PSCI 1101/ The American Political System

Fall 2012

Instructor: Dr. Gregory D. Young

Office: Ketchum 4A/Office Phone: (303) 492-4265

E-mail: gyoung@colorado.edu

Office Hours: Tuesdays & Thursdays 11:00-12:30pm or by appointment

Lecture Times: Tuesdays & Thursdays: 3:30-4:45, Farrand Hall, Reynolds Lounge /Campus Map

Important Course Links

Current Event Presentation Schedule

Class Notes and Schedule

Midterm Exam Term Study Guide

Midterm Exam Grade Summary

Budget Simulation Handout

Budget Simulation Roster

Final Exam Study Guide

Helpful American Government Links

Course Objectives and Description

Using both contemporary and historical development approaches, this course focuses both on the structure and political processes of the United States' government. It explores the constitutional basis of government and the federal system and examines contemporary issues involving of civil liberties and civil rights. The roles of political parties, elections, the media, and public opinion are considered as part of the political process. The major institutions of American national government are analyzed: Congress, the Presidency, the Supreme Court, and the bureaucracies. Finally, The policy process is examined, in particularly with respect to economic, foreign, and defense issues. We will examine case studies of ethical problems confronting contemporary government and political leaders.

Objectives:

A. To broaden the student's knowledge of American domestic politics and government.

B. To gain an appreciation for the complex interaction of political, social, and economic forces in the day-to-day operation of government; to see politics as the process of reaching compromises between desirable, but conflicting goals in society.

C. To further develop an awareness of the Constitution as the object of the oath that each federal official and military person is sworn to uphold and defend.

D. To examine in detail one particular aspect of the U.S. Constitution in a well-written, analytical exposition designed to enhance knowledge of the issues, develop research skills, demonstrate correct English language usage, and to develop the writing skills essential to any successful professional career.

E. Working hard in Poli Sci 1101 will make you a better and more responsible citizen because this course will help you to base your opinions of the U.S. government on logic and evidence instead of emotion and belief.

Course Requirements

Please read this syllabus carefully

Required Textbooks/Readings

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All course readings are available at America and the World.com. Access to this web site is available for purchase on line at: http://americaandtheworld.com for $45.00

Weekly Readings, Attendance and Class Participation

It is essential that students attend every class and arrive on time. Regular attendance and active participation in class discussion will enhance your understanding of the course material and almost certainly improve your performance on the mid-term and final exams, which are together worth 50% of the course grade. Attendance is therefore required and a large portion of your 10% participation grade. Five unexcused absences in the semester will result in a failing grade. Each student earns one “WELLNESS Day” (an absence which does not count against their grade). Notifying your instructor via email prior to class constitutes and excused absence. The required reading load is comparatively light and ranges only from 50 to 100 pages per week, as set out in the course schedule. Your knowledge and understanding of the required readings will be tested in the mid-term and final exams.

Mid-Term and Final Exams

The mid-term exam will be held on Thursday, October 25^th at the usual class meeting times. The final exam will be held on Thursday, December 20^th from 7:30-10:00am. Students must write the final exam in order to pass the course. A study guide for both the Midterm and final exams will be linked to this page. The midterm will be mostly objective with one essay question. The final exam will be less objective short answer and will most likely contain two essay questions. Blue books should be purchased by each student and brought in the class period prior to both exams; 8.5x11 blue books are preferred. Make-up exams will not be given unless the instructor has been notified in advance or a doctor’s note is provided.

Current Events

At least one student will present a current event orally to the class each day. Each student will present twice during the course of the semester. The presentation should be no more than five minutes in length. The source should be from a respected news source, be less than one week old and pertain in some way to the U.S. government. Respected news reports on the Internet are acceptable sources. The current event presentation will be part of your participation grade. There will be a link to the current events schedule on the course web site. Students will either email or turn-in a copy of the article that they present in class.

Constitution Essays

In Federalist #10, James Madison presents arguments supporting the ratification of the proposed Constitution. He contends that the new extended republic will do more to protect the rights of citizens and "cure the mischief of faction" than the governments of the individual states. In Federalist #51 Madison supports the notion of separate institutions sharing power to protect the liberties of American citizens under the new Constitution

For the first essay, in a 3-4 page, typed, double-spaced paper, summarize, in your own words, Madison's thesis and arguments in Federalist #10. In addition, answer the following questions. Has the Constitution lived up to Madison's expectations? Has the extended republic proven to be a better hedge against a majority faction imposing its will on the rest of the nation? In other words, have Madison's arguments proven to be correct and why? Federalist #10 can be retrieved at the America and the World website. No further research beyond the text is required. Also note that Federalist #10 is written in 18th century English. You may find it difficult to understand initially and should therefore not wait until the last minute to begin reading it for the first time.

The first essay is due on Tuesday, September 25^th either in class or in the instructor’s mail box in Ketchum Hall 106 (Political Science office) by 4:30pm The essay should be between 900 and 1200 words in length (approximately 3 to 4 pages). Include a word count on the first page. Late essays will be docked one grade per class day of lateness (e.g., A- to B-, C to D, etc.) unless you provide a doctor’s note explaining why it was impossible for you to meet the deadline. Computer malfunction is not an acceptable excuse for lateness. Re-read your essay for clarity, grammar, spelling and punctuation, since poor execution of these elements will also affect your grade. Provide footnotes where appropriate.

In your second essay you will again summarize Madison’s argument for separation of powers in the new government in Federalist #51. Do you agree with Madison’s argument? How centralized or decentralized should the American government be? How does Federalism figure in Madison’s contention that the new government will do more to secure the liberties of American citizens. The second essay is due Tuesday November 13^th. The requirements will be the same as the first one.

Quizzes, Study Guides and Homework Exercises

Students are encouraged to answer the questions on the study guides which are linked to each lesson on the America and the World web site. Throughout the semester with only one day’s warning, the study guide segment due in class will be turned in for a Pass/Fail grade. Periodic unannounced quizzes will be given to assess compliance with the reading assignments. Quizzes will all be five questions, graded in class. If a student misses none or just one, ten points are awarded for the quiz. If a student misses 2 or more, a grade of zero is awarded. Missed quizzes missed will not be made up. Quizzes and the study guide (when required to be turned in, combined with periodic homework will count towards ten percent of a student’s final average.

Budget Simulation

Three Class periods will be set aside for conducting a simulation of the U.S. government’s budget process. A separate handout posted on the Course Web Site will detail the simulation. Your attendance/participation in the simulation which includes a wrap-up report counts ten percent of your final grade

Grading Criteria

Mid-term exam 25%

Constitution Essays 20%

Final exam 25%

Quizzes, Study Guide and homework 10%

Budget Simulation 10%

Current events, attendance & participation 10%

Total 100%

Final course grades will be curved unless a straight 90/80/70/60…percent of the possible points proves more beneficial (higher class average) to the students. The curve is based upon the mean grade, as the lowest B. two standard deviations below the mean are necessary to fail the course and one standard deviation above the mean for an A/A- grade.

COURSE SCHEDULE/ Fall 2011

Day/Date	Topic/Event	Assigned Reading Due
Tues Aug 28	Course Introduction & Administration	None
Thur Aug 30	Farrand Hall Common Readings:	Plato's "Allegory of the Cave" Kurt Vonnegut's "Wailing Shall be in All Streets" Stanley Milgram's "Behavioral Study of Obedience,"
Tues Sep 4	The Study of American Government/Terms The Declaration of Independence	Important Political Science Vocabulary TNC - The American Revolution Declaration of Independence
Thur Sep 6	The U.S. Constitution (Part I)	The US Constitution TNC - Writing the Constitution
Tues Sep 11	The U.S. Constitution (Part II) The Ratification Debate Video: “Empire of Reason”	Federalist 10, 39 & 51 The Anti-Federalists – Centinel I TNC - Ratification & Implementation
Thur Sep 13	Federalism	TNC - Federalism
Tues Sep 18	American Political Culture	W&D American Political Culture Shelby Steele – “Obama and our Post-Modern Race Problem.”
Thur Sep 20	Civil Liberties (Part I) Video: Flag Burning Amendment & Free Speech	The Bill of Rights TNC - The Bill of Rights and American Politics
Tues Sep 25	Civil Liberties (Part II) Federalist Ten Essay Due
Thur Sep 27	Civil Rights (Part I)	TNC - Defining Civil Rights and Liberties ML King – “Letter from the Birmingham Jail”
Tues Oct 2	Civil Rights (Part II) Video: “Eye on the Prize”
Thur Oct 4	Public Opinion	TNC - Public Opinion
Tues Oct 9	Political Participation	W&D – Political Participation Mike Rosen – “Party Trumps Person” California’s Prop 13 Economist – “Meltdown on the Ocean”
Thur Oct 11	Political Parties	W&D – Political Parties A History of Political Parties (Online Handout)
Tues Oct 16	Elections and Campaigns	W&D – Elections and Campaigns
Thur Oct 18	Interest Groups	TNC - Interest Groups
Tues Oct 23	The Media	TNC - The Media Hedrick Smith – “The Image Game” Danelo – “Stop Blaming the Press”
Thur Oct 25	Midterm Examination	Review
Tues Oct 30	The Presidency	TNC - The President List of Presidents and Prominent Events
Thur Nov 1	Go Over Midterm Exam Budget Simulation Introduction	Budget Simulation Handout
Tues Nov 6	Election Day Guest Lecture –Discussion of the Presidential Election	None
Thur Nov 8	No Class	Watch the election returns and work on your second essay.
Tues Nov 13	The U.S. Congress (Part I) How a bill becomes a law Fed 51 Essay Due	TNC – Congress Passage of House Originated Bill into Law http://www.votesmart.org/resource_govt101_02.php
Thur Nov 15	The U.S. Congress (Part II)	“Change Nobody can Believe in” “Why the Senate Should Vote Yes on Health Care”
Tues Nov 20	Fall Break	None
Thur Nov 22	Fall Break	None
Tues Nov 27	The Judiciary	TNC - The Supreme Court Significant Supreme Court Cases WSJ – “Roe v. Wade at 25” Fielding – “Repairing the Damage before Roe.”
Thur Nov 29	Budget Simulation Day One	Review role and simulation handout
Tues Dec 4	Budget Simulation Day Two
Thur Dec 6	Budget Simulation Day Three
Tues Dec 11	The Bureaucracy	TNC - The Bureaucracy
Thur Dec 13	Foreign and Military Policy Review for Final Exam	TNC – Foreign Policy Kozak - Congress and National Security Wright – The Structure of American Defense Policymaking Yingling – “A Failure of Generalship” Braden – “A Failure of Citizenship Too”
Thursday 20 Dec	Final Examination 7:30-10:00am	Study, Study, Study

Key for Assignments

1. W&D – James Q. Wilson & John J. Dilulio Jr. (2008), American Government 11^th Ed.
2. TNC – ThisNation.com
3. WSJ – Wall Street Journal

Course Administration

CELLULAR TELEPHONE/LAPTOP COMPUTER POLICY

Needless to say, all cellular phones must be turned off and put away at the beginning of each class meeting. Classes failing to comply will be issued a stern warning on the first occasion. The entire class will have a pop quiz over the previous reading assignments/lectures on the second and subsequent occurrences. Phones, PDA’s, MP3 players and Blackberrys will not be out on desks or used during any quiz or examination. Laptop computers will be allowed in this class as I believe they still can contribute to learning in the classroom. If, however, they become a distraction, they will be banned.

Students With Disabilities

If you qualify for accommodations because of a disability, please submit to me a letter from Disability Services in a timely manner so that your needs be addressed. Disability Services determines accommodations based on documented disabilities. Contact: 303-492-8671, Willard 322, and www.Colorado.EDU/disabilityservices

Disability Services' letters for students with disabilities indicate legally mandated reasonable accommodations. The syllabus statements and answers to Frequently Asked Questions can be found at www.colorado.edu/disabilityservices

Cheating and Plagiarism

Cheating (using unauthorized materials or giving unauthorized assistance during an examination or other academic exercise) and plagiarism (using another's ideas or words without acknowledgment) are serious offenses in a university, and may result in a failing grade for a particular assignment, a failing grade for the course, and/or suspension for various lengths of time or permanent expulsion from the university.

All students of the University of Colorado at Boulder are responsible for knowing and adhering to the academic integrity policy of this institution. Violations of this policy may include: cheating, plagiarism, aid of academic dishonesty, fabrication, lying, bribery, and threatening behavior. All incidents of academic misconduct shall be reported to the Honor Code Council and those students who are found to be in violation of the academic integrity policy will be subject to both academic sanctions from the faculty member involved and non-academic sanctions given by the Honor Code Council (including but not limited to university probation, suspension, or expulsion). Please refer to www.colorado.edu/honorcode to view the specific guidelines. If you have any questions related to this policy, please contact the Honor Code Council at honor@colorado.edu.

The development of the Internet has provided students with historically unparalleled opportunities for conducting research swiftly and comprehensively. The availability of these materials does not, however, release the student from appropriately citing sources where appropriate; or applying standard rules associated with avoiding plagiarism. Specifically, the instructor will be expecting to review papers written by students drawing ideas and information from various sources (cited appropriately), presented generally in the student’s words after careful analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. An assembly of huge blocks of other individuals' existing material, even when cited, does not constitute an appropriate representation of this expectation. Uncited, plagiarized material shall be treated as academically dishonest, and the paper will be assigned an “F” as a result. Papers submitted by any student, written in part or in whole by someone other than that student, shall be considered to constitute fraud under the University Honor Code, and result in the assignment of an 'F' for the entire course. If the student is confused as to what constitutes plagiarism, he/she should review the CU Honor Code on this topic. If you have any questions regarding proper documentation in your writing, please discuss it with your instructor.

SEXUAL HARASSMENT

The University of Colorado Policy on Sexual Harassment applies to all students, staff and faculty. Sexual harassment is unwelcome sexual attention. It can involve intimidation, threats, coercion, or promises or create an environment that is hostile or offensive. Harassment may occur between members of the same or opposite gender and between any combination of members in the campus community: students, faculty, staff, and administrators. Harassment can occur anywhere on campus, including the classroom, the workplace, or a residence hall. Any student, staff or faculty member who believes s/he has been sexually harassed should contact the Office of Sexual Harassment (OSH) at 303-492-2127 or the Office of Judicial Affairs at 303-492-5550. Information about the OSH and the campus resources available to assist individuals who believe they have been sexually harassed can be obtained at http://www.colorado.edu/odh/

RELIGIOUS OBSERVANCES

The university has received valid complaints from students regarding the lack of adequate faculty accommodation for some students who have serious religious obligations, which may conflict with academic requirements such as scheduled exams. Campus policy states that faculty must make reasonable accommodation for such religious observances and in so doing, be careful not to inhibit or penalize those students who are exercising their rights to religious observance. Every effort shall be made to reasonably and fairly deal with all students who, because of religious obligations, have conflicts with scheduled exams, assignments or required attendance. Please notify your instructor of anticipated conflicts as early in the semester as possible so that there is adequate time to make necessary arrangements. A comprehensive calendar of the religious holidays most commonly observed by CU-Boulder students is at: http://www.interfaithcalendar.org/

BASIC COURTESY TO YOUR CLASSMATE AND YOUR INSTRUCTORS

Please arrive on time and do not leave early. If you absolutely must leave early, please let me know at the beginning of class and sit near a door so you do not cause too much disruption. Similarly, if arriving late, please take a seat as quickly and quietly as possible. Take care of all your business before class begins; do not leave and return during class as this creates a disturbance to others.

Taking this course signifies acceptance of the terms and conditions stated in this syllabus