Political Science Exam

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Florida State University *

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Political Science

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Oct 30, 2023

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Political Science Exam 1. What is Putin’s Way as explained in the Frontline documentary? What is the history, geography, and culture of Russia and how has it led to the current regime? How does cynicism and the lack of trust in the society help solidify the regime? Putin’s Way is just rising through corruption. He constantly deceived the people of Russia. First, he commissioned a documentary about himself to “out” himself as a reviled KGB member, which was useful for the mayor of St. Petersburg at the time because he could work in the shadows in a city with a notorious criminal history. Russia has almost always been a corrupt state. It was corrupt under Boris Yeltsin and Putin continued the legacy and increased corruption. Putin was notorious for stealing the country’s wealth. During food shortages caused by the collapse of the Soviet Union, $124 million was “miraculously” lost under Putin’s control. Twentieth Trust, a construction company registered under Putin’s economic relations committee received money for specific construction projects which ended up going towards vacation villas in Spain for Putin and his friends. This case was investigated in case number 144-128 which ended up with no result, as it also “disappeared”. After Putin rose to the Kremlin in 1996, there were apartment bombings traced back to the FSB that were blamed on Chechnya, leading to the Chechen Wars which allowed for the Russian government to cancel or postpone elections. No one in Russia was ever prosecuted for the bombings. The crime scenes were destroyed, and any investigators were either killed or imprisoned. Putin promised revenge and again, deceived the public. Putin

and Yeltsin both used the bombings to their advantage. To the people, he made himself out to be a well-rounded and educated man with an extreme interest in the well-being of the people and became the most popular politician in Russia. Once president, Putin ensured the safety of himself and Yeltsin. This led to their people “no law” in Russia because the people saw that their president couldn’t be prosecuted for his crimes. As his presidency went on, he began to be blamed for running a corrupt state more frequently. His governing turned harshly totalitarian, and he turned to money laundering and deceiving other countries, including Germany, England, and the U.S. Duma became a pay to play system, with businesses getting protection from a “present to the president,” meaning that a business would give money to a charity and buy supplies from a business that Putin owns 94% of. Putin gives his presidency to Dmitry Medvedev then returns to office in 2012 and the economy suffers with most of Russia living in poverty and 110 people owning 35% of Russia’s wealth. Putin keeps power through scapegoating, killing opposition leaders, and kleptocracy. As Russia went down, Putin went up. Russia’s culture led to its current regime because of its authoritarian tradition. Russia has never had a true liberal democracy and it doesn’t look like it will ever be. Russia’s history holds a long line of tsars then control held by the Soviet Union. Cynicism and lack of trust in the society help solidify the regime for many reasons. First, Putin is the epitome of a cynical man. Everything he does is for his benefit, instead of the benefit of the country. The people of Russia believe that everyone in the country does whatever

possible for their own benefit. The people aren’t expecting anything else; they assume that if anyone else were in office, they would do the same as Putin because of the long history of corruption in Russian government and the lack of independence of the people. Because of this, regimes like Putin’s will continue. 2. What makes some countries rich and some poor? Explain using a copious number of countries and discussing colonialism, institutions, geography, agriculture, trade, the resource curse and any other examples you feel are relevant. There are many factors that make a country rich or poor and determine a country’s GDP. Starting with institutions- countries have educational institutions for universities, banking institutions for currency which handle inflation, government institutions for trade, police, fire, insurance, medical and courts, which would be the most important institution provide protection of rights and property rights and medical institutions. They also settle disputes and contracts. Without courts, there is no rule of law, which can be seen in El Salvador. Institution wise, corruption causes a country to be poor. Rigged elections and major corruption causes countries like North Korea under Kim Jong Un and Russia under Putin (although it’s considered in the middle) to be poor. An example of a good institution for a rich country would be the United Arab Emirates. The U.A.E. is the financial district for oil and banking, making it a rich country. Singapore is also a rich country, being considered the gas station for the British Empire. There is little to no corruption and opportunities for citizens to prosper through institutions. Location is another major factor for a country’s wealth. Countries closer to

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the equator such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Burundi, and the Central African Republic. Countries closer to the equator also have more diseases from mosquitos such as malaria, dengue fever and zika. From disease, already poorly developed countries are unable to grow because they can’t invest in the production of knowledge with high mortality rates because people have more children to make up for losses. Being landlocked is also an issue. Without water, it is much more difficult for trade to occur. Resources make up a country’s wealth too. For example, the U.S. is a rich country and has an influx of coal, copper, natural gas, etc. It’s also surrounded by water allowing for lots the U.S. to be a major exporter. The resource curse comes from too many resources; if a country has too many resources, education isn’t necessarily as important as it should be. Countries that suffer from the resource curse don’t use their resources to their full advantage and don’t pay as much attention to the welfare of the people. An example of this would be Angola or Russia and the influx of oil reserves. Culture and colonization determine whether a country is rich or poor or not. This is seen largely in India. Under colonial rule, the British made the caste system in India a defining social feature for the benefit of the British Indian government. Minorities in the country are also affected due to the lack of separation between church and state. Muslims make up 25% of India’s population and experience discrimination with employment, education, and housing. This makes it difficult for Muslims in India to advance because they don’t have the same opportunities, leading to an increase in poverty and a lack of

availability with services. Drugs and gang violence make the accumulation of wealth difficult. El Salvador gangs, which were started in Los Angeles by Salvadorians who fled to the U.S. have become an extreme problem. Their 60,000 active members have outnumbered El Salvador’s police, military, and paramilitary who must protect their identity when they’re in public. El Salvador is an extremely poor country, with every 4 out of 10 people living in poverty. The gangs run the country and specific cities, making it almost impossible to even enter neighborhoods run by gangs, if a person is unaffiliated. With gangs running cities, incompetency becomes an issue because the gangs put one of their people in office to keep control by having someone on the inside. Lastly, agriculture is a determination of if a country is rich or poor. With abundant agriculture, there’s more trade and resources for the country. For example, Japan does well with agriculture and is considered a rich country. 3. Explain all of the articles of the Constitution with an emphasis on the checks and balances. Explain especially why the founding fathers made the decisions that they did. Article I of the Constitution grants that all legislative powers shall be vested in a Congress consisting of a House of Representatives and a Senate. The House of Representatives Members are to be chosen every second year by the people of several states. House members must be at least 25 years old, a citizen of the United States for at least 7 years

and be an inhabitant of the state he/she is being elected to represent. The Representatives will choose a Speaker of the Houses and other officers. The House has the power of impeachment. The United States Senate will have two Senators from each state with 6-year terms, chosen by legislation. Each senator has one vote. Senators must be at least 30 years of age, a citizen for at least 9 years, and must be an inhabitant of the state they are chosen for. The Vice President is President of the Senate but will not have a vote unless there is an equal divide. The Senate chooses all officers and a president pro tempore. The Senate has sole power to try all impeachments. Congress shall assemble at least once a year on the first Monday in December. Article II grants the Executive Branch its powers. The President holds office for 4 years with a Vice President sharing the same term. Each state appoints a number of electors to elect the President and VP based on the votes of the people. The President must be a natural born citizen, at least 35 years old, and a resident for at least 14 years. If the President is removed, the VP will become President. The President must take an oath or affirmation to become president. The President is Commander in Chief, has the ability to make treaties (with the Senate present), can fill vacancies in the Senate, and will give a State of the Union address. Article III grants the Judicial branch its powers in one Supreme Court. Judicial power extends to all cases in law and equity arising under the

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Constitution. The trial of all crimes (except impeachment) will be by jury. Article IV gives full faith and credit in each state to the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every state. Citizens of each state are entitled to all privileges and immunities of citizens. New states may be admitted by Congress into the union, but not within jurisdiction of other states. Congress can dispose of and make new rules and regulations respecting territory and property. The U.S. shall guarantee to every state a republican form of government and protect each state from invasion. States have the power to make and carry out their own laws. Article V allows Congress to propose amendments to the Constitution. 2/3 of each house of Congress must approve amendments alone and amendment additions must be ratified by ¾ of legislatures from several states. Article VI states that all debts contracted before the Constitution shall be valid against the U.S. The Constitution and all laws made under the authority of the U.S. are the supreme law of the land. All Senators, Representatives, Officers and Legislatures are bound by oath or affirmation to support the Constitution. No religious test will be required.

Article VII states that the ratification of the conventions of nine states shall be sufficient for the establishment of the Constitution. Power is split equally between the Legislative, Judicial, and Executive Branch through separation of powers and checks and balances. The legislative branch makes the laws, the executive branch enforces laws, and the judicial branch interprets laws. Through checks and balances, the executive branch has the power to veto legislation and nominate judges. The legislative branch can impeach the president and judges and the judicial branch can declare presidential acts and laws unconstitutional. The founding fathers made the decisions they did so that one party would not have too much power and so they could anticipate any issues that America would have going forward. They wanted an equal society different from the government of Great Britain under a tyrant. They wanted to ensure success in the Constitution instead of creating a document that could be easily changed. Also kept in mind was mobs. After Shay’s Rebellion, the founding fathers were afraid that people would try to take over, so the specifics of checks and balances and abilities of congress were created to try and prevent a mob from trying to take over. It gives the people abilities to be involved in government without too much control. The founding fathers were also worried about corruption. Because of this, they decided that every public official must be paid for their work to prevent bribery.