POL S 351 A: The American Democracy

POL S 351 The American Democracy

Scott Lemieux, slemieux@uw.edu

Gowen Hall 114

Office Hours: T 1:15-2:15, or virtual by appointment  

Course objectives: This course will examine both the history and current state of American democracy. We will consider issues including the democratic legitimacy of American political institutions, immigration, voting rights, and equal citizenship, and healthcare. Students will be asked to reflect on what democratic values are and how American politics meets and fails to meet them.

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/)

Links to an external site.. 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/)

Exams and grade distribution:

This course will have three, non-cumulative online exams. Each will be worth one third of the grade.

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.

Course books:

 The books for the course are available for purchase at the University Bookstore and all major online booksellers"

Sam Rosenfeld, The Polarizers: Postwar Architects of our Partisan Era (University of Chicago Press, 2017.)

John Sides et. al., The Bitter End: The 2020 Presidential Campaign and the Challenge to American Democracy. (Princeton University Press: 2022.)

Mary Ziegler, Abortion and the Law in America (Cambridge University Press, 2020.)

Class Schedule

Note: Articles marked with an asterisk (*) are available as PDFs in the "Course Files" section of Canvas as well as academic databases.

1/4 Class Introduction

I. A Crisis of American Democracy?

1/9 Matthew Yglesias, "Juan Linz's Bad News For America." 

Scott Mainwaring and Matthew S. Shugart, "Juan Linz, Presidentialism, and Democracy: A Critical Appraisal."*

1/11 Benjamin Wallace-Wells, "Examining the Case Against the Filibuster,Links to an external site." The New Yorker, Februrary 4, 2021

Joe Manchin, "I Will Not Vote to Weaken or Eliminate the Filibuster

II. The Supreme Court and American Democracy 

1/16-18 Michael Klarman, "The Degradation of American Democracy," Harvard Law Review (134: 2020) 1-66; 178-262

[Reply:] Thomas Griffith, "The Degradation of Civic Charity."  

1/23 Ari Berman, "The Lost Promise of the Voting Rights Act," The Atlantic, August 5, 2015

III. The Causes and Effects of Elite Polarization 

1/25-2/1 Rosenfeld, The Polarizers 

1/25 Ch. 1-2

1/30 Ch. 3-6

2/1 Ch. 7-8, Conclusion

First Midterm Exam Distributed February 2.  Exam due via Canvas by 6 PM on February 6. Lecture cancelled for that day. 

IV. The 2020 Election: What Happened?

2/8-2/15 Sides et al., The Bitter End

2/8 Ch. 1-2

2/13 Ch. 3-4, 6

2/15 Ch. 7-9 (SEE NOTE)

Class on 2/15 will not be held in person. A lecture will be posted under the "Panopto Recordings" tab. 

2/20 Fuentes and Rowher, "Dirty Thinking About Law and Democracy in Rucho v. Common Cause."*

 Miriam Seifter, "Countermajoritarian Legislatures."

Second Midterm Exam distributed February 22. Due through Canvas by 6 PM February 26. Class cancelled February 22.

IV. American Democracy and the Politics of Abortion 

2/26-3/7 Ziegler, Abortion and American Politics 

2/26: Introduction, Ch. 1-2. 

2/28: Ch 3-5

3/5: Ch. 6-7

3/7 Conclusion, Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health [excerpts]

Final exam distributed Friday, March 8. Exam due through Canvas at 6PM on Wednesday, March 13.