POL S 202 A: Introduction to American Politics

POLITICAL SCIENCE 202

This syllabus is a living document! Please check frequently for updates.

Introduction to American Politics

Fall Quarter 2020

Scott Lemieux [No campus meetings this quarter]

Email: slemieux@uw.edu

Virtual Office Hours: By appointment over Zoom,  available most weekdays 11-6

Teaching Assistants:

Becca Peach (Sections AC & AD)

Email: rlpeach@uw.edu

Virtual Office Hours: Mondays from 10:30-12:30 - https://washington.zoom.us/j/91951922426

Section Zoom Links

Section AC: https://washington.zoom.us/j/96127730477

Section AD: https://washington.zoom.us/j/97958769636

Ryan Goehrung (Sections AA & AB)

Email: goehrunr@uw.edu

Virtual Office Hours: Wednesdays 3:00-5:00 PM https://washington.zoom.us/j/94356713836

Quiz Section Zoom Links:

Section AA (9:30-10:20): https://washington.zoom.us/j/91047184098

Section AB (10:30-11:20): https://washington.zoom.us/j/97551057696

Remote Teaching: how the class will proceed

Main Lecture:  The main lecture will be asynchronous; that is, you will not be expected to livestream it or be available at the precise previously listed time for the class. Every Monday or Wednesday except on school holidays, lectures (generally two or three mini-lectures covering the material for the class) will be posted at the "Panopto Recordings" link to the bottom left of the course page. You should have completed all the lectures by the time of your section Friday. I will also create a discussion forum for each week of lecture that you can use to ask questions while you watch the lectures, which I should generally be able to respond to within 24 hours. 

Please feel free to email questions or schedule a virtual meeting at any time! 

Section: your discussion section will be having a Zoom meeting at the designated time unless you are advised otherwise. Your TA will provide you with the information to join the meeting. There will also be separate discussion fora for each section.  For full credit, you will be expected to ask and answer questions about the week's readings, based on the instructions from the TA.

Important Note: students will not be penalized if internet access or health issues prevent them from "attending" a discussion.  Participation in the discussion forum according to the directions of your TA will be sufficient to get full grading credit for section participation. 

Objectives:  This course examines American politics through the lens of the development of political institutions and political culture.  We will study both the historical foundations of American government and constitutionalism and the ways in which they have changed over time.  Students will receive both a nuts-and-bolts introduction to American government and an immersion in primary texts that provide insights into American government and political thought.  It will also give student a set of critical tools with which to evaluate American institutions and political actors.  The primary objectives of the class are to 1)introduce students to basic concepts of political science, 2)give students a background in American history, government, and constitutional development, and 3)develop their writing skills, including the ability to answer questions in a clear, concise manner.

Textbook: There textbooks for this class is  Lowi, Ginsberg, and Shepsle, American Government: Power and Purpose (16th core ed. It is available online through the UW bookstore and all major online booksellers. An E-book can be ordered through the publisher here:

https://wwnorton.com/books/9780393538915

The course is structured so that while the earlier the better you do not need to have your textbook until the day of section meetings in Week 2. If you need to allow a couple of extra days to secure a better price, that's fine!

General Requirements and Class Policies:

• Online interactions should follow the "netiquette" guidelinesLinks to an external site. of the university. Always treat your peers and instructors respectfully. 
• Plagiarism, cheating, and other forms of academic dishonesty (Links to an external site.) will result in a grade of “0” for the given exam/assignment, and students will also be subject to the UW’s disciplinary procedures. All material submitted online may be subject to VeriCite or other plagiarism detection software.
• Please inform an instructor if you have a disability that will require accommodation.  You will be provided with any accommodation mandated by the Americans With Disabilities Act, state and local regulations, and university policy. 
• Washington state law requires that UW develop a policy for accommodation of student absences or significant hardship due to reasons of faith or conscience, or for organized religious activities. The UW’s policy, including more information about how to request an accommodation, is available at Religious Accommodations Policy (https://registrar.washington.edu/staffandfaculty/religious-accommodations-policy/). Accommodations must be requested within the first two weeks of this course using the Religious Accommodations Request form (https://registrar.washington.edu/students/religious-accommodations-request/).

Assignments and Grading:  There will be two take-home mid-terms and one final exam.  All exams will be non-cumulative and weighted equally.  A study guide will provided roughly one week before the exam is due through Canvas.  The remainder of the grade will be calculated by your participation in section forums and any other section assignments,

3 Exams: 25% each

Section participation: 25%

Grade appeals process: 

1. If you would like to appeal your grade, please wait 24 hours after receiving your assignment. After 24 hours have elapsed, submit a typed and printed appeal and that explains why you deserve a better grade and the graded assignment to the TA. Please note that your entire assignment will be regraded.
2. Once the TA has reviewed your appeal, he or she will set up a virtual "appointment" to discuss your appeal.
3. If you are still unsatisfied with your grade, the TA will take your assignment and appeal to the professor. Please note that the professor will not review your appeal until the TA has made an assessment of your appeal.
4. Note that if you request a re-grade by the professor your grade may be lowered, raised, or left unchanged once you have submitted your grade appeal.
5. All grade appeals must be submitted within one week of the graded assignment being handed back.

Class Schedule

Note:  Readings from Lowi et al. are marked with “PP.”  The supplemental readings can be found either at the hyperlink or in the "course readings" folder under the "Files" tab (these readings are marked with an asterisk.)

3/30 Class Introduction

I. The Founding and American Constitutional Development

4/1 

Basic Political Science Approaches:  PP Ch. 1

Amy Goldtsein, "Governor’s political party is biggest factor in whether a state has imposed mask mandate, study finds."  (Links to an external site.)

Julia Azari, "Forget Norms. Our Democracy Depends On Values (Links to an external site.)"

Jamelle Bouie, "There's a Reason the Election of 1800 Still Sings Out to Us (Links to an external site.)"

4/6-13  Constructing the Constitution:  PP Ch. 2

Michael Klarman, The Framer's Coup, Ch.8*

4/15-20  Federalism and Separation of Powers:  PP Ch. 3

4/22-27 Civil Rights and Civil Liberties:  PP Ch. 4-5

Martin Luther King, Jr., "Letter From A Birmingham Jail"

Dara Lind, "Cops do 20,000 no-knock raids a year. Civilians often pay the price when they go wrong

Megan Ming Francis, CIvil RIghts and the Making of the Modern American State, ch.6.*

4/29 FIRST MIDTERM EXAM POSTED ON CANVAS. No lecture posted.

FIRST EXAM DUE MONDAY, MAY 3 AT 6 PM.

II The Formal Institutions of Government

5/4 Congress,  PP Ch. 6

The Enduring Debate, Reading 22*

Sarah Binder,"Mitch McConnell is Wrong. Here's the Filibuster's 'racial history." 

Nate Silver, "The Senate’s Rural Skew Makes It Very Hard For Democrats To Win The Supreme Court (Links to an external site.)"

5/6-5/11: The Executive Branch, PP Ch. 7-8.

 The Enduring Debate readings 27, 28, 32, 33 (*)

5/13Judiciary PP CH. 9.

Gerald Rosenberg, The Hollow Hope [excerpts]*

Scott Lemieux, "Don't Fear the Backlash" 

5/18 Watch movie: "Supreme Revenge" 

Second Midterm distributed on Canvas May 20. No lectures posted. Exams are due Monday, May 24 at 6 PM. Sections cancelled May 21.

III. Politics and Informal Institutions

5/25 Public Opinion PP Ch. 10, 

Geofrey Skelly, "Why Was The National Polling Environment So Off In 2020?"

5/27 Elections PP Ch. 11

Ross Douthat, "A Case for the Electoral College"

Jesse Wegman, Let the People Pick the President, Ch. 3.*

6/1 Political Parties PP Ch. 12

6/3 Interest Groups PP Ch. 13

The Enduring Debate reading 59(*)

FINAL EXAM DISTRIBUTED ON CANVAS FRIDAY, JUNE 4 AT 6 PM. Exams due Tuesday, June 8 at 6PM.