For much of 2011 and 2012, public dissatisfaction with Congress rose to all time highs, with 70-80% expressing disapproval with how Congress does its job. Many commentators note that Americans are fed up with Washington "grid-lock" that makes government apparently unable to address important problems. Other observers believe that the national government is acting according to its design, based on separation of powers and checks and balances.
In your initial post of at least 200-250 words, analyze how the U.S. Constitution implements separation of powers and checks and balances. Briefly explain why the constitutional framers based the new government on these ideas. Evaluate how separation of powers and checks and balances are working out in practice, today, justifying your assessment with persuasive reasoning and examples.
Fully respond to all parts of the question. Write in your own words. Support your position with APA citations to two or more different resources required for this discussion.
POL 201 Week 1 DQ 2 Amending the U.S. Constitution The U.S. Constitution is considered a “living document” because it can be amended as new issues arise or public opinions change. Using the Internet, identify a constitutional amendment currently being proposed by a member of Congress. Identify the Congressmen, the proposed amendment, why it is being proposed and what you believe are the chances that it will be passed.
POL 201 Week 1 Quiz
1. Question : In republicanism, the state is viewed as a
2. Question : Under John Stuart Mill’s “harm principle,” government may regulate private activities
3. Question : Locke’s use of the term “property”
4. Question : Schattschneider’s “mobilization of bias” is characterized by all except:
5. Question : Samuel P. Huntington defined “creedal passion periods” as periods when Americans
6. Question : Which of the following distinguished the New Jersey Plan from the Virginia Plan?
7. Question : The purpose of the Constitutional Convention was to
8. Question : Impeachment can be characterized as a
9. Question : In creating a new government, the Framers sought to 10. Question : The basis in the Constitution for expansive congressional authority is
POL 201 Week 2 DQ 1 Policy-making in the Federal System
In your initial post of at least 200-250 words, briefly summarize the national government's education policies. Explain the main pros and cons in the debate about these policies. Evaluate them from two perspectives:
a. The policies’ effectiveness in improving the quality of U.S. elementary and secondary education. (Justify your assessment by clearly explaining your definition of "effectiveness" and how it should be measured or determined.)
b. Their consistency with the constitutional framework of federalism. (Justify your assessment by clearly explaining your interpretation of American federalism's constitutional framework and why federal education policies are or are not consistent with it.)
POL 201 Week 2 DQ 2 Meet Your Representative
Go to the United States House of Representatives website and research for your Congressional representative by entering your zip code in the "Find Your Representatives" block. Select your Congressman and then visit your Congressman's official website. Identify those issues your Congressman emphasizes on his or her website. Explain why you believe those issues are given priority on your Congressman's website based on what you have learned from your study of the U.S. Congress and as a constituent of your Congressman's district.
POL 201 Week 2 Quiz
1. Question : Dual Federalism is characterized by
2. Question : Under a Home Rule Charter, local authority is
3. Question : When states or localities receive categorical grants-in-aid from th 4. Question : General Revenue Sharing offers states and localities even greater flexibility than block grants because they
5. Question : With unfunded mandates, the national government
6. Question : An earmark is
7. Question : According to David Mayhew’s “electoral connection” thesis, the primary purpose of members of Congress is to
8. Question : Congressional staff have an important role in Congress because staff.
9. Question : Representation in Congress works through
10. Question : Technology is important in congressional representation because it allows for
POL 201 Week 3 DQ 1 Presidential Leadership and the Electoral College
Briefly summarize how the Electoral College works. Explain some of the main pros and cons in the debate about whether to keep or abolish the current Electoral College process. Also explain one proposal to change how the system works without formally abolishing it. Evaluate the various arguments and the proposal. Include at least two perspectives in your assessment:
a. Your judgment about the relevance of the Electoral College's underlying rationale to contemporary America.
b. Your judgment about its impact on presidential leadership capacity.
POL 201 Week 3 DQ 2 Defense Spending and the Military-Industrial Complex
Explain the iron triangle model of policy-making involving Congress, the bureaucracy, and interest groups. Analyze information about relationships among Congress, the military bureaucracies, and defense industries. Draw your own conclusion, and support it with facts and with persuasive reasoning, about the impact of these relationships on defense spending. Evaluate the accuracy of the iron triangle model as a basis for understanding the process of making defense spending policy.
POL 201 Week 3 Quiz
1. Question : The nerve center of the American Presidency is
2. Question : Given the standard of “High Crimes and Misdemeanors,” a President who uses military force 3. Question : The standard of “High Crimes and Misdemeanors” for Impeachment generally refers to
4. Question : Thomas Jefferson justified the Louisiana Purchase on the grounds
5. Question : A President who has a political mandate has
6. Question : The federal bureaucracy effectively makes public policy by
7. Question : An iron triangle is
8. Question : Which functions are not performed by the American federal bureaucracy?
9. Question : The American bureaucracy conjures up the following images except
10. Question : A president who appoints a careerist to his cabinet wants
POL 201 Week 4 DQ 1 The Supreme Court and Judicial Review
a. What judicial philosophy should guide the Supreme Court's exercise of judicial review?
b. Should the Supreme Court's power of judicial review be strictly limited by a constitutional amendment?
POL 201 Week 4 DQ 2 Habeas Corpus and the War on Terror
Habeas Corpus and the War on Terror. Soon after the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, the Bush administration developed a plan for holding and interrogating prisoners captured during the conflict. They were sent to a prison inside a U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay on land leased from the government of Cuba. Since 2002, over 700 men have been detained at "GITMO." Most have been released without charges or turned over to other governments. In 2011, Congress specifically prohibited the expenditure of funds to transfer GITMO prisoners to detention facilities in the continental United States, making it virtually impossible to try them in civilian courts. As of April 2012, 169 remained in detention at GITMO (Sutton, 2012). An assumption made by the Bush administration in selecting this location was that it was beyond the jurisdiction of U.S. courts. The administration wanted to avoid any judicial oversight of how it handled detainees, characterized as "enemy combatants." A possible legal challenge to indefinite detention with no formal charges or judicial proceedings might arise from the habeas corpus provision of the Constitution.
POL 201 Week 4 Quiz 1. Question : Which case established the precedent of the U.S. Supreme Court being able to strike down
2. Question : When the Supreme Court hands down a decision, it is
3. Question : The professional qualifications model in the selection of judges holds that
4. Question : In Gibbons v. Ogden, the Supreme Court held that
5. Question : McCulloch v Maryland is an important case because it was one of the cases whereby the
6. Question : Under the precedence of Plessy v. Ferguson, a state would be able to
7. Question : Civil rights in the United States evolved from
8. Question : The Privileges and Immunities Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment means
9. Question : Overall, we learn that civil liberties in the United States mean that
10. Question : To be treated equally under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment means
POL 201 Week 5 DQ 1 Party Platforms and Winning Elections Political parties mobilize voters to win elections and implement policy goals. Parties use their stated policy goals (i.e., their platforms) as a way to mobilize voter support. Generally, in order to be successful in a two-party system, parties must have policy goals across a broad range of issue areas to appeal to a broad range of voters.
For this discussion, you will identify one issue area that you want investigate. Use the resources required for this discussion to gather information about the goals and proposals, in that issue area, of three political parties – the Democratic and Republican parties and a third party.
POL 201 Week 5 DQ 2 Voting and Turnout Voting and Turnout. The U.S. has one of the lowest voter turnout rates among modern democratic political systems. One study ranks the U.S. 120th on a list of 169 nations compared on voter turnout (Pintor, Gratschew, & Sullivan, 2002). While during the last decade many initiatives have been undertaken to increase voter participation, concerns about the possibility of election fraud have also increased. Additionally, some political interests feel threatened by the increase in turnout among some traditionally low-turnout ethnic minorities.
Several states have recently passed legislation imposing new registration and identification requirements. This has sparked debate about whether these are tactics intended to suppress turnout or to prevent fraud.
Soon after the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, the Bush administration developed a plan for holding and interrogating captured prisoners. They were sent to a prison inside a U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay, on land leased from the government of Cuba. Since 2002, over 700 men have been detained at "GITMO." Most have been released without charges or turned over to other governments. In 2011, Congress specifically prohibited the expenditure of funds to transfer GITMO prisoners to detention facilities in the continental United States, making it virtually impossible to try them in civilian courts. As of April 2012, 169 remained in detention at GITMO (Sutton, 2012).
An assumption made by the Bush administration in selecting this location was that it was beyond the jurisdiction of U.S. courts. The administration wanted to avoid any judicial oversight of how it handled detainees, characterized as "enemy combatants." A possible legal challenge to indefinite detention with no formal charges or judicial proceedings might arise from the habeas corpus provision of the Constitution.
POL 201 Week 5 Final Paper Civil Liberties, Habeas Corpus, and the War on Terror The final assignment for this course is a Final Paper. The purpose of the Final Paper is to give you an opportunity to apply much of what you have learned about American national government to an examination of civil liberties in the context of the war on terror. The Final Paper represents 20% of the overall course grade.
Soon after the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, the Bush administration developed a plan for holding and interrogating captured prisoners. They were sent to a prison inside a U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay, on land leased from the government of Cuba. Since 2002, over 700 men have been detained at "GITMO." Most have been released without charges or turned over to other governments. In 2011, Congress specifically prohibited the expenditure of funds to transfer GITMO prisoners to detention facilities in the continental United States, making it virtually impossible to try them in civilian courts. As of April 2012, 169 remained in detention at GITMO (Sutton, 2012).
An assumption made by the Bush administration in selecting this location was that it was beyond the jurisdiction of U.S. courts. The administration wanted to avoid any judicial oversight of how it handled detainees, characterized as "enemy combatants." A possible legal challenge to indefinite detention with no formal charges or judicial proceedings might arise from the habeas corpus provision of the Constitution.
Article I, Section 9 of the Constitution states, "The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it." Under this provision, persons detained by the government are entitled to a judicial hearing to determine if there is any legal basis for their detention. Some legal commentators refer to the right of habeas corpus as the "great writ of liberty" because it is a prisoner's ultimate recourse to an impartial judge who can review the possibility that he is being held illegally by the executive (e.g., the police or the military). In nations that do not honor habeas corpus, people simply disappear into prisons without ever having their day in court.
Several controversial Supreme Court cases have come out of GITMO. One fundamental question that has been debated, but not clearly resolved, is to what extent the war on terror justifies the President's indefinite detention of "enemy combatants" without the possibility of the minimal judicial review protected by habeas corpus? Another issue in the debate is to what extent Congress must clearly authorize the President to conduct extra-judicial detentions in order for them to be legal? In 2008, the Supreme Court’s decision in Boumediene v. Bush offered some answers to these questions. However, the deeply divided 5-4 Court and the likelihood of the protracted nature of the war on terror suggest that debate around these important questions will continue. Writing the Final Paper in this course will prepare you to participate intelligently as a citizen in this ongoing debate.
Write an essay about the right of habeas corpus in the context of the war on terror. Your essay should address the following subtopics:
The general meaning of the right of habeas corpus in the U.S. Constitution and its relationship to the protection of other civil liberties. The historical evolution of habeas corpus, including its English and American traditions. Examples from U.S. history of the "suspension" of habeas corpus and their applicability to the present. The relevance of habeas corpus to the contemporary U.S. situation during the war on terror, especially with respect to persons characterized by the President as "enemy combatants" or "illegal combatants." The U.S. Supreme Court's interpretation of the right of habeas corpus with respect to "enemy combatants" or "illegal combatants" (i.e., the views of the five justices making up the majority inBoumediene v. Bush as well as the views of the four dissenting justices). Your evaluation of various perspectives on this topic expressed by justices of the Supreme Court, leaders in other branches of government, and commentators in both the academic and popular media. Your assessment should consider several perspectives on this topic, including : The role of the President as commander-in-chief. The role of Congress in determining when habeas corpus can be "suspended." The role of the Supreme Court in protecting civil liberties, including the judicial philosophy which should guide the Court in this role, and Your personal philosophy, values or ideology about the balance between civil liberties and national security in the context of an unending war on terror.
Follow these requirements when writing the Final Paper:
The body of the paper (excluding the title page and reference page) must be at least 1,500 words long. The paper must start with a short introductory paragraph which includes a clear thesis statement. The thesis statement must tell readers what the essay will demonstrate. The paper must end with a short paragraph that states a conclusion. The conclusion and thesis must be consistent. The paper must logically develop the thesis in a way that leads to the conclusion, and that development must be supported by facts, fully explained concepts and assertions, and persuasive reasoning. The paper must address all subtopics outlined above. At least 20% of the essay must focus on subtopic 6, above (your evaluation of arguments about the topic). Your paper must cite at least three academic articles (excluding the course textbook) and at least four other kinds of sources (e.g., Supreme Court opinions, magazine or newspaper articles, the course textbook, and reliable websites or videos). Use your own words. While brief quotes from sources may be used, altogether the total amount of quoted text must be less than five percent of the body of your paper. When you use someone else's words, they must be enclosed in quotation marks followed by an APA in-text short citation – (Author, Year, page) – to your source. The in-text citation must correspond to a full APA citation for the source on the reference page at the end of the essay. When you express in your own words someone else's ideas, arguments or facts, your statement must be followed by an APA in-text short citation – (Author, Year, page) – to your source. The in-text citation must correspond to a full APA citation for the source in the reference page. The form of the title page, the body pages, and the reference page must comply with APA style. Additionally, the title page must include the course number and name, the instructor's name, and the date submitted. The paper must use logical paragraph and sentence transitions, complete and clear sentences, and correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
For this paper you need to do research in peer-reviewed journals or other sources that are considered to have reliable information. In addition to your required course text, you need at least seven professional scholarly sources, three of which must be peer reviewed journal articles from the Ashford Online Library.
Academic research papers must meet university level standards of quality. What constitutes quality, academic research?
Primary sources written by experts in the field of study Secondary sources supported by research in primary sources Credible sources (experts in the area of study) Relevant research (materials are pertinent to the area of study) Peer-reviewed journal articles (journal articles reviewed by recognized experts in the relevant field of study). Educational and Government websites (those ending with a web URL suffix of .edu or .gov) may be appropriate in some cases but should be evaluated carefully.
Please visit the Academic Research section on your course homepage (accessible through the Student Responsibilities and Policies tab on the left navigation toolbar) to review what types of materials are not acceptable for academic, university level research.
The paper must be at least 1500 words in length and formatted according to APA style. Cite your sources within the text of your paper and on the reference page.
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