US Congress… Repeal, Replace and Republican rhetoric 28 Sep 201728 Sep 2017 Aside from 'building a wall', Trump's promises to repeal and replace Obamacare have encountered problems from the very beginning. For A Level students, this is a 'catch-all' example that covers:…
US Congress… Tie-breaking Pence 8 Feb 20178 Feb 2017 https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/07/opinion/mike-pence-the-tiebreaker.html http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/betsy-devos-confirmed-donald-trump-education-secretary-mike-pence-vote-senate-a7567856.html http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-38875924 Mike Pence cast a historic vote just over two weeks into Trump's presidency - he cast the tie-breaking vote in the Senate to confirm a cabinet nominee.…
US Civil Rights… The Trump Victory 1 Feb 2017 7 Reasons Trump won - http://www.npr.org/2016/11/12/501848636/7-reasons-donald-trump-won-the-presidential-election Race, Gender, Education statistics - http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/11/09/behind-trumps-victory-divisions-by-race-gender-education/ Election in maps - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election-us-2016-37889032 Election analysis - http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/0/us-election-results-and-state-by-state-maps At this point, I am confident that most politics…
US Congress… Obama’s First Veto Override 6 Oct 2016 http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/29/us/politics/senate-votes-to-override-obama-veto-on-9-11-victims-bill.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/wp/2016/09/27/senate-poised-to-vote-to-override-obamas-veto-of-911-bill/ As they said they would, the House and the Senate delivered an overwhelming veto override of Obama on the 9/11 victims bill, far beyond the 2/3rds required. This…
US Congress… Obama’s potential veto 21 Sep 201622 Sep 2016 https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/wp/2016/09/20/mcconnell-says-he-expects-senate-has-votes-to-override-veto-of-911-bill/?wpisrc=nl_politics-pm&wpmm=1 An interesting and useful example has arisen this week relevant for studies of the US Constitution and the powers of Congress and President - Congress have passed a law…
US Congress… A growth in Obama’s power thanks to the GOP 22 Apr 201624 May 2016 http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/04/barack-obama-gop-most-powerful-213814 As the end of Obama's Presidency draws ever nearer, there are doubtless going to be a range of articles evaluating his time in office. This article is fascinating however…
US Congress… The Role of Impeachment 22 Apr 201624 May 2016 http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/04/donald-trump-2016-impeachment-213817 This fascinating article form Politico looks at whether Donald Trump could be impeached if he were to become US President. It is useful to students when looking at the…
US Civil Rights… Civil Rights vs. Religious Rights – You Decide… 15 Apr 201624 May 2016 The so called ‘bathroom law’ in North Carolina (otherwise known as HB2) has hit the headlines of late on this side of the pond, but state’s-side a battle is shaping…
US Congress… The President and Congressional Persuasion 14 Mar 201624 May 2016 http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/03/obama-mcconnell-meet-supreme-court-scalia/471750/ How the President and Congress work together can be difficult for students to give examples for as it is so often sometime that takes place behind closed doors. The…
US Constitution… The imperial Presidency 14 Mar 201624 May 2016 http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/03/quick-limit-the-power-that-trump-or-clinton-would-inherit/472743/?utm_source=SFTwitter http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/08/opinion/limit-the-next-presidents-power-to-wage-drone-warfare.html?_r=0 This article looks at the growth of presidential power across the Bush and Obama presidencies (and with the looming threat of a Trump presidency!). It argues that these…
US Civil Rights… Supreme Court and Abortion 7 Mar 201624 May 2016 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-supreme-court-divided-over-abortion-rights-battle-a6907816.html http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/03/us/politics/supreme-court-abortion-texas.html?_r=1 http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/02/us-supreme-court-whole-womens-health-v-hellerstedt/471546/ http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2016/03/04/3754680/breaking-supreme-court-reopens-clinics-closed-by-anti-abortion-law/ (Well worth watching the video in the New York Times link above!) On Tuesday 1 March 2016, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case…
US Civil Rights… Obama’s Final Year 24 Feb 201624 May 2016 Final Year analysis - https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/obamas-final-year-in-office-shaping-up-to-be-one-of-genuine-relevance/2016/02/20/7b047fee-d5c3-11e5-9823-02b905009f99_story.html Guantanamo Bay -https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/white-house-unveils-plan-for-closing-military-prison-at-guantanamo-bay/2016/02/23/3860f408-da35-11e5-81ae-7491b9b9e7df_story.html In reviewing the power of a President, the best students will comment that power is fluid - it not static for the…
US Congress… The Death of Antonin Scalia 24 Feb 201624 May 2016 The death of Scalia made headlines across UK and US media outlets, and dominated Twitter as the story broke. It's importance should be clear to students of Politics and we…
US Constitution… Supreme Court and Climate Rules 12 Feb 201624 May 2016 BBC - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-35538350 Atlantic - http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2016/02/the-supreme-courts-devastating-decision-on-climate/462108/ NY Times - www.nytimes.com/2016/02/10/us/politics/supreme-court-blocks-obama-epa-coal-emissions-regulations.html The Supreme Court dealt a huge blow to Obama this week - they have halted the implementation of the Clean…
US Constitution… The US Electoral System (and 2016!) 1 Feb 201624 May 2016 Does America need to change the way it elects Presidents? http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/the-reporters-35365848 How does the US Presidential election work? http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-35356941 An idiot's guide to primaries and caucuses -http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-35350890 As we kick…
US Congress… State of the Union 2016 14 Jan 201624 May 2016 Guide to policy -http://www.vox.com/2016/1/13/10759062/state-of-the-union-2016-policy All of Obama's SotU by numbers -https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/politics/2016-sotu/speech/ Analysis of 2016 SotU - http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/13/us/politics/obama-state-of-the-union.html Obama's win and losses in all SotU speeches - http://www.politico.com/story/2016/01/state-of-the-union-2016-proposals-217600 Despite the hype,…
US Civil Rights… Obama tries again on Gun Control 11 Jan 201624 May 2016 http://edition.cnn.com/2016/01/05/politics/obama-guns-legal-challenge/index.html http://edition.cnn.com/2016/01/05/politics/obama-executive-action-gun-control/index.html http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-35211294 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-35236630 A very emotional President Obama has tried again to restrict the ease of access to gun by introducing executive orders which would expand background checks and…
US Constitution… Supreme Court avoid guns 9 Dec 201524 May 2016 https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/courts_law/supreme-court-wont-review-laws-banning-so-called-assault-weapons/2015/12/07/b562678e-96fb-11e5-94f0-9eeaff906ef3_story.html Fascinating decision by the call this week; you should know that the SC hears very few cases each year compared to the number they received, so rejecting a case…