2nd+Term

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__Supreme Court Justice Job Description__
Biographies of Supreme Court Justices (Past and Present)

__HW__ - due 1/28 1. Watch President Obama's State of the Union Address 2. Write a one page (not a half-page) summary of his speech. 3. In addition, add your opinion of his comments.

__EXAM REVIEW PPTS__ == = = = = =__The Formal Organization of Federal Agencies__= Use your textbook (pp. 326-331) and the Interwebs to complete the following (due 1/21) 4 Categories of Government Agencies 1. Cabinet agencies 2. Independent agencies 3. Government corporations 4. Regulatory commissions

For each category a. discuss what the mission of the category is and why it was set up that way b. discuss the purpose of the leadership structure (political or non-political) and the implications of how long the organizational leaders stay in power (long term vs. short term) c. explain how someone gets a job in those agencies d. ability of the president to control actions of the agency/employees e. at least 4 examples of each

= = =Go to the page Executive Office of the President and find the list of the Councils, Boards and Offices that advise the President on the important issues of the day, or you can follow The Cabinet link on the left side of the page and find one of the Cabinet departments.= =One page on your chosen agency or advisory group:= 1. Name of organization? 2. Current head? heads? 3. Why does this agency exist? What issues/ problems does this agency deal with? 4. Do you think this agency is required? Could the country run without it? = = 5. What recent things has this agency been in charge of doing?

= = ==__The War Powers Debate__ - Resolved, the War Powers Act should be be repealed and the President should be allowed greater war-making powers. You will be arguing either the Pro side or the Con side of this.==

Use the following links to assist you.
War Powers summary War Powers Act War Powers Debate

__Influence of Presidents on the Presidency__ - due 1/4/2010 !!! ====Choose two presidents from history. Write a 2-3 page paper that discusses the impact these presidents had on the office of president. One president should be selected for the positive influence he had on the office and one president should be selected for the negative effect he had on the presidency.====

[[file:How a Bill Becomes A Law.ppt]]
__HW for 12/18__ 

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The homework for Friday is to create a poster that illustrates (and describes) the steps in how a bill becomes a law. Start with the Introduction of the Bill in the House or Senate and take it through it being signed into law by the President. Include the veto process in this as well as other vocab including "tabling" and "filibuster". The House and Senate are almost identical, except for one or two key differences. The packet handed out in class includes much of the pertinent vocab for the legislative process. The cover page of the handout is practice for what you will find on the exam on Monday. Email me with any questions.=====

__HW for 12/16__

Adopt a Bill... go to one of the following sites and search for a current bill. Print out the first page of the bill. Come prepared to talk about what your bill is about.
House Bills Senate Bills

__**HW for 12/15**__

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What purpose do Congressional Committees serve? What types of committees are there and what are their functions? What are the current House and Senate committees of the 111th Congress? (see p. 251-254 of your text for help)======

__Test Review - Thursday 12/10__ The test will cover chapter 13. Make sure to familiarize yourself with the relevant vocabulary. The Discussion topic is posted above in the "Discussion". You must respond by the end of the day on Thursday to receive credit for your response. Test: 1. 30 Multiple Choice questions 2. Choice between two questions - Electoral College - how does the system work and how does this affect Presidential campaigns? - Gerrymandering - deals with reapportionment, redistricting and reasons for/limits on gerrymandering 3. The following can be helpful in organizing notes for the chapter:

HW - Is low voter turnout a problem?
1. Find two articles, websites, blogs etc that support the position that low voter turnout is a problem. 2. Find two articles, websites, blogs etc that support the position that low voter turnout is not a problem.
 * What are the main points they make for increasing voter turnout?
 * What solutions, if any, are suggested?
 * Make sure to either print out or write down the source information
 * What are the main points they make for keeping voter turnout low?
 * Make sure to either print out or write down the source information

Democratic vs. Republican Party Platforms - Due 11/12
- You can create a chart, powerpoint or method of organizing your info. - You have to compare and contrast the platforms of the Democratic and Republican Parties - The following areas are suggestions for finding issues to compare from each platform:
 * Environmental Policy
 * Economic Policy
 * Healthcare
 * Taxation
 * Foreign Policy
 * Immigration
 * Social Issues
 * NOTE: You are note limited by this list