Tax Cut Deal Divides Potential 2012 GOP Contenders

I still think that the tax cut deal is a good deal. Even though it will create very few jobs, I think that the benefits outweigh the risks. I think that this deal will be good for the people.

The Senate's war over Christmas

I believe that everyone should have time to enjoy their own Christmas and not have to work. Christmas should be a time spent with family and work should be the last thing on their mind. I think that they should vote after their Christmas break because this bill can wait. What's the rush?

Government May Shut Down Amid Standoff on Pork-Filled Spending Bill

I can see why people might vote for this bill because it adds $1 billion to the new health care bill. There are also reasons that I can see why people would disapprove. People might disapprove because they have such short notice and they don't know much about this bill. I think that Obama should not sign the bill because then they said they will drop it.

Senate passes controversial tax cut deal

I think that this tax cut deal will be something that American families and businesses will need and want. This is a good deal because it helps out the common people who work hard for a living. This deal will extend the unemployment benefits for 13 months which is great because of alot of people losing their jobs lately. It will get families back on their feet and give them some hope.

Legislative Preview & How a bill becomes a law

I do not know much about how a bill becomes a law because I haven't studied it. The only thing I knew is that a bill can get past by the House, make it to the president, the president can veto it, but the bill can still become a law. My next paragraph will reflect on what I learned by reviewing the websites provided.

A bill can start in either the House or the Senate. If it starts in the House and is passed then it goes to the Senate. If the Senate passes the bill then it will make its way to the Governer. The Governer can either approve the bill or veto the bill. If approved the bill becomes a law. If the Governer vetos the bill then it is sent back to where it originated from and can become a law if there is a 2/3 vote in favor of the bill.

Former New Hampshire Governor John Sununu is stepping down as state Republican chairman, citing "a variety of personal, family and business reasons."

His decision to not run for re-election comes as Republicans in the Granite State prepare to pick a standard-bearer to run against President Obama in 2012. New Hampshire proudly hosts the nation's first presidential primary, and the campaign activity will surely pick up next year.
Sununu has been a major player on the national political scene for decades, and helped former President George H.W. Bush win the New Hampshire presidential primary in 1988.
Bush was coming off a bruising loss in the Iowa presidential caucuses and the win in New Hampshire turned his campaign around. Bush ultimately picked Sununu to be his White House chief of staff.
More recently, Sununu has been arguably the most successful state party chair in the country, credited with turning around the fortunes of the New Hampshire GOP. In the 2010 midterm elections Republicans swept all federal races, won huge majorities in both houses of the legislature, picking up 124 seats in the state House, the biggest gain ever recorded in a single election cycle.
In the wake of his decision, every GOP 2012 hopeful will now be seeking the counsel and support of Sununu. They will also have his name on the top of their lists of potential 2012 New Hampshire campaign chairmen.
Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney, a 2008 GOP presidential candidate and potential 2012 candidate tweeted, "Thank you Gov. John Sununu for your wise leadership. Because of you, NH is red again."
This has to do with the election process because this is the final step in it which is "stepping down." Sununu was a very important person, he was Bush's chief of staff because Sununu helped Bush win the presidency. He said to the Republicans that he wants a "standard-bearer to run against President Obama in 2012."

Quiz Chapter 7

1. Explain the difference between hard and soft money:Hard money is money that is contributed directly to the candidate running for office while soft money is money that is contributed to the party to spend on their party activities.

2. What is the electoral process and is this something that you agree or disagree with and why?The electoral process is the process in which one person from one party is chosen to run for office. I agree with having more than one candidate running for office that a primary election is held so only one person continues but nobody is left out of the running.

3. What is the difference between a closed and open primary?
A closed primary is a primary in which a person votes for the party in which he or she is registered as. An open primary is a primary in which a person can vote for either party in which they choose.

4. Explain what absentee voting is and what the positives and negative may be with regards to it:Absentee voting is voting that takes place before election day because a person will be out of town or if they are ill they have a chance to vote. The positive effect of absentee voting is that people can vote when they want which will allow more people to vote. A negative effect is that a person's vote may get lost or stolen in the mail.

5. What changes do you see in the way we run elections ten years from now?Elections will have the same concept because it has for years but the advertisement might change due to increase in technology. Also there probably will be online voting by then since it is already getting mentioned.

6. Explain your views on money and elections with regards the amount of money that is spent:Although I understand that people want to get there name out there so people will vote for them, I think that it is amazing how much money we are spending on elections when there are starving people in America and other places in the world.

7. Go to cnn.com or foxnews.com and find an article dealing with the election process.  Post the article in your blog and provide your viewpoints pertaining to the article.

Chapter 6 Test

1.  Provide a paragraph on an important issue of your choice from Section 1:One important issue in Section 1 was the power to set voting qualifications. States are reserved their own power but the Constitution puts five restrictions on how they can use their power. No state can deprive any person of the right to vote due to race, color, or gender. No state can also deprive any person who is at least 18 years old of the right to vote due to the 26th Amendment.

2.  Provide a paragraph on an important issue of your choice from Section 2:
One qualification that has to be met in order to vote is that the person has to be registered to vote. Registration is a procedure of voter identification intended to prevent fraudulent voting. State laws officials should review the poll books and cross off the names of people who no longer can register. People who no longer can register include those who have died, moved away, convicted a serious crime, or is committed to a mental institution. This is the process of purging and it should be done every two to four years.

3.  Provide a paragraph on an important issue of your choice from Section 3:
For this section I will be talking about Preclearance. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 declared that no new election laws and no changes in existing election laws could go into effect in any State unless it was first approved or given preclearance by the Department of Justice. This produced a large number of court cases since this law was passed. So then they made restrictions to the election issues they could change. One thing that they could change would be the location of the voting polls. Also they could change the boundaries of election districts and the deadlines in the election process.

4.  Provide a paragraph on an important issue of your choice from Section 4:There are some sociological factors that people take in before they go to the voting booths. One thing they think about is their income or occupation. Voters who have lower income are more than likely going to support the Democrats and voters with higher income the Republicans. Education also plays another role. They believe that the more education a person has the more likely they will vote for the Republican side. There is also a difference in voting between men and women called the gender gap. Studies show that men and women vote differently on subjects such as abortion, health care, social welfare matters, or military involvements.Some other things that can persuade someone would be their religion, where they live, and also their family members.

5. Explain voter apathy and what can be done to help it:
Voter apathy is when people dont vote because they don't think their vote will count. It is very important for everyone to think that their vote can make a difference because if one person doesn't, then another person might think the same thing, and soon nobody will vote because they don't think it will make a difference. I think one vote can make a difference. Sometimes it gets so close that they have to do a re-count. By voting you get a chance to tell your representatives what kind of nation you want to live in.

6. Explain the qualifications for registering to vote:
First of all the person has to be of the age of 18 years old due to Amendment 26 unless the State wants to lower the voting age. Then the voter must register his or her name, age, place of birth, present address, length of residence, and other facts. This voter will remain registered unless he or she dies, moves away, is convicted of a serious crime, or is committed to a mental institution. There names are put into the poll books but crossed of if they are no longer registered to vote.

The history of the two major political parties in our government.

At first our two party system was between the Federalist and the Anti-federalist. These two parties are more commonly known today as the Republican and Democratic parties respectively. It was Thomas Jefferson and James Madison who organized them into the Democratic-Republican party. This party favored states' rights and followed the constitution strictly. The Republicans believe to create a stonger national government.

In the past I would have been a Democrat. The Democrats wanted to support the South during slavery before the Civil War. They also wanted voting rights for all males. The Democrats support the hard workers such as small farmers. They care for the people who work very hard and try to make their voice be heard.

In the present I am a Democrat because I am a hard worker in the small town. Another reason why I am a Democrat is that I favored Stephanie more than Kristi. I do believe that helping our business's out of trouble is somewhat of a good thing, but I think that we need to worry more about the common folk. They people who work hard and don't really get a voice. For the people who farm and other people don't appreciate the food in which they get.

In the future I have no idea where I will be standing on this issue. Things change and so do people. It might also have to do with the fact of who is running for office and what there views on making America better are. I still might be a Democrat or may switch over. Also in the future these two parties might change names, divide into more parties, or merge together.

Election Results

I was glad to see that the smoking ban in South Dakota was past so there will be no more smoking in the bars in our State. It will be very different to walk through a non-smokey bar for once. In one article, some bars were affraid to lose their customers so they came up with a plan to still have their smoking customers. So they have made an area on the patio where the smokers can go and they also have lighting out there and the light also gives off heat so it can be used during the winter days.

I didn't really like to see that Kristi Noem won as the house of representative. She had a lot of negative campaigning against Stephanie Herseth Sandlin and she never did apoligize for it. I thought that Stephanie Herseth Sandlin did a good job in her position and we didn't need a new person to represent South Dakota in Washington. I was very glad however to see that Dennis Daugaard won as our governer. I liked him better than Scott Heidepriem because Scott said once during a debate "When I become your next governer," and i didn't like how Scott thought he was going to win. I was surprised to hear that these two were actual friends before and during the campaign, unlike Noem and Sandlin.

Chapter 4

In your blog:  Pick two areas from each of the three sections in Chapter 4.  Write a paragraph on those areas and what you have learned in regards to each area.  You should have six total paragraphs.

Section 1
The Exclusive and the Concurrent Powers: Exclusive powers are powers that are given to the National Government and can not be exercised by any states. These powers are seperated between the National and State Governments to reduce chaos between the United States. Powers that both the National and State Governments can exercise are called Concurrent Powers. The Constitution does not grant these powers to the National Government but it also doesn't deny them to the States. These Concurrent powers make it possible for the federal system of government to function.
The Supreme Law of the Land: The Framers anticipated conflicts so they wrote the Supremacy Clause into the Constitution. The Supremacy Clause has also been called the "linchpin of the Constitution" because it connects the National Government and the States into one unit which is called the Federal Government.

Section 2
Admitting New States: Congress is the only system who has the power to admit new States. Although States can be created, a new state can not be created by taking the territory from any existing States without the concent of the legislature of the State involved. Each State enters the Union on an equal footing with each of the States and has to have certain conditions to become a State.
Cooperative Federalism: The American Government system is like a game of tug-and-war between the National Government and the States. In revenue sharing, Congress gives an annual share of the huge federal tax revenue to the States. The Government also has some grants it gives away. Categorical grants are made for school lunches, construction of airports, or wastewater treatment plants. Block grants are for health care, social services, or welfare. Project grants are grants made to the States.

Section 3
Full Faith and Credit: The full faith and credit talks about if a person has a debt to pay to one State, they cant go to another State and have that debt to go away. They must pay off the debt completely. Mainly what happens in one of the States is still on your record in another State.
Privileges and Immunities: This means that no State can draw unreasonable distinctions between its own residents and the people who happen to live in the State. Every State has to consider people travel from State to State in the United States. This agreement allows people to buy a house or get married in any State they want to. However on some occassions, the person might have to live in that State for a while before they can hold public office or practice law and medicine.

1.  What does Federalism mean by definition and what does Federalism mean to you?
Federalism is a system of government in which a written constitution divides the powers of government on a territorial basis between a central, or national, government and several regional governments, usually called states or provinces.
Federalism to me is just the division of powers.

2.  List and describe the three powers of the National Government.
The Expressed Powers- delegated to the National Government in so many words- spelled out in the Constitution. These powers are also called "enumerated powers."
The Implied Powers- are not stated in the Constitution but are reasonably implied by the expressed powers.
The Inherent Powers- are powers that national governments have historically possessed.

3.  Explain the division of powers and why it is important?
Powers are divided between national, concurrent powers, and state powers. The division of powers is important because then one power doesn't have to deal with so many things.

4.  What is the Supremacy Clause and what is its function?
The Supremacy Clause is a clause that asserts and establishes the Constitution, the federal laws made in pursuance of the Constitution, and treaties made by the United States with foreign nations as "the Supreme Law of the Land." This clause functions by joining the National Government and the States into a single governmental unit, a federal government. It holds together the complex structure that is the American federal system.

5.  Find a site on the Internet that deals with Federalism.  Take 10 minutes and review that site.  Provide the link and provide some of the useful information that you found to help you better understand what Federalism is and how it works.
Dual federalism holds that the federal government and state governments are co-equal. The Supremacy Clause and the 10th amendment come from the constitution and the federal government has jurisdiction only if the Constitution clearly grants such. In cooperative federalism says that the national government is above all over the states. Cooperative federalism is the most used today with the nation over powering the states.
http://www.usconstitution.net/consttop_fedr.html

Assignment 1

What are your views on the latest political ads on TV?  What candidate(s) do you like or dislike and why?
I think some of the ads on tv are annoying because they spend more time telling what the other person does not do instead of what they want to do. One candidate that i dislike Kristi Noem. In her adds she says all the bad things and why we shouldn't vote for Stephanie Herseth Sandlin. While Stephanie is a candidate that I like because she tells how much hard work she put into running South Dakota and doesn't have anything bad to say about the other candidates.

What role do you feel that you will play in politics and government in the future?  What ways are you participating currently?

One role that I can play in politics in the future is by being a leader and setting a structured example for the people around me. By doing this it will hopefully make them want to do the same and do some good. And I do currently think that I am setting a good example on how people should act.