Electoral Contests in America

Pg. 77

1. How often does the Federal Government hold elections?

2. Why do States hold elections at the same time as the Federal Government?

3. Incumbents win re-election _____% of the time?

4. Who has the greatest incumbency advantage, House or Senate members?




pg. 79 The Election Cycle

5.   What are the two phases of elections?

6. What is the purpose of the primary election and when are these contests held?

7. Define Closed and Open Primary

8.  What is the outcome of a candidate who receives a plurality?

9. What method does the Democratic party use when selecting delegates?


pg. 80  Financing Campaigns

10. What differentiates Barack Obama's rise to the White House compared to that of George Bush and Bill Clinton's rise?

11.  What can candidates who receive more that 10% of the vote apply for in an election?

12. What presidential contest was the most expensive in American political history?

13. To what extent does the federal government provide funds for general election campaigns?

14. Have attempts at campaign finance reform been successful? What obstacles have prevented campaign finance reform?

Civil Rights Study Guide Analysis

Define Civil Rights (pg. 173)

The struggle for civil rights is about what? (pg. 173)

What other racial minorities/groups that fought for their rights following the African-American     Civil Rights Movement? (pg.173)

Define Poll Tax (pg. 175)

Define Literacy Test (pg.175)

What is the NAACP and its purpose? (pg.175)

Explain the difference between de jure and de facto segregation? (pg.175)

What court case upheld the use of busing? (pg. 175)

In what two states is de facto segregation re-emerging and how has the Supreme Court addressed this? (pg.175)

Who are Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton? (pg.177)

When did the American Feminist movement emerge and what were its major points of emphasis? (pg.177)

Define the Equal Rights Amendment (pg.177)

Define Title IX (pg.177)

How many undocumented immigrants are on US soil? (pg.177)

Explain the two sides of the debate surrounding immigration? (Critics of illegal immigration and Civil Rights advocates being the two sides) (pg.177)

Civil Liberties Analysis

Is the use of torture morally acceptable when garnering national security intelligence?

Should the detainee prison be closed on Guantanamo Bay?

Does Barack Obama support the closing of Guantanamo Bay prison?

How should potential terrorists be treated?

Do they deserve due process?

What is due process?

What is the Republican stance on closing the Guantanamo Bay Prison?




http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/15/opinion/hunger-striking-at-guantanamo-bay.html?_r=0

Civil Rights Unit 4 (B)

Vocabulary/Identifications

1. 13th amendment
2. 14th amendment
3. 15th amendment
4. Reconstruction
5. Thaddeus Stevens
6. Fernando Wood
7. 1965 Civil Rights Act 
8. The Great Society
9. Suffrage
10. Malcolm X

Who is the current Attorney General of the Obama Government?

Who has been nominated to replace the current Attorney General?

Who is the current Secretary of State of the Obama government?

Who was the first Secretary of State in the Obama government? 

Who is the current President of Iran?

Who is the Aytollah of Iran? 

Civil Rights: Unit 4

Obama on Voting Rights

Utilize the following link to respond to the questions below: 

1. Why are college students challenging a North Carolina voter photo identification law?
2. Why do Republicans and Democrats disagree about the need for new voter ID laws?
3. How will the new North Carolina law affect younger voters, particularly college students?
4. How does partisan politics seem especially relevant to the passage of the new North Carolina law?


Respond to These Critical Thinking Questions: In your own words
5. Can you think of ways to make sure voting is both easy to do for young people, like college students, while at the same time reducing the possibility of voter fraud? Explain.

6. Should states try to make it easier for young people to vote, so voter participation rates increase, or should they make it more difficult for young people to vote, to protect against the possibility of voter fraud?

7. What do you think the priority should be? Explain.
8. How can Mr. Obama address and expand voting rights in America?

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/06/us/college-students-claim-voter-id-laws-discriminate-based-on-age.html

Federalism Lecture

Federalism Lecture

Federalism Free Response Questions: 2ndperiodrowe.blogspot.com

Due Today:

1. Please name and briefly explain the difference between dual federalism and cooperative federalism, using examples to illustrate your answer.



2. Please address the debate surrounding the 10th amendment and the state power vis' a vis' the national government's power. In your answer, outline the different interpretations of the 10th amendment with regard  to this question, as well as the important Supreme Court decisions that contributed to the debate over time.

The Executive Branch: Foreign Policy Agenda and Nominations

The Executive Branch: Foreign Policy Agenda and Nominations

Mr. Obama recently accepted the resignation of Chuck Hagel, a former Republican Senator, as Secretary of Defense. This represents a trend of the Executive Branch affording national security positions to Washington insiders with relatively little foreign policy experience. However, under the Obama Administration, the White House is forced to nominate only those individuals that have a chance to circumvent the Republican controlled Congress. It is the new Defense Sec. nominee, Mr. Asher who stands a reasonable chance due to his lengthy career in the nation's national security apparatus and his non-partisan nature.

Respond to the following questions in your notebook. (DO NOT WRITE THE QUESTION)

http://foreignpolicy.com/2014/12/04/ash-carter-vs-barack-obamas-yogi-berra-foreign-policy-secretary-of-defense/

Who is Ash Carter?

What is his original trade?

How will this allow him to better serve the Defense Department as opposed to politicians like Chuck Hagel?

What 4 reasons does author  David Rothkopf cite as potential areas of difficulty for the incoming Defense Secretary?

How large is the current National Security Staff currently?

Why is this a problem, according to Mr. Rothkopf?

What is the purpose of the National Intelligence Council?

How has it deviated from its main goals?

What is the National Security Act of 1947?

What is the second NSC?

What is the general critique Mr. Rothkopf has of the current White House Staff (Ben Rhodes and Valerie J.)?

What is the key issue for the incoming Secretary of Defense?

What is the author’s view on the White House notion that Iran is an ally in the fight against ISIS?

In the author’s final paragraph, what is his view of the American national security apparatus?

Sin Nombre and the Politics of Immigration/Constitutionality of Same Sex Marriage

Film Review:

What was your overall impression of Sin Nombre?

Did it change your views on immigration policy?

What surprised you most about the film?

Should immigrants fleeing gang violence be given asylum under US law?

Does the US have any responsibility in dealing with rampant violence?

(Please respond to the questions above in ONE paragraph total, do not write a paragraph for each question. Simply weave your responses into a comprehensive paragraph. )



Utilize the link below to respond to questions 1-
Questions 1-3 located in paragraph 1
1. Who is Roy Moore?
2. What did his judicial order do?
3. What was his legal reasoning for this order?

4. What does the phrase "redefining marriage" translate to in "conservative code?" (located in paragraph 4)
5. What reason (s) do progressives reject this notion? (located in paragraph 6)


6. Do the courts have the power to redefine marriage? (located in paragraph 8)
7. What question, beyond the fact that marriage is an institution,  is involved in this issue? (located in paragraph 9)

8. What is an institution? What questions should the American people be answering surrounding these questions? (located in paragraph 10)

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/02/16/what-alabamas-roy-moore-gets-right/?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=c-column-top-span-region&region=c-column-top-span-region&WT.nav=c-column-top-span-region&_r=0

2014 Mid-Term Election Appraisal (U.S. Congress)

2014 Mid-Term Election Appraisal (U.S. Congress)

NY Times on 2014 Mid Terms

Utilize the link below to respond to questions:
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/23/upshot/why-senate-control-matters.html?abt=0002&abg=1&_r=0

How many Red states were needed for the Democrats to maintain control of the US Senate?

In which states were the Democrats needing to block Republican victories in the 2014 Mid term elections?

What major issues are the two parties divided on?

Failing to pass major climate legislation, due to gridlock in both the House and Senate, how has Mr. Obama expected to address climate change?

What has been target of the executive actions?

How does Mr. McConell aim to combat Mr. Obama's premise that he will veto any legislation that aims to defund his policies?

Has public opinion sided with the Republicans when they decide to hold no votes on budget proposals and allow the government to shut down?

As the last two previous presidents did, will Mr. Obama be able to place plenty of federal judges on the bench in his final two years in the executive office?

What percentage among Mr. Obama’s nominees to District Courts have failed to be confirmed?

How have Democrats overcome this tactic of Republican blockage of judicial nominees?

In what areas do the federal courts have major influence?

How long is a United States senate term?

What two projections does David Leonhardt make concerning the potentiality of a Republican and Democratic president?

Human Rights Survey

Click on link below:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1js5fvWYLV3kHyFP8ioxxUqhU7e4joIhqj5WZnRkkM1Q/viewform