AP U.S. Government and Politics Name

AP U.S. Government and Politics Name Summer Assignment

In order to prepare you for this course as well as to spend a minimal amount of time on the history of the U.S. government, you will need to complete this packet over the summer. This will be due on the first day of school. You will need the following:

 Serow, Ann G., and Everett C. Ladd, eds. The Lanahan Readings in American Polity. 4th ed. Baltimore: Lanahan, 2007.  Schmidt, Steffen W., Shelley, Mark C., Bardes, Barbara A., and Ford, Lynne E. American Government and Politics Today. 2011-2012 AP Edition. United States: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2012.  Internet Access - this packet and helpful websites are available on both Ms. Wagner’s and Mr. Kolesar’s websites. You may choose to download this packet and type in answers where appropriate, but please print out a copy to be handed in on the first day of school with your journal and readings summaries.  If you have questions concerning the assignment over the summer, you can email Ms. Wagner ([email protected]) or Mr. Kolesar ([email protected]). Just keep in mind we like to relax over the summer too so you may not get a response right away. 

Part I. Current Issues Journal This part of the assignment will continue into the school year. The idea is for you to make some attempt to follow information that is happening in the world of U.S. government and politics. Using websites, newspapers, and/or television, you will find at least 10 articles concerning politics in America. Try to complete one article per week so that you can learn about different events throughout the summer. Your focus should be on issues concerning U.S. government and politics. You may choose to detail some articles relating to NJ or other state politics, but you must connect them to NATIONAL politics.  You will write a 2 paragraph summary and response concerning your topic o Include the title of the article (or broadcast segment), the author of the article (or broadcaster) if available (CNN tends not to list authors), the date of the article/broadcast, and the source of the article/broadcast o The first paragraph should be a detailed summary of what the article/broadcast is about o The second paragraph should be your response to the article/broadcast  You should include at least one article dealing with the November 2014 midterm elections.  You can find the rubric for this journal at the end of the packet.

Part II. Primary Source Readings A major part of this course is the interpretation of primary sources. Many times throughout the year you will be asked to read selections from the Lanahan reader and be prepared to discuss them in class. It is imperative that you read these selections. Though you may not be tested on every single source, the selections chosen are crucial to your understanding of the topic at hand.

On the next page you will find a chart containing the selections for your summer reading. For each one, you must read the article and write a brief summary of what the article is about. In addition, your summer reading will encompass Chapters 1-3 of the American Government text. As you notice connections between the primary source readings and the text readings, include them in your summaries for the Lanahan readings. (Note: the Selection numbers are the numbers in the table of contents of the selection)

Reading Summary

Selection #1: De Tocqueville’s Democracy in America (pp. 3-6)

Selection #2: Bryce’s The American Commonwealth (pp. 7-10)

Selection #8: Hofstadter’s The American Political Tradition (pp. 43-48)

Selection #9: Madison’s Federalist No. 10 (pp. 49- 55)

Selection #15: Madison’s Federalist No. 51 (pp. 97- 100)

Selection #18: Madison’s Federalist Nos. 39 and 46 (pp. 117-120)

Selection #41: Hamilton’s Federalist No. 78 (pp. 283- 286) Part III. The Constitution Use the Constitution in the back of the textbook (starting on p. 67) for this part. The Preamble  According to the Preamble, what are the purposes of the new government?

Article I  Name the 2 branches of the legislature. What are they jointly called?

 List the qualifications to be a member of the House of Representatives and the qualifications to be a Senator.

 Section 8 of Article I is seen as the most important section. Why do you think this is so?

Article II  Describe the qualifications of the President and Vice President

 What are the constitutional duties of the president?

Article III  Based on the information in Article III, why do you think federal judges serve life terms?

 What is treason?

Article IV  How are new states admitted to the Union?

 What is a republican form of government?

Article V  Describe how to amend the Constitution. Article VI  Explain the supremacy clause in your own words.

Article VII  Explain how the Constitution was ratified.

The Amendments Fill in the chart below to explain what each of the amendments does. Use your own words – do not simply copy what the Constitution says!

Amendment Date Description Added

Second

Fourth

Seventh

Eighth

Eleventh

Twelfth Thirteenth

Fourteenth

Fifteenth

Sixteenth

Seventeenth

Eighteenth

Nineteenth

Twentieth

Twenty First

Twenty Second

Twenty Third

Twenty Fourth

Twenty Fifth

Twenty Sixth

Twenty Seventh

General Constitution Questions  The powers of the government that are specifically granted to the branches of government and the office holders are called express powers. o Identify two express powers of the president:

o Identify two express powers of the Congress:

 According to the system of checks and balances, each branch of government must have control over the other branches. Look back at the first three articles and find an example of the following checks:

Type of Check Example

Executive checks legislative

Executive checks judicial

Legislative checks executive

Legislative checks judicial

Judicial checks executive

Judicial checks legislative Part IV. The Foundations of Government Use Chapters 1-3 of the textbook to answer this part.

Chapter 1: The Democratic Republic

1. What is political power and how does it relate to the concepts of authority and legitimacy?

2. What is the difference between a direct democracy and a democratic republic?

2a. Why would a direct democracy not work in the U.S. today?

2b. What forms of direct democracy exist within the current U.S. representative democracy?

3. Fill in the chart below to explain the four theories of elite influence in government:

Theory Description

Elitism

Pluralist

Chapter 2: The Constitution

4. The Declaration of Independence is divided into three parts. What are these three parts?

5. What are natural rights? How do they relate to the foundations of U.S. government? 6. Name three weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation and explain how they were fixed in the Constitution.

7. How did the constitutions of the states and Shay’s Rebellion influence the Framers of the Constitution?

8. Briefly summarize the Virginia and New Jersey Plans and explain how they led to the Great Compromise.

9. In addition to the Great Compromise, several other compromises were made before the Constitution was ratified. For each of the following, explain what the problem was and the solution compromised on:

Issue Problem Compromise

Election of a President

Length of Presidential Term

Counting Slaves

10. What were some of the major concerns the Anti-Federalists had with the Constitution?

11a. How did the Federalists address these concerns?

11. Explain the following terms in your own words: Habeas Corpus

Bills of Attainder

Ex Post Facto Laws

12. Explain how the Constitution can be informally changed given the wnays below:

Congressional Legislation

Presidential Actions

Judicial Review

Interpretation, Custom, and Usage

Chapter 3: Federalism

13. What is the difference between federalism and separation of powers?

14. What is the difference between a unitary system, a confederacy, and a federal system?

15. Using the Federalist Papers mentioned in the text as well as what you read in the Lanahan Reader, explain why federalism seems to be a good choice for the government of the United States.

15a. Briefly describe some of the criticisms of federalism.

16. How did the case of McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) give more power to the federal government? 17. How are inherent powers different from concurrent powers? How are they similar?

18. Describe the following concepts concerning interstate relations:

Full Faith and Credit Clause

Privileges and Immunities

Interstate Extradition

19. What is dual federalism? Give an example of how you see dual federalism being used in the United States TODAY.

20. What is cooperative federalism? Give an example of how you see cooperative federalism being used in the United States TODAY.

21. Explain how grants in aid have changed over the past 50 years. Make sure you explain categorical grants vs. block grants (revenue sharing).

22. How do mandates affect the grants given to the states?

23. Is the idea of devolution a good idea or not? Explain your answer. AP U.S. Government & Politics Name Current Issues Journal Rubric

Description Points Possible Points Earned Requirements  Do you have the required number of articles/broadcast summaries and reflections? 15  Did you have different sources or did you use the same source for all articles/broadcasts?  Did you use appropriate sources? Content  Did you adequately explain the article/broadcast?  Did you sufficiently support your reflection?  Did you show a connection between the summaries/reflections and the discussions we’ve had in class? 75  Do your articles/broadcast choices cover different topics?  Are there connections between the articles/broadcasts you chose? Miscellaneous  Is your journal organized? (Neat, clearly labeled, etc.) 10  Did you use proper grammar? (For example, no IM/Text Speak)

Final Grade & Comments: