American political culture continued

• 3. Individualism – related to #1 (liberty) – individuals should be free to get ahead on their own, aversion to control by government (distrust of government, particularly central government)

• 4. Laissez faire (both in government and in markets – leave citizens and businesses alone)

• 5. Populism – “government of, for, by the people – (Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, also Pat Buchanan, Ronald Reagan – “get government off the backs of the people”

Elements of American political culture – What makes us

Americans?1. Individuals have rights

2. Individuals are equal under law

3. Gov’t must be limited to protect rights

4. State as instrument for serving individuals

5. Rule of Law/Constitutionalism

6. Joining

7. Faith (despite separation of church & state)

Consensus theory: Americans share a consensus on basic

political beliefs

• DeTocqueville (French – 1830s) – social and political equality

• Louis Hartz (American – 1950s) – the dark side of the ‘liberal consensus’ –dangers of unanimity of political thought

Critique of Unified political culture/consensus theory

• 1. Alternative philosophies/beliefs• (e.g. socialism, communism)• 2. Inegalitarian beliefs – white

supremacism, etc.• 3. Different cultures within American

states, regions – Daniel Elazar (1970s):– Traditionalist, Moralist, and individualist

cultures

Defense of unified, coherent political culture

• Compare political beliefs of American citizens to beliefs of citizens from other nations

• This shows there is a clear commonality of beliefs that distinguishes us from other nations, including other advanced industrial democracies

Percentage who agree: “Government should provide everyone with a guaranteed basic income.”

• U.S. 29%

• Australia 44%

• West Germany61%

• U.K. 64%

• Netherlands 65%

• Italy 81%

Percent who agree that “government should provide a decent standard of living for the unemployed”

• U.S. 21%

• Australia 38%

• Netherlands 50%

• U.K. 65%

• West Germany66%

• Italy 68%

Percent who agree “The way things are in my country, people like

me and my family have a good chance of improving our standard of living.”

• U.S. 72%

• Australia 61%

• Italy 45%

• Germany 40%

• Britain 37%

Sources of liberal political culture

• Political socialization• Self selection of immigrants• Institutions create culture (Government

designed by Founding Fathers to be inefficient - this makes people distrust government. Government not as “generous” here as in some other countries – people have to make it more on their own – fosters individualism.