POLI 212 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Party System, Constitutionalism, Bicameralism
29 Mar 2017
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Document Summary
To be a democracy you must be a state. Reason why we hear critique that eu is undemocratic. State: most efficient institutional set-up (vs city-states, city-states combining into city leagues or empires) Allows for stability to ensure standardized economic transactions. States begin copying each other b/c of its efficiency want to stop fighting eventually and write peace of westphalia (1648) only the state has been able to answer questions to challenges empires + city-states could not. Dimension ii: unitary-federal dimension unitary vs federal: in federal countries, decision-making is split between capital + capitals of the provinces or states. Unicameral vs bicameral: unicameral (one house), bicameralism (two houses) Concentration of executive power in one party (for the most part no coalition government) Executive dominates/controls legislative agenda (due to party discipline) Two party system (they alternate in government, one controls the legislature, is voted out, and the other then controls the legislature)
