US Government (Wednesday, April 12, 4th period)

[professor-lyman.livejournal.com]

Josh was in the classroom, a pile of tests on his desk.

And a giant golf umbrella next to his chair. He wasn't taking any chances.

Every now and then, he gave a suspicious glare at the ceiling tiles.

"Okay. This is our last test before our final exam, at which point you can erase your brain from anything you learned in this class, as is traditional. But for now, well, I hope you used the time you had off on Friday productively."

1. How does a bill become a law? Singing aloud will be mocked.
2. Name at least two committees in either the House of Representatives or the Senate. Extra credit will be given if you name more than five.
3. Just how big a jackass is the Senate Majority Leader? Give me an example of the differences between the House and the Senate.
4. Where does the Supreme Court fit into the balance of power thing?
5. Marbury v. Madison, Dred Scott, Brown v. Board of Education, Roe v. Wade. Prove to me you know what you're talking about regarding one of these cases.
Extra credit: Name the 9 Supreme Court Justices in this reality.
[OOC: handwaving the answers is fine--give me an idea of how your character did. Answering the questions is fun, too :)]

Comments

Re: Take the test

[carter-i-am.livejournal.com]

1. The party decides what ideas would be beneficial to put forward during that term, and decides which Congressperson either needs to take a hit or get some press, and has them sponsor it. Once a draft of the bill is written, it is submitted to a committee. If it has support, it will be debated and amended and redrafted until it is almost unrecognizable. If it has no political support, it will be killed like an easy cheerleader in a slasher film. Then, it goes to the House or Senate for a full vote. If, by some miracle, it passes, it will then go to the other house of Congress. If it doesn't, it will be sent back to committee for more amendments and drafts, and a repeat of the process. Once both houses have voted, it will either be signed into a law by the president, or vetoed by either an outright veto or a pocket veto. If it is vetoed, that may be overridden by a vote of Congress.

2. Veterans Affairs, Appropriations

3. The Senate has the power to approve or disapprove of Presidential appointments, including Supreme Court Justices. The House doesn't.

4. The Supreme Court has the power to declare laws and presidential actions unconstitutional, but the President has the power of appointment and Congress has the power of approval over the Justices. The President and Congress also have the power to impeach the Justices.

5. Brown v. Board of Education did away with the doctrine of "Separate But Equal" with the quote "Separate but Equal is inherently unequal," thereby making segregation illegal. Of course, it took many years, protests, the National Guard, and the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to make it a reality, but it started with Brown.

Extra Credit: Happy, Sneezy, Grumpy, Bashful, Doc, Dopey, Sleepy. Samuel Alito, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, John Roberts Jr, Stephen Breyer, Clarence Thomas, David Souter, Antonin Scalia, Anthony Kennedy, John Paul Stevens. Thomas and Scalia are two different people? Huh.