final paper

- 1 - 1 2 1. the original amendments.

There's no such thing as an original amendment; the original document was the unamended Constitution (the seven Articles). [Kevin Eirich] 2. in clear picture This sentence is hard to follow. How might you reword it to make your point clear to the reader? [Kevin Eirich] LEARNING ACTIVITY WORKSHEET - Week One Please review the full assignment prompt and the Week 5 Final Paper instructions located within the classroom and in the POL 201 Course Guide before beginning this assignment.

Utilizing the worksheet below, develop detailed paragraphs that focus on the first main point for your final paper. For each section, a minimum of one fully-developed paragraph is required. A fully developed paragraph should be a minimum of 5-7 sentences in length. Each paragraph should include at least one in-text APA citation that provides support for the topic.

At least two scholarly sources from the Ashford University library (not including your textbook) with in-text citations utilized within your paragraphs are required. Two new sources should be utilized each week to meet the minimum of eight required sources for the final. By finding and supporting your material with these sources each week, you will have the research necessary to construct a strong final paper. For help with writing and citations , please review the handouts and tutorials provided by the Ashford Writing Center. 1. The Constitution:

A. One strength of the U.S. Constitution One strength of the constitution is the bill of rights. There are 27 amendments now and 10 of them are the original amendments. These amendments were created and make up the bill of right and provides the government with limitations that they must uphold and abide by. With the bill of rights, it gives protection to each individual and allows them the protection from the abuse of the government. The bill of rights is a strength because in clear picture it provides us with entitlements as U.S. Citizens. In the article written by Brookhiser (2015) he stated that Thomas Jefferson received a letter from Madison who had objections to the bill of rights and he eased Madison’s feelings by expressing that “A bill of rights,” wrote Jefferson, “is what the people are entitled to against every government on earth.” B. One weakness of the U.S. Constitution One weakness of the U.S. Constitution is the term for congressmen and woman. With having no term limit for the congress, it does not allow for fresh eyes, fresh ideas, and someone who could possibly make better decisions because they were previously involved in the “real” world as a civilian and know the concerns and changes that need to be made. It has been said that on a state level there is a term limit but that a term limit may never make it to a - 2 - 1 2 3 4 5 1. congress level.

Margaret, I encourage you to review a U.S. Supreme Court opinion:

U.S. Term Limits Inc. v.

Thornton (1995). [Kevin Eirich] 2. previously the percentage was in the range of 70- 90 percent in the first 100 years of the republic.

What reason(s) might have contributed to this? [Kevin Eirich] 3. of rights.

I worry this is a solution to a problem that doesn't exist.

For instance, is there a strong push among interested political actors to get rid of the Bill of Rights? I don't know that there's a strong push to remove the Bill of Rights from the Constitution, so saying we should keep it doesn't add very much.

I think a better approach might be to suggest how the existing Bill of Rights could be improved. What suggestions might you offer on that?

[Kevin Eirich] 4. limits for the congress.

What might the limits on the term be? Number of terms?

Length of years per term?

[Kevin Eirich] 5. American History, Italicize. [Kevin Eirich] congress level. (Caress & Kunioka, 2012). Frenzel (2012) stated that “In the past four elections, retirement turnover averaged about 31 members, about 7 percent. Total House turnover, including election defeats, was about 10 percent, an historic low” but previously the percentage was in the range of 70- 90 percent in the first 100 years of the republic.

C. One option to maintain the strength of the U.S. Constitution One option to maintain the strengths of the U.S. Constitution is to keep the bill of rights. To keep and maintain the strength of the bill of rights it needs to be reviewed after a certain time frame. With the world changing and growing every day, the constitution needs to be looked over to see what is working for the people. If these protections to U.S. citizens are too vague or need to be put into force more.

D. One option to correct the weakness of the U.S. Constitution One way to correct the weakness of the U.S. Constitution is to have term limits for the congress. Frenzel stated that a pro to a congressional term limit is “to unrig a rigged system, end automatic re-election, and make Congress mortal again” (Section Arguments pros and cons, 2012).

2. Reference List (utilizing full APA citations) (Use the space below to complete this section.) Brookhiser, R. (2015). Correcting the Constitution: was the Bill of Rights necessary?. American History, (5), 36. - 3 - 1 1. Brookings Review, Italicize. [Kevin Eirich] Caress, S. M., & Kunioka, T. T. (2012). Chapter 9: The Future of Term Limits in the States and in Congress. In , Term Limits and Their Consequences : The Aftermath of Legislative Reform (p. 151). Albany: State University of New York Press.

Frenzel, B. (1992). Term limits and the immortal congress. Brookings Review, (2), 18.