American National Government - Assignment Example

Political Science - American National Government Session 1 – Liberty v. Security American citizens feel that it is their rights to be protected by the government from any insecurity. It is the duty of any government to provide the necessary security to its people. The United States government tries to avoid any unnecessary interference with a citizen’s life where possible. The notion of liberty is quite significant in the provision of security by the government. A citizen should not take into consideration his or her liberty when his or her security is in question. It is of no benefit to consider liberty, then go ahead and complain that the government is not providing the necessary security to its citizens. Citizens should be ready to sacrifice their liberty for the sake of their security. I am, therefore, ready to sacrifice my right to live a free life, and enable the government put measures towards achieving a secure environment. Session 4 – Political Opinion My parents are dedicated democrats. They have been democrats for a long time. They have natured me, in a neutral political environment, giving me the chance to choose the political party that I advocate for, according to what I see in the party. My parents’ political opinions and attitudes did not and still do not affect my own political opinions. They brought me up to stand up for myself and support what I believe to be right. Though, we at many times disagree over our political opinions and stands they have never tried to change what I believe in, but they advise me when they see that I am backing the wrong idea. There are several people, who have influenced my political opinions. In the political arena, I see martin Luther king as a person, who stood for his political opinions and paid the price with his life. The legend advocated for the rights of the black community and successfully made his voice heard all over the globe. The current president of the United States is the other political icon that influences my political opinions. President Barrack Obama is a man who pushes for what he wants to achieve. His agenda is clearly to make America to be a fair and just country where citizens live in a peace and harmony. Session 5 – Television I watch television programs for two hours a day. This makes an average total of 14 hours a week. The television offers various insights to the world of politic. Different politicians express their opinions and political decisions using television as the medium of communication to the citizens. The television can affect or directs one’s political opinions. Though, I watch a lot of television news, documentaries and other entertainment channels, I do not allow what I hear to have any effect on me. Besides, my belief is that people act differently when being watched, and can console their intensions. I, therefore, prefer to take insights from the television, but not make decisions from what I hear. Decisions on one’s opinions on governmental issues and its politics should be made after investigating the issue at hand. It would not bother me if my television was to be turned off for a month. This is because there are many other sources of information that one can use to substitute the television. The internet holds a lot of information regarding the doings of the government and the current status of politics. Session 6 – Coalition Evolution The origin and the development of political parties, in America, stand apart from the constitution of the United States. The development of the American parties is similar to that of other parties found in other western democracies. The American party system has and has always had distinctive characteristics. The parties have developed in areas that are related to race, ideology and geography. There was a time when the American parities did not allow the participation of the black community in politics. However, when the situation changes such that the white and the black were given equal rights, the parties had to adjust to accommodate this new shift. The parties now allow full participation of the black community in politics, and the democrats now have a black president to show how much they have changed (Brogan 78). The parties had to shift in order to accommodate the county governments. A county government manages a small geographical location, and the political parties have to have representation on the ground. The party had to find methods to accommodate the county representatives in their plans, and shift towards that direction. The democrats and the republicans have different ideologies as can be clearly seen in the way they carry out their politics. The two parties have shifted towards ideologies that support their views and beliefs. In this manner, the politicians are capable of communicating their ideas to the public, in order to seek tier support. The first party system, which was of Federalists and Democratic republicans, took on the character of the party system that was mass-based after the elections of 1800. This revolution of the year 1800 and the first party system collapsed in the year 1820. The second party system followed the critical elections of 1828. In this election, there were two parties that competed in every state of the union, the democrats and the Whigs. The third party system followed the elections of 1860 and continued for a whole generation after the civil war. The republicans and the democrats achieved the highest rate of turnout recorded in American elections. The party system was divided by religious, ethnic and racial antagonism (Brogan 87). The elections that take place in the United States form the greatest elements of change for the political parties. Session 6 #2 The American citizens are expressing their dissatisfaction with the choice of only two political parties. I feel that the two parties do not offer what all Americans want in a political party. For some individuals, not one among the two parties supports or advocates for what he or she advocates for. The multiparty system of democracy is one that lays many choices for the people of a nation. They are capable of choosing among the many options that are there. I would prefer the United States’ political system to adopt such a system of democracy. This would mean that all people are given the chance to support the party that meets their individual requirements and ideologies. Session 9 – Web Sites Different interest groups offer different forms of incentives to their members. These incentives are meant to keep members of the group contended. The American association of retired persons, abbreviated as AARP, is one of the leading nonprofit organizations, in the United States. This organization offers travel benefits, pharmacy services, and discounted health insurance for their members to keep them comfortable and satisfied. Session 10 – Conference Committee Conference committees comprise of members from both chambers. They are formed to resolve disputes that arise between bills that are meant to deal with the same issues passed by each house separately. One last revision is done by a subset of legislators gathered from both houses, then returned to the house for final voting. This committee is the most crucial in affecting the legislation. There are several tactics that are employed by some congressional leaders at the conference stage to kill legislation. Such tactics are similar to those that were deployed by some leaders in the 1993 campaign reform legislation. At the time President Clinton had advocated for a campaign reform, which was already endorsed by the congressional leaders, but there had been doubt about its support in congress (Brogan 90). The bill succumbed in its final days, in congress. This was caused by some republican opponents of the legislation. Both the senate and the house had passed the campaign reform measures and left plenty of time to obtain the passage of the final bill. The Republicans disliked the campaign reform, approaching the end of Congress. They were focused to defeating the reforms, and this became a vital part of their electoral strategy. Through this, they denied the congress and the president to achieve their top agendas (Brogan 90). Session 11 – Electoral College General Questions 1. Who was the last Democrat to carry Texas? Name the year. In 1976, Jimmy Carter, became the last Democratic Presidential candidate to carry Texas 2. Who was the last Republican to carry Massachusetts? Name the year. He was Ronald Reagan in the year 1976. 3. Since 1900, how many times have the Republicans won the election while failing to carry Ohio? The republican have managed to win the election twice without carrying Ohio. 4. Who was the last candidate to win the election while failing to carry Missouri prior to 2008? Ronald Reagan Session 11 #2 1. Which states did Walter Mondale carry in 1984? He carried one sate and Washington D.C 2. How many electoral votes did President Ronald Reagan win in 1980? 1984? Reagan got 489 electoral votes in 1984 and 525 in 1980 2. Which states did President Bush carry in 2004 that he lost in 2000? Iowa and New Mexico 3. Which "Bush" states from 2004 did Obama carry in 2008? Based on state-by-state results from 2000-2008: Colorado, Florida, Iowa, and New Mexico Ohio 1. List 5 solid Democratic states. In other words, states that will consistently support the Democratic candidate for president. Maryland, Massachusetts, Vermont, Washington D.C and Wyoming 2. List 5 solid Republican states. In other words, states that will consistently support the Republican candidate for president. Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, Alaska and Nebraska 3. Finally, list 5 swing states. In other words, states that you believe could go either way depending on the national mood and the candidates. Vermont, Massachusetts, Oregon, Hawaii, Connecticut Session 12 – Blowing the Whistle If I discovered that there was any form of corruption in a government agency that I worked for, I would not sit quietly and allow the corruption to continue unannounced, and I would find a method of bringing to attention the details of corruption to the necessary bodies. Session 12 – Bureaucratic Size Yes, I do believe that bureaucracy has become too large for the good of the people. Decreasing the influence and the size of the government would be a positive step taken to reduce bureaucracy. Session 13 – Plea Bargaining 99% of all felonies end in a plea bargain. Basically, the suspect pleads guilty (or agrees to end his or her defense) in exchange for receiving a lesser sentence. Do you agree with this practice? This is not in any way an exceptional sentence. There should be uniformity in the way that the courts rule on crimes committed. It would not be fair if the courts ruled differently because the suspect confessed to the crime. It would be a motivating factor to criminals who would then take advantage by committing crimes, confess to the crime with the assurance that they will get a plea bargain. Session 13 – Judicial Review Suppose the federal courts did not have the power of judicial review. Instead, all acts of Congress and the president would be constitutional. How would this change our system? Would you favor such a change? The change would be enormous in the government system of America, giving the judicial review power to the president and the congress would mean that they would then have the power to update the constitution. I would not favor such changes since it might be catastrophic to the country. Members of congress and the president may take advantage of power and make changes to the constitution that will favor their regime. It would also mean that every government can make changes to the constitution whenever they felt the need. This would mean that none of the matters stated in the constitution is permanent, and this would lender the constitution worthless. Session 14 – Free Speech How much free speech do you think we should allow? Would you allow a white supremacist to speak on your campus? What about a member of a freemen's militia, a neo-Nazi, or a black separatist? Every citizen of the United States has the freedom of speech. However, one should choose the audience carefully to avoid any misgivings that may arise. The degree of freedom that has been allowed by the constitution is just the right amount of freedom required. The constitution does not allow incitement of speech that can lead to security issues. I would not allow a white supremacist or a member of freemen’s militia to speak in my campus if I had the necessary authority. This is because the ideas that this people advocate for are not shared by a majority of the citizens, and allowing them to speak in the campus can lead to security issues. Session 14 – Worship in Schools Did you attend a public school that had Bible readings, prayers, religious assemblies, or other religious acts? Did you ever have a coach who prayed before games or suggested you join the Fellowship of Christian Athletes? Did your high school commencement include a prayer? I have once attended a school where we had daily bible readings and prayers. However, I have never had a coach who prayed before games. The prayers said before games were often initiatives of a team member. My high school commencement never did include prayers. If any of these occurred at your school, does it concern you that these events may have violated a Supreme Court ruling? Is it ever acceptable to violate a law? Sometimes the law is broken without the intent to break it. The people, who initiate these religious acts sometimes, do not even have the basic idea that they are breaking a constitutional law. Therefore, it is sometimes acceptable to violate certain laws, but only if one did so without the knowledge that they were indeed breaking a law. Works cited Brogan D. W. The American Political System. New york: Read Books, 2007. Print Read More