Political Science POLS-Y 103 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: September 11 Attacks
Document Summary
Society consists of different and often competing interests. In politics and policy, one group"s gain might be another"s loss. Taking from defense to pay for healthcare, for example, means appeasing one group at the expense of another. Under pluralism, government growth is tied to economic growth. If taxes stay the same but the economy grows, we have increased revenue. As the economy grows we can spend the same amount on past priorities and also expand spending into other areas. Taking from one area to pay for another means appeasing one set of voters while disappointing another group. But if revenue grows, we can fund new areas (appeal to new voters) without taking from anywhere else. During the 2008 presidential campaign, then candidate barack obama often returned to a few possible ways to pay for his proposed programs. Proposals like this are emblematic of a model of government growth called. Spending often fails to return to lower levels.