American Political System 3rd Edition Kollman Test Bank

American Political System 3rd Edition
Kollman Test Bank

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CHAPTER 7: The Bureaucracy
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. Upon whose orders do federal bureaucrats act?

a. Congress, governors, and the president
b. executive office agencies, courts, and Congress
c. the president, governors, and executive office agencies
d. the president, courts, and Congress
e. the president, courts, and governors
ANS: D DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - What Is the Federal Bureaucracy?
MSC: Remembering
2. Which is the general term for the agencies and offices devoted to carrying out the tasks of
government consistent with the law?
a. government bureaucracy d. independent agency
b. government agency e. government corporation
c. cabinet department
ANS: A DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - What Is the Federal Bureaucracy?
MSC: Remembering
3. As the Orange County Soil and Water commissioner, Greg performs several duties. He reviews
reports on water quality, oversees funds for soil testing, and works with the local Parks Department
to protect the watershed surrounding the local reservoir. Greg became the Soil and Water
commissioner after running a successful campaign to show voters that he has the expertise needed
to carry out these tasks, including a background in environmental science. Is Greg a bureaucrat?
a. Yes, because his tasks are typical for bureaucrats.
b. Yes, because he was chosen for the job based on his expertise.
c. Yes, because he works with bureaucratic agencies.
d. No, because he was elected to the position.
e. No, because his tasks are not typical for bureaucrats.
ANS: D DIF: Difficult REF: CH07 - What Is the Federal Bureaucracy?
MSC: Applying
4. Which is an individual unit of the government responsible for carrying out tasks delegated to it by
Congress or the president in accordance with the law?
ANS: B DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - What Is the Federal Bureaucracy?
MSC: Remembering
5. The three types of bureaucratic agencies within the executive branch are ________.
a. government bureaucracy, as an independent agency, or as an executive office of the
president
b. within a department, as a government corporation, or government bureaucracy
c. within a government agency, as an executive office of the president, or as an independent
agency
d. as an executive office of the president, as a government corporation, or as an independent
agency
e. as an independent agency, within a department, or as a government corporation
ANS: E DIF: Difficult REF: CH07 - What Is the Federal Bureaucracy?
MSC: Remembering
6. The president is creating a new agency tasked with restoring funding for music education in
primary schools. Because this initiative has received a lot of publicity and will reflect on her
administration in the upcoming election, the president wants to make sure those running the
agency do not have too much independence. She therefore creates the initiative within the
Department of Education and requires the initiative leaders to report to the Secretary of Education.
This is an example of ________.
a. police-patrol oversight
b. fire-alarm oversight
c. an agency created as part of a cabinet department
d. an agency created as a government corporation
e. an independent agency
ANS: C DIF: Difficult REF: CH07 - What Is the Federal Bureaucracy?
MSC: Applying
7. Which is an agency run outside of the cabinet departments and run with greater freedom from
presidential influence?
c. federal ministry
ANS: D DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - What Is the Federal Bureaucracy?
MSC: Remembering
8. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is tasked with regulating the conduct of business
corporations. To give the EPA more autonomy, it is structured so that the president is limited in his
or her ability to remove those leading the agencies. This level of oversight is typical of ________.
a. an independent agency d. government corporation agencies
b. fire-alarm oversight e. police-patrol oversight
c. cabinet department agencies
ANS: A DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - What Is the Federal Bureaucracy?
MSC: Understanding
9. Which is a federally owned corporation that generates revenue by providing a public service and is
operated much like a private business with extensive autonomy from the president or Congress?
c. federal ministry
ANS: E DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - What Is the Federal Bureaucracy?
MSC: Remembering
10. Which of the following is operated most like a private corporation?

c. federal ministry
ANS: E DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - What Is the Federal Bureaucracy?
MSC: Remembering
11. Amtrak, a company that provides passenger railway service, has been struggling financially and
would like to stop service on its least profitable routes. Amtrak is usually relatively independent; it
sets ticket fares and schedules, decides how to invest in new equipment, and is expected to
generate enough revenue to cover expenses. However, the U.S. Congress stops it from cutting
unprofitable service routes because, as a/an ________, part of Amtrak’s purpose is to serve the
entire country, even little-used rural passenger routes.
a. public corporation d. government corporation
b. private corporation e. independent agency
ANS: D DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - What Is the Federal Bureaucracy?
MSC: Applying
12. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) often helps organize the disaster response
efforts of various federal, state, and local agencies. These efforts are indicative of the ways that
federal bureaucracies can address ________.
a. prisoner’s dilemmas d. coordination problems
b. collective action problems e. unstable coalitions
c. principal-agent problems
ANS: D DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Solvers of Collective Dilemmas
MSC: Understanding
13. High-level federal bureaucrats, such as cabinet secretaries, are typically ________.
a. U.S. Civil Service Commission appointees
b. selected under the merit system
c. presidential appointees
d. congressional appointees
e. independent contractors
ANS: C DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - Solvers of Collective Dilemmas
MSC: Remembering
14. Bureaucracies respond to many different types of problems. Regardless of their disparate purposes,
they are all intended to create ________.
a. public goods d. coordination dilemmas
b. private goods e. collective dilemmas
c. corporate goods
ANS: A DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - Solvers of Collective Dilemmas
MSC: Remembering
15. What type of law is made within the executive-branch bureaucracy?

a. civil d. common
b. legislative e. general
c. administrative
ANS: C DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - Bureaucrats as Policy Makers
MSC: Remembering
16. When Congress and the executive branch are controlled by the same party, laws tend to be more
________ because Congress trusts the executive branch to implement the laws more faithfully
under ________ than ________ government.
a. vague; divided; unified d. vague; unified; divided
b. specific; divided; singular e. specific; unified; divided
c. specific; plural; singular
ANS: D DIF: Difficult REF: CH07 - Bureaucrats as Policy Makers
MSC: Remembering
17. The Environmental Protection Agency is considering a new regulation that would require all car
owners to install new emissions reduction equipment after two years of ownership. Before it can
make this regulation into a law, it must make all records about the development of the regulation
public and solicit public comments because of the ________ Act.
a. Administrative Procedure d. Admission Procedure
b. Pendleton e. Freedom of Information
c. Transparency in Government
ANS: A DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Bureaucrats as Policy Makers
MSC: Understanding
18. What are “street-level” bureaucrats?

a. employees of the Department of Transportation
b. employees of the Census Bureau
c. employees of the Department of Motor Vehicles
d. bureaucrats whose primary job is implementing policy
e. bureaucrats whose primary job is responding to public comments
ANS: E DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - Bureaucrats as Policy Makers
MSC: Remembering
19. Do “street-level” bureaucrats make policy decisions?

a. No, because policy decisions are made by higher-level bureaucrats.
b. No, because policy decisions are made by Congress or the president.
c. Yes, but only in relation to less important policies.
d. Yes, because their individual judgment calls create policy standards and routines.
e. Yes, but only in certain policy areas.
ANS: D DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Bureaucrats as Policy Makers
MSC: Understanding
20. Employees at independent agencies may be dismissed ________.

a. by the president for any reason not specifically proscribed by law
b. when a president of a new party is elected
c. by a majority vote of both houses of Congress
d. for failure to respond to presidential directives
e. only for cause
ANS: E DIF: Moderate
REF: CH07 - Development of the Executive Bureaucracy MSC: Remembering
21. Which time period is NOT associated with an increase in the size of the federal bureaucracy?
a. Era of Good Feelings, about 1816–1824
b. Progressive Era, early 1900s
c. New Deal Era, 1930s
d. Great Society period, mid-1960s to mid-1970s
e. post–9/11 period, 2000s
ANS: A DIF: Moderate
REF: CH07 - Development of the Executive Bureaucracy MSC: Remembering
22. Corruption in the bureaucracy increased because of ________.
a. the Pendleton Act d. Great Society programs
b. the spoils system e. military expansion
c. Mugwumps
ANS: B DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - The Spoils System
MSC: Understanding
23. Patronage appointments resulted in ________.

a. fairer electoral politics
b. less political efficacy for members of Congress
c. a more stable bureaucracy with less job turnover
d. underqualified bureaucrats and less effective implementation of government policies
e. increased funding for the arts
ANS: D DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - The Spoils System
MSC: Remembering
24. The Pendleton Act, in part, created a system of ________.

a. selective service d. civil service
b. perennial spoils e. private enterprise
c. selective admissions
ANS: D DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - Civil Service Reform
MSC: Remembering
25. While in office, President George W. Bush appointed an ambassador to France even though the
appointee did not speak French. Should this be prevented by the Pendleton Act?
a. No, because the Pendleton Act is primarily concerned with making it illegal to pay dues to
a political party in return for a job.
b. No, because the Pendleton Act only protects some layers of the national bureaucracy.
c. No, because it should have been prevented by the Administrative Procedure Act.
d. Yes, because the Pendleton Act is designed to prevent bureaucratic corruption.
e. Yes, because the Pendleton Act is designed to keep elected officials from being able to
give any jobs to their supporters.
ANS: B DIF: Difficult REF: CH07 - Civil Service Reform
MSC: Applying
26. Which country operates a national bureaucracy most similar to the current U.S. system of civil
service?
a. France d. Nigeria
b. Japan e. Bolivia
c. the United Kingdom
ANS: C DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Civil Service Reform
MSC: Remembering
27. The tension between U.S. representatives’ shared interest in reducing government waste and their
individual interests in preserving government programs that benefit their constituents often
produces a/an ________ that prevents political action to improve bureaucratic efficiency.
a. collective action problem d. prisoner’s dilemma
b. coordination problem e. unstable coalition
c. principal-agent problem
ANS: A DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Modern Reforms of the Bureaucracy
MSC: Understanding
28. The number of people employed by the federal government’s civilian bureaucracy ________.
a. has steadily increased since the 1950s
b. increased between 1950 and 1990 and has decreased since
c. has steadily decreased since 1950
d. fluctuates substantially depending on which party controls Congress
e. has remained remarkably steady since the 1950s
ANS: E DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Modern Reforms of the Bureaucracy
MSC: Remembering
29. Congresswoman Renee Ellmers represents North Carolina’s 2nd District, home to the U.S. Army
base Fort Bragg. When Congress debated steep military funding cuts in 2010 to enhance efficiency
in the federal government, Representative Ellmers fought hard against the cuts, expressing concern
that the cuts could force the military to close the base located in her district. Her behavior is
evidence of what type of classic problem in American government?
a. collective action problem d. coordination problem
b. prisoner’s dilemma e. cooperation problem
ANS: A DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Modern Reforms of the Bureaucracy
MSC: Applying
30. Which of the following refers to the contracting of private companies by the government to
conduct work that was formerly done by government agencies?
a. personalization d. proliferation
b. privatization e. capitalization
c. marketization
ANS: B DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - Privatization and Marketization
MSC: Remembering
31. Which term refers to the government bureaucratic reform that emphasizes market-based principles
of management that are common in the private sector?
c. marketization
ANS: C DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - Privatization and Marketization
MSC: Remembering
32. Which of the following statements best defines the bureaucratic legacy of President Reagan?
a. On the recommendation of the Grace Commission, the Reagan administration attempted to
increase efficiency through privatization and marketization.
b. On the recommendation of the Grace Commission, the Reagan administration increased
efficiency by firing a large percentage of bureaucrats.
c. The bureaucracy grew under the Reagan administration, due mostly to the creation of
regulatory agencies designed to oversee welfare policy.
d. Under the Reagan administration, the bureaucracy grew due in large part to the creation of
the Department of Homeland Security and its affiliated agencies.
e. Bureaucratic growth stagnated well before Reagan took office, but the decline is mostly
attributed to Reagan’s policies.
ANS: A DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Privatization and Marketization
MSC: Remembering
33. In the last twenty years, national government has been under pressure to privatize, which refers to
________, and marketize, which means ________.
a. hiring private-sector agents to implement programs; applying market principles when
implementing policies
b. relying on government volunteers to fund and conduct government-sanctioned work;
hiring private sector agents to implement policies
c. using the free market to assess the value of government assets; applying market principles
when implementing policies
d. applying market principles when implementing policies; hiring private-sector agents to
implement policies
e. hiring private-sector agents to implement programs; using the free market to assess the
value of government assets
ANS: A DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Civil Service Reform
MSC: Understanding
34. The town of Springfield has an extensive public transportation system that has grown steadily over
time in response to the city’s changing needs. However, the town council realizes that it is not as
efficient as it might be. The town council reviews data provided by the city’s Department of
Transportation and organizes an extensive rerouting of public buses in order to reduce costs and
improve efficiency. This is an example of ________.
c. marketization
ANS: C DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Privatization and Marketization
MSC: Understanding
efficient as it might be. The town decides to hire a private company to run its bus service, because
a private company has greater incentives to run the system efficiently. This is an example of
________.
c. marketization
MSC: Understanding
efficient as it might be. One of the biggest drains on the system is a program that shuttles elderly
citizens from point to point, but discontinuing this program would be a public relations liability for
the town council, so it recruits volunteers to drive these shuttles. This is an example of ________.
c. marketization
ANS: B DIF: Difficult REF: CH07 - Privatization and Marketization
MSC: Understanding
37. Which term describes a formal agreement in which the government hires a company or an
organization to carry out certain tasks on its behalf?
a. contract d. asset
b. grant e. certificate
c. work order
ANS: A DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - Privatization and Marketization
MSC: Remembering
38. Which term describes money that the government provides to individuals or organizations to
perform tasks in the public’s interest?
a. contract d. asset
b. grant e. certificate
c. work order
MSC: Remembering
39. Though it was intended to increase bureaucratic efficiency, the principles of privatization and
marketization that were part of the ________ have in some cases led to accusations of increased
fraud due to a lack of oversight.
a. Pendleton Act
b. spoils system
c. Administrative Procedure Act
d. Administrative Protection Act
e. Grace Commission
ANS: E DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Privatization and Marketization
MSC: Understanding
40. Which collective dilemma most typically characterizes the relationship between the president and
the federal bureaucracy?
a. prisoner’s dilemma d. collective action problem
ANS: C DIF: Moderate
REF: CH07 - Principals and Agents in the Executive Bureaucracy
MSC: Understanding
41. Suppose a federal agency created under a Democratic president and a Democratic-controlled
Congress finds itself at odds with a newly elected Republican president and Republican-controlled
Congress. This is an example of ________.
a. coalitional drift d. bureaucratic shift
b. bureaucratic capture e. bureaucratic drift
c. agency loss
ANS: A DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - Drift MSC: Understanding
42. When does coalitional drift occur?

a. There is inadequate police-patrol oversight.
b. Republicans and Democrats disagree about the most desirable goals for bureaucracies.
c. Principals stay the same but change their policy preferences.
d. Bureaucratic agencies differ in how they interpret and implement policies.
e. Agents refuse to accept mandates given to them by principals.
ANS: C DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Drift MSC: Remembering
43. The process of bureaucratic drift is most consistent with which collective dilemma?
ANS: C DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Drift MSC: Understanding
44. The process of coalition drift is most likely to create which type of collective dilemma between a
federal agency and Congress or the president?
b. coordination problem e. principal-agent problem
c. unstable coalition
ANS: E DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Drift MSC: Understanding
45. ________ occurs when a regulatory agency becomes beholden to the organizations or interests it is
supposed to regulate.
a. Bureaucratic escape d. Coalition drift
b. Bureaucratic capture e. Bureaucratic drift
c. Agency loss
ANS: B DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - Drift MSC: Remembering
46. In cases of bureaucratic capture, who is doing the capturing?

a. a political party, which gains a political advantage by staffing agencies with bureaucrats
who will adhere to their preferences
b. a powerful individual who is able to sway bureaucrats through bribes or other incentives
c. state governments, who gain autonomy by convincing agencies to prioritize state over
federal policies
d. nongovernmental organizations or industries, who gain favorable regulation when
agencies are more beholden to them than to principals
e. nongovernmental organizations or industries, who gain policy access by taking over the
work of bureaucratic agents
ANS: D DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Drift MSC: Understanding
47. Employees of the Food and Drug Administration are in frequent contact with pharmaceutical
company representatives, and over time these bureaucrats hear more and more stories from
company representatives about people who are harmed because medications remain unavailable
during the lengthy process of clinical trials. As more and more employees of the FDA become
convinced that these harms must be addressed, the agency moves to shorten the length of required
clinical trials, even though drugs may reach the market with more unknown and potentially
harmful side effects. This is an example of ________.
a. police-patrol oversight d. coalitional drift
b. fire-alarm oversight e. bureaucratic capture
c. bureaucratic drift
ANS: E DIF: Difficult REF: CH07 - Drift MSC: Applying
48. President Bartlett creates an agency dedicated to ensuring that all U.S. trading partners must meet
strict labor standards or face stiff tariffs. He staffs the agency with experts in trade and economics
to ensure that the standards make sense and are followed strictly. However, many of these experts
believe that trade regulations are harmful, ultimately isolating countries and leading to poorer
working conditions. Over time, agency employees’ own beliefs take precedence, and they become
more and more relaxed about enforcing standards and begin to decrease fines against countries that
do not meet the president’s labor standards. This is an example of ________.
ANS: C DIF: Difficult REF: CH07 - Drift MSC: Applying
49. President Bartlett creates an agency dedicated to ensuring that all U.S. trading partners must meet
strict labor standards or face stiff tariffs. He staffs the agency with experts in trade and economics
to ensure that the standards make sense and are followed strictly. However, he loses his bid for
reelection. The incoming president believes that trade regulations are harmful and cuts funding to
the agency. This is an example of ________.
ANS: D DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Drift MSC: Applying
50. How can bureaucrats who seek policy change advocate for it?
a. by informing the public
b. by forming workplace-based interest groups
c. by lobbying Congress
d. by donating money to underfunded agencies
e. by coercing their constituents to act
ANS: A DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - The Motivations of Bureaucrats
MSC: Remembering
51. In order to carry out their jobs, what do bureaucrats usually want?
a. close oversight from Congress and the president
b. clear instructions from Congress and the president
c. a smaller staff that is easier to coordinate
d. Congress and the president to disagree
e. spending cuts so principals are reelected
ANS: B DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - The Motivations of Bureaucrats
MSC: Remembering
52. President Obama, a Democrat, wants to increase the Environmental Protection Agency’s power to
regulate and penalize private businesses. The Republicans have a majority in the House of
Representatives and they believe that regulating private business is harmful and invasive.
Republicans can most effectively undermine Obama’s directive by ________.
a. withholding agency authorization
b. withholding appropriations
c. increasing fire-alarm oversight
d. increasing police-patrol oversight
e. forming an iron triangle
ANS: B DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - Budgeting
MSC: Applying
53. Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council established a legal standard for judicial review of
________.
a. congressional oversight of bureaucratic agencies
b. presidential authority to remove political appointees
c. procedures for Congress to overturn regulations created by bureaucracies
d. laws that establish new administrative agencies
e. rules and regulations issued by executive agencies under authority delegated by Congress
ANS: E DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - The Courts’ Influence
MSC: Analyzing
54. Which action may be subject to review under the legal standard established by Chevron v. Natural
Resources Defense Council?
a. Congress reducing the budget of the National Science Foundation
b. the president issuing an executive order directing the Department of Justice to prioritize
the investigation and prosecution of drug cases
c. Congress creating legislation that allows the Food and Drug Administration to regulate
tobacco products
d. the Environmental Protection Agency issuing new rules to limit carbon emissions under
the Clean Air Act
e. the president firing the Secretary of the Interior
ANS: D DIF: Difficult REF: CH07 - The Courts’ Influence
MSC: Applying
55. Which is a system of congressional oversight of federal agencies that relies on interest groups and
citizens to inform Congress of unwanted actions?
a. administrative law d. ambulance oversight
b. police-patrol oversight e. extraordinary rendition
c. fire-alarm oversight
ANS: C DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - Oversight
MSC: Remembering
56. Which is a system of congressional oversight of federal agencies that consists of active monitoring
of agencies by Congress through routine inspections?
a. administrative law d. ambulance oversight
b. fire-alarm oversight e. extraordinary rendition
c. police-patrol oversight
ANS: C DIF: Easy REF: CH07 - Oversight
MSC: Remembering
57. What is the principal advantage of fire-alarm oversight over police-patrol oversight?
a. relatively low costs for Congress to monitor agencies
b. increased contact between Congress and agencies
c. minimized reliance on interest groups and citizens
d. greater contact between Congress and the presidency
e. reduced risk of coalition drift
ANS: A DIF: Difficult REF: CH07 - Oversight
MSC: Understanding
58. The American Procedure Act, the Freedom of Information Act, and the Sunshine Act together
constitute a congressional ________ that allows Congress to keep a close eye on the bureaucracy.
a. jurisdiction d. fire-alarm oversight
b. triangle oversight e. police-patrol oversight
c. contract
ANS: D DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Oversight
MSC: Remembering
59. What are the three corners of an “iron triangle”?

a. an interest group, a congressional committee, and a federal agency
b. voters, an interest group, and a federal agency
c. the states, a congressional committee, and voters
d. a foreign government, the Office of Management and Budget, and a federal agency
e. the Office of Management and Budget, an interest group, and a congressional committee
ANS: A DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Interest Groups
MSC: Remembering
60. Military officers often retire to work for defense contractors and interest groups that support the
defense industry. Congressional committees dealing with national security often employ staff
members who are retired from the military or have employment experience in private defense
industries or interest groups. In the case of national defense, the relationships among the
Department of Defense, congressional committees dealing with national security, and the defense
industry and its interest groups may be described as a/an ________.
a. inside job d. logroll
b. iron triangle e. pork barrel
c. close encounter
ANS: B DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Interest Groups
MSC: Applying
61. Due to various legislation and court decisions, the American bureaucracy has been given the
ability to conduct all of the following EXCEPT ________.
a. legislation d. writing statutes
b. adjudication e. implementing policies
c. vetoing legislation
ANS: C DIF: Moderate REF: CH07 - Two Views of Bureaucracy
MSC: Remembering
ESSAY
1. Define the principal-agent problem and its relevance for understanding interactions among
Congress, the president, and federal bureaucracies. Which institution or set of institutions usually
acts as the principal, and which acts as the agent? What mechanisms and strategies are available to
the principal to control the agent and minimize shirking?
ANS:
A thorough answer may include the following:
• Discussion of principal-agent problem, generally: instance in which one actor (principal)
contracts another actor (agent) to act on the principal’s behalf; however, actors may not
share goals or preferences and the principal lacks the means to observe all of the agent’s
behavior
• Bureaucrats are agents; Congress/president is the principal.
• Some issues with two principals:
 May lack clarity in instructions from Congress and president if they disagree or are
from different parties
 May lack autonomy, given principals organize budgets
 May lack resources, as politicians often run campaigns on “reducing the size of the
federal government”
• Problems with shirking arise when “drift” occurs—when bureaucrats slowly change
behavior and stray from what principals want, instead focusing on what they (agents)
want.
• Drift also occurs when administrations or Congresses shift policy preferences (e.g.,
elections).
• Principals keep watch over agents through APA, fire-alarm oversight, and police-patrol
oversight.
MSC: Understanding
2. Discuss the historical development of the federal bureaucracy in the United States. What were its
origins? When and why did it expand? How have the movements toward privatization and
marketization influenced the bureaucracy in recent decades?
ANS:
• Discussion of the key time points in the shaping of the bureaucracy, including:
 Early years
 Spoils System
 Civil Service Reform
 Modern Reforms
 Privatization and Marketization
• See Figure “Total Executive-Branch Employment” and “Historical Path”
MSC: Understanding
3. What is an “iron triangle”? What institutions are part of an iron triangle, and how do they interact?
How does the structure of an iron triangle support effective governance? How do iron triangles
promote inefficiencies and bad public policies?
ANS:
• Iron triangle refers to the special relationship that develops among interest groups
representing the private sector being regulated by government, the congressional
committees in charge of writing related laws, and the bureaucratic agency that
implements the laws.
• Inefficiencies/Concerns: special relationship may lead to biased decisions; businesses
being regulated might be treated as “insiders” and get special treatment, pulling away
focus from consumers whom the regulations are intended to protect; additionally, people
often switch from one corner of the triangle to another, increasing the likelihood of a
“coziness” between corners of the triangle (e.g., many defense contractors are former
military)
• Effective/Positives: individuals become “policy experts” in certain areas and thus have
high levels of knowledge on particular issues
• See Figure “An Iron Triangle”
MSC: Understanding

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American Political System 3rd Edition

Kollman Test Bank

1. Upon whose orders do federal bureaucrats act?

10. Which of the following is operated most like a private corporation?

15. What type of law is made within the executive-branch bureaucracy?

18. What are “street-level” bureaucrats?

19. Do “street-level” bureaucrats make policy decisions?

20. Employees at independent agencies may be dismissed ________.

23. Patronage appointments resulted in ________.

24. The Pendleton Act, in part, created a system of ________.

42. When does coalitional drift occur?

46. In cases of bureaucratic capture, who is doing the capturing?

59. What are the three corners of an “iron triangle”?

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