UNIT 2 AP® UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS
FREE-RESPONSE QUESTIONS
2004; #4

UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS
SECTION II
1. Trust and confidence in government have declined in recent decades.
(a)Explain how divided government has contributed to the decline in trust and confidence in government. Be sure to include a definition of divided government in your response.
(b)Explain how the increased cost of election campaigns has contributed to the decline in trust and confidence in government.
(c)Explain two specific consequences of the decline in trust and confidence in government for individual political behavior.

Question 4 (2004)
6 POINTS TOTALPart (a): 2 points possible
Part (b): 2 points possible
Part (c): 2 points possible

Part a: (2 points) 1 point definition, 1 point explanation
Definition of divided government required for first point. (Essay must earn first point to be eligible for explanation point, below.)

Explanation point requires linkage between divided government and decline in trust/confidence. Acceptable responses may include linkage to:
•Heightened partisanship
•Decline of the middle (moderates frozen out, extremes driving legislation)
•Frustration with the governmental process
•Confirmation process slowed, stopped, or circumvented, increasing frustration/disgust
•Gridlock

Part b: (2 points) 2 point explanation
For the first point, acceptable explanations include:
•Candidates must spend more time raising money
•Role of interest groups (PACs), corporations and connections to wealthy donors
•Keeps good people from running for office
•Small contributions don't matter
•Perception that there is wasteful spending

To receive the second point, must provide linkage to cynicism or distrust.

Part c: (2 points) 1 point for each of two explanations
Acceptable behavioral consequences include:
•Protest
•Decline in voting
•Increase in independents or third-party identifiers
•Indications of less conventional participation, more non-conventional participation, or limitation to local nonpartisan or community action

My Response

Trust and confidence in government have declined in recent decades. The rate of voter participation in both the congressional and presidential election often hovers below 50%. Rates of approval for both branches currently are at an all-time low (40%for the Congress and the President).

A1.Divided government is defined as having different political parties occupying the executive and legislative branches simultaneously. The current situation in the United States has President Obama a Democrat contending with a Republican-controlled House of Representatives.

A2.Divided government has contributed to the decline in trust and confidence in government by creating both a heightened sense of partisanship and more damagingly, creating a situation called “gridlock” whereby bills and initiatives proposed either by the president or the congress are stopped in their tracks due to a lack of compromise between the parties. Nothing seems to get done in this climate. Consequently the American people feel a lack of trust and confidence in government.

B1.Another problem that has contributed to the decline in trust and confidence in government is the increased cost of election campaigns in the United States. Many Americans have come to view the US election campaign season with great cynicism. Ever greater amounts of money are raised each season-over $1 billion by the Obama campaign in 2008. A great percentage of donations come from both Political Action Committees and well as private corporations. There is a wide perception by the American people that these campaign contributions create unfair connections between donor and recipient-that candidates in effect are in the pockets of wealthy contributors. Despite efforts in campaign finance reform, so many loopholes exist for which to get around regulations that the American people feel a loss in trust and confidence in government.

C1.One specific consequence of the decline in trust and confidence in government for individual political behavior is that more Americans being turned off by the aforementioned problems, are less likely to vote. A general lack of political efficacy or “my vote doesn’t matter” is a common problem with many Americans. Our voting rate compared to that of other industrialized countries is less than 50% as compared to over 90%.

C2.Another specific consequence of the decline in trust and confidence in government for individual political behavior is that more Americans have begun to identify themselves with independent candidates or third party alternatives. The growth of the Tea Party in the United States is a case in point. Extreme dissatisfaction with the status quo have led many Americans to turn to a more extreme brand of conservatism that has led to even greater levels of polarization and partisanship between Republicans and Democrats. Many Tea Party candidates have led the government to move even further away from negotiation and compromise. As the result the American people currently have the lowest level of satisfaction with their government since prior to the Great Depression.