The first documentary introduction to American government allows students to experience directly the inner workings of American politics. A brief introductory headnote and guiding questions support each document, while carefully curated excerpts focus student's attention on the most salient characteristics of each source.
Peter J. Steinberger is Robert H. and Blanche Day Ellis Professor of Political Science and Humanities at Reed College in Portland Oregon. Chris Koski is Associate Professor of Political Science and Environmental Studies at Reed College.
Table of Contents Bold are topics within chapters; Italics are documents Chapter 1: The Other Founding Documents Mayflower Compact Mayflower Compact - 1620 Articles of Confederation Text from the Articles of Confederation - 1777 Notes on the Constitutional Convention On the question of salaries for public officials On the question of a single magistrate versus divided executive power Whether the House of Representative should be popularly elected or appointed Election of senators On writing a constitution Proportional vs. equal representation in the House of Representatives The three fifths compromise Length of terms for Senators and the economic role of the Senate The Federalist Papers Federalist 10 (Madison) - (On the virtues of an extensive republic) Federalist 14 (Madison) - (On republican versus democratic government) Federalist 39 (Madison) - (National and Federal) Federalist 51 (Madison) - (On checks and balances) Federalist Paper 78 (Hamilton) - (On the independence of the judiciary) The Anti-Federalists "Centinel," writing to the "freemen of Pennsylvania" (1787) The Gettysburg Address The Gettysburg Address (1863) Chapter 2: Federalism Achieving Statehood Oregon Admissions Act State Legislatures Legislative Representation: State by State Representation (Figures) State Constitutions Excerpts from the Montana Constitution Public Policy at the State Level: The Death Penalty Death Penalty Comparison Across States (Figures) Law of Oklahoma Regarding Capital Punishment Governor George Ryan (R-IL) remarks on death penalty moratorium in Illinois (2003) Public Policy at the State Level: Marijuana Legalization Texas Health and Safety 481.21 Offense: Possession of Marijuana State of Washington Proposition 502: Voters' Guide Explanatory Statement Federal-State Policy Relationships: Block Grants and the Case of Welfare Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (Excerpts) Comparison of TANF Benefits Across States (Figure) State of Mississippi TANF Application Leadership at the State Level: Two Case Studies State of the State Address: Governor Rick Scott of Florida (2018) State of the State Address: Governor Jerry Brown of California (2018) CHAPTER 3: PUBLIC OPINION AND ELECTIONS The American National Election Survey Methodology Report for the ANES 2016 Time Series Study ANES Letter to Potential Recipients ANES Case Folder for Interviewers Selected Questions from ANES 2016 Time Series Pre-Election Questionnaire The Gallup Poll Methodology of the Gallup Poll Sample Questions from the Gallup Poll of June 2018 Sample Ballots Nebraska (Douglas County) Ballot Ohio (Cuyahoga County) Ballot Pennsylvania (Philadelphia County) Ballot California Special Election Ballot Contested Elections Minnesota statute 209.12 Minnesota statute 204C.22 Requirements to Appear on the Ballot Minnesota 200.02 Recount Rules Wisconsin Law on Recounts SuperPACs and the Electoral Process Federal Election Commission Instructions Priorities USA Action letter Trump Has Tiny Hands PAC: statement of organization Federal Election Commission Letter to Trump Has Tiny Hands PAC Campaign Ads Campaign Advertisement Transcripts Voter ID Texas Senate Bill 5 Felon Voting Rights Kentucky Constitution, Section 145 Legislative Appointment Constitution of the State of Florida, Article III, Section 16 Ohio Revised Code, Title 1 Individual Campaign Contributions Individual Contribution from Donald J. Trump, Jr. to Hillary Clinton for President (2007) Individual Contributions from Miriam and Sheldon Adelson to Donald J. Trump for President, Inc. (2016) CHAPTER 4: THE MEDIA Media Consolidation Telecommunications Act of 1996 Newspaper Broadcast Cross-Ownership Rule Regulation of the Airwaves FCC Rule: Candidate Rates FCC Rule: Equal Time The Politics of the Media: Part One Sinclair Broadcast Prepared Statement The Politics of the Media: Part Two RT Registration Form as a Foreign Agent Regulation of the Internet Memorandum of Understand: ICANN and the Department of Commerce Net Neutrality FCC Report and Order on Remand, Declaratory Ruling, and Order: March 12, 2015 FCC Declaratory Ruling, Report and Order: January 4, 2018 Politics on Social Media: Self-Regulation Twitter: How to get certified as a political campaigning advertiser Testimony of Mark Zuckerberg, Hearing Before the House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce (April 11, 2018) The Op-Ed Page Washington Post Op-Ed Guidelines Jeff Sessions Op-Ed from USA Today Wilbur Ross Op-Ed from New York Times The Press Conference Sarah Huckabee Sanders Press Briefing: August 1, 2018 Communicating with the Public: Donald Trump and Twitter Twitter 2016 Campaign - Donald Trump Twitter 2016 Campaign - Hillary Clinton Twitter 2016 Campaign - Ted Cruz Twitter 2016 Campaign - Bernie Sanders Presidential Tweets - Donald Trump CHAPTER 5: POLITICAL PARTIES Party Platforms: What the Two Major Parties Stand For Preamble to the 2016 Democratic Party Platform Preamble to the 2016 Republican Party Platform Defining a Party: Charters, Bylaws and Rules Charter of the Democratic Party - Article Two: The Democratic National Committee Charter of the Republican Party - Rule No. 1: Organization of the Republican National Committee Who Is the Party: Officers Choosing the National Committee: Democrats Choosing Officers: The Republican Party Who Is the Party: Selecting Convention Delegates Charter of the Democratic Party: Article 2 - The National Convention Charter of the Republican Party: Selection of Convention Delegates Who Is the Party: State by State Comparison of Delegate Selection Processes Democratic Party Presidential Primary Election Procedures by State (2016) Republican Party Presidential Primary Election Procedures by State (2016). Parties and Federalism: The Iowa Caucuses Iowa Democratic Party 2016 Precinct Caucus Guide Republican Caucus Rules: Constitution of the Republican Party of Iowa The National Conventions DNC Convention Schedule RNC Convention Schedule Parties and Federalism: State Party Platforms Oregon Democratic Party Platform - Education CHAPTER 6: INTEREST GROUPS The National Rifle Association NRA Bylaws NRA Contributions Reports Interest Groups Writing Laws Public Employee Bargaining Transparency Act Direct Contact with Legislators AARP Letter of 2017 regarding the American Health Care Act Testimony as a Form of Lobbying: A LaPierre testimony before the U. S. Senate (2013) Testimony as a Form of Lobbying: B Nancy Keenan, NARAL Testimony (2011) Regulating Lobbyists: A Lobbying Disclosure Act of 2010 Regulating Lobbyists: B Squire Patton Boggs Lobbying Report Regulating Lobbyists: Foreign Agents Title 22: Foreign Agent Registration Squire Patton Boggs: Memorandum of Understanding with People's Republic of China Ethics Rules for Government Employees Executive Order: Ethics Commitments by Executive Branch Appointees CHAPTER 7: CONGRESS Writing a Bill: The House Guide House Office of the Legislative Counsel Guide to Legislative Drafting Writing a Bill: Legislative Counsel's Manual House Legislative Counsel's Manual on Drafting Style Rules of Procedure of the House of Representatives: Discharge, Taxes and Gifts House Rules: Discharge Petitions (115th Congress) House Rules: Tax and Tariff Measures (115th Congress) House Rules: Limitations on Outside Earned Income and Gifts (115th Congress) House Rules: Hearings Ways and Means Rule on Hearings Witnesses (116th Congress) Rules of the Senate: Cloture Senate Rule on Cloture (United States Senate Manual, 113th Congress) Congressional Budget Office (CBO) Establishment of the Congressional Budget Office (2 U.S. Code 601) Making a Budget in Congress: Reconciliation Budget Reconciliation (2 U.S. Code 641) Limits on Reconciliation: The Byrd Rule ((2 U.S. Code 644) Making Laws: Dear Colleague Letters Dear Colleague Letter from Anna Eshoo: Presidential Tax Transparency Act Dear Colleague Letter from James Sensenbrenner: Build Wall Act Dear Colleague Letter from Timothy Walz and Jeff Denham: Vet-2-FARM Act of 2018 Nomination Hearings Hearings on the Nomination of Betsy DeVos to Serve as Secretary of Education: Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (2017) The Tax Cut and Jobs Act of 2017: Legislative Hearings Testimony of Rebecca Boenigk before the Subcommittee on Tax Policy, House Ways and Means Committee, July 13, 2017 Written Testimony of Chye-Ching Huang: Center on Budget Policy and Priorities Statements From Committee Chairs Regarding Tax Cut and Jobs Act of 2017 Statement of Keven Brady (R-TX), Chair of House Ways and Means Committee (November 3, 2017) Statement of Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Chair of the Senate Finance Committee Mark-Up: Tax Cut and Jobs Act of 2017 Tax Cut and Jobs Act of 2017: Mark-Up Example Online Message from Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) on Tax Cuts and Jobs Act Markup Legislation: The Tax Cut and Jobs Act of 2017 Tax Cut and Jobs Act of 2017: Summary of Selected Features Private Bills Private Bill for Sopuruchi Chukwueke (2012) CHAPTER 8: THE PRESIDENT Inaugural Address Barack Obama, Inaugural Address, Jan. 20, 2009 Donald Trump, Inaugural Address, Jan. 20, 2017 The Organization of the President's Staff Organization Chart for the Executive Office of the President - Trump Administration: Councils and Offices Organization Chart for the Executive Office of the President - Trump Administration: The White House Office The President's Day Obama Schedule, December 14, 2012 Trump Schedule, July 24, 2017 The State of the Union Address Barack Obama State of the Union Address, February 13, 2013 Donald Trump State of the Union Address, January 30, 2018 Executive Orders Executive Order 9981 - President Truman (July 26, 1948): Composition of the Military Executive Order 13768 - President Trump (January 25, 2017): Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States Signing Statements President Obama - Statement on Signing the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Conservation and Recreation Act (March 13, 2014) President Obama - Statement on Signing the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year (December 26, 2013) Statement by President Donald J. Trump on the Signing of H.R. 3364 (August 2, 2017) Access to the President: State Dinners First Trump Administration State Dinner - April 24, 2018 with French President Emmanuel Macron CHAPTER 9: THE FEDERAL BUREAUCRACY The Civil Service Introduction to Position Classification Standards Political Activities of Federal Employees The Hatch Act of 1939 Office of Special Counsel Letter regarding Kellyanne Conway Creating a Cabinet Department Homeland Security Act of 2002 (excerpts) Defining a Cabinet Department USDA Strategic Goals for 2018-2022 USDA Organization Chart The Federal Reserve Board Federal Reserve Open Market Committee Minutes, 2008 Rules and Regulations The Regulatory Map Rules and Regulations: A Case Study FlyersRights.org Petition for Rule-Making FAA Denial of Petition FlyersRights.org Response to Denial FAA Reassertion of its Decision Circuit Court Decision: FlyersRights.org v. FAA FlyersRights.org Re-Petition FAA Expert Opinion FAA Decision Again Denying Rule-Making FlyersRights.org Response Email Supporting FlyersRights.org Argument FlyersRights.org Withdrawal Letter CHAPTER 10: THE JUDICIARY The Confirmation Process Excerpts from Elena Kagan's Confirmation Hearings, 2010 Certiorari Gideon v. Wainwright Writ of Certiorari Dissent from Denial Joseph Jones, Desmond Thurston, and Antwuan Ball v. United States Amicus Briefs State of Montana, et al, Amicus Brief Senator John McCain, et al, Amicus Brief California First Amendment Coalition Oral Arguments Excerpt from Oral Arguments: Roe v. Wade Excerpt from Oral Arguments: Massachusetts v. EPA Supreme Court Decisions Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 - Sec. 203 Majority Opinion by Justice Kennedy Concurring Opinion (With Dissent) by Justice Thomas Dissenting Opinion by Justice Stevens State Courts Nelson Dissenting Opinion, Western Tradition Partnership, Inc and Montana Shooting Sports Association, Inc v. Attorney General of the State of Montana and Commissioner of the Commission for Political Practices CHAPTER 11: CIVIL RIGHTS AND LIBERTIES Voting Rights Voting Rights Act (excerpts) Shelby County v. Holder (excerpts) Gender Issues: Sexual Harassment EEOC Rule and Regulation regarding Sexual Harassment Gender Issues: Non-Binary Sex and Gender Trump Administration Dear Colleague Letter for Department of Education Rules Regarding Transgender Discrimination Privacy Order from Federal Magistrate regarding the iPhone Tim Cook statement regarding iPhone privacy FISA ruling regarding wire-taps Excerpts from United States v Jones (2012) Reparations HR40 Reparations bill Immigration and Child Separation Leaked Memo from Dept. of Justice to Dept. of Homeland Security Nielsen/Feinstein Senate testimony: Jan. 2018 Questions for the Record Following Nielsen Hearing The Right to Bear Arms State of Utah Concealed Weapon Permit Form District of Columbia v Heller (2008) (excerpts) Rights of the Differently Abled Americans with Disabilities Act (1990) (excerpts) Native Americans Bureau of Indian Affairs certification statement CHAPTER 12: FOREIGN POLICY The North Atlantic Treaty Organization NATO Charter NATO and the War on Terrorism Rumsfeld Speech to NATO, 2002 NATO Intervention Obama Speech on Libya The War on Terrorism and Torture Yoo Memo on Torture Cyber-Warfare Guccifer Indictment Climate Policy Paris Accord Trump Speech on withdrawing from the Paris Accord Sanctions 2017 Sections Bill for Iran, Russia, and North Korea Tariffs and Trade Trump Announcement of Steel Tariffs
