Deck 20: International Trade

Question 1

If the model of politics and government presented in this chapter is true, what are some of the things we would expect to see?

Answer 1

If the model of politics and government presented in this chapter is true then things we could expect to see are:
• Politicians do not care about what is right and what is wrong.
• They just move to the middle of the voter distribution for winning the elections
• People do not always vote because voting is sometimes too costly
• People are not always well informed on issues because accessing the information is too costly
• In addition, top it off, special interest are engaged in rent seeking.
All this sounds dismal regarding the future of the society as well as nation. This battle of self-centeredness would lead no goods of general masses and survival of the fittest will rule the country as well the world, vanishing any significant difference between the woods and the civil society.

Question 2

It has often been said that Democratic candidates are more liberal in Democratic primaries and Republican candidates are more conservative in Republican primaries than either is in the general election. Explain why.

Answer 2

Politics is all about public and it is all because of public, and this public actually decides the fate of a politician through their valuable votes in general election. This is the reason why each political group portrays itself to be the best suitable and the supreme well-wisher matching the ideologies and expectations of common public so that their (politicians) vote banks can be made thick and they get blessed with the victory.
These politicians are smart enough not to lose even a single vote on any basis as any extremity can lead to provoke public against any non-acceptable idea. Thus, they avoid making any specific statement/ promise in public and they make general comments only. These politicians even can put their image on stake for winning the heart of the voters as these voters only gets them the lamp of victory.
This is the reason that, democrat candidates are more liberal in Democrat primaries if they perceive it beneficial from the angle of winning the elections and Republican candidates are more conservative if find their probable voters more conservative in their thoughts s only these precautions could lead them to win the confidence and ultimately the vote of the innocent public.

Question 3

What are some ways of reducing the cost of voting to voters?

Answer 3

Reducing the cost of voting
The voter often gets apathetic towards voting because their cost of voting outweights their benefits of voting. These are represented by the formulas given below:
.
If this cost is reduced to an extent than many voters can be brought forward for casting their valuable votes.
Measure that can be taken to reduce this cost:
1. Probability of one`s vote determining the election outcomes
This probability can be enhanced if there are a few registered voters in a location as if there are a limited number of voters and their votes the share as well as its contributory impact increases as a probability of deciding an outcome.
2. Cost of driving to the polls
There can be an increase in the number of polls in a city so that the travelling time as well as the travelling expense can be reduced or either taxi or cabs can be arranged by the government for the pick and drop facility to the voters.
3. Cost of standing in the line
There should the electronic system of voting and when the number of polls will increase, the queue waiting for casting the vote would be trimmed and as a result no waiting in the line.
4. Cost of filling out the ballot
There should be developed the electronic-online system of filling the ballots as the voters can fill them in the time of leisure and there would be loss of the opportunity cost of the voter.

Question 4

Provide a numerical example which shows that simplemajority voting may be consistent with efficiency. Next, provide a numerical example which shows that simplemajority voting may be inconsistent with efficiency.

Question 5

John chooses not to vote in the presidential election. Does it follow that he is apathetic when it comes to presidential politics? Explain your answer.

Question 6

Some individuals see national defense spending as benefiting special interests-in particular, the defense industry. Others see it as directly benefiting not only the defense industry but the general public as well. Does this same difference between viewpoints apply to issues other than national defense? Name a few.

Question 7

Evaluate each of the following proposals for reform in terms of the material discussed in this chapter:
a. Linking all spending programs to visible tax hikes
b. A balanced-budget amendment stipulating that Congress cannot spend more than total tax revenues
c. A budgetary referendum process whereby the voters actually vote on the distribution of federal dollars to the different categories of spending ( x percentage to agriculture, y percentage to national defense, etc.) instead of letting elected representatives decide

Question 8

"Rent seeking may be rational from the individual's perspective, but it is not rational from society's perspective." Do you agree or disagree? Explain your answer.

Question 9

Some observers maintain that not all politicians move toward the middle of the political spectrum in order to obtain votes. They often cite Barry Goldwater in the 1964 presidential election and George McGovern in the 1972 presidential election as examples. Goldwater was viewed as occupying the right end of the political spectrum and McGovern the left end. Would these two examples necessarily be evidence that does not support the median voter model? Are the exceptions to the theory explained in this chapter?

Question 10

Suppose that three major candidates-A, B, and C-are running for president of the United States and that the distribution of voters is that shown in Exhibit 1. Two of the candidates-A and B-are currently viewed as right of the median voter, and C is viewed as left of the median voter. Is it possible to predict which candidate is the most likely to win?

Question 11

The economist James Buchanan said, "If men should cease and desist from their talk about and their search for evil men and commence to look instead at the institutions manned by ordinary people, wide avenues for genuine social reform might appear." What did he mean?

Question 12

Look back at Exhibit 2. Suppose that the net benefits and net costs for each person are known a week before election day and that it is legal to buy and sell votes. Furthermore, suppose that neither buying nor selling votes has any conscience cost (i.e., one does not feel guilty buying or selling votes). Would the outcome of the election be the same? Explain your answer.

Question 13

Would voters have a greater incentive to vote in an election involving only a few registered voters or in one that has many? Why? Why might a Republican label her opponent too far left and a Democrat label his opponent too far right?

Question 14

In part (a) of the accompanying figure, the distribution of voters is skewed to the left; in part (b), the distribution is skewed neither left nor right; and in part (c), it is skewed right. Assuming a two-person race for each distribution, will the candidate who wins the election in (a) hold different positions from the candidates who win the elections in (b) and (c)? Explain your answer.

Question 15

Many individuals learn more about the car they are thinking of buying than about the candidates running for president of the United States. Explain why.