H6

a. Define Judicial Review: 
-Judicial review is the power of the courts to determine whether or not an act of Congress is in accordance with the Constitutional.
b. Explain how Judicial Review empowers the Supreme Court within the system of Checks and Balances: 
-The Court has the power to interpret the Constitution and decide whether or not a law is constitutional.
c. Describe the process through which the Court grants a writ of certiorari: 
-A writ of certiorari is a document that calls up a case.The petition is filed by the Supreme Court. Included is an argument explaining why the case should be heard, and then there must be a vote. The vote follows the rule of four, meaning at least four justices must vote in favor of hearing the case.
d. Explain how each of the following influences decisions made by individual justices when deciding cases heard by the court: 
-Stare decisis: This means "let the decision stand", meaning that the decision is final. This is a way for the court to say that they want to uphold the decision previously made concerning the case.
-Judicial activism: This refers to a decision that has been made that more than likely was influenced by personal opinion rather than the Constitution. Members of the Supreme Court take cases that relate to them in a way, or if the topic is important to them.

H4

1. 

A. Identify three characteristics of Supreme Court nominees: 

-Supreme Court nominees typically have ideals similar to that of the president. Nominees tend to be older due to the correlation between knowledge and age. The nominee also has shown that they're dedicated to not only their job, but the sanctity of the job. This means that they stick by their decisions and to their political affiliation.
B. Discuss how each characteristic has been politically relevant during the appointment process:
-In order to extend a president's power, he or she usually appoints someone with similar ideals which makes their political party stronger. This can however be bad in terms of appearance (if a president only nominates people from his respective party). As recently seen, John Roberts voted in favor of Obama Care despite the fact he was nominated by George Bush. Age also is an important factor, the older a person is the more mature they are (generally speaking). All of the nominees higher on the scale of age.
(c) USE real facts from the confirmation of Elena Kagan to illustrate at least ONE of these characteristics: 
-Elena Kagan, who was appointed by Obama, has similar ideals to Obama which could be one of the reasons she was appointed.

2.

(a) Identify two methods that have been used by interest groups to influence the appointment process. 

-Interest groups share information and support a specific candidate. They could also lobby. 

(b) Explain how each of these methods has been used to influence that process.

-The interest group could send out informational pamphlets, flyers, or make phone calls to express their opinion concerning a nominee. An interest group could also influence the process by lobbying by allocating money to their campaign or to someone of the same party. 

(c) USE real facts from the confirmation of Elena Kagan to illustrate at  least ONE of these methods:

-An interest group send out a flyer with the title being: "Ensure Elena Kagan gets a fair hearing..." 

G15

Balanced budget:  a balanced budget is when revenues are equal to expenditures. This means that the government can not spend more than it takes in. 

Federal entitlements: Government payments to groups of people that are eligible and meet requirements. 

An example of an entitlement program is Medicare. This makes it difficult because by the government providing this service, they are essentially hemorrhaging  money. They're obligated to continue along with this program, which means that the government is in a slight hole. There's really no way to get out of providing medicare, because tax payers money goes towards this cause, so the service is expected. 

 

A consequence is simply the fact that the longer the government continues with this charade, the more in debt they will be. More importantly, future generations, for example my generation, are forced to wonder whether or not there will be sufficient funds when it comes time for us to retire. 

Projected revenue for 2012: $2.5 trillion 

Expenditures: $3.8 trillion

Budget deficit: $1.3 trillion

(http://www.usgovernmentrevenue.com/federal_budget)

Current debt: $16,530,485,224,524

source: http://www.usdebtclock.org/

G12 (Sick!!!)

Substance: 
1. Obama proposed that minimum wage be increased from $7.50 an hour to $9 an hour, as well as reducing tax loopholes. He also urged with congress to increase the effort against climate change. Lastly, Obama wants to change how medicare is paid for. This change will be based upon the way treatment is received. He urged for bipartisanship. 

Style: 
2. Obama played the card of emotion in his speech, playing to the hearts and minds of the audience. He spoke with a calm tone, adding a subtle yet dramatic effect when he made long pauses. For example, when he discussed gun violence, he mentioned the names of different victims, causing the news to hit at home. Obama attempts to act as a connecting force between two political parties by mentioning McCain. 

Response: 
3. The camera liked to zoom in on people who had either good or negative responses to the speech. More often than not, the camera was zoomed where Obama was trying to make a point. Whenever the military was mentioned, there would be a standing ovation. 

G10

1. It seems that health care, or the public well-being, seems to be the most important to the president, considering the fact it takes up $931.26 of the budget. Following closely behind health care is social security, which also directly reflects the well-being of our country. These are important to the president because a country can not survive without health care. Immunizations, medicine, and checkups help provide a stable environment for success. If we were still a country who had a health care system comparable to a third world country, then the progress of the US would be much smaller, meaning that the global power would compress. Social security is important as well because this acts as an incentive to American's.

2. Originally, the president was leaning towards a goal of having revenue come in a $1.6 trillion and $1.4 trillion. However, as of right now, the president is willing to compromise by raising $1.2 trillion in revenue. In addition to this, he is no longer advocating to increase the percentage of taxes on families with income above $250,000. To replace this idea, he offered up the idea of using a permanent extension of the Bush tax cuts for families who earn less than $400,000 a year. To meet these goals, the White House is proposing limiting the tax benefits of itemized deductions to 28% for taxypayers. The estate tax would also return to the parameters it held in 2009, meaning that a house worth $3.5 million would be taxed at a 45% rate. The goal of this idea is to cut the spending budget by over $800 million, allowing more money to be allocated to other programs. This new proposal would act as a safety shield for the lower middle class, meaning they would be less hurt by inflation.

3. The people more likely to be opposed to this idea are of course, the Republican party. However, this is not simply due to the fact that they both are centered around different issues and have different core values. The Republican party wants to increase the age of eligibility for social security, raising the age from 65 to 67. With this compromise, there would be over $400 million saved annually. After Obama proposed this idea, Boehner said "Any movement away from the unrealistic offers the President has made previously is a step in the right direction, but a proposal that includes $1.3 trillion in revenue for only $930 billion in spending cuts cannot be considered balanced. We hope to continue discussions with the President so we can reach an agreement that is truly balanced and begins to solve our spending problem." which shows his opposition.


Information taken from the following source:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/17/obama-fiscal-cliff-offer_n_2319075.html

G9

1. In my opinion, I would increase taxes as well as cut spending. In terms of the rate of taxes, I would only increase by a couple percentage points for people earning over a certain amount of money. This would be semiannual ordeal, meaning that every six months there would be a large lump sum of a tax, thus creating a reserve of money available for different organizations. In terms of cutting spending, I would only cut in certain departments, such as the military and allocate the money to departments such as education and health care. Since the US already spends more than the next four countries on its military, I don't think that the cuts would be such a big deal. If more money is allocated to education, the overall well-being of citizens will increase, thus creating more people available to work in the workforce, increasing our economies worth. If money money was put into the education system, the level of knowledge would increase ten fold of the majority of citizens. Since we already have intelligent citizens, this increase would not to that much, it would allow people who are potentially on the brink of poverty and middle class to jump the gap and increase their well-being. 

2. For my first choice, I decided to cut the spending for the military by 100B or whatever the number was. My idea was if I did this, then I would be able to allocate money to different areas where it was needed more. I also chose to increase spending for the medical field. M y idea behind this was to increase the well-being of America's citizens, thus making the workforce larger. This did not have a negative impact, however it also did not have a postitive outcome. Instead, this canceled out anything that could have potentially caused harm. My third decision was to increase spending for the school system. I chose to do this because as a song so famously says, the children are our future. With stronger educational values, the workforce will be strengthened and the quality of life for most people will eventually increase. I chose to protect the health care field as well as the education system because the two groups directly effect America's future. They're both things that are not only required by law, but they're necessary to maintain the level of authority we have. The strong school system will help in terms of increasing our competitive advantage, and in turn will help us grow stronger as a country.

G7

1a. Congress gives the agencies power because since they're smaller and more compact, they're able to get more things. Congress gives agencies power to execute federal laws, since they lack the necessary people to execute laws. Not only does this save congress time, but it prevents the group from getting the blame if something goes sour. Another reason is groups are simply more efficient. Since they're made in order to follow through on a few specific things, problems will be solved in a much quicker fashion.

2a. Environmental Protection Agency: EPA: the basic objective of the EPA is to protect the environment. They can send out information, hold conferences, and spread awareness concerning the world.

FCC: Federal Communications Commissionn: determines what is able to be broadcasted on airwaves, such as the television and radio. The FCC can make laws in order to maintain a certain level of cleanliness on air.

Federal Reserve Board:
The federal reserve board regulates money and is the important bank for the United States as a whole, more important than individual banks such as Wells Fargo or BBT. They're able to manage the money supply for the US.

3a. Congress uses oversight committees , and these committees allocate money to different groups. In order to make sure that groups follow legislative orders, they give the groups money. If they do not follow the orders or go through on what they said they would, congress can simply stop allocating money to the groups. By providing groups with a budget, the groups have little leeway to make mistakes and go off the rail. Another example is the fact that congress oversees all the actions of the groups.

G4

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/30/us/politics/obama-issues-call-for-immigration-overhaul.html

Obama urges Congress to pass a bill that decrease the number of illegal citizens by speeding up the process of legalization, thus giving them citizenship. Obama also wants to give same-sex couples the same rights as other couples, meaning they can use their relationship to obtain a visa.

In terms of a formal power of the president, Obama can convene both the House and the Senate in order to discuss policy. This would help him because then he would be able to get his message out all one time, and hear both the supporting arguments and the negative ones.

An informal power of the president includes media coverage. Even though this is an informal power, it's a power that contains quite a punch. When the president has good media coverage, his ideas are more spread out, thus increasing the number of followers he has. By followers, I mean supporters. For example, Obama could use Twitter or different types of social media in order to get ideas about his bill as well as find out ways that he could improve the writing.

G2

(a) Identify two formal constitutional powers of the President in making foreign policy.
The president has the title of the Commander in Chief of the military forces, meaning he has the supreme authority, or the final say in war discussions. The president also has the ability to make treaties, as seen by Obama going overseas countless times to negotiate with different countries. The president can also appoint diplomats, a representative of the United States. 

(b) Identify two formal constitutional powers of Congress in making foreign policy.
To begin, Congress has the ability to declare war on foreign nations. Congress also has the final say on treaties, however only the president can negotiate the wording. Congress also has control of the governments spending habits through the use of appropriations committees. If they do not like the policies the president is funding, Congress can simply cut off the money supply. 

(c) Identify two informal powers of the President that contribute to the President's advantage over Congress in making foreign policy.
The president is seen as more important compared to Congress as a whole. The president is seen as a global leader, whereas Congress is looked upon as simply a member of the United States Government. As a result of this, the president has more access to global media, meaning he can get his word out faster than other people could. The president can also make executive treaties that only last as long as the president and the head of another nation are both in charge of their nations. 

(d) Explain how each of the informal powers described in (c) contributes to the President's advantage over Congress in making foreign policy.
An informal power is a power that is no directly stated in the constitution. As said in answer C, the president is looked upon as a more reliable source, meaning he has more access to the media. The president is looked upon as the older version of a poster child for America. When discussing foreign policy on another countries territory, the president is more known than a member of Congress. When asking who Barack Obama is, everybody knows. When asking who Tim Kaine is however, the response will most likely be lesser. Lastly, the president has an easier time with foreign policy because of the respect that is associated with the presidency. Being president is a rough job, and it's an honor to have the title Mr. President. The president is looked upon more highly than a member of Congress since the job is more prestigious. 

F8

For REP Confino: Is there a limit to the amount of marijuana that is distributed in order for it to count as a felony, or does distributing any amount qualify as a misdemeanor?

For REP Levine: In attempts to reduce law suits as well as to protect those who create moonshine, create a disclaimer that will go on the bottle.
Amendment: Create the disclaimer which openly states the potential "side effects" from drinking moonshine.

For REP Paine: If this bill was passed, would this not give an excessive amount of power to the president?

For REP Dillery: How will money be given out? Will it be based on a sliding scale, or will it be on merit? 

For REP Daniel's: What is your definition of developed countries?

For REP Bouabid: What qualifies a research university to apply? Does the size of an organization determine the size of the loan or grant received? Where will the 50 million dollars come from? 

For REPs Fendley and REP Pickering: How will the tax rate be determined? 

For REPs Price, REP Squillace, and REP Stevens: Define secondary education

For REP Hall: Since the programs are established by the state government, each state would have different ideas and punishments. This being said, wouldn't it be smarter for the federal government to establish the level of standards? That would make the program much more uniform and the standards would be the same for every state.

For REP Hylton: Section 4 point 4, is that not already the police? Where would the money come for this new federal agency? Where will the 10 million dollars come from in order to fund this cause?

For REP Lingo: What about in the case of an emergency? How would 100 soldiers defend against 10,000? You should also define PTSD

For REP Oelhafen: Is the cap for public and private universities the same? How will your bill adjust to inflation?

F7

113th CONGRESS

1st Session

H.R. 567

To restrict the sale and usage of semi-automatic and automatic weapons.

In the House of Representatives

January 10, 2013

Ms. Brownrigg, Ms. Carpenter, Ms. Myers, and Ms. Shortall introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

__________________________________________________________________________________________

A Bill

To restrict the sale of semi-automatic and automatic weapons to those mentally incapable or with criminal charges in the degree of a felony while imposing severe regulations towards the purchase distribution and usage of automatic weapons.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representative of the United States of America in Congress assembled

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE

This act may be cited as the “Restriction of Firearms Act”

SECTION 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE

(a) Findings- Congress finds that---

(1) Since 1982, there have been at least 61 mass murders carried out with firearms across the country, and in most cases, the killers had obtained their weapons legally;

(2) there have been 19 mass shootings, since April 16, 2007;

(3) 15 of the 25 worst mass shootings in the last 50 years took place in the United States;

(4) The ownership of firearms has led to an increased percentage of homicides;

(5) States with stricter gun control laws have fewer deaths from gun-related violence;

(6) The second amendment gives citizens the right to bear arms.

(b) Purposes- The purposes of this act are---

(1) Restrict the purchase of automatic weapons

(2) Impose high tariffs on the sale of automatic weapons to generate revenue for the treasury of the federal government

(3) Require background checks on those wishing to purchase a semi-automatic or automatic weapon

(4) Fine those who misuse firearms

(5) Provide safety for the community

(6) Ensure that those with mental incapabilities will not injure themselves or others by use of firearms

SECTION 3. DEFINITIONS

In this Act:

(1) AUTOMATED WEAPON- a firearm that reloads itself and keeps firing until the trigger is released.

(2) SEMI-AUTOMATIC WEAPON- a self-loading firearm which, after being fired, ejects the empty round that has been fired, loads a new cartridge and usually recocks itself.

(3) HANDGUN SAFETY CERTIFICATE- requires that the owner understand and follow handgun safety practices, have basic familiarity with the operation and handling of a handgun, and be fully aware of the responsibility of handgun ownership.

(4) VIOLENT CRIMES- attempted use of physical force, or threatened use of a weapon, committed by a former spouse, parent, or guardian of the victim, by a person who is connected to the victim in any way, by a person who has cohabitated or is cohabitating with the victim, with the intention to cause bodily and/or mental harm to the victim..

(6) STATES- The Term ‘States’---

(A) means all 50 states of the United States of America and includes all other states that shall become part of the United States of America in future history; and

(B) includes agencies and entities of each state.

(7) MENTALLY INCAPABLE- The Term ‘Mentally incapable’---

(A) Refers to a person who is diagnosed with a Clinical Major Depressive Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, Schizophrenia, a Personality Disorder, a Panic Disorder, Schizoaffective Disorder, Dementia, Alzheimer's, a Dissociation Disorder, Autism, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, a Factitious Disorder, Avoidant Personality Disorder, or any other mental illness that inhibits the acuteness of the mental sphere and may cause unprompted violent acts. In addition it also refers to;

(B) when someone cannot understand or cannot appreciate what may happen as a result of decisions they make about their —or others—finances, health or personal care.

SECTION 4. BAN ON PURCHASE, AND USAGE OF FIREARMS BY MENTALLY INCAPABLE U.S. CITIZENS. BAN ON SALE OF FIREARMS TO MENTALLY INCAPABLE U.S. CITIZENS.

(a.) Those citizens of the U.S. who have been declared mentally incapable shall not be allowed the privilege of using, or possessing firearms

(b.) In cases where an American citizen had been declared mentally incapable their names shall be entered into the National Instant Criminal Background Check (NICB).

(1) The Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act previously established the NICB, however as of yet many states have not entered the names of those declared mentally incapable.

(2) It is the responsibility of each firearm provider to run all individual buyers names through the NICB system. If a gun is sold to a person defined as mentally incapable and it is discovered by either state officials or federal officials then the executives of that particular firearm business shall be held responsible.

(c.) From this point forth it shall be required by law and enforced by law that all states shall enter the names of those citizens ,who have been declared mentally incapable, into the NICB

(1) If a state has not entered the name of a citizen who has been declared mentally incapable into the NICB, and is discovered, then the state shall pay a fine of no larger than $2,000,000,000 and no less than $500,000,000.

(2) In addition if a state does not enter a name of a citizen who had been declared mentally incapable into the NICB, and the said person commits a crime while in the possession of the firearm a fine shall be imposed upon the state of an amount that shall be decided upon the discretion of the judge presiding over the case.

SECTION 5. REMOVAL OF FIREARMS FROM THOSE DEEMED MENTALLY INCAPABLE

(a.) If those who are in possession of a firearm are deemed mentally incapable, then the firearm shall be confiscated by the state government, and shall no longer be allowed to pursue the obtaining of a firearm.

(b.) All persons who own or operate a firearm shall register with the state, and if they are found to be mentally incapable they may no longer have access to firearms.

(1) If a former owner/operator of a firearm is found in possession of a firearm, he/she shall be subject to a fine up to $2500.

(2) If a former owner/operator of a firearm is found in possession of a firearm a second time, he/she shall face jail time of no more than 10 years, but no less than 2 years.

(c.) All states shall routinely run mental health examinations on all firearm owners/operators to certify that he/she is mentally capable.

(1) The routine examinations will occur within the last month of the 5th year of the date the owner/operator acquires the gun

(2) Each state shall report a list of those deemed mentally incapable to the NICB, as well as removing firearms from the possession of those who are mentally incapable.

SECTION 6. VIOLENT CRIMES AND FIREARM POSSESSION

(a.)Those who have committed a violent crime during any point in their lives shall no longer have the privilege of firearm possession.

(1) If the person prosecuted for the crime is caught owning or possessing a firearm by state or federal law enforcement agents, fines may be enacted, upon the individual, of up to $10,000 but no less than $1,000. The fine will go towards the benefit of the corresponding law enforcement agency.

(b.) This law will affect all criminals with past, present, and future convictions of violent crimes.

(1) There is no grandfather clause for violent criminals who have previously been convicted

(c.) The names of those american citizens who have committed violent crimes shall be entered into the NICB data base, which is already in effect.                   

(1) The names of the individuals, who have committed crimes,will remain on the list indefinitely, unless conviction is overturned  

SECTION VII. RESTRICTION OF PURCHASE, SALE, AND USAGE OF AUTOMATED WEAPONS

(a) The purchase of an automated weapon shall cost no less that $50,000 unless sold directly to the United States government

(b) The purchase of an automated weapon shall require the buyer to be within possession of a handgun safety certificate.

(c) If the registered automated weapon is misused, the owner will face a fee of no less than $10,000

(d) If store-owners disregard the restrictions placed on the sale of automated weapons, and illegally sell an automated weapon to someone who does not meet the requirements, they will be unemployed and face a fee of no less than $20,000

(e) The sale of each automated weapon shall be registered under the name of the buyer and shall only be used by the buyer

ENACTMENT CLAUSE

This bill will become effective 125 days after it is signed into law by the President.

F6

Bill Briefing: Gun Control in the United States

I. Gun violence is a serious issue in the United States, resulting in nearly 30,000 causalities every year as well as 100,000 people wounded. (http://smartgunlaws.org/category/gun-studies-statistics/gun-violence-statistics/) In fact, firearms were the third-leading cause of injury-related deaths nationwide in 2010, following poisoning and motor vehicle accidents. Regions with stricter gun laws have lower rates of homicide and violence, particularly among the youth. Approximately 30,000 people could still be alive if states had a stricter gun policy. This being said, states need to increase the attention demanded to this cause. What type of message does this send to our children if the issue is blown away, as if it's meaningless? We do not want to set that example for the children who will eventually be running this country.

II. The Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act (established in 1994) mandates that states preform background checks on people who purchase firearms.

III. The purchase of guns should be limited, meaning that if a person wants to purchase a gun, they will have to go through a long legal process perhaps turning them off from the idea. The purpose is to make sure that people who purchase guns have a stable mental state of mind, and have seemingly good intentions behind them. More importantly, people who have committed a felony, murdered someone, or even been convicted of a crime where guns were or could have been used, they will be deemed unable to purchase guns.

IV. Judicial branch, specializing in the state courts and when necessary the Supreme Court.

V.

• V. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/12/20/pro-gun-advocates-push-back-against-gun-control-after-newtown.html
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brady_Handgun_Violence_Prevention_Act
• http://www.nij.gov/topics/crime/gun-violence/welcome.htm