Formulation & Effectiveness of Public Policy

How Policy Is Made. Public policy toward the distribution of economic income and wealth and the problem of poverty is made by the interaction of a confusing welter of public and private individuals, institutions and interest groups. The president through his budget and other legislative proposals can initiate action in these areas but Congress through its power of the purse holds most of the trump cards.

Government responsibility for social welfare programs is highly fragmented, not only between the executive and legislative branches but also within them, and between federal, state and local governments. Since the 1980s, Congress has devolved more and more responsibility in this area to the states and localities.

Overall Effectiveness. Under President Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal, the first steps were taken to establish a social safety net for the poor, Social Security, unemployment compensation and various public assistance programs. In 1944, FDR pledged "an economic bill of rights for all Americans, including decent housing, education, and health care" (Chafe 84). These goals have only been partially realized, and hardly at all as a result of public policy initiatives undertaken since the

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stamps and other reductions in social welfare programs. As Morris pointed out, "though the new president began with a few token gestures of promised reform, every major decision is captive to the [powerful] interests" which largely controlled Washington politicians of both major parties in the 1990s (467). Johnson said that "America in the 1990s was essentially a middle- class country;" however, one with a permanent underclass that seemed to be largely beyond the pale of public concerns (947). Foreign Policy How Policy Is Made. Under the Constitution, the executive branch has the primary responsibility for the formulation and implementation of foreign policy through the president's powers as Commander-in-Chief and treaty-making (power to conduct diplomacy) powers. As originally designed, Congress also had important responsibilities, the power to raise revenues, raise armies and declare war. The advice and consent (by a two thirds vote) of the Senate was required for the ratification of treaties and to certain key appointments. In the twentieth century, as Chafe pointed out, "Despite the constraints potentially present in Congress' right to declare war, the commander-in-chief had a virtually unlimited range of options" (196). The
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Approximate Word count = 1744
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page)

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