kfritz20ahsgov-blog - Tumblr blog

kfritz20ahsgov-blog · 5 years ago

Text

CIVIC ACTION ASSESSMENT OF ISSUE

BLOG POST #8 CIVIC ACTION ASSESSMENT OF ISSUE

CIVIC ACTION ASSESSMENT OF ISSUE

“And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you –

ask what you can do for your country.”

President John F. Kennedy

“Service is never a simple act; it’s about sacrifice for others and about accomplishment for ourselves, about reaching out, one person to another, about all our choices gathered together as a country to reach across all our divides.”

George H.W. Bush

“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.”

President Barack Obama

“You must be the change you wish to see in the world.”

Gandhi

BLOG POST #8 due at the END of the period!

· All blogs/posts are to be done using your tumblr account

· Title your post Civic Action Assessment of Issue

· Review the quotes above and reflect upon/answer:

1. What do you see as your roles as a citizen of this country in meeting the needs of our community?

I think as a citizen I have a responsibility to vote and take civic action on topics that I strongly believe in. Everyone has a responsibility to vote because our government is based on the people taking action to act on what they believe in.

2. What have you learned in this class about civic responsibility?

I’ve learned that civic responsibility is a lot easier to take part in than I original thought. I thought that it took a lot of work to take part in civic action and I didn’t really know what civic action really meant. Now I realize that there is civic action all over the place that I can partake in.

3. Do you feel it is your civic obligation to help address the problems your civic action issue has created? Explain.

I personally don’t think that it is my, or other peoples obligation to take civic action on my topic. The border wall is a little bit out of the peoples reach because it is a national security issue according to the president. Although most people disagree with it, i’m not sure the people can do much to change it.

4. Have you volunteered your time to respond to this issue, either by directly volunteering; educating the public about it; expanding your knowledge of the issue by attending government or non-government meetings, demonstrations, etc.? If so, explain this experience in detail, provide dates and evidence.

I didn’t partake in civil action for my topic except for telling my parents about it.

5. If you have not been civically engaged, what are YOU willing to do in the future to respond to your civic action issue?

I would be willing to go to the border and visit detention camps/centers and see what people are going through and how they are being treated. I could also volunteer there.

1 note · View note

kfritz20ahsgov-blog · 5 years ago

Text

Executive Action Assessment Of Issue

· Visit the White House website to answer the following questions; choose the Issues tab from the upper-left menu and select the category which represents your civic action issue. Website: https://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/

1. Briefly summarize (four-to-five sentences) President Trump’s stance on your issue.

President Trump believes in restoring border security. He believes in building a border wall and swiftly removing unlawful entrants. Trump supports “ending chain migration, eliminating the Visa Lottery, and moving the country to a merit-based entry system.” He doesn’t believe in keeping illegal immigrants including children in the country.

2. Do you agree or disagree with his position? Explain.

I agree with his position on keeping the border secure, but i’m not too sure a wall would really help with border security. I also don’t agree with him deporting immigrants that have been here for a long time without committing crimes.

· Next, go to https://www.usa.gov/branches-of-government#item-214500 Please visit the Cabinet website which manages your issue to answer the following questions.

3. Which Executive Cabinet manages your issue?

The Department Of Homeland Security

4. What is the Cabinet’s mission statement (usually on the homepage)? Explain if it relates to your issue.

Their mission statement is, “The Department of Homeland Security has a vital mission: to secure the nation from the many threats we face. This requires the dedication of more than 240,000 employees in jobs that range from aviation and border security to emergency response, from cybersecurity analyst to chemical facility inspector. Our duties are wide-ranging, and our goal is clear - keeping America safe.” This does relate to my issue as it states there are jobs in border security.

5. Who is the secretary of the department (usually under the about tab? What is their background? Are they professionally qualitied to lead this department or are they merely a political appointment? Explain how this impacts the department and your issue.

Chad F. Wolf is the acting secretary of this department. He is somewhat qualified because he received his masters in Government Contract Management. He as also been Chief of staff of transportation and deputy chief of staff for the department.

6. Explore the Cabinet’s Programs and Services. Which would be suitable for responding to your issue? Briefly identify and explain them.

There are a lot of programs which benefit military and first responders like armor and chemical detection scanners. A lot of their programs are focused on raising security and safety to employees and the nation.

7. Based on your review of the President’s website and Cabinet programs, assess the executive action taken on your issue. Explain your level of satisfaction and provide examples. Is this department one which President Trump wants to cut funding? If so, do agree that this is a viable approach to resolving your issue? How would decrease funding to this department affect your civic action issue?

I think the executive action that Trump has implemented with the border wall and immigration is effective because the wall is getting built and did get money out of the defense fund. He has also passed many immigration reforms to help his agenda. Trump would not want to cut funding to this department. If anything he would want to increase it.

· Finally, check your twitter account. I have been tweeting lots of articles that pertain to student issues. Scroll through my list of tweets and review an article that is specific to your issue. If there are none that pertain to your issue, please find one from a reputable on-line source that has been published within the last year. Please include the URL in your blog post for my review.

8. SACAPS—what is the subject of the article? Who is the author? What is the context? Who is the intended audience? What is the bias and perspective of the author? What is the significance of the article? Do you agree with it? Why or why not?

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/07/opinion/trump-im-using-mexico.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share

S - Mexico and the border wall

A - Jorge Ramos

C - Trump’s remark saying that he’s using mexico to protect our border

A - The intended audience are Democrats

P - The perspective of this article is of a Democrat against Trump

S - The significance is showing how Mexico feels offended by the way Trump made it sound like he is using them to protect our borders. They think the statement attacked their sovereignty.

I do agree that Trump’s use of language was not very professional and he should not have said it in that way.

2 notes · View notes

kfritz20ahsgov-blog · 5 years ago

Text

State and Legislative Action

1. Research the position the following lawmakers take on your issue: Assembly member Kahan (https://a16.asmdc.org/); State Senator Glazer (https://sd07.senate.ca.gov/).

a. A brief statement assessing the position of EACH lawmaker; you may need to check their press releases or news room tabs to assess their position. If you cannot find their stance on your issue, or a mention of your issue in their recent news, assess whether your issue is a national rather than state problem. Does your issue or its resolution fall under federal authority versus the state?

1) Kahan - I couldn’t find their stance on my issue because it is a National issue more than a State issue. My issue falls under federal authority rather than state.

2) Glazer - I couldn’t find their stance on my issue because it is a National issue more than a State issue. My issue falls under federal authority rather than state.

2. Next, you will research current California bills that pertain to your issue. Go to

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billSearchClient.xhtml and enter your issue and click search. Answer the following questions in complete sentences.

a. What is the bill number (if it starts with AB it is in the Assembly, if it starts with SB it is in the Senate)?

The bill number is SJR 1. It is a senate joint resolution.

b. When was the bill introduced?

The bill was introduced on February 22, 2019.

c. What was the last major action of the bill?

The last major action of the bill was getting Re-referred to Com. on JUD.

d. How do you feel about the bill? Is this something you would encourage your representatives to support? Explain.

I think I agree with the bill trying to stop the wall from being built by challenging Trump’s National emergency declaration for the wall.

3. Review Congressman Desaulnier (https://desaulnier.house.gov/), Senator Harris (https://www.harris.senate.gov/) and Senator Feinstein’s (https://www.feinstein.senate.gov/public/) websites to answer the following questions in complete sentences.

a. What is their perspective on your issue?

Desaulnier - He supports the defense of immigrants and dreamers and states all of the good things immigrants do for the country.

Harris - She believes in good treatment of immigrants and immigration reform

Feinstein - She believes in opposing Trump’s immigration agenda and she supports protecting immigrant children.

b. Have they sponsored any bills that relate to your issue? If so, what are they and do you support them?

Harris cosponsored bill S.2691 which is immigration reform for the way immigrants are treated. I do support this.

Feinstien has passed many many bills to help dreamers and immigrants. She also has passed bills supporting sanctuary cities. I agree with the dreamer help, but i’m on the edge of the sanctuary cities one.

4. Please go to www.countable.us. Go to the issues tab and choose the issue that best represents your civic action issue. Answer the following:

a. Are there any bills that pertain to your issue? How many?

There are 6 bills that pertain to my issue.

b. Choose one to analyze and click on the title. What is the bill #?

The title of the bill is House Bill H.R. 522

c. Briefly describe the bill in your own words.

This bill is to prohibit the use of National Emergency funds to fund the wall.

d. What impact will it have?

It wont allow Trump to use National Emergency money to fund the wall.

e. Would you vote yea or nay? Why?

I would vote yea because I believe national emergency money should be used on a wall. That money should go only towards natural disasters and other disasters. A wall is not a national emergency.

f. Review the bill progression. Did it originate in the House or the Senate? What committees have reviewed it? Where it is currently?

It originated in the House. The Committee on the Judiciary and the Committee of Immigration and Citizenship have reviewed it. The House has not voted yet.

2 notes · View notes

kfritz20ahsgov-blog · 5 years ago

Text

Political Interest Groups, and PAC Assessment

1. Identify one national interest group that represents your issue. Include:

a. Interest group name

ACLU

b. A brief statement assessing the position/perspective of the interest group.

The ACLU serves to protect all immigrant rights. They of course, are not in support of the border wall.

c. Visit the interest group’s website. Spend a few minutes exploring and reading about what this group believes, what it wants to happen in Washington, and how it seeks to influence politicians. List five important pieces of information which gives a picture of what this interest group believes.

1) Uses targeted impact litigation, advocacy, and public outreach to help immigrants

2) Have been at it for more than 25 years

3) ACLU has been at the forefront of almost every major legal struggle on behalf of immigrants’ rights

4) they focus on challenging laws that deny immigrants access to the courts

5) They have challenged constitutional abuses that arise from immigration enforcement at the federal, state, and local levels

d. From your research, describe one (preferably current) piece of legislation, specific policy action, or candidate this group desires or endorses.

They support getting rid of the “Show me your papers” laws

e. Where is this interest group located? Are there any local meetings you could attend? When?

They are from New York. There are some meetings in San Francisco about various issues. The closest one is on November 7th.

f. Are there volunteer opportunities? If so, what are they?

Yes there are. There are different opportunities ranging from trainers to representatives.

g. Identify additional developments you find interesting from the website/group.

I found it interesting how they have so many different sections of the ACLU everywhere in the nation and they always have meetings.

· Return to http://votesmart.org/interest-groups . Under the state tab, choose California.

2. Identify one state interest group that represents your issue. Include:

a. Interest group name

California Immigrant Policy Center

b. A brief statement assessing the position/perspective of the interest group.

This group also aims to protect the rights of all immigrants.

1) They fight mass deportation and detention

2) They help with immigrant integration

3) They help with health and befits for immigrants

4) They help with economic justice

5) They are working on a regional capacity building project

d. From your research, describe one (preferably current) piece of legislation, specific policy action, or candidate this group desires or endorses.

They support the ICE out of California movement.

e. Where is this interest group located? Are there any local meetings you could attend? When?

They are located in Oakland, LA, and Sacramento

f. Are there volunteer opportunities? If so, what are they?

Yes. You can help collect funds and share your story for them.

g. Identify additional developments you find interesting from the website/group.

I found it interesting that they don’t have an office in San Diego or San Francisco. They also have a lot of different programs they support.

3. Finally, compare the two interest groups. Which one seems more organized? More successful? Who is their target audience? Supporters? Additional thoughts, concerns, observations welcome. Be sure to follow them on twitter.

The ACLU seems more organized for the sole reason that it is National. They have support and events all across the nation. They are both successful in their respective areas. Their target audiences are democrats that are against the wall and ICE. Their supporters are their target audience.

· Please go to: http://www.opensecrets.org/pacs/alphalist.php

4. Choose one PAC or Super PAC that pertains to your civic action issue. Include:

a. PAC name

Americans For Legal Immigration

b. A brief statement assessing the position/perspective of the PAC.

They support legal immigration and against illegal immigration.

c. How much money have they raised/total receipt? How much have they spent? How much cash do they have on hand?

They have raised $151,947. They have spent $153,721. They have $403 on hand.

d. How much of their budget is spent on: Republicans? Democrats?

Their budget is spent on Republicans.

e. Click Donor. Who are some of their donors? How does this reflect the interests of the PAC?

I couldn’t find any known donors, but most of the donors that came up were farmers and most likely republicans which would support the Super PAC’s cause.

3 notes · View notes

kfritz20ahsgov-blog · 5 years ago

Text

Political Party Action

3. Research the position of the following political parties on your issue: Republican (www.gop.com), Democrat (www.democrats.org), Libertarian (www.lp.org), Green (www.gp.org), and Peace and Freedom (www.peaceandfreedom.org). Search party platforms.

4. Include:

a. A brief statement assessing the position of EACH party. If you cannot find the party’s position on your issue please state so and provide a few general inferences as to why the party may not include this issue in their platform.

b. Do you agree with their position? Why or why not?

c. Which party position do you identify with most? Is that surprising? Would you vote for the Presidential candidate?

GOP - The GOP’s stance on the wall is very supportive of the wall. They want to crack down on illegal immigration. I agree with cracking down on illegal immigration, but I am not sure if I support the wall part. I feel like If you want to be a citizen then you should go through the same process as everyone else. I don’t think the wall would be very helpful in controlling illegal immigration.

DEMOCRATS - The democrats are against the border wall and against separating families. They want border security, but do not believe in a wall. I agree with the border security part, but not the part where some of them want an open border.

LIBERTARIAN - They believe that we should have open borders and people should walk freely as long as they are peaceful. I do not agree with this position because I think there would be a lot of crime if we had open borders.

GREEN - They believe all people living in the us no matter their immigration status should be granted all rights citizens have. They are against the wall. I don’t agree with this because illegal immigrants should go through the same process to become citizens like everyone else.

PEACE AND FREEDOM - Their stance on immigration and the border wall lines up with the Green Party’s stance. I again do not agree that all illegal immigrants should get the same freedoms as citizens because they did not go through the process to become a citizen.

I think I align with the Democrats the most because they do not want a border wall, but they still look at border security as a big issue. I’m not sure if would vote for Biden in 2020, and i’m really not sure who I would vote for.

1 note · View note

kfritz20ahsgov-blog · 5 years ago

Text

Constitutional Issues

What is the name of the case?

Trump v. Sierra Club

2. The term it was decided?

July 26, 2019

3. Briefly summarize the facts of the case.

Trump wanted to reallocate money from the pentagon to use with the border wall.

4. What is the constitutional question the justices were deciding?

They were deciding whether reallocating Defense Department money would violate federal law.

5. Which constitutional provisions or amendments are in question?

Article I, Section 9, Clause 7 can be applied to this situation. This clause talks about money being drawn from the treasury.

6. What was the decision?

The Supreme Court decided to let Trump reallocate money toward the border wall.

7. What precedent does this decision establish?

It establishes the fact that Trump can use money from the pentagon to fund projects like the border wall.

8. Do you agree or disagree with the court’s decision? Explain.

I agree with the decision because the wall can be considered as defense and the money from the pentagon is supposed to be used for defense.

Trump: ‘I’m Using Mexico’ - The New York Times

· SACAPS—what is the subject of the article? Who is the author? What is the context? Who is the intended audience? What is the bias and perspective of the author? What is the significance of the article? Do you agree with it? Why or why not?

The subject of the article was about Trump saying that he is using mexico to protect the border. The author was Jorge Ramos from the New York Times. The intended audience are democrats. The article has a more left bias. The significance was talking about what Trump said because a lot of people didn’t realize he said it. I do agree with it somewhat because someone should’t publicly say they are using someone else.

1 note · View note

kfritz20ahsgov-blog · 5 years ago

Text

Media Assessment Of An Issue

C1. Please find three articles that pertain to your civic action issue; one article should be from a liberal source, one should reflect conservative media bias, and one should be objective—from an impartial source. *Please refer to the news-spectrum chart given in class as a guide to finding articles.

https://www.foxnews.com/media/white-house-stephanie-grisham-cnn-biased-dishonest-partisan-political-agenda

https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/29/politics/military-construction-funds-wall/index.html

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-05-21/federal-wall-funding-of-1-57-billion-yields-1-7-miles-of-fence

2. SACAP each article and provide a link or URL to each article analyzed.SACAPS—what is the subject of the article? Who is the author? What is the context? Who is the intended audience? What is the bias and perspective of the author? What is the significance of the article? Do you agree with it? Why or why not?

FOX News-

S: CNN taking a quote about the border wall out of context and using it to further their own agenda.

A: Danielle Wallace

C: “Trump allegedly promised to pardon aides who might need to break the law in order to fast-track construction on 500 miles worth of border wall before Election Day 2020″ (Article).

A: Republicans

P: Fox News journalist/Republican

S: Fox News calling out CNN for using a quote out of context to make it seem different than it actually was.

I don’t really agree with it because it is a really bias article so its hard to know what to believe or not.

CNN-

S: Trump taking money out of military building funds to fund the border wall

A: Jeremy Diamond, Ryan Browne, Geneva Sands and Tammy Kupperman

C: Trump promising to use military funds to fund the border wall

A: Democrats

P: The authors are writers for CNN meaning they are Democrats.

S: Using military funding to fund the border wall

I don’t really have a stance on this article because just like Fox, it is bias and im not sure what to believe.

Bloomberg-

S: How much money the wall has and how much wall they can build with the money

A: Edvard Pettersson

C: The cost of the border wall and length

A: The general public

P: There is no real bias or perspective. The article was just stating facts.

S: To inform the public how much money has been put into the border wall and how much wall can be constructed with that amount of money.

I liked this article because it was informative while also being truthful and stating facts.

3. What are the similarities and differences between these three accounts of your issue?

After reading the articles it is easy to see Fox’s bias swaying toward the right as they called out CNN. It is also clear to see CNN swaying toward the left. Bloomberg on the other hand just stated facts without any real bias.

4. Finally, which source do identify with most and why?

I identify with Bloomberg because I don’t like to read things with heavy bias and I like to read straight facts.

1 note · View note

kfritz20ahsgov-blog · 5 years ago

Text

Conceptualizing The Issue and Assessing Types Of Action

1. What civic action issue did you choose and why?

I chose the border wall because it is a really interesting topic and last year in contemporary issues we discussed it a lot. We also had a debate on the border wall which caught my interest.

2. Define the issue: what is it? who does it affect? why is it relevant?

The border wall is an important issue because it shows the huge political divide on the issue. A lot of people want a wall and a lot of people hate it which makes it a huge political issue today. It affects everybody in a sense, but it affects the people living next to the border wall the most. It’s relevant because it is a big ongoing issue.

3. What action do you think needs to be taken to address this issue?

I think the wall needs to be taken more into consideration before further construction continues. We need to look at some of the consequences of the wall, for example, disturbing natural habitats and cost.

4. Finally, find five people, groups, agencies, or departments to follow on twitter that pertain to your issue. List the five that you are on following on twitter in your post and explain why. Are there any tweets that you find interesting? That you agree or disagree with? Why? Be sure to follow groups that represent multiple perspectives on the issue.

Some people, groups, agencies, and departments I followed on twitter include Mike Pence, Donald Trump, Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen of DHS, Homeland Security, ICE, and the chief of Border Patrol. I followed these people because they all have a direct connection to the border and or border wall. I found the post of a border family camp by Homeland Security interesting because it is a huge contrast from the pictures of children in cages that is usually seen in the media. It was definitely interesting to see a new Family Residential Center on the border in Texas. One post I agree with is a retweet of The Washington Post by ICE stating that “Violence toward and vilification of the patriotic women and men who put their lives on the line to enforce the law is unwarranted and patently unjust”. I strongly agree with this because the people working for ICE are just doing their job while a lot of people harass them and disrespect them.

2 notes · View notes