it was necessary to create
the Electoral College, according to The Federalist Papers.
Looking at the consequences of the Electoral College for how today’s presidential
campaigns are conducted, argue whether it should be maintained or eliminated
in favor of some other system of selecting presidents.
2. “The
front-loaded primary schedule and prevalence of closed primaries have made
it harder for the underdog candidates Bradley and McCain to win their party
nominations in 2000. Underdogs like McGovern in 1972 and Carter in
1976 had a better chance of winning the nomination.”
Discuss this quotation, considering
the changes in primaries since the 1970s. Focus on the specific ways
our current primary system affects campaign finance, media, regional strategies
and how candidates build support of major groups and interests in the party.
Despite these changes, what do you see as the best reasons for maintaining
a quick end to primary campaigning and keeping primaries open only to party
members?
A final note:
Thanks to all
of you for an extremely enjoyable course. I will always treasure
this experience and I hope to see you again in another of my courses.
I hope that you continue to be engaged in our democracy.
--- Dr. McLean
OVERVIEW:
Every student in the course is required to spend January
14 to 21 in Manchester New Hampshire as a volunteer in one of the presidential
campaigns. Students are free to select any candidate they wish. Any student
who does not have a specific campaign to support will volunteer for the
candidate closest to his or her political attitudes. The class will return
to New Hampshire for the weekend of January 29, the final campaign push
before the New Hampshire primary held on February 1. The course concludes
on Friday, March 10, after the Connecticut presidential primary.
Traditional politics courses begin by giving students
the role of "spectator" and present the history and institutions of politics
first, then perhaps encouraging students to participate in politics. This
course follows a very unconventional format. Students will begin the course
as "civic actors" by sharing an intensive experience of volunteering in
a presidential campaign. Next, the readings, assignments and lectures
will build on that experience and ask you to reflect on it. We will
think and learn about the history, theory, an political institutionsinvolving
presidential elections, as well as debates about the future role of political
parties in presidential elections.
The course is based on a model of civic education called
"service learning." Part of the course content will be to think critically
about the advantages and disadvantages of learning about politics in a
course like this one.
REQUIRED
TEXTS:
Stephen Wayne, The Road to the White House
2000
Hamilton, Madison, and Jay, The Federalist Papers
Theodore Lowi & Joseph Romance, A Republic
of Parties? Debating the Two-Party System
Available in the Bookstore in January. However, please
purchase the Wayne text before the New Hampshire phase of the course online
at http://www.quinnipiac.bkstr.com/
Bring the Wayne text to New Hampshire and read chapters
1 and 4 prior to arriving in New Hampshire.
READINGS
AND ASSIGNMENTS
I. New Hampshire and the
Primary System
January 14-21, Manchester New Hampshire
Reading:
Wayne, Chapters 1 and 4
II. Voters and Parties
Reading:
Wayne, Chapter 3
Wed. Jan. 26: Notebook Review
*Students are required to be in New Hampshire
on Saturday, January 29 to work in campaigns. If you have scheduling
problems with this, talk to the professor.
III. Origins of the Presidential
Election System
Reading:
The Federalist Papers, Numbers 10, 52, 57,
68
*Strongly Recommended: Go to
New Hampshire Tuesday, February 1 to help get out the vote and to celebrate
victory! (or, commiserate loss).
IV. Debates, Media
Politics and Political Advertising
Reading:
Wayne, Chapter 7
Paper 1 Due Wednesday, Feb.16: Candidate
Profile
Class Debate on the Candidates: (Gore
versus Bradley; McCain versus Bush)
V. Campaign Finance
Reading:
Wayne, Chapter 2
VI. The Two-Party System
versus Multi-Party Systems
Reading:
Lowi/Romance, Introduction and Chapter 1
VII. Debating the Two Party
System
Reading:
Lowi/Romance, Chapter 2
Paper 6 Due Wednesday,
March 1: "Would a Three-Party system benefit the U.S.?"
Class Debate: "Would a Three-Party system
benefit the U.S.?"
Students will be required to take sides and
debate this issue, after reading Lowi/Romance book and writing the essay
paper.
VIII. Super Tuesday and the
Yankee Primary: Explaining the Results
Reading:
Wayne, Chapter 8
Final Exam, Monday, March 20
Final Notebook Review and Final
Paper – Due on or before March 24.
The Final Paper for the course must be 4 to
6 pages, typed.
Guidelines:
Before writing, review your memory and your
Notebook, and reflect about how the things you experienced in the course
challenged your views and expectations about civic involvement, political
parties or democratic government. Explain, as best you can, how the
experience positively or negatively affected what you learned from books
and papers, and also how the conventional course work informed or made
more meaningful your campaign work. Throughout the paper, keep in
mind the criticisms of the “service-learning” model of education.
To what extent would you agree or disagree with the criticisms of the sort
of course you have just completed?
COURSE
SEGMENT IN NEW HAMPSHIRE, JAN. 14-21
Required For New Hampshire.
Besides the personal items you require for a week in
a hotel room, you need to make sure you have done the following things
for New Hampshire:
Student and Parent must sign and date the "Service Learning
Release Forms and Agreements" and return these to Prof. McLean by January
3, 2000 or sooner. Without this signed form, you will not be allowed to
participate in the course.
Read and sign the "Agreement on Personal Behavior" and
submit today or no later than January 3, 2000
Select a Campaign: You may select any
presidential campaign. You will be asked to make a decision on this today.
However if you need more time to decide, you can inform Prof. McLean of
your choice by Dec. 14. Follow these steps to help you find the candidate
who most closely fits your views.
-
go to www.selectsmart.com
-
click on the presidential selector button
-
answer the questions on the survey and submit
-
the system will compare your survey responses with the
positions of the candidates
-
the system will tell you which candidate matches your
views most closely
-
You should tell Prof. McLean your results and this will
be your candidate in New Hampshire.
-
Campaign Notebook: You will
need to bring a Notebook to New Hampshire. You are required to make DAILY
entries into the Notebook while in New Hampshire. Notebooks will be reviewed
every day in New Hampshire. The purpose of this Notebook is to keep a record
of things that happen during your volunteer experience and also to add
significant thought and reflection about the experience. The following
things should be kept in this Notebook.
-
Your activities and the activities of those around you.
-
News and news clippings that relate to the campaign
-
Notes and reaction to textbook and newspaper readings.
-
Most important: thought and reflection on the MEANING
of the above.
Wayne Textbook You are required to have
purchased The Road to the White House 2000 by Stephen Wayne BEFORE
going to New Hampshire. You must READ CHAPTERS 1 AND 4 OF THIS BOOK and
enter your summary and reactions of those readings into your Notebook BEFORE
going to New Hampshire.You can purchase this text (or all of the course
texts) online at http://www.quinnipiac.bkstr.com
Transportation: Each student is responsbile
for his/her own transportation to Manchester and back. If you have a car,
consider driving it to Manchester. The campaigns you work for will find
you much more valuable if you are mobile -- remember that you may be asked
to drive and that this will require you to fuel your car. If a car is not
available for you, you can contact Prof. McLean and ride to Manchester
from New Haven/Hamden. From other places there is bus, rail or airplane.
There is an airport and train station in Manchester. Contact AmTrak at
800-USA-RAIL or the www.amtrak.com
website to get tickets.
Money for Food and Entertainment:
There will also be several meals covered by funds from your Course Fee.
Continental breakfast will be available each day at the hotel. Campaigns
typically feed volunteers during the daytime (tacos, Chinese or pizza,
normally). However, you will need to bring enough money to afford at least
one meal per day. Also bring enough money to enjoy three or four dinners
at restaurants, for the week. Bring money for at least 10 meals, to be
safe. There will also be plenty of time for evening socializing at local
hangouts with your new campaign friends and classmates.
Clothes: New Hampshire in January
is COLD and campaigners may have to spend hours at a time outdoors. Bring
warm clothes: Hat, scarf, boots, gloves, sweaters.Bring nice casual clothes:
shoes, sweater, collared shirt or tie, nice nice pants for men or skirts
for women (remember, you may be invited to a campaign event where you could
meet the next president).
Road Map
It would be wise for you to bring a road map of New
Hampshire/New England to assist you in finding Manchester and other cities
you may have to visit as part of your campaign volunteering.
Remainder of course fee: $125
WHAT TO EXPECT
Lodging and Accommodations
Our class will be staying in the Comfort Inn at Manchester,
New Hampshire, 298 Queen City Avenue. The phone number at the hotel is
(603) 668-2600. Driving Directions appear at the end of this document.
It is recommended that you obtain a roadmap of New Hampshire.
CHECK-IN TIME IS 3 pm JAN. 14. Please feel free to
explore Manchester and arrive early that day.
THERE IS A MANDATORY WELCOME MEETING AT 5 PM IN THE
HOTEL CONFERENCE ROOM FOR ALL STUDENTS. WE WILL EAT SUPPER TOGETHER AFTER
THIS MEETING
Rooms
Four students will be in each hotel room. Men and
women will have separate rooms. You will have to work out how to get along
for the week.
Continental breakfast will be served before class. Please
finish your breakfast before class.
Classroom
The class will meet each morning at 9:30 AM until
about 10:30 AM. There will be lectures, discussions and special guest experts
on campaigns and elections. Students will be required to submit Campaign
Notebooks at these meetings for daily review. In the afternoon and evenings,
students will work with their respective campaigns. At the end of the day
or in the early morning, you will make a new entry in your Campaign Notebook.
Absences from these meetings is a serious matter that may lead to your
dismissal from the course and sent home.
Campaign Internship
Each student will be required to volunteer for a presidential
campaign while in New Hampshire. There is no better way to understand campaigns
than to be involved with one up close. You will have selected a campaign
to intern with in December, and the various campaigns will be expecting
you.
Campaign work can be exhilarating but at times boring
too. Do not expect to meet the candidate, but you might get the opportunity
to see and hear candidates up close. Many of the tasks you may be asked
to do include sealing envelopes, talking to voters on the phone, door to
door canvassing, and attending a rally or speech. You will not be paid
for your internship.
When we return to Connecticut, you will intern with
your candidate's Connecticut operation, putting all your experience to
use.
Throughout all of this, you are expected to conduct
yourself in a professional manner as a representative of Quinnipiac College.
Site Visits: As a
class, we will visit two or perhaps more sites of historical or political
interest. For example, we will visit the Library and Archives of New Hampshire's
Political Tradition and other museums of historical and political significance
for understanding the New Hampshire primary and/or presidential elections.
DIRECTIONS
TO MANCHESTER COMFORT INN
HOTEL ADDRESS: 298 QUEEN CITY AVENUE, MANCHESTER
HOTEL PHONE: (603) 668-2600
New Haven to Manchester: 183 miles, three hours, 30
minutes nonstop driving.
NORTH ON I-91 TO HARTFORD
TAKE I-84 EAST TO BOSTON
GET ONTO I-90 (MASS PIKE) (EXIT 3) --TOLL ROAD
.AFTER 10 MILES TAKE EXIT 10 TO I-290 TO WORCESTER
FROM I-290, TAKE EXIT TO I-495 NORTH (LEFT EXIT)
AFTER ABOUT 17 MILES, TAKE EXIT 40 TO I-93 NORTH TO
MANCHESTER
AT MANCHESTER:
FROM I-93 TAKE EXIT FOR 101/293 NORTH (you will be
heading west)
FROM 293 TAKE EXIT 4 FOR QUEEN CITY BRIDGE
TAKE RIGHT AT END OF THE RAMP: HOTEL IS ON THE RIGHT
AT BOTTOM OF THE RAMP. ENTER PARKING LOT.
CURRENT
UPDATE ON CLASS TRIP TO NEW HAMPSHIRE, JANUARY 14-21
JAN. 3: UPDATE 1
1. Problems with ordering textbook online?
Remember to order your course textbooks from
http://www.quinnipiac.bkstr.com/ as soon as possible, so that you can
read Wayne, chapters 1 and 4. Some students have reported problems
with a long delay of the shipping of the Wayne book from that site. Please
do not try to call the Quinnipiac bookstore about this -- it will not do
any good since the QC bookstore has nothing to do with online orders.
It is the parent corporation efollett.com that is the problem, not our
bookstore. Try to be patient and realize that delays are a
common thing this time of year. (Think about it -- Not only the Christmas
rush but also hundreds of college bookstores are frantically ordering thousands
of textbooks for the start of classes and sometimes an order can be backed
up) I suggest that if your copy has not arrived at your home by Jan.
7, go to the website amazon.com or barnesandnoble.com to order the book.
This should be done in order to be sure that you get your copy of the Wayne
book in time for class. Then, when the book from eFollet.com comes
along, take it to the QC bookstore for a refund, as is your right if you
return it undamaged to the store within 15 days of purchase.
2. Presidential Primary Debates! Please Watch
them on TV and jot down impressions in your journal..
*Democratic Presidential Debate in New Hampshire. Live
on C-SPAN Wednesday 1/5/00 at 7pm ET
*Republican PresidentialDebate in New Hampshire. Live
on C-SPAN Thursday 1/6/00 at 7pm ET
For a full schedule of campaign events you can watch
on TV, go to this website:
http://www.c-span.org/campaign2000/
ELECTION
WEB LINKS
Get
the hottest campaign news and candidate information here!
C-SPAN
Campaign 2000
Library
and Archives of New Hampshire's Political Tradition
a great place to learn
about the NH Primary!
Project
Vote Smart
Washington
Post "On Politics"
Democratic
National Republican
National
Committee Site
Committee Site
OFFICIAL
PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE WEB PAGES
(note:
candiates are displayed if students in course intern in their campaigns)
Bill
Bradley John
McCain
Al Gore
George W. Bush
GRADING
STANDARDS ON ASSIGNMENTS
Course Requirements:
Jan. 14-21 volunteer in New Hampshire campaign
Participation in Class Discussion (10 %)
Campaign Notebook and Final Essay (25%)
Group Debate on Candidates and Issues
(this will be a Forum open to the
QC public) (10%)
Paper 1: Essay on the Constitution and the Party System
(4-5 pages) (15%)
Paper 2: Candidate Profile Essay (4-5 pages) (20%)
Final Exam. March 21. (Monday after Spring Break)
(20%)
