Harwich High School Government Homework

Summer Extra Credit Assignment

2009-06-19T08:42:00.001-07:00

Harwich High School U.S. Government and Politics
Summer Project

Welcome to U.S. Government! I’m looking forward to a great year of studying and discussing government and politics. To begin your preparation, I am offering and extra credit summer assignment. I strongly encourage you to complete it!

In order to be a successful student of United States Government, you need to get in the habit of following current political events. You need to know who the leaders are, what decisions they are making, and how it may affect your life. To get in this habit, complete the following assignment:

For each week of the summer (you can start after July 4), choose one important political event, and give the following information:
a. Summarize what happened in a brief paragraph
b. List the media source form which you got your information (date and page #/time)
c. Name one key decision maker in this event – their office and where they are from
d. State two or three political terms used in the story and give a brief definition

You should not repeat the decision makers or terms, and you should use at least five different media sources.

The terms should be new or unfamiliar to you (i.e., not “President”). Some examples of words you may come across are: Bully Pulpit, sound bite, photo op, Filibuster, Cloture, Apportionment, Gerrymandering, Conference Committee, bipartisan, judicial activism, soft money, NAFTA, etc.

We will focus on national politics, so your stories should as well. You may also include state and local issues. Foreign policy stories (especially where our government is involved) are great.

Suggested media sources:

A daily newspaper – look at headlines, national news, editorials, oped page (opposite the editorials).
An online newspaper – www.nytimes.com, www.washingtonpost.com are excellent
- both also have member centers which offer free daily emails of the headlines, & politics pages:
- www.nytimes.com/pages/politics/index.html, www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/politics/
- also check out www.boston.com/globe/ and www.capecodonline.com/cctimes/
News magazines – Newsweek, Time, US News &World Report – all offer excellent weekly summaries
- www.newsweek.com, www.time.com, www.usnews.com – publish online Sunday/Monday
Nightly local news (5-6:30 on most stations) and network news – 6:30 on ABC, NBC, and CBS
Weekly news shows – most are on Sunday mornings (e.g. ABC’s This Week – 10:30 on Channel 5)
- PBS has a couple Friday night – McLaughlin Group (7:30), Washington Week in Review (9PM)
Cable news networks – CNN, MSNBC, FoxNews, NECN, etc. – also offer websites – www.cnn.com is excellent
-CNN also has a daily show- Inside Politics at 4 PM – check out www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/
Various other sources – e.g. if you have a yahoo.com home page, you can set it up to give you the
headlines from the Associated Press (AP) every time you log on
Online blogs – lots of them – www.polticalwire.com and www.fivethirtyeight.com are my favorites!

Please bring all your weekly stories in the first day of class. You may email me your weekly assignments if you would like comments on them, or if you have any questions: dickson@harwich.edu

Additional Suggested Summer Reading
These are good books on politics. You can receive extra credit for handing in a reflection on any of these.

Man of the House, Tip O’Neill with William Novak
All Politics is Local, Tip O’Neill
Thirteen Days, Robert Kennedy
All the President’s Men, Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward
Democracy in America, Alexis de Tocqueville
Hard Ball, by Chris Matthews
The Courage of their Convictions, by Peter Irons
The System, by David Broder and Haynes Johnson
Dreams from my Father, Barack Obama
Presidential Power, by Richard Neustadt

Town Meeting Essay

2009-05-01T07:15:00.000-07:00

State/Local Government Essay Assignment

Your assignment is to choose one article in the town meeting warrant, and write an essay about whether or not the article should be adopted (perhaps in an amended form). Make sure you choose an article that you feel strongly enough about to be able to write a five-paragraph essay – one in which you have several strong reasons for your positions that you can develop as main paragraphs. You are not required to attend town meeting (you will get extra credit if you go), nor will you discuss how the article was resolved – your argument is about whether it should pass.

Click here to review the 2009 Harwich Town Meeting Warrant.

You may substitute another issue in state or local government to write an essay about with the prior approval of the teacher.

Policy Unit Essay

2009-05-01T07:12:00.000-07:00

Foreign Policy Unit Essay Assignment

Consider what we have learned about U.S. foreign policy, and develop a doctrine of foreign policy in the context of the post-Cold War, post-September 11 world.

What should be our role in the world?

What should be our goals in foreign policy? What are our most important interests, and what should we do to pursue these interests? What methods should we use, military and otherwise? When and how will we act? What is the role of the UN? NATO? Other allies?

Connect your argument to the situation in Iraq. Should we have fought this war? What should we do now? What should our role be in rebuilding Iraq? What should we with other potential threats – e.g., North Korea, Iran?

Chapter 17

2009-05-01T07:11:00.000-07:00

Chapter 17 – Foreign and Military Policy

Isolationism

Internationalism

Foreign Policy

Presidential Responsibilities

State Department

Secretary of State

Foreign Service

Ambassadors

Passports

Diplomatic Immunity

Defense Department

Civilian Control

Secretary of Defense

Joint Chiefs of Staff

Department of the Army

Department of the Navy

Department of the Air Force

Central Intelligence Agency – CIA

Department of Homeland Security

National Aeronautics and Space Administration – NASA

Selective Service

“Entangling Alliances”

Monroe Doctrine

Continental Expansion

Good Neighbor Policy

Open Door Policy

World War I

World War II

Collective Security

Deterrence

Cold War

Truman Doctrine

Containment

Berlin Blockade

Cuban Missile Crisis

Korean War

Vietnam War

Détente

The End of the Cold War

War with Iraq

Foreign Aid

North Atlantic Treaty Organization – NATO

NATO’s New Agenda

Other Alliances

The Middle East

Camp David Accord

United Nations – UN

UN Charter and Organization

General Assembly

Security Council

Other UN organizations

The Work of the UN

Chapter 16

2009-05-01T07:09:00.000-07:00

Chapter 16 – Financing Government

Power to Tax

Four Expressed Constitutional Limitations
1.

2.

3.

4.

The Implied Limitation

16th Amendment

Progressive Tax

Individual Income Tax

Tax Return

Tax Relief Act of 2001

Corporation Income Tax

Social Security

Payroll Tax

Medicare Tax

Unemployment Insurance

Regressive Tax

Excise Taxes

Estate Tax

Gift Tax

Custom Duties

Taxing for Nonrevenue Purposes

Nontax Revenues

Borrowing

Deficits

Surplus

Public Debt

Federal Spending

Entitlements

Spending Priorities – top 4 areas:
1.

2.

3.

4.

Uncontrollable (Mandatory) Spending

Controllable (Discretionary) Spending

Federal Budget

Office of Management and Budget/The President’s Budget

Congressional Budget Office

Appropriations Committees

Budget Committees

Fiscal Year

Continuing Resolutions

Chapter 21

2009-02-23T11:30:00.000-08:00

Due: Thursday, February 26

Chapter 21 – Review Terms

Heterogeneous population

Reasons for focus on African Americans
1.

2.

3.

Native American Reservations

Hispanic Americans/Latinos

4 groups: 1.

2.

3.

4.

Asian Americans

Discrimination against women

Equal Protection clause

Reasonable Classification

Rational Basis Test

Strict Scrutiny Test

Segregation

Separate-but-equal

Brown v. Board of Education

De jure v. de facto segregation

Classification by Sex

Civil Rights Act of 1964

Affirmative Action

Quotas

Reverse Discrimination

Regents of the University of California v. Bakke

Adarand Construction v. Pena

Proposition 209

Citizenship by birth

Naturalization

Loss of Citizenship

Immigration Act of 1965

Immigration Act of 1990

Deportation

Undocumented Aliens

Chapter 20 Terms

2009-02-06T05:07:00.001-08:00

C-block - Due Weds 2/11
B-block - Due Thurs 2/12

Chapter 20: Civil Liberties: Protecting Individual Freedoms
Due Process

Procedural Due Process

Substantive Due Process

Examples of Due Process

Police Power

Search Warrant

Health, Safety, Morals, General Welfare

Right of Privacy

Roe v. Wade

Webster v. Reproductive Health Services

Planned Parenthood v. Casey

13th Amendment

Right to Keep and Bear Arms

Search and Seizure

Probable Cause

Arrests

Automobile Searches

Exclusionary Rule

Mapp v. Ohio

Inevitable Discovery Exception

Good Faith Exception

Honest Mistake Exception

Wiretapping

Writ of Habeas Corpus

Bill of Attainder

Ex Post Facto Laws

Grand Jury

Indictment

Double Jeopardy

Speedy Trial/Public Trial

Trial By Jury

Right to an Adequate Defense
1.
2.
3.
4.
Gideon v. Wainwright

Self-Incrimination

Miranda v. Arizona

Miranda Rule

Excessive Bail

Preventive Detention

Cruel and Unusual Punishment

Capital Punishment

Treason

Chapter 19 Terms

2009-02-02T04:39:00.000-08:00

C-block - Due Friday 2/6
B-block - Due Monday 2/9

Chapter 19 Terms: Civil Liberties: First Amendment Freedoms

Civil Liberties

Civil Rights

Limited Government

Relative Nature of Individual Rights

Rights in Conflict

Rights of Aliens

The Bill of Rights and the Federal Government

Due Process Clause

Incorporation

Ninth Amendment

Freedom of Expression

Establishment Clause

Separation of Church and State

School Prayer

Engel v. Vitale

Student Religious Groups

Teaching Evolution

Aid to Parochial Schools

The Lemon Test

Seasonal Displays

Free Exercise Clause

Limits of Free Exercise

Free Exercise Cases Upheld

Free Exchange of Ideas

Libel/slander

Sedition

Smith Act

Obscenity

Prior Restraint

Media Confidentiality/Shield Laws

Regulation of Radio and Television

Symbolic Speech – examples of actions protected and not protected

Commercial Speech

Right to Assemble

Time-Manner-Place Regulations

Public Property – Assembly cases

Private Property

Freedom of Association

Chapter 18 Terms

2009-01-28T04:37:00.000-08:00

C-block, Due Tues 2/3
B-block, Due Weds 2/4

Chapter 18 – The Federal Court System

Dual Court System

Constitutional Courts

Special Courts

Jurisdiction

Jurisdiction of Federal Courts

Exclusive v. Concurrent Jurisdiction

Plaintiff v. Defendant

Original v. Appellate Jurisdiction

Appointment of Federal Judges

Judicial activism v. Judicial restraint

Term and Pay of Judges

Court Officers
Magistrate

Bankruptcy Judge

U.S. Attorney

U.S. Marshal

District Courts

Federal Judicial Districts and Judges

District Court Jurisdiction

Criminal v. Civil Cases

Court of Appeals

Appellate Court Judges

Appellate Court Jurisdiction

Court of International Trade

Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
Supreme Court

Judicial Review

Marbury v. Madison

Effects of Marbury

Supreme Court Jurisdiction

Appeals to the Supreme Court

Rule of Four

Brief Orders (Per Curiam Opinions)

Writ of Certiorari

Certificate

Oral Arguments

Briefs

Amicus Curiae Briefs

Solicitor General

Conference

Majority Opinion (Opinion of the Court)

Precedents

Concurring Opinion

Dissenting Opinion

Court of Federal Claims

Territorial Claims Courts

District of Columbia Courts

Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces

Military Tribunal

Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims

U.S. Tax Court

Chapter 15

2009-01-08T10:56:00.000-08:00

Due: B-block - Tues 1/20, C-block Thurs 1/15

Chapter 15 – Review Terms

Bureaucracy

Three features of bureaucracy
1.

2.

3.

Benefits of bureaucracy

Name Game

Executive Office of the President

White House Office

National Security Council

Office of Homeland Security

Office of Management and Budget

National Drug Control

Council of Economic Advisors

Other Units of the EOP

Executive Departments

Chief Officers and Staff

List the Cabinet departments:

The Cabinet

Choosing Cabinet Members

Women and Minorities in the Cabinet

Why Independent Agencies exist

Independent Executive Agencies

Independent Regulatory Commissions

Deregulation

Government Corporations

Civil Service

Spoils system

Pendleton Act

Classified service

Office of Personnel Management

Political Activities of Bureaucrats

Chapter 14

2009-01-08T10:54:00.000-08:00

Due: B block - Tues 1/13, C-block Mon 1/12

Chapter 14 – Review Terms
The presidency in Article II

Factors: 1. Unity of the Presidency

2.

3.

4.

5.

T. Roosevelt’s view

Taft’s view

Imperial Presidency

Executing the Laws

Ordinance Power

Executive Orders

Appointment Power

Removal Power

Treaties

Executive Agreements

Recognition

Commander In Chief

Undeclared wars

Congressional Resolutions

Other uses of Military Power

War Powers Resolution of 1973

Recommend Legislation

Veto Power

Line-Item Veto

Reprieve

Pardon

Commutation

Amnesty

Chapter 13

2009-01-05T07:09:00.000-08:00

Due: Friday 1/9

Chapter 13 Terms: The Presidency
Chief of State

Chief Executive

Chief Administrator

Chief Diplomat

Commander-in-chief

Chief Legislator

Chief of Party

Chief Citizen

Formal qualifications

President’s term

Pay and Benefits

Presidential Succession

Presidential Disability/25th Amendment

The Vice Presidency – its role and importance

“President-in-waiting”

Presidential Selection in the Constitution

Election of 1800

12th Amendment

Presidential Nominating Conventions

Apportionment of Delegates

Selection of Delegates

Presidential Primaries Today

Proportional Representation

Primaries – Evaluation/Reform

Caucus-Convention Process

National Convention - Goals

Platform

Keynote Address

Who is Nominated? – key characteristics

Electoral College today

Defects
1.

2.

3.

Reforms:
District Plan
Proportional Plan
Direct Popular Election
National Bonus Plan
Defense of Electoral College

Congress Unit Test Review

2008-12-16T11:13:00.000-08:00

B & C block - The Test is Friday 12/19

Congress Unit: Review Guide

[** - honors only]

Bicameralism

**Term v. Session of Congress

House of Representatives

Reapportionment

Redistricting

Gerrymandering

Single-Member Districts

Wesberry v. Sanders (1964)

The Senate

The “Upper House”

Women and Minorities in Congress

Constituent service

Trustee

Delegate

Partisan

Politico

Strict Construction

Loose Construction

Expressed Powers

Power to Tax

Power to Borrow

Commerce Power

Gibbens v. Ogden (1824)

Civil Rights Act of 1964

Heart of Atlanta v. United States (1964)

Currency Power

War Powers

Copyrights and Patents

Implied Powers

Necessary and Proper Clause

Elastic Clause

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

Impeachment

Appointments and Treaties

Oversight Function

Investigatory Powers

Speaker of the House

Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)

President of the Senate

President Pro Tempore

**Robert Byrd (D-WV)

Majority/Minority Leader

Harry Reid (D-NV)

Mitch McConnell (R-KY)

**Steny Hoyer (D-MD)

John Boehner (R-OH)

Majority/Minority Whip

Party Caucus

Committee Chairs

Seniority Rule

Standing Committees

Conference Committees

Sen. Edward Kennedy

Sen. John Kerry

Rep. William Delahunt

Bills

Joint/Concurrent/Simple Resolutions

Riders

How a bill becomes a law

**The First Reading

Committee Actions

Subcommittees

Hearings

Mark Up

Discharge Petition

Rules Committee

**Second Reading

**Floor Debate

Committee of the Whole

Filibuster

Cloture

President’s Actions

**Pork

**Automotive Industry Bailout

Essays:

1. Does Congress have too much power? If yes, which powers should be restricted and why? If not, which powers are most important for Congress to exercise and why?

2. Should Congressional term limits be adopted? Present and defend a specific proposal for term limits, or argue clearly why they should not be adopted.

**3. Does the prevalence of pork mean that Congress is “broken”? Can Congress work if its members are concerned primarily with their local districts and constituent service? Is so, explain why. If not, explain why not and how the problem might be fixed.

[** - honors only]

Congress Readings - Honors

2008-12-12T04:53:00.000-08:00

Honors Only - C-block - Due Tuesday 12/17

Congress Readings – Pork

1. What is pork? Give a definition and some examples and types of pork.

2. What are some arguments against pork?

3. Why do some people defend pork?

Model Congress Exercise and Essay

2008-12-10T06:34:00.000-08:00

Essay Due:
C-block - Friday 12/12
B-block - Tues 12/16

After the model congress, write the following essay:

Should Congress’ method of passing laws be reformed? Why or why not?

Your essay should do one of two things. You could argue that the current process is beneficial and explain three reasons why – three good parts or positive effects of the process. Or you could argue that the process is flawed and explain three bad parts or negative effects of the process and how it should be changed.

REMEMBER:

Your essay needs to have a clear argument, stated in the first sentence of your introduction. Your three supporting reasons are then summarized in the intro, and developed into complete main paragraphs that support your argument. Finish with a conclusion that restates the argument and explains why this is important.

Model Congress procedure:

For this exercise, each of you is going to be a Congressperson, and we are going to consider and pass bills. You will be divided in to a House and Senate, and further divided into committees, and we will use these to approximate the process that Congress uses to pass bills. Instead of considering national legislation, we are going to take our Student Handbook to be the body of law to which we will consider changes. For our purposes, state law is our Constitution, so you cannot propose bills that violate state law (e.g., a smoking area or a shorter school day).

1) Using your Student Handbook, each student will propose at least one bill about a change or addition to the handbook. You may phrase your bill in any way that makes clear the change you want to see put into the handbook. Put your own name at the top as sponsor.
2) We will divide into houses and committees, and each bill will be considered by a committee. Each committee will select a chair who will direct the proceedings of the committee and record its votes. The committee do one of several things:
a. Approve the bill as written
b. Approve the bill with amendments (write the amendments on to the bill – each proposed amendment must get a majority of the committee to support it before it is added)
c. Disapprove the bill (This is rare since it would allow the bill to survive to be considered by the full House/Senate)
d. Take no action (this way the bill is dead, this is the most common result when bills are referred to committees in Congress)
3) Convene as the full House and full Senate (separately), in order to consider the bills that passed out of committee. Each will elect a leader (the House will select a Speaker and the Senate a Majority Leader) who will moderate the discussion of the bills and record the votes. The full House/Senate has the same options for each bill as the committees do (approve, amend, disapprove, no action) – the exception being that if the full House/Senate disapprove a bill, it is dead (same as taking no action).
4) Then we reconvene as committees and the bills that passed the other house go through the same process
5) We reconvene as the full House/Senate for the same purpose
6) Any bills that have been amended in the second house where they were considered have to go to a Conference Committee – a temporary group that irons out the differences in the House and Senate versions of the bill. We will form these out of members of the committees that originally considered the bills.
7) Reconvene as a full House/Senate to vote on bills that come out of Conference Committee. Here the bills must be voted up or down without amendment.
8) The bills will be considered by the President (Mr. Dickson, make that Pres. Dickson – Mr. President to you). The President will either sign, take no action (it will become law since you will not adjourn until June), or return it with objections to the house of origin (a veto).
9) Each house will then consider the vetoed bills and vote on overrides. Overrides require a 2/3 vote to pass, and no amendments can be considered.
10) We will have a set of bills passed by our model Congress, and we will discuss your experience of the process.

Chapter 12

2008-12-05T05:17:00.000-08:00

C-block: Due Weds 12/10
B-block: Due Thurs 12/11
Chapter 12 – Terms

Opening Day in the House and Senate

State of the Union

Speaker of the House

President of the Senate

President pro tempore of the Senate

Party caucus (conference)

Majority/Minority (Floor) Leader

Majority/Minority Whip

Committee Chair

Seniority Rule (and criticism)

Standing Committee

House Rules Committee

Select Committee

Joint Committee

Conference Committee

Bills

Joint Resolution

Concurrent Resolution

(Simple) Resolution

Rider

How A Bill Becomes a Law
1. The First Reading

Congressional Record

2. The Bill in Committee

Discharge petition

Subcommittees

Committee Actions

3. Calendars

Rules

4. The Bill on the Floor

The Committee of the Whole

Debate

House vote

5. The Bill in the Senate

Rules for Debate

Filibuster

Cloture

6. Conference Committees

7. President’s Action

Chapter 11

2008-12-03T06:11:00.000-08:00

B: Due Monday 12/8
C: Due Friday 12/5

Chapter 11 – Terms
Congressional Power

Strict Construction

Liberal (Loose) Construction

Expressed Powers

Direct Tax

Indirect Tax

Power to Borrow

Deficits v. Debt

Commerce Power

Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)

Civil Rights Act of 1964

Currency Power

Bankruptcy

Foreign Relations Powers

War Powers

Postal Power

Copyrights and Patents

Power over Territories

Judicial Powers

Implied Powers

Necessary and Proper (Elastic) Clause

The Battle over the National Bank

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

Nonlegislative Powers

Constitutional Amendments

Electoral Duties

Impeachment

Executive Powers

Investigatory Power

Magruder Chapter 10

2008-11-25T04:28:00.000-08:00

B & C: Due Wed. 12/3

Chapter 10 – Terms
Purpose of Congress

Reasons for Bicameralism –
1. Historical
2. Practical
3. Theoretical
Term

Session

Size and Terms of the House of Representatives

Reapportionment

Reapportionment Act of 1929

Off-year Elections

Single-Member Districts

Gerrymandering

Wesberry v. Sanders (1964)

Qualifications for House Members

The “Upper House”

Election and Terms of Sentators

Continuous Body

Qualifications for Senators

Background of members - the “average” Congressperson

Women and minorities in Congress

Roles of Congresspersons
Representatives
Trustees
Delagates
Partisans
Politicos
Committee Members
Oversight
Servants (constituent service)
Compensation – salary and non-salary

Privileges