Texas City

1. Read Chapter 1 in the textbook, including "You Decide: Voices of Texas: Immigration in Texas," and write an essay that addresses the following questions: How is the population changing in Texas? What are some of the possible political implications of the changing population in Texas? After reading the "You Decide" passage, do you agree with Dan Patrick or Julian Castro? Should undocumented immigrants be given a pathway to citizenship or be sent back to their country of origin? What are the pros and cons of illegal immigration in regards to both the U.S. and Texas economies? Consider how illegal immigrants have positively or negatively affected the economy. Do you believe compromise is possible on immigration? Are the only two options deportations and amnesty? Is there a third option? What role should the state of Texas play in the immigration policy? Read Chapter 2 in the textbook, including "You Decide: Voice of Texas: Proposition 2 and Same-Sex Marriage," and write an essay that addresses the following questions: As compared to the US Constitution, why is the Texas Constitution so frequently amended? How does the turnout for elections dealing with constitutional amendments compare to turnout for presidential elections? Do you think the level of turnout influences the legitimacy of the amendments that are passed or rejected? Is Proposition 2 a violation of the equal protection clause of the U.S. Constitution? Should Proposition 2 be deleted from the Texas Constitution? Why or why not? Must the state recognize same-sex marriages that have been licensed and performed lawfully in another state? If so, why? If not, why not? Do you believe that religious freedom gives people the right to deny their services for same-sex marriages? If so, why? If not, why not? 3. Read Chapter 3 in the textbook, including "You Decide: Voices of Texas: Voting Rights and Redistricting," and write an essay that addresses the following questions: Has the evolving relationship between the federal government and the states changed for the better or worse? Why? How has Texas often responded to mandates from the federal government? With regards to voting rights, is this an area where the federal government should have more or less influence on the states? What is Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act? Does preclearance violate the Tenth Amendment and give the federal government too much power, or is it a necessary check on the states to make sure that minorities are not discriminated against? Texas argued that it is unconstitutional to impose preclearance unless a state's racial discrimination was as bad as what existed in 1965. In 2013, then-Attorney General Gregg Abbott argued that voter discrimination is no longer a problem in Texas and consequently is exempt from federal oversight. Do you agree? If yes, why? If not, why not? What are two other areas where Texas is at odds with federal laws or mandates? 1. Read Chapter 4, including "You Decide: Voices of Texas: Should the Tea Party Movement Launch a Third Party?" What is the Tea Party? When were they created? What policy positions do they advocate? Do you think the rise of the Tea Party has been beneficial for the Republican Party? Why or why not? If you were advising the Tea Party on how to maximize its power and influence, would you tell Tea Party members to stay with the Republican Party or launch their own? As an independent party could the Tea Party be competitive in a state like Texas? Why or why not? Do you think that there should be more than two competitive political parties in the United States? Why or why not? Read Chapter 5 in the textbook, including "You Decide: Voices of Texas: Voter Identification Laws," What are some of the historical and contemporary barriers to voting? What accounts for the low level of participation in Texas? What are the arguments for and against voter identification laws? Should a student ID be an acceptable form of identification for voting? What can be done to increase voter participation in the short term? In the long term? Do you think lawmakers and election officials in Texas are open to adopting methods to increase turnout? Why or why not? 3. Read Chapter 6 in the textbook, including "You Decide: Voices of Texas: Should Former Legislators be Lobbyists," and write an essay answering the following questions: How do lobbyists influence lawmakers? What is the revolving door? Should legislators have the right to profit from their relationships and experiences as a public servant after they retire? Do you agree or disagree that former legislators lobbying their former colleagues is unethical? Why? Should Texas enact laws to limit the ability of legislators to lobby? If so, what specific provision should Texas enact and why? Would laws limiting the ability of legislators to lobby make government more respected and ethical? 4. Read Chapter 7 in the textbook, including "You Decide: Voices of Texas: A Full-time or Part-time Legislature?" and write an essay answering the following questions: How often does the Texas Legislature meet? What are the common arguments for and against a full-time legislature? Would a full-time legislature increase or decrease the possibility of corruption? Does the gender and racial makeup of the Texas Legislature adequately represent the population of the state? Would a different gender or racial makeup of the Texas Legislature influence the type of legislation passed? What type of policies might get more focus if women were the majority in the Texas Legislature? Would a full-time legislature contribute to more diversity in the Legislature? Why or why not? Lesson 3 Writing Assignment 1. Read Chapter 8, including "You Decide: Voices of Texas: A Plural or Single Executive?" How does the power of the governor in Texas compare to other states? What is a plural executive? What is the single executive model? What are the arguments for and against a plural executive? Do you believe that the plural executive is more democratic than the single executive model? Why or why not? Does the plural executive lead to more efficient and accountable government? Why or why not? Do you believe the power of the governor should be increased, decreased or remain the same? Why or why not? 2. Read Chapter 10, including "You Decide: Voices of Texas: Houston's 'Bathroom Ordinance'" and write an essay answering the following questions: According to the graphic "Who Governs Texas's Cities?", which city council best reflects the racial/ethnic composition of its population? Which council diverges the most from its city's population? Do you think it is important that the city councils do reflect the racial/ethnic composition of their communities? Why or why not? Why are there so many special districts in Texas? Do you feel cities and counties should do the jobs that special districts do? Why don't they? Do you think cities and counties should more closely monitor the activities of special districts? Who do you think should be in charge of oversight? In recent years, local ordinances relating to hydraulic fracking, ride hailing services, and discrimination have led to conflict with the state government. Should cities' lawmaking powers be limited to concerns such as traffic or animal control issues, rather than broader issues? Should the state have the power to preempt or invalidate local ordinances in order to ensure consistency in regulations across the state? 3. Read Chapter 11, including "You Decide: Voices of Texas: What to Do with a Budget Surplus" and write an essay answering the following questions: Do you think that sales and use taxes are a fair way for the state to generate revenue? Why or why not? How should policy makers deal with a projected budgetary surplus? Should taxes be cut or spending increased? In the case of a budget surplus, what arguments would you make to the legislature to increase spending? Where would you increase spending? Why? In the case of a budget deficit, what areas would you target for cuts? Why? Under what circumstances should the legislature tap into the Rainy Day Fund? Why did the Texas Legislature give up the ability to set tuition at state universities and how has this decision impacted you? Read Chapter 9, including "You Decide: Voices of Texas: Elected or Appointed Judges?" : How well does the racial and gender composition of the judiciary reflect the demographics of the state's population? Should judges be elected or appointed? What are the arguments for electing judges? What are the arguments for appointing judges? Should the selection system vary according to the type of judge? Why or why not? How should judges be selected in Texas? Is there a way to make the process less political? In the case of elected judges, should judges recuse themselves or abstain from cases that affect their largest campaign contributors? How informed do you think the public is about judicial elections and judicial candidates? If you were voting for a judge, would you take the time to learn about the candidates and their qualifications or would you vote based on party affiliation? 2. Read Chapter 12, including "You Decide: Voices of Texas: Abortion Policy in Texas," How does Texas compare to other states with regards to providing services for poor citizens? What is the age and race/ethnicity breakdown of the uninsured in Texas? What programs are used to provide coverage to the uninsured? How are those programs funded? What steps has Texas taken to influence abortion rates in the state? Does Texas' sonogram law violate free speech for the physician? For the patient? Should the state pass laws mandating what information physicians share with their patients? 3. Read Chapter 13, including "You Decide: Voices of Texas: Cite and Release: Necessary Cost-Savings or Soft on Crime?" and write an essay answering the following questions: Are all defendants treated equally in the Texas criminal justice system? Why or why not? Why do you think certain groups are overrepresented or underrepresented in the prison system? At times the integrity of the criminal justice system has been called into question. What are some of the events that have led to this situation? What is cite and release and why was it implemented? Do you believe that more counties should adopt cite and release? Why or why not? Discuss at least two changes that you believe would increase fairness in the criminal justice syste      

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