J2- Review Presentation

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1YsJgfEY38vsSNUE84l-wBCLjCH4klyWrMqROkNT2dvU/edit#slide=id.p 

J1

President Obama and the White House staff struggle to decide whether or not to continue enforcing the Defense of Marriage act, even though they have publicly declared their opposition to its provisions.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/29/us/politics/for-obama-tricky-balancing-act-in-enforcing-defense-of-marriage-act.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

- Under what type of scrutiny would legislation based on sexual orientation fall?

H6

(a) Judicial review is the power of the Supreme Court to determine the constitutional validity of acts, statutes, executive orders.

(b) Judicial review grants the Supreme Court the power to overturn laws proposed by the legislative branch or actions taken by the executive branch, therefore backing the system of checks and balances of the judicial branch over the other two branches.

(c) A writ of certiorari is issued by the Supreme Court to a lower court, ordering it to produce a certified record of a certain case it has tried, in order for the Supreme Court to determine whether any irregularities/errors have occurred that could justify review of the case. The Supreme Court exercises its discretion in selecting the cases by using the rule of 4, a practice that permits four out of the nine Supreme Court justices to grant a writ of certiorari.

 

(d) Stare decisis is the policy of following rules laid down in previous judicial decisions, unless they go against current principles of justice. Individual justices practice stare decisis by referring strictly to prior Supreme Court decisions when ruling in current cases. Judicial activism holds that the interpretation of the U.S. constitution should take into account the current needs and spirit of the nation. Individual Supreme Court justices can be influenced by the future needs of the country, causing him/her to be more likely to strike down laws and policies as unconstitutional.

H3

1. a) Supreme Court nominees share ideologies with the president who nominated them, have held high administrative or judicial positions before, and most often share partisanship with the president.

b) Presidents seek to appoint federal judges who share their political views in order to "pack" the courts with justices who agree with them on policy. During the appointment process presidential aides survey candidates' past court decisions, speeches, writings, etc. to gather information on their ideology. Most justices have had experience as a judge before moving up to the Supreme Court,  some have held elective office, and a few have only had experience as attorneys. The fact that many of the justices have not had previous judicial experience demonstrates how a specific background is not necessarily needed for Supreme Court nomination, differing from judges appointed in the appellate courts. Along with matching ideologies, the president most often chooses a nominee who is a member of the same party as him/her. Most of the president's acquaintances are made through his/her party, and therefore nominees are most often chosen within that party, matching the political views of the president.

c) Elena Kagan had never served as a judge before receiving president Obama's nomination for Supreme Court justice. She was, however, dean of Harvard Law School and the White House said that her inexperience as a judge was a positive aspect, "giving her a different perspective from the other justices."

2. a) Interest groups use the threat of public protest and raise funds to support or retaliate against specific candidates.

b) In 1987 when president Reagan nominated Robert Bork, many interest groups rose up in protest. Groups like Planned Parenthood and the ACLU raised money to run ads in the newspaper and on television publicizing Bork's extremism. This caused public opinion to sway against Bork, in turn causing many Senators to also sway against Bork until he was ultimately denied confirmation.
c) Interest groups mobilized when Kagan was nominated. NARAL pro-choice America were specific in making sure that Kagan received a fair hearing, for they knew she would advocate in support of pro-choice legislation in the Supreme Court, for "Kagan's confirmation is a ripe opportunity for groups to push their agendas, mobilize their supporters, and raise money." NARAL was rapidly raising money and rallying support in order to make sure Kagan was nominated.

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H1

Ruth Bader Ginsburg

- Ruth GInsburg worked with her husband, Martin Ginsberg, on a 1972 tax case Moritz v. Commissioner. The case challenged a situation in which a dependent-care deduction allowed to divorced men, widowers, and women was denied to a single man caring for his ailing mother. 

- The Moritz case launched Ginsberg into association with the ACLU Women's Rights Project. She used the 14th amendment (Equal Protection clause mandates that every state provide equal protection under the law to all people within its jurisdiction) to eradicate gender discrimination by many laws, racking up five victories in six Supreme Court appeals. Rader almost single-handedly convinced courts/legislatures to eliminate gender classifications like a woman's right to be executor of her son's estate (Reed v. Reed 1970), and a female Air Force lieutenant's right to secure housing allowances and medical benefits for her husband (Frontiero v. Richardson 1973). 

- In Craig v. Boren 1976 she fought for the right of the "thirsty boys" in Oklahoma to buy beer at the Honk n' Holler at the same age as young women. In this case Ginsburg convinced the court to agree that (in her own words) the "familiar stereotype: the active boy, aggressive and assertive; the passive girl, docile and submissive was "not fit to be written into law." 

G15

(a) A balanced budget occurs when current expenditures are equal to receipts.

(b) Federal entitlements are payments by the national government to organizations or individuals that are obligated by government according to certain criteria. 

(c) Medicaid is an example of an entitlement. This expenditure limits the federal government from achieving a balanced budget because Medicaid is a growing expense, but does not create a profit. Medicaid is an entitlement though, meaning the federal government is required to cover the expenses, therefore ever-increasing the national debt. 

(d) One consequence of large budget deficits is that the current government is leaving less economic stability for the upcoming generation. As the debt increases, the possibilities for organizations and individuals to prosper decreases, providing a less stable economy as the years go by.

(e) Our projected revenue for 2012 was $2.5 trillion; our expenditures were $3.8 trillion; our budget deficit was $1.3 trillion. 

http://www.usgovernmentrevenue.com/federal_budget

(f) The total national debt, although it is constantly increasing, is about $16,534,403,540,104 

http://www.usdebtclock.org/# 

G11

Proposed Policies:

"Medical bills shouldn't be based on the number of hours in the hospital, but by the quality of care our patients receive"

"We must keep the promises we already made"

"We can get this done."

"So what are we waiting for? Take a vote, and send me that bill"

"Not a bigger government we need, but a smarter government"

"We can fix this, and we will. The American people demand it, and so does our democracy."

"They deserve a simple vote."

Obama proposed a policy of tax reform and company codes that closes loopholes for companies that send jobs overseas, and benefit companies that keep the jobs here in America. He urged Congress to come together to come up with a plan to control climate change; he proposed starting an energy preservation trust and cutting in half the energy wasted by our homes and businesses in twenty years. Obama proposed a rebuilding effort that will supply infrastructure on highways and bridges, and help families refinance and buy homes in a responsible manner. He proposed working with states to make high-quality early childhood education (pre-schooling) available to every family in the U.S. Obama urged the House to follow suit in passing the Violence Against Women Act as the Senate did today. He also proposed raising the minimum wage amount to $9/hour in order to raise the incomes of millions of working-class families. He proposed a non-partisan commission to improve the voting procedures in the U.S., and background checks and regulations to make it harder for criminals to have access to guns.

Style:

I thought that Obama sounded strong. He was confident in what he was saying, and with many hand motions he spelled out exactly what he wanted to get done in the upcoming years. He spoke rather quickly, not stumbling over his words or taking many deliberate pauses. However, although he spoke with determination, the beginning of his speech sounded like re-hashed campaign speeches, not exactly lacking the broad statements without specific plans (although later on in the address he mentioned specific proposals). I was concerned when he proposed giving more funding to education and research in math, science, and engineering "that will help grow our economy," for that inherently entails giving less funding to the arts and humanities, which are equally important disciplines. Obama did tell a personal story about a young girl who was shot and killed in a Chicago park after school - sentimental, hits home on the gun violence issue.

Media/Audience Response:

Many attendants wore green ribbons to commemorate the shootings in Newtown, Connecticut. John Boehner seemed to be trying very hard to remain straight-faced, and he did not join in clapping for most of Obama's statements. When Obama spoke about such policies like rebuilding efforts and education, the camera panned to Sean Donovan and Arne Duncan (and a random kid in the audience), respectively.

Standing ovations for: tax reform, "Not a bigger government we need, but a smarter government", when he actually said the words "climate change," infrastructure on highways and bridges, raising the minimum wage, gun control, and more.