This week in 2305

First I'd like to make sure that we are comfortable with the layout of the Constitution, Then I want to hit the major points made in the sections focused on constitutional principles. I'll save a look at the section on religious liberty for next week - unless we make a lot of headway this week. This might be a bit too ambitious for my MW classes because we lost Monday to Labor Day, but we'l do what we can.

I'd like to also make sure we are comfortable with the arguments made in the Federalist Papers that I highlight for each section. We should also try to get comfortable with the arguments the Anti-Federalists made against them.

As far as news events go - I'll continue to throw out links to items related to the election - I'll try to narrow these down to the topics you've decided to write about, but I'll spread the net wide since come of you are undecided, and other might decide to change your focus.

Congress is back in session tomorrow after their August recess enters, so we will begin to follow them - conveniently enough, this will be right before we start looking at the legislative branch next week.

This week in 2306

I want to hit a few points about federalism before we continue with new material.I want to review those parts of the US Constitution that impact the states - they will help makes sense of any controversy that arises between the US and Texas as the class continues. And I want to make sure we are clear about what the stages of federalism are all about. Often it has to do with the shifts in the understanding of the parts of the US Constitution we covered in the previous section.

As soon as we do - I want to run through the section on political culture and make sure we are comfortable with the idea of an individualistic, moralistic and traditionalistic cultures and how they help explain political debate across the nation. This sets us up for a look at the Texas Declaration of Independence which - at least in part - contains cultural conflict between the Texans and the Mexican Government.

More on the 2016 race

- From Politico: Trump will sign GOP loyalty pledge: The Donald made the stunning decision to avoid complications in getting listed on primary ballots.

A close associate tells POLITICO that Donald Trump plans to sign a loyalty pledge Thursday that would bind him to endorsing the Republican nominee and would preclude a third-party run. Trump made the stunning decision, which he has long resisted, to avoid complications in getting listed on primary ballots, and to take away an attack line in the next debate, the associate said.

- Slate: Texas Two-Steps All Over Voting Rights: It says it can make voting as difficult as it wants to, and any law that says otherwise is unconstitutional.

In 1965, Congress passed the Voting Rights Act, one of the most important pieces of legislation in U.S. history. It contained key protections for minority voters, especially blacks, who had been effectively disenfranchised in the South. The act was a remarkable success, increasing minority voter registration and turnout rates within a few years. In 1982, an important amendment made it much easier for minority voters to elect candidates of their choice. Then, following the contested 2000 elections, states started passing new voting rules along partisan lines. As part of these voting wars, conservative states began passing laws making it harder to register and vote, restrictions that seemed to fall most on poor and minority voters.

- The Hill: DNC chief faces perilous fall.

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz has a tough fall ahead. The Democratic National Committee (DNC) chief is under fire from some of the top Democratic presidential hopefuls over her handling of the primary debates, and she's facing a huge decision over whether to support President Obama's historic nuclear deal with Iran.

Those issues highlight the difficulties facing the six-term Florida Democrat as she juggles her responsibilities to the president she supports, the constituents she represents and the broader party she's leading into the high-stakes 2016 elections. Wasserman Schultz's primary role as DNC head is to devise a campaign message that unifies the Democrats and distinguishes their priorities from those of the Republicans in the eyes of voters. But both the debate controversy and the Iran vote have distracted from that objective, threatening to undermine the show of Democratic unity even as party leaders are calling attention to the deep divisions in the GOP.

-  Inside Jeb Bush’s fall strategy to deflate Trump and court conservatives.

This is not how Jeb Bush thought his summer would end. The candidate once seen as the most likely Republican presidential nominee is languishing in the polls, his fundraising has slowed, and he endures daily taunts from the rival who unseated him as the front-runner, Donald Trump. Through it all, Bush is sticking to the same strategy that he and his advisers laid out months ago: Establish himself as a tested ­conservative reformer who served eight years as Florida governor, ride out the chaotic pre-primary season and wait for the party to coalesce around him.

Even as he shifts tactics over the short term to fight back against Trump, Bush is plodding forward, returning time and again in his appearances to the comfort zone of his years in Tallahassee, Florida’s capital, when he was an alpha leader and fellow Republicans showed him deference rather than defiance.

For 2305 today (and this week)

I want to walk through the circumstances surrounding the execution of Charles 1st:

- click here for info from UK's Parliament.

This event helps set the stage for the rise of legislative power and the separated powers.

I also want to walk through the following key documents:

- Petition of Right.
- British Bill of Rights.
- US Declaration on Independence.
- Articles of Confederation.
- US Constitution.

The next sections dig further into specific aspects of the Constitution. This material should help us understand - roughly - why the document looks the way it does.

Paper topics for GOVT 2306

Here's a quick list of what 2306 students want to write about

84th Legislative session
- change in truancy laws
- education laws
- marijuana laws / medical and synthetic marijuana
- response to gay marriage
- cuts to college aid
- regenerative medicine
- child sex trafficking
- The impact of birthright citizenship proposals on Hispanics in Texas
- renewable energy policy
- school ratings
- child sex trafficing
- Trump's impact on policy in Texas
- changes in criminal justice policy and law enforcement
- poverty programs
- small business
- extended learning programs
- Governor Abbott's impact on the session
- law against revenge porn

Houston election
- Houston charter changes
- HERO
- Mayor's race
- focus on Sylvester Turner

Paper topics for GOVT 2305

Here's a list of proposed topics I received as of 2:45 pm today. I'll use these to determine what to post throughout the semester.

- Super PACs - is there a better use of money?
- Would Trump be good or bad for the country?
- which issues are dominating the campaign now?
- Trump's impact on the campaign
- Trumps impact on immigration policy.
- Does anyone really care about the election so far? Who does? Who doesn't?
- A comparison of 2016 with elections with previous ones.
- How do groups or businesses decide which candidates to support?
- What are the difference between the candidates within each party?
- What is the impact of increased spending on the political process?
- What is the impact of new technology on the campaign?
- What are the candidates' stances on help for the middle and lower classes?
- How much money is necessary to win office?
- What qualities do people like in a candidate?
- Are the candidates thinking about the gap between the rich and poor?
- A comparison of Sanders and Cruz.
- Why do some candidates get more attention than others?
- Why are more Republicans than Democrats running for the presidency?
- Who runs the campaigns?
- What are the internal workings of campaigns?
- A comparison of campaign strategies.
- Which groups in each party support which candidates?
- How apathetic will voters be in 2016?
- Is the US ready for Sanders?
- What are the daily lives of the candidates?
- How issues come and go in the campaign.
- A comparison of Sanders and Clinton.
- What is the difference in campaign strategies of non-politician versus and career politician candidates?
- What are the candidates attitudes about war?
- What impact will money have on the race?
- Are the candidates thinking about the debt? is the public? why or why not?
- What influence will money play in major vs minor campaigns?
- Are any past campaigns similar to the current one?
- What previous election is most like this one?

There you go - I've told most everyone to just keep reading and writing. It's an easy project if you don;t fall behind.