AP Review Vocabulary: Chapter 3: Federalism

1. Federalism-is a political concept in which a group of members are bound together by covenant with a governing representative head

2. Reserved Powers (state)- Reserved power is a political power that is not enumerated or prohibited by a constitution, but instead is reserved by the constitution for a specified political authority, such as a state government. Tenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution provides for reserve power. Tenth Amendment provides that “the powers not delegated to the U.S. by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.” 

3. Referendum- A general vote by the electorate on a single political question that has been referred to them for a direct decision

4. Devolution- The transfer or delegation of power to a lower level, esp. by central government to local or regional administration

5. Concurrent Powers- are held by both the states and the federal government and may be exercised simultaneously within the same territory and in relation to the same body of citizens

6. recall- To summon back to awareness of or concern with the subject or situation at hand

7. Sovereignty-Supreme power

8. Implied Powers-powers authorized by a legal document (from the Constitution) which, while not stated, are seemed to be implied by powers expressly stated

9. Fiscal federalism- concerned with "understanding which functions and instruments are best centralized and which are best placed in the sphere of decentralized levels of government"

10. Unitary System- a system of political organization in which most or all of the governing power resides in a centralized government

11. Denied Powers- The powers that the Constitution prohibits the Federal Government from doing

12. grants-in-aid- An amount of money given to a local government, an institution, or a particular scholar

13. Confederation- A more or less permanent union of countries with some or most political power vested in a central authority

14. John Marshall- United States jurist; as chief justice of the Supreme Court he established the principles of United States constitutional law (1755-1835)

15. categorical grants- grants, issued by the United States Congress, which may be spent only for narrowly-defined purposes

16. Tenth Amendment-explicitly states the Constitution's principle of federalism by providing that powers not granted to the federal government nor prohibited to the states by the Constitution are reserved, respectively, to the states or the people

17. Nullification- the states'-rights doctrine that a state can refuse to recognize or to enforce a federal law passed by the United States Congress

18. block grants- is a large sum of money granted by the national government to a regional government with only general provisions as to the way it is to be spent

19. Supremacy Clause- a clause in the United States Constitution, Article VI, Clause The clause establishes the Constitution, Federal Statutes, and U.S. treaties as "the supreme law of the land'

20. Dual Federalism-  a legal theory which prevailed in the United States from 1789-present day, is the belief that the United States consists of two separate and co-sovereign branches of government

21.revenue sharing grants-
The practice of a government giving a portion of tax revenue to subdivisions of government

22. Elastic or “Necessary and Proper” Clause- "The Congress shall have Power - To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof."

23. Layer Cake Federalism- the relationship between the central government of a nation and that of its states, where the powers and policy assignments of the government hierarchy ("layers" of government) are clearly spelled out and distinct from one another

24. Mandates- an official or authoritative instruction or command

25. Commerce Clause- states that the United States Congress shall have power "To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes"

26. Marble Cake Federalism- is based on a mixing of authority and programs among the national, state, and local governments

27. "Full Faith and Credit" Clause- addresses the duties that states within the United States have to respect the "public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state."

28. Creative Federalism and The Great Society- a form of federalism popular during the Johnson administration from 1963 to 1969. It emphasized that the federal government determined the needs of the states. During the time that Creative Federalism was popular, the federal government worked extensively with the states to provide social services

29. Unfunded Mandates- regulations, or in some cases conditions for receiving grants that impose costs on state or local governments or private entities for which they are not reimbursed by the federal government

30. “Privileges and Immunities Clause"- prevents a state from treating citizens of other states in a discriminatory manner

31. New Federalism- a political philosophy of devolution, or the transfer of certain powers from the United States federal government to the states

32. Conditions of Aid-a political philosophy of devolution, or the transfer of certain powers from the United States federal government to the states

33. Enumerated Powers- powers not listed in the Constitution

34. initiative- The power or opportunity to act or take charge before others do

35. Devolution- the granting of powers from the central government  to government at a regional, local, or state level

AP Review Vocabulary

1. Realigning Elections: an election that dramatically changes the political system.
2. Filibuster: an obstructive manner in a legislature by speaking at inordinate length.
3. Habeas Corpus: a writ requiring a person under arrest to be brought before a judge or into court.
4. Plurality: The excess of votes cast for one candidate over those votes cast for any other candidate.
5. Rule of Four: The rule of four is a Supreme Court of the United States practice that permits four of the nine justices to grant a writ of certiorari.
6. Social Capital: refers to connections within and between social networks.
7. Pocket Veto: An indirect veto of a legislative bill by the president or a governor by retaining the bill unsigned until after the legislative session is over.
8. Senatorial Courtesy: A custom whereby presidential appointments are confirmed only if there is no objection to them by the senators from the appointee's state especially from the senior senator of the president's party from that state.
9. Concurrent Powers: held by both the states and the federal government and may be exercised simultaneously within the same territory and in relation to the same body of citizens.
10. Logrolling: the exchange of support or favors, especially by legislators for mutual political gain as by voting for each other's bills.
11. Rider: A schedule or writing annexed to a document such as a legislative bill or insurance policy.
12. Standing Committee: A permanent committee that meets regularly.
13. Expressed Powers: a list of nonspecific responsibilities found in Article 1 Section 8 of the United States Constitution, which iterates the authority granted to the United States Congress.
14. Trustee: A member of the board of the foundation who takes part in the decision making process.
15. Judicial Review: Review by the Supreme Court of the constitutional validity of a legislative act.
16. Delegate: A person sent or authorized to represent others, in particular, an elected representative sent to a conference.
17. Necessary & Proper Clause: establishes the "implied powers," by which Congress has authority to pass legislation in areas not specifically listed in the Constitution.
18. Political Agenda: a set of issues and policies laid out by an executive or cabinet in government that tries to influence current and near-future political news and debate.
19. Commerce Clause: states that the United States Congress shall have power "To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes".
20. Deficit: An excess of expenditure or liabilities over income or assets in a given period.
21. Issue Network: an alliance of various interest groups and individuals who unite in order to promote a single issue in government policy.
22. National Debt: The total amount of money that a country's government has borrowed, by various means.
23. Iron Triangle: a term used by political scientists to describe the policy-making relationship among the congressional committees, the bureaucracy, and interest groups.
24. Divided Government: a situation in which one party controls the White House and another party controls one or both houses of the United States Congress.
25. Due Process: Fair treatment through the normal judicial system, esp. as a citizen's entitlement.
26. Executive Privelege: The privilege, claimed by the president for the executive branch of the US government, of withholding information in the public interest.
27. Eminent Domain: The right of a government or its agent to expropriate private property for public use, with payment of compensation.
28. Take-care Clause: imposes a duty on the President to take due care while executing laws.
29. Central Clearance: the sole agency charged with granting, denying, and revoking security clearance eligibility for the Army.
30. Stare decisis: The legal principle of determining points in litigation according to precedent.
31. PACs: political action committee.
32. Block Grant: A grant from a central government that a local authority can allocate to a range of services.
33. Coattail Effect: the tendency for a popular political party leader to attract votes for other candidates of the same party in an election.
34. Cloture: A procedure for ending a debate and taking a vote.
35. Incorporation: the act of forming and legally establishing a new corporation.
36. Political Efficacy: one's own influence or effectiveness on politics.
37. Devolution: The transfer or delegation of power to a lower level, esp. by central government to local or regional administration.
38. Nullification: doctrine that a state can refuse to recognize or to enforce a federal law passed by the United States Congress.
39. Political Ideologies: An organized system of political beliefs, values, and ideas.
40. Gender Gap: The discrepancy in opportunities, status, attitudes, etc. between men and women.
41. Silent Majority: an unspecified large majority of people in a country or group who do not express their opinions publicly.
42. Superdelegates: an informal term commonly used for some of the delegates to the Democratic National Convention, the presidential nominating convention of the United States Democratic Party.
43. Bully Pulpit: A public office or position of authority that provides its occupant with an outstanding opportunity to speak out on any issues.
44. Trial Balloon: A tentative measure taken or statement made to see how a new policy will be received.
45. Red tape: Excessive bureaucracy or adherence to rules and formalities, esp. in public business.
46. Laissez-faire: Abstention by governments from interfering in the workings of the free market.
47. Judicial Restraint: a theory of judicial interpretation that encourages judges to limit the exercise of their own power.
48. Judicial Activism: an interpretation of the U.S. constitution holding that the spirit of the times and the needs of the nation can legitimately influence judicial decisions.
49. Sovereign Immunity: an exemption that precludes bringing a suit against the sovereign government without the government's consent; "the doctrine of sovereign immunity originated with the maxim that the king can do no wrong

AP Review Questions #1

Reading Questions for Chapter Four “American Political Culture”

1. What are the elements that the book identifies with our political culture? What is the difference between a political culture and a political ideology?
    The book says our American culture believes in democracy and that it is a good thing and that we favor majority rule, and we respect all minority rights.
     The difference is political culture is how people think political and economic life should be carried out and political ideology are peoples set beliefs about policies the government ought to pursue.

2. What is the difference between equality of opportunity and equality of results?
        Equality of opportunity gives people a chance to succeed in an equal way and equality of result is making sure people get the same results.

3. Be familiar with the differences between American political culture and other countries’ political cultures?

• America and France both have a written Constitution and Great Britain does not.
• The USA separates powers between three branches of government.
• But in contrast the United Kingdom has a parliamentary system.

These are just a few ways the USA’s culture is different form other countries culture.

4. Summarize what the book says about the culture war in America.

• There are two cultural classes locked in a war over values.

1. Orthodox people think morality is as important as, if not more important than self-expression and that moral rules derive from the commands of God.
2. Progressive people think personal freedom is important just like certain traditional moral rules and that under certain circumstances those rules are changeable.

• Orthodox people are mainly Protestants and Christians.
• Progressive people are more liberals and people with no strong religious beliefs.

5. What is the difference between internal and external efficacy?
            In internal efficacy people believe they can take part in politics and in external efficacy people believe the government will respond to the citizenry.



Reading Questions for Chapter Seven “Public Opinion”

1. What was the Founders’ attitude towards public opinion? Give examples of how we see that attitude reflected in how they wrote the Constitution.
           They did not want to create a government that would do what the people wanted. We see this because they created the Constitution to form a more perfect union, establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessing of liberty.

2. Identify three problems in assessing public opinion.

• Some people care more about certain issues than other people do.
• On some issues opinions are pretty steady, while on others they tend to be more volatile.
• On some issues the government seems largely in sync with popular views and statements while on other issues the government is very out of sync with the public.

3. The book gives four factors that affect political attitudes. Identify those four factors and summarize the conclusions about how those factors affect people’s political attitude.

• Family- Like if your parents are more democratic then you as their child would be more democratic.
• Religion- People tend to vote more for some one who is of the same religious background as them.
• Gender Gap- Women are more likely to vote for Democrats, while men are more likely to vote for Republicans.
• Schooling- People who were born during the baby boomer age were the ones who wen t to college and are therefore more educated about politics.

4. The book discusses the cleavages which may divide various demographic groups ideologically. The author give three factors that divide people’s political beliefs.

• Social Class- most people that belong to a higher social class vote differently than those of a lower class because they come from different professions
• Race and Ethnicity- there is no certain race or ethnicity that votes a specific way
• Religion-geographic regions affect political attitudes

5. What are the two reasons the book gives
       Because of mass ideologies and liberal and conservatives elites. They affect them by changing people’s views.


6.  Influence public opinion by first raising and framing political issues. Then, they state the norms by which issues should be settled.   They can only affect what we as the public can see.

Review #1 Chapter 8

1.  Because we do vote but the effect or the turnout is small

2. Congress passed the literacy test ; The result of this law is

3.How did states try to keep blacks from voting?

• Literacy Test- A requirement that citizens show that they can read before registering to vote
• Poll Tax-A requirement that citizens pay a tax in order to register to vote
• Grandfather Clause-A clause in registration laws allowing people who do not meet registration requirements to vote if they or their ancestors had voted before 1867
• White Primary-The practice of keeping blacks from voting in the southern states’ primaries through arbitrary use of registration requirements and intimidation

4. Good effects, more people are voting ever since these amendments were established

5. Because the voter eligibility population was low

6. Less likely to more likely to vote:

• Hispanics Americans
• Then, African Americans
• Then, White Americans

AP Review Definitions #1

1.Political Culture- what people believe and feel about government and how they think

2.Political Ideology- a more or less consistent set of beliefs about what policies government ought to purse

3.Equality of Opportunity- all persons regardless of social class, age, race, or gender should have equal rights to compete for and attain positions in society

4.Equality of Results- making certain that people achieve the same result

5.Civic Duty- a belief that one has obligation to participate in civic and political affairs

6.Progressive Culture- a belief that personal freedom and solving social problems are more important than
religion

7.Orthodox Culture- a belief that mortality and religion ought to be of decisive importance

8.Political Efficacy- a belief that you can take part in politics or that the government will respond to the citizenry

9.Middle America- the middle class in the U.S

10.Silent Majority- an unspecified large majority of people who do not express their opinions publicly

11.Social Status- position in social hierarchy

12.Christian Coalition- U.S Christian advocacy group

13.Gender Gap- difference in political views between men and women

14.Liberal- open to new behavior or opinions and willing to discard traditional values

15.Conservative- averse to change and holds to traditional values and attitudes

16.Libertarian- adherent of libertarianism and advocates civil liberty

17.Populist- a member or adherent of a political party that represents the interests of ordinary people

18.Political Elite- persons with a disproportionate share of political power

19.New Class- the privileged ruling class of bureaucrats and Communist Party

20.New Deal Coalition- the alignment of interest groups and voting blocs that supported the New Deal and voted for Democratic presidential candidates

21.Random Sample- method of selecting from a population in which each person has an equal probability of
being selected

22.Sampling Error- the difference between the results of random samples taken at the same time

23.Weighting- adjustments made in order to take account of special circumstances

24.Quota Sample- sample created by gathering a predefined number of participants from each of several
predetermined categories

25.Focus Groups- demographically diverse group of people assembled to participate in a guided discussion
about a particular product before it is launched

26.Instant Response Polling- polling used by media and online

27.Push Polls- a political campaign technique in which an individual or org. attempts to influence or alter the
view of respondents under the guise of conducting a poll

28.Bandwagon Effect- a popular trend attracting even greater popularity

29.Refusal Rate - the percentage of people contacted who decline to participate in the research study

30.Exit Polls- polls based on interviews conducted on Election Day with randomly selected voters

31.Tracking Poll- an opinion poll in which the same sample is questioned periodically to measure shifts in
opinions

32.Skewed Question- to suddenly change opinion in the questions

33.Context Effect- describes the influence of environmental factors on one's perception of a stimulus

34.Question Framing- statistical surveys used to collect quantitative information about items in a population

35.Saliency- The condition of a piece of land protruding out into an angle

36.Help America Vote Act 2002- a federal program that reformed aspects of the U.S election system

37.Motor-Voter Law 1993- enables prospective voters to register when they obtain or renew a driver's
license

38.Fifteenth Amendment- guaranteed blacks the right to vote

39.Literacy Test- a requirement that citizens show that they can read before registering to vote

40.Poll Tax- a requirement that citizens pay a tax in order to register to vote

41.Grandfather Clause- a clause in registration laws allowing people who do not meet registration
requirements to vote if they or their ancestors had voted before

42.White Primary- the practice of keeping blacks from voting in the southern states' primaries through
arbitrary use of registration requirements and intimidation

43.Voting Rights Act 1965- outlawed discriminatory voting practices

44.Nineteenth Amendment 1920- granted women the right to vote

45.Voting Rights Act 1970, 1982- extended the Voting Rights Act for five years

46.Twenty-Sixth Amendment 1971- standardized the voting age to 18

47.Twenty-Third Amendment 1961- permitted citizens in the District of Columbia to vote for Electors

48.Disfranchisement- the discontinuation of a franchise or of the right to vote

49.Australian Ballot- a government-printed ballot of uniform dimensions to be cast in secret that many states
adopted to reduce voting fraud

50.Activist- people who tend to participate in all forms of politics

51.Demographics- statistical data relating to the population

WHY IS WALMART GOING TO THE SUPREME COURT?!?!

Why in the world is Walmart going to the Supreme Court?  I mean the highest court in the entire United States of America!  They must have done something really bad...in fact they really did.  Walmart is being accused of allowing sex discrimination to occur in their nationwide stores.  

Walmart went to the Supreme Court March 29, 2011 to ask the Supreme Court could they throw the case.  Now, why would they go to the Supreme Court, well because when they went to the lower courts they all threw the case out, but that wasn't good enough for the women of their companies who are suing them, even though they won at the district and appellate court levels.  So they took matters a step higher.



But what some owners can't seem to understand is why are the women so unhappy when over 70 % of their employees are women and 1/3 of their mangers are women.  But Walmart shouldn't feel alone because many big companies are supporting them because they think this court case will be very costly to them and they can't seem to understand why they couldn't just settle this between them. 



How This Relates To Class:
This story relates to class because just a couple of weeks ago we learned about the different steps it takes for a case to be heard by the highest court.   And one of the steps was it had to go through a small court and enough judges had to vote yes for that particle case to be heard by the Supreme Court.  And that is exactly what this Walmart vs. Women Employees case had to do.

Helping Japan: There Are Some Dangers to Doing This

                             

I'm pretty sure we would all want to help Japan after that devastating earthquake and tsunami.  But there are some cautions we Americans need to take when giving money to these organizations that say they are collecting money to give to Japan to help them rebuild their country. 

Of course we want to help them, we want to give them money, food and water, and clothes.  And there are some good funding programs that are helping people in Japan.  Like the American Red Cross Foundation, Globalgiving, Save the Children, the Salvation Army, and Americares.  They are all legit organizations that people can go to give back to Japan.  And Google, which is a nationwide Internet search engine, is also helping people in Japan.

And just like there are some great organizations that really do help people there some organizations that are scammers and people need to watch out for. 

But there are some things that people can do to protect themselves.  People can ask for the charity for identification and papers.  They can ask for a license or certification.  People can also google the charity's name.



How This Relates To Class:
This story relates to class earlier we learned about the different Departments of the Government and one of those departments was the Department of Homeland Security.  In the news lately, members of Homeland Security have been on the look out for any scammers who are claiming they need money so they can help Japan, but what they really are doing is pocketing the money for themselves.  and when they are caught they may be charged by the Supreme Court instead of the lower state courts because this is a high federal crime, which is why the highest court would need to solve it.

The Federal Budget Plan for 2011-2012!

It's no secret that we, the United States, have the biggest debt total in the whole world.  Which is why every two years the president and other federal officials plan a two year budget reform to try and save money, but still have the needs of the American people met. 

President Obama back in February 2010 proposed a budget plan for 2011 which indicated that jobs, health care, clean energy, education, and cutting oil companies tax breaks would be major priorities.  The president requested a total spending cost of $3.83 trillion and a federal deficit of $1.27 for 2011.  People have said that the total debt is suppose to go from $11.9 trillion in 2009 to $15.1 trillion in 2011.  

But when the Congressional Budget Office(CBO) looked into things they found that if certain laws don't change the federal budget will show a deficit of $1.5 trillion.  And the total revenue will be close to $2.23 trillion and a total outlay of $3.71 trillion for the year of 2011.  

And on February 14, 2011 President Obama released his Federal Budget Plan for 2012.  The new plan updated the projected 2011 Plan.  The new deficit will be $1.65 trillion, the total revenue will be $2.71 trillion, and the total outlay will be $3.82 trillion. 

But what many people are still wondering is how much money will the major priorities be recieving.  And the government has answered that question by giving a list of their spendings:

$787.6 billion in pensions, $898 billion in health care expenditures, $140.9 billion for education, $928.5 billion in defense spending, $464.6 billion in welfare spending, $57.3 billion in protective services such as police, fire, law courts, $104.2 billion for transportation, $29 billion in general government expenses, $151.4 billion in other spending including basic research, and $250.7 billion on interest payments. 

How This Topic Relates To Class:

This topic relates to class because we are talking about the President and Bureaucracy right now.  And when talking about the President we talked about the structure he uses now to make plans for the United States, which is a combination of the pyramid and circular structures.  And when President Obama made his Federal Budget Plan he talked to the different departments of the government to see what they need and how much money they would need to get these things done and when he's done he adds all of those request for money up and begins making his budget plan.  



What's The Big Fuss About Senate Bill 5?!?

I'm pretty sure that you, just like me, have heard a lot about this SB 5 thing.  Also known as the Senate Bill 5 Plan.  We have all heard about the fussing and protesting that has been going on in Washington, but mainly right are in Ohio. 

And it has all been about the passage of the Senate Bill 5 and what it represents if it does pass. 

The Senate Bill 5 for police and firefighters will preclude binding arbitration in the event of  broken negotiations and if agreements can not be reached. 
 

And it could also affect teachers as well.  For teachers this means school boards will be precluded through negotiations from agreeing to matters such as class size to teacher credentials.  And even though teachers with seniority always had a secure position in teaching, it doesn't matter anymore because when it comes to determining who is kept or who is let go seniority won't count anymore.  But what some people don't think is because they aren't in a union they shouldn't have to worry about this bill, but what many officials are saying, is even though some workers are part of a non union work place they should still be concerned about their future.

And because of all theses new possible changes people are really starting to get very upset.  Which has caused protest by many firefighters, police officers, and teachers almost every single day for the past week, to get the Senate not to past this bill.

How This Relates To Class:
This topic relates to class because we have talked the different steps it takes to pass a bill.  And one of those steps, is it takes 51 votes of the Senate to pass a bill to the president.(The bill also needs 50%+1 votes of the House of Representatives.)  And once the bill has recieved its minimal amount of votes, it then goes to the president for it to be signed.  And from there the president can either veto the bill or sign it.  But if the president doesn't sign the bill in a certain amount of days the bill automatically becomes a law.  And all of this is what's going to happen in the next couple of days to weeks, when it comes to decisions being made about the Senate Bill 5 and what's going to happen with it. 

Hot Topics: The State of Union Address by the President

On January 25, 2011 President Barack Obama give a hour speech on his plans for the year of 2011.  These are some of the things he touched upon:

1. Health Care Bill- When President Obama talked about health care and ways to improve it, he said he is willing to consider medical malpractice reform to drive down health care cost to the government in return.  And according to the Congressional Budget Office and Joint Committee on Taxation, if President Obama does follow through on this statement in about 10 years the federal government could save $41 billion in health care cost.
2. Tax-cuts- The president also said that he plans to end the Bush-era tax cuts for the wealthiest 2% Americans once the latest extension ends two years.  For those of you who don't know what the Bush-era tax cuts is, it is when President Geogre W. Bush lowered the tax cut that the wealthy had to pay from 36% to 35%.  And he did this because when Democratic President Bill Clinton was in office he said he wanted the wealthy Americans to make a sacrifice and increase their tax cuts to 2% when the actual top rate was 31%.
3. Electric Vehicles- The president touched upon how he wanted to have nearly 1 million electric vehicles on the road by 2015.  President Obama probably said this because he talked about how he wanted to eliminate the billions of tax breaks for oil companies.  And with these tax breaks for the oil companies this could bring in more than $36 billion over the next decade.   
4. No Child Left Behind- President Obama also said he wanted to replace the No Child Left Behind with a new form of education reform.  No Child Left Behind was a reform passed by Geogre W. Bush which made states develop certain assessments in basic skills to be given to all students in certain grades to improve individual outcomes in education.
5. Troops in Iran and Afghanistan- Finally the president talked about how the war was going over in Iran and Afghanistan.  And he also said that hopefully in the next few months he would start bringing home our troops.


How This Relates To Class:
  This topic relates to class in one major way and that is the beliefs of liberals and conservatives.  When the president, who is a liberal, talked about taxes and health care sometimes the conservatives or Republicans didn't stand up and clap because they didn't really agree with those ideas.  But when the president talked about our troops coming home and the electric vehicles everyone got up and clapped because that was something they all could agree on.  What I'm basically saying is, like we learned earlier in the school year Republicans have kind of strict views, while liberals are more open to ideas when it comes to serving everyone in America.

Should Politics Have Quotas That Need To Be Met?

(John Kasich recently told the newspaper that he didn't believe in quotas when it came to politics.)


Well I'm pretty sure we have all heard of Ohio's Republican Governor John Kasich.  And what he is being accused of.  But for those of you who don't, it isn't a good thing.  John Kasich is Ohio's new governor who took Ted Stricklands place.  And because we have a new governor, he needs to make up a new cabinet, which means choosing the best people that fit the bill for the job.  But as he was choosing, people started to notice that all of the people in his cabinet were white.  Which means that he had no diversity in his cabinet.  And some people think that he should have a more diverse cabinet, with Hispanics, Blacks, Asians, and other people of different nationalities.  People have also labeled Gov. Kasich as a racist, but people of his cabinet have jumped to his defense in saying that he has reached out to some people of different nationalities, but they have all turned him down. 

Which is kind of hard to believe since times are really hard right now and everyone needs a job.  And since this is the first time in many, many years that there is an all white cabinet in politics people are beginning to think that there should be a quota that everyone must meet.  And to add insult to injury John Kasich also signed a resolution marking the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. holiday on March 17 -- St. Patrick's Day -- instead of Jan. 17, the correct date.

 
(This John Kasich.)


( This is Governor John Kasich's cabinet members.)

How Does This Relate To Class:
    The story relates to what we learned in class two ways.  One: At the beginning of the year we talked about racism and how whites would keep blacks out of political offices.  Two: We also talked about Affirmative Action.  And Affirmative Action is a program that is designed to help people of minority get a step ahead in life by creating quotas and certain standards, that people must follow and people are saying should Affirmative Action be taken into consideration in this circumstance.  Now do I agree with John Kasich and how he picked his cabinet members, no, but if these people are really qualified then he should let them stay, because if he kicks some of them to make room for people of minority then that would be reverse discrimation, which isn't a good thing either.

What Does the "DADT" Repeal Really Mean?

What does the DADT Bill really mean?  Well for those of you who don't know what DADT stands for it means "Don't Ask, Don't Tell".  And it is a bill that was recently passed by the House of Representatives and signed by President Obama.  But what many people don't know is  
that this isn't the first time the issue of LGBTs being in the military has been presented to the government.  Back in 1942 LGBTs were not allowed in the military, which is when they were preparing to go into World War II.  But even before that servicemembers who were gay would be court-martialed, imprisoned, and dishonorably discharged from the military if they were discovered to be gay.  So when former president Bill Clinton tried to overturn the ban of gays in the military members of Congress and the public said no, so DADT was presented as a compromise policy.  Something else people don't know is that "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" wasn't the original name of the bill.  It was Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, Don’t Pursue." The "Don’t Ask" provision mandates that military or appointed officials will not ask about or require members to reveal their sexual orientation.  The "Don’t Tell" states that a member may be discharged for claiming to be a homosexual or bisexual or making a statement indicating a tendency towards or intent to engage in homosexual activities. The "Don’t Pursue" establishes what is minimally required for an investigation to be initiated.  A "Don’t Harass" provision was added to the policy later.  It ensures that the military will not allow harassment or violence against service members for any reason.

And now that we have a new president the ban has been lifted.  And President Obama already said back in 2009 that he wanted to stop this bill because he felt that if someone wanted to serve our country in the military, they shouldn't be discriminated against.


(This video is of President Obama back in January talking about how he wanted to end the don't ask, don't tell policy.)

Now, finally, the president and many others are getting their wish, because the repeal has passed. 

( This video is of the Senate passing the Don't Ask, Don't Tell repeal.)

And the president has even said he will do everything in his power to try and get this bill implemented has soon as possible soon that troops can serve as being openly gay.  And that they will not be treated any different from anyone else in the military.

( President Obama is giving a speech about how troops can serve openly gay now and how he would like to have this bill in effect as soon as possible.)



(President Obama signing DADT repeal.)


How this story relates to class:
This story relates to class because at the beginning of the year we talked about how people have civil rights and how they should not be discriminated against.  And because the DADT bill has now been repealed people can now serve our country without being discriminated against because of who they are.  Like when blacks couldn't go to certain places because of their color, they were then being discriminated against because of who they were.  So in away these to things are kind of the same.