1.  “We have the best government that money can buy.” – Mark Twain

3.  1. How does one become a citizen in the United States? o 2. If both of your parents are American citizens but you are born outside of the United States are you considered a citizen? What if only one of your parents is a citizen? What if you are born in a territory of the U.S.? What if you are adopted from another country by parents who are U.S. citizens? o 3. When applying through legal means: How many years do you have to have lived in the U.S.? Do you have to be able to speak English?

4.  1. How does the news influences our daily lives and the lives of others?  2. Why is it important to have multiple viewpoints in the media?

5.  1. Due on Friday of each week (until May 9 th )  2. 50 points total (10 for each week)  3. Missing weeks can NOT be made up  4. Must provide the source  6. Can be from any major news source. o No blogs or opinionated sources. o No satirical news sources like The Onion o Be aware of news bias  7. Be prepared to discuss them in class.

6. MH370: Missing plane search ‘most challenging ever’

10.  1. How does American Government work?  2. Who is in charge?  3. Who makes the laws?  4. How are laws decided to be fair or legal?

11.  There are three branches of government in the U.S. o The Executive Branch o The Legislative Branch o The Judicial Branch

12.  This branch consists of: o The President o The Vice President o Cabinet Members  This branch is in charge of: o Executing and enforcing the laws created by Congress

13.  Powers of the Executive Branch: o Commander in Chief of the military o Receive ambassadors and other public ministers o Sign bills into laws.

14.  This branch consists of: o Congress The House of Representatives ( 435 members ) The Senate ( 100 members )  This branch is in charge of: o Creating laws

15.  Powers of the Legislative Branch: o Congress has the power to tax o Congress can declare war

16.  This branch consists of: o The Supreme Court ( 9 members)  This branch is in charge of: o Interpreting laws based off of the Constitution

17.  Powers of the Judicial Branch: o Judicial Review

18.  Why would our founding fathers want a Separation of Powers in our government?

20.  1. A Supreme Court justice dies. Who would pick the new one?  2. Vice President Biden illegally smuggles weapons to Iranian nationalists. Who would impeach him?  Congress wants to pass a new bill that would limit the pay role of the President. What could the President do to this?

21.  1. What makes a country a country? o List as many examples as possible

23.  A population is the group of people who are members or citizens of a state.  Populations also have their own cultural traditions, and they speak a common language or languages.

24.  A state’s territory is the area in which a state’s rule applies.  A state must have set boundaries.  Territory can be acquired through various means: o Territory can be gained through war o Through negotiation o Through sale

25.  Sovereignty is the ability to rule absolutely within a territory.  When a state is considered sovereign it can decide its own foreign and domestic policies.  A sovereign state is not responsible to any other authority

26.  A government is the organization that controls the actions and policies of a state.

27.  Amish Communities  Pennsylvania  The Vatican  The Cherokee Indian reservation

28.  There are FOUR primary roles of government  Try to guess them on your own and we will discuss them as a class.

29.  Make Laws  Aid or Assist Citizens  Protect the Country  Keep Order

30.  Make Laws o Voting age of 18 o Jobs need to pay minimum wage o Freedom of speech o Speed limits  Aid or Assist Citizens o Retirement benefits o Highway systems o Schools o Veterans hospitals  Protect the Country o Navy o Army o Air Force o Marines  Keep Order o Highway Patrol o Sheriff o Police o FBI

31.  1. A state can’t have less than 30,000 people  2. The boundaries of a territory can change  3. Sovereignty means you have to check with someone above you  4. Government only exists to keep order and provide security  5. The 50 states in the USA are not considered to be independent “states”

32.  There are lots of different governments in the world but one thing remains constant: Someone is in charge.  Brainstorm the different possible governments and types of leaders in the world and create a word web based off of the information you come up with.

33.  An autocracy is a government in which one person has all the power  Power is usually gained through birth or through power  There are two different types of autocracy: o A Monarchy o And a Dictatorship

34.  Monarchy o Ruled by a king or a queen (monarch) o Usually you have to be born/married into the role o Previously, the majority of monarchies used to hold all the power and had the final say in government. o Currently, most monarchies are constitutional monarchies.

35.  Dictatorship o Usually come into the role through birth or a power grab o One person has absolute rule over a citizens lives o One person has absolute rule over the actions and policies of the state

36.  Would you sacrifice free speech, freedom of religion, freedom of press and perhaps other freedoms in exchange for a secure standard of living that provided well?

37.  In a democracy, citizens hold the political power.  The citizens of a democracy decide on governmental policies and foreign affairs

38.  Representative Democracy o Citizens elect leaders to represent their own rights and interests in Government o Citizens hold the ultimate power because they can vote new people into office

39.  Direct Democracy  No representatives!  Citizens directly address and vote on the issues needed on local/state/national level

40.  Would you rather have a representative democracy or a direct democracy here in America?

41.  An oligarchy is a small group or council of people who have all the power in government. o This can mean that only a certain group of people based on things like social class, race, or political party can rule. o OR it can mean just a few people actually rule the country

42.  A junta (or a military junta) is a committee of military leaders that seize power for various reasons.

43.  A theocracy is a government that recognizes a god or a divine being as the ultimate authority.  In a theocracy religious law is used to settle disputes.  A theocracy can ALSO be any other sort of government Hassan Rouhani

44.  In an anarchy, nobody is in control (or everyone, depending on how you look at it)  Anarchy would be a way to describe the human state of existence before any governments developed, where people looked out for themselves  Anarchists believe they should be able to freely do as they please without being subject to any nation or government

46.  You and a partner are going to make a poster on a type of government that was discussed in class. Include the following on your poster: o The definition of the type of government o A description of the leaders of this type of government o A description of how power is passed to the next leader/how the government makes decisions o An illustration that would accurately represent your government  You should make your poster colorful, creative and neat. Writing must be legible, all words must be spelled correctly and all sentences must be complete and should vary in structure.

47.  You and a partner are going to make a poster on a type of government that was discussed in class. Include the following on your poster. o An accurate description of the government itself. o A description of how power is passed to the next leader. o A description of how power is passed to the next leader/how the government makes decisions. o The poster cannot contain any words. All the criteria must be drawn.  You should make your poster colorful, creative and neat that would correctly represent your type of government.