This week we will be finishing up Unit II with a series of lectures and discussions on the powers and duties of the Executive Branch:3/15 (Monday)--Qualifications and Presidential Roles. Today we will examine the Constitutional requirements a person must meet to be eligible to serve as President, as well as some "informal" qualifications and characteristics that help define and identify potentially successful candidates. We will also look at eight significant roles fulfilled by the President, ranging from Chief of State to Chief of Party to Commander in Chief.
3/16 (Tuesday)--Electoral College-The Basics. Today's subject is the often misunderstood and confusing system that we use to select our President: the electoral college system. Why did the Framers of our Constitution reject direct selection by the people, or selection by the members of Congress, in favor of a complex and poorly-understood system? You will see that there were sound reasons behind their choice, but that unforeseen factors, including the rise of political parties, have altered the function of the electoral college system from the original concept. Nonetheless, with a few noteworthy exceptions, the electoral college system has tended to serve as a close proxy (approximation) for a national popular vote for President.
3/17 (Wednesday)--Electoral College Reform Proposals. Yesterday we learned about several elections in which the President did not receive a majority of the national popular vote, and a few in which the President actually received fewer popular votes than one of his opponents. Many citizens think the system is flawed and needs to be reformed. What proposals have been made to alter the electoral college system? Today you will learn about four such reform proposals: the District Plan, the Proportional Plan, the National Bonus Plan, and finally, the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact. Each has advantages and disadvantages, and as you will see, each is a very long way from actually replacing the Electoral College system.
3/18 (Thursday)--Presidential Succession and Disability; Presidential Powers; The Vice-Presidency. Today we will conclude our notes on the Executive Branch by examining a number of very important topics. What happens if a President dies in office or resigns? What happens if he becomes disabled? Who decides if he is disabled? What powers does the President exercise? And what does the Vice-President do? We will discuss all of these subjects today.
For tomorrow, locate and read at least one article on the health insurance reform battle currently taking place in the House of Representatives. Tomorrow we will have a roundtable discussion on this very important current event.
3/19 (Friday)--Essentials Packet Review; Discussion on Health Insurance Reform. After going over the Essentials Packet for Unit II, we will watch a brief film clip that summarizes the year-long (and more) battle to adopt health insurance reform, and discuss the current bill that is likely to be decided in the House of Representatives this weekend. This real-world example of how Democrats and Republicans in the executive and legislative branches work to find solutions to problems in American society--sometimes collaboratively, but more often in a partisan fashion--serves as an excellent illustration of how lawmaking and government in Washington actually works.
Have a great week!
The National Popular Vote bill is currently endorsed by over 1,707 state legislators (in 48 states) who have sponsored and/or cast recorded votes in favor of the bill.
ReplyDeleteIn Gallup polls since 1944, only about 20% of the public has supported the current system of awarding all of a state's electoral votes to the presidential candidate who receives the most votes in each separate state (with about 70% opposed and about 10% undecided). The recent Washington Post, Kaiser Family Foundation, and Harvard University poll shows 72% support for direct nationwide election of the President. Support for a national popular vote is strong in virtually every state, partisan, and demographic group surveyed in recent polls in closely divided battleground states: Colorado-- 68%, Iowa --75%, Michigan-- 73%, Missouri-- 70%, New Hampshire-- 69%, Nevada-- 72%, New Mexico-- 76%, North Carolina-- 74%, Ohio-- 70%, Pennsylvania -- 78%, Virginia -- 74%, and Wisconsin -- 71%; in smaller states (3 to 5 electoral votes): Alaska – 70%, DC – 76%, Delaware --75%, Maine -- 77%, Nebraska -- 74%, New Hampshire --69%, Nevada -- 72%, New Mexico -- 76%, Rhode Island -- 74%, and Vermont -- 75%; in Southern and border states: Arkansas --80%, Kentucky -- 80%, Mississippi --77%, Missouri -- 70%, North Carolina -- 74%, and Virginia -- 74%; and in other states polled: California -- 70%, Connecticut -- 74% , Massachusetts -- 73%, Minnesota – 75%, New York -- 79%, Washington -- 77%, and West Virginia- 81%.
The National Popular Vote bill has passed 29 state legislative chambers, in 19 small, medium-small, medium, and large states, including one house in Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, and Oregon, and both houses in California, Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, New Jersey, Maryland, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington. The bill has been enacted by Hawaii, Illinois, New Jersey, Maryland, and Washington. These five states possess 61 electoral votes -- 23% of the 270 necessary to bring the law into effect.
See http://www.NationalPopularVote.com