Author Question: Briefly assess why dealignment in the party system has occurred and identify one of the signs in ... (Read 62 times)

tfester · **on:** Jul 10, 2018

Briefly assess why dealignment in the party system has occurred and identify one of the signs in terms of an increase or decrease in party affiliation.

What will be an ideal response?

Question 2

Explain the position of the Senate majority leader. What kinds of power or influence does he or she hold? How does his or her power or influence compare to that of the Speaker of the House?

What will be an ideal response?

aliotak · **Reply #1 on:** Jul 10, 2018

Answer to Question 1

An ideal response will:
1, Indicate that dealignment, as opposed to realignment, is a period when no party has clear domination over the other.
2, Explain that dealignment is characterized by increased identification by the electorate as independent.
3, Characterize the period following Nixon as the beginning of dealignment, briefly explaining why it occurred and how voter disenchantment with the political system has led to many more voters identifying as independents than was the case a half century ago.

Answer to Question 2

An ideal response will:
1, State that leadership in the Senate is less visible than that in the House: Senators with formal leadership titles, such as the president pro tempore, exercise little influence. The Senate majority leader is as close as one comes to a leader in this body, but the powers of the office pale before those of the Speaker of the House.
2, List several of the Senate majority leader's areas of influence: He or she has some influence in committee assignments, office space designation, and control of access to the floor of the Senate; and is important in the scheduling of the business of the Senate.
3, Note that the degree of the majority leader's actual influence is based less on formal powers than on skills of personal persuasion, the respect of colleagues, visibility in the media as majority party spokesperson, and role at the center of many of the various communication networks. Also, campaign contributors often take the advice of the majority leader on how to allocate money for incumbents seeking reelection.