Supreme Court- Alex Moore

Alex Moore

February 19th, 2016

Period 3

Supreme Court NBC News Article

The Supreme Court vacancy left after Justice Antonin Scalia’s death has major correlations to the senate races of 2016. If the Democrats can win back the majority of the seats in the senate, then President Obama will not likely face opposition and he will be able to appoint a liberal Justice in his final days of office. If the Republicans remain in control of the senate then they will turn down all of President Obama’s nominees and they would wait and hope that a Republican becomes the next president. A consensus mean an opinion or position reaches by a group as a whole. Consensus is so important with this decision otherwise, we are going to have to wait until their is a new President in order for a Justice to be appointed.

President Obama wants to get the new Supreme Court Justice approved because this might tip the skill towards the Democrats. Right now the Supreme Court is made up of 8 people, 4 liberals and 4 conservatives. Whatever party the new justice is will be the majority. Since President Obama is a Democrat, he wants the majority in the Supreme Court to be Democrats. He wants this because now any tiebreaker will most likely be in favor of the liberal option. His power lacks because the appointee needs to be approved by the senate, but the problem is the senate is majority Republican. The only chance President Obama has is when the new congress starts early next year. If the senate switches to majority Democrat,he would make a quick appointee.

A lame duck President is a President who is on the last couple days of their tenure. They are often seen as less powerful and often are not able to get anything done. President Obama fits the definition because he is ending his second term and all of the laws has to go through the Republican controlled Senate. I think that President Obama’s charisma will help him to leave the office strong.  He is not going down without a fight and I think that he is going to exercise his power until the very last second. No, I don’t think he will leave office as a lame duck President because I have a feeling the Democrats are going to win the senate and he will be able to appoint a liberal Justice in the beginning of the year.

Kenneth Martin NBC Article Questions

Kenneth Martin

AP US Government & Politics Period 3

Mrs. Gordon

February 19, 2016

1. “Consensus” in political terms is something both parties can agree on. In this case, it would be a moderate Supreme Court nominee that both Democrats and Republicans in the Senate would like. If Senate Republicans block Obama’s nominee even if they are a “consensus” nominee, it could hurt their reelection chances and give the Senate to the Democrats.
2. President Obama can appoint any nominee he chooses but he also needs the advice and consent of the Senate. This means that he probably can’t actually just nominate anyone; he has to nominate someone that the Senate will find acceptable. He could, however, use his public influence and the upcoming election to pressure the Senate into confirming his nominee.
3. A lame duck president is a president in office during the period between the election of a new president and their inauguration. Because a new president has been elected, a lame duck usually has less political influence but also more freedom to do what they want without much fear of consequences because they are leaving office and not being elected again. Obama will by definition leave office as a lame duck because a new president will be elected but I think what will happen during depends on the results of the election, particularly in the Senate and the Presidency. If Republicans take the White House and keep the Senate, he will probably fit into that general trend. But if the Democrats take the Senate and/or the White House, especially Senate because there’s an overlap, Obama will probably have more influence and public support, but will still fit into the lame duck trend of being more free to do what he wants because he will have the Senate and/or a Democratic successor to support him.

NBC News Article Blog Post- Vivi

1) The definition of a consensus, in political terms, is by definition, "a group discussion where everyone's opinions are heard and understood, and a solution is created that respects those opinions. It is not what everyone agrees to. It's the best solution that the group can come up with at the given time". The Supreme Court vacancy, the result of Justice Scalia's passing, comes at an unfortunate time- a time where Obama is forced to make a very quick nomination. The time constraint also gives way to the opposing party (Republicans, in this case) to try and block the nomination considering Obama would appoint someone generally liberal, who would rule against the republican party ideals. A consensus of a new Supreme Court Judge, with Obama leaving office rather soon, is a very difficult goal to achieve considering Scalia was one of the most conservative figures in American Politics for decades.  Republicans will continue to try to block the nomination of a liberal judge, and democrats will continue to push to have their beliefs represented. A consensus is ideal for this situation, but I personally feel as if the nomination will either pass and be implemented or not go anywhere at all.
2) The power that Obama holds in the confirmation of the new Supreme Court is that he gets to initially choose the nominee for the potential Supreme Court judge. However, if the Senate does not confirm this, it is very difficult to get this nomination to go through. The new Congress begins work on Jan 3 while Obama stays in office until the 20th, so if the old Senate doesn't approve it, Obama can use those 17 remaining days to try and turn his nominations luck around. However, after Obama casts his nomination he generally has no power over how it goes other than trying to advocate and convince other members of congress to help him.
3) A "lame duck" president is one who is in power who suddenly is in very little power left. Obama, who was once one of the presidents with the highest approval ranking ever in the history of the United States has virtually lost all of his power. He has about a year left, which politically speaking, is not very much. Legislation, appointments, and other major political changes normally take quite a lot of time. However, even though Obama doesn’t have a ton of time left, his well-respected persona makes him less of a “lame duck”. People on both sides of the aisles are willing to cooperate with Obama under these time constraints due to the ways in which he behaved in the past which were mannerisms that included integrity, politeness, compassion, and bipartisanship. I think personally that his charisma and the legacy he has made for himself in the past years of his two terms will be enough ground to help him hold some sort of power in his last days in the oval office. With this being said, I think he will still leave office with very little power, but instead will leave with immense amounts of respect from members from both ends of the aisle. Obama’s cabinet has advised him well for many years and to an extent the cabinet is to thank for Obama’s soon to be smooth exit out of office. 

Charlie Maxwell NBC Article Supreme Court Response

Charlie Maxwell

Ms. Gordon

AP Gov, Period 3

18 February 2016

NBC Article Response Blog Post

1. The Senate races in 2016 are extremely connected with the Supreme Court vacancy. Whichever political party takes control as of 2016 will have major influence on the replacement of Justice Scalia because, whether Obama or the next United States President suggests the appointment, the proposed justice must pass through the approval of the Senate. If Republicans block a “consensus” nominee proposed by Barack Obama and then the Senate becomes controlled by the Democratic party, Obama may propose an even more liberal Justice than he did before.
2. Obama’s power is limited right now. However, there are 17 days in November where his power may massively increase. As of now, the party division between Justices is completely even, four liberal and four conservatives. If the Senate becomes controlled by the Democratic party, Obama will have 17 days in which he can appoint a liberal Justice who will most likely then be approved by the Senate. Nonetheless, it is extremely difficult to have a Justice approved in such a short amount of time.
3. A “lame duck” president is one who suddenly loses much of his power and then cannot pass the legislation and action he would like. Obama may leave as  “lame duck” President depending on whether or not Senate becomes controlled by the Democrats. Regardless of what happens, I believe Obama will use his charisma to still try to convince those around him to take action, even when much of the legislative power will be out of his hands.

Gov. Palin Dialogue

Charlie Evans/ Emily Agnew

Gordon

AP Gov

1-26-16

Media Reflection Assignment

Governor Palin’s press secretary-  In the interview with Katie Couric, Governor Palin was asked many unfair questions.  You could obviously tell that Katie Couric was asking these questions in an attempt to make Governor Palin to look bad.  These questions were very one sided and planned to make Governor Palin look bad on purpose. Governor Palin was set up by Couric, and it was very evident Couric went to all necessary lengths to make Governor Palin look bad.

Senator McCain’s campaign manager- I don’t even know where to start! Picking Palin was a huge mistake. Unfortunately, our campaign staff failed to ask her any important questions, as well as learn her take on relevant issues such as foreign policy and economics. All my staff really cared about was her image, which definitely cost us the race. In her preparation for the Katie Couric interview, she failed to memorize any information we gave her. Palin responded to Couric’s questions in complete nonsense. Overall, if i’m being honest; Palin cost us the race.

Donald Trump- After rewatching Governor Sarah Palin’s interview with Katie Couric, which was quite a while ago, I knew I needed her to endorse my campaign. I mean, I knew that she was pretty dull-minded when it came to politics and she didn’t really know much. I just wanted her to improve my ratings, up my status in the race, and get more attention overall. Nobody gets attention like Palin did in the 2008 race. I run my campaign by being super obnoxious and saying whatever I want, so I needed someone exactly like me to support that, and give me even more attention! Who better to do that than Palin?!

A citizen of the state of Alaska: Governor Palin does an absolutely wonderful job governing the state of Alaska, but nobody actually believed she could help run the entire country! Governor Palin has an amazing image, and the people love her, but she isn’t familiar with any of the issues that presidential candidates need to know. Palin does better on a much smaller scale, dealing with community and statewide issues.

Game Change Response Ryan, Kawveh, Ben, Alex

Game Change Response

Gov. Palin’s Press Secretary- Ben

Governor Sarah Palin is something else! No one else can gather a crowd and entertain them as well as Sarah. She is beloved by many and takes pride on being like her supporters, having multiple kids and being a hockey mom! Some of her opponents claim she does not understand foreign policy after the her interviews. To that I would say that the news can make even the smartest candidates look dumb when they are surprised and ambushed with questions. Along with that I knew she would do great in endorsing Donald Trump. She Riled up the crowd and made them love her again and gave the future President  of the United States a endorsement that will Make America Great Again!

Senator McCain’s Campaign Manager- Kawveh

As Senator McCain’s Campaign Manager, my opinion is seriously considered when thinking about candidates, especially for Vice President. When Sarah Palin was brought up, she was an amazing pick, but on only paper. She was “firecracker” that could have changed the campaign for the best. However, since the vet was so shallow and quick, we did not get the full view of who she actually was. She turned out to be one of the worst candidates that could have been on the ticket. She never knew what she was talking about. Also, when she did do well on an interview or debate, she became too self centered and acted like this election was for her, no McCain. When she wasn’t having a complete mental breakdown, she would make herself seem that she was running for president despite her complete lack of knowing anything about literally anything. The only way she could have been beneficial to the McCain Campaign, is if she was an Obama’s campaign.

Donald Trump- Ryan

Sarah Palin an amazing women who I deeply respect. She has enthusiasm and the guts to say what needs to be said without being caught up in how “politically correct” it is. In many ways I see myself in her. Not only has she many times stuck it to the establishment about building costly bridges and shut down congress on that, but she made Alaska money off a state, not federally, funded natural resources project which included a pipeline through the state into Canada and to the mainland. She's a firecracker with a lot of heart and I am honored to be endorsed by her.

A Citizen of the State of Alaska- Alex

Since I have been a resident of Alaska for my entire life, I have a strong sense of Alaskan pride. Sarah Palin was one of the best things that ever happened to our state. You betcha she was! When she was mayor of my town Wasilla, she cut my property taxes by 75%. She was god sent. But, when she became the Vice Presidential nominee she abandoned us. She forgot all about us in little Alaska. She has lost who she truly is. When I watched her endorsement of Donald Trump, I didn’t recognize her. She was a completely different person. I’m disappointed at the person she became.

Media Reflection

Malachi Clark

Characters: Trump, Palin, Steve Shmidt, Katie Couric.

KC: So recently you actually endorsed Mr. Trump's campaign. What made you do this?

SP: Donald.. Can I call you Don? I'm a big fan of nick names.

DT: Sarah. Of course, it would be an honor.

(Trump sits completely still for the duration of this conversation only moving to make different expressions every couple minutes)

SP: Don has amazing views on everything. He makes me excited to be a part of america.

KC: What views of his do you specifically like?

SP: There are so many Katie I couldn't even decide which I'd like to talk about. Just everything he says excites me.

KC: Trump has talked about building a large wall to create a real border between the United States and Mexico how do you feel about this?

SP: This was one of those views I wanted to talk about. Don is an amazing family loving guy with great ideas and this is one of them. I don't know about you but I'm not a fan of anyone sneaking in, especially those sneaky Mexicans. We have a similar problem with those damn Canadians coming over our borders and the Russians let me stop before I get angry.

T: Thank you Sarah.

SS: SARAH come here. Cut the cameras. I know I have no authority above you know but shut the fuck UP.

SP: Steve. I need to talk about this. I need to be relevant.