Weekly Assignments for Spring 2023

Just to squirrel these away: 

Week #1

GOVT 2305

If you were watching the news recently you would have seen conflict over who became speaker of the 118th House of Representatives. The position of speaker is the only house leadership position mentioned in the Constitution, but nothing is really said about it. It is based on a similar position in the British House of Commons which simply exists to oversee debate on the floor - not a minor task. There are no constitutional rules for how a speaker is selected, what they do, or even if they are a member of Congress. These rules have been developed by the house, and they evolve over time. 

The struggle over who becomes speaker is a result of power struggles within the house, and they can determine what can and cannot happen in that chamber over the next two years. The multiple votes that it took for a speaker to be elected during the first week of the 118th term was due to a small group of people - most affiliated with the House Freedom Caucus - to use their leverage to push for changes in House Rules that they believe will increase their power.

In the first written assignment I want you to learn about these changes and comment on how they may or may not alter the distribution of power within the House of Representatives. Who benefits from these changes? Who is weakened?  

GOVT 2306||

The Texas Legislature began its regular session on 1/10/23 and the House of Representatives selected its speaker. It was a much easier process than that in the U.S. House of Representatives. This is largely because power is distributed differently in the Texas House than in the U.S. House. 

I want you to explain to me how it is different, and why that lead to a different result. 

To get information, you might want to scan through the chapter on the Texas Legislature, but mostly I'd like you to read through the articles I've linked to in the following post: 

- Catching up with the Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives.

You might want to approach this assignment by asking this question: What are the differences in the ways that power is distributed in the Texas House of Representatives as opposed to the U.S. House of Representatives. 

Hint: Explore the roles of parties in each.

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Week 2

This assignment is for both GOVT 2305 and 2306.

I want you to review the material I linked you to in the post on Aristotle's description of the six types of government. 

- Click here.  

Which best describes us? There can be more than one answer. Whatever you decide, defend it. 

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Week 3

I assume you remember that you have a 1000 word essay assignment.

For a - possibly - guaranteed 100 points, Tell me how will you approach the question I gave you. 

Two conditions for full credit.

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Week 4

GOVT 2305

Social Media and Civil Liberties

You have a choice this time. This week we start looking at civil liberties, which includes protections for speech and protections from unreasonable searches and seizures. The first  is contained in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and section 8 of the Texas Bill of Rights. The second is contained in the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and section 9 of the Texas Bill of Rights. 

Here are your choices: 

Question 1 - Substantive Protections: Are Algorithms Free Speech?

The meaning of "speech" can be flexible. As we will see, it has been used to include unlimited political contributions. Does it also include the use of algorithms by social media companies? 

There are cases brewing which raise that question. Read through the following - in addition to anything else that you find useful, and address the question.

- Are Algorithms Free Speech? An American Lawyer’s Perspective.
- Algorithmic Speech and Freedom of Expression.
- Facebook isn’t free speech, it’s algorithmic amplification optimized for outrage.
- Speech Regulation by Algorithm.

Question 2 - Procedural Protections: Are Social Media Messages Protected by the 4th Amendment? 

New technologies have always posed problems for searches and seizures. They alter the relationship between law enforcement and the things they want to search for and where and how they want to conduct their searches. Social media is no different. 

I want to explore this issue. It may come in handy one day - you never know.

- Is the Fourth Amendment ready for the internet: Accessing the social media evidentiary goldmine.
- Are Social Media Messages Entitled to Fourth Amendment Protection?
- Could Better Technology Lead to Stronger 4th Amendment Privacy Protections?
- FOURTH AMENDMENTSEARCH AND SEIZURE.

GOVT 2306

Public Funding and Public Policy

I want you to describe to me the differences in how different public policies in Texas are funded. You don't have to get too far into the weeds on this since a full description would take volumes. But I would like you to get comfortable with the fact that each area has it's own unique source of funding. 

Use the following for info: 

- The 2022-23 Texas Fiscal Size-Up. 

It's a large document that contains all the information relevant to the spending and revenue collection decisions made by the 87th Texas Legislature. Focus on figures 1 - 13. What can you make of it? 

Ask me any questions you have.

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Week 5

I'll add more, but for no I just want to get this out there.

Political polarization has increased over the past 2-3 decades. This means that the ideological gap between Democrats and Republicans has increased, leading some to suggest that compromise on public policy issues is more difficult to obtain. 

I want you to determine if this is true. 

Do some searching around and see where liberals and conservatives position themselves on civil liberties (if you are in 2305) and elections (if you are in 2306). This question also forces you to start thinking about public opinion.


GOVT 2305 

Civil Liberties and Political Polarization

[Hint: I found some good stuff by googling "civil liberties political polarization public opinion ideology"]

GOVT 2306 

Election Law and Political Polarization

[Hint: I found some good stuff by googling "elections political polarization public opinion ideology"]

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Week 6

Question: Does the Powell Memo help us understand contemporary politics in the United States and Texas?

I want you to read the Powell Memo. Click here for it.

It's a set of guidelines written in 1971 to the leadership of the business community in order to fight back against the political forces that sought to regulate them. 

I'd like you to describe briefly Lewis Powell's argument and his suggestions. The I'd like you to determine whether it appears that his suggestions were accepted. Does it help explain how politics is conducted today?

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Week 7 

cancelled

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Week 8

ChatGPT and me.

I want you to figure out how to use ChatGPT and use it to redo one of your previous written assignments. Pick whichever one you want. Then I want you to compare your answer with the one generated by ChatGPT. Are they the same? Are they different? If different, how? Comment on this.

- OpenAI.
- ChatGPT: how to use the viral AI chatbot that everyone’s talking about.

Have fun with this.

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Week 9

You have about 7 weeks before class is done. The 1000 word essay will be due sooner than you think. It might be a good idea to figure out what you want to write about and let me know. 

Thanks. :)

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Week 10

Here's the latest.

For GOVT 2305, click here.

Question: Will either bill violate the free speech clause in the U.S. Bill of Rights?

For GOVT 2306, click here.

Question: How is the Texas Legislature attempting to limit local control?

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Week 11

This is the next to last assignment.

Here are your questions: 

GOVT 2305: Is Dark Money a Threat to Democracy?

GOVT 2306: Is government in Texas more or less "democratic" than government at the national level?

These are opinion questions based on what you've learned so far this semester.

Blow me away

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Week 12

I'll get this out early. This will be the last written assignment. Let's have fun with it.

Read the two articles mentioned in this link: 

- From LawFare: A Machine With First Amendment Rights.

I want you to ask ChatGPT if it has first amendment rights. Tell me what it says. Comment on it. Do you agree with its position or not?

You know how much to write by now, or do you??????