2302 Assignment 1.

Name________________________________________________

http://www.senate.gov

Go to http://www.senate.gov and scroll down to 00193. Go to Roll Call tables and click on the 2008 (110, 2nd). Click on 00193. What is the vote date? Question? Result? What is the nomination description? How did Senators Hutchinson and Cornyn vote on this legislation? (Hint: Go to 00193, click, and scroll down past the other Senators until you get to Cornyn and Hutchinson.

Go to http://culberson.house.gov

• Under heading Tax and Spend, How does Culberson distinguish himself regarding spending?

• Go to 8/12/08 Culberson Sheds Light on a Dark Debate. What happened on August 1, 2008? What was the response of Culberson and his colleagues?

• Go to http://culberson.house.gov again and scroll down to votes last week in Congress. Go to votes for the week of July 28, 2008. In your own words, summarize how he voted and the reason behind his vote on the five House bills.

• Go to http://www.house.gov

Put in your 9-digit zip code to find your U.S. representative. (Assistance is available at the site to find your 9-digit zip code.) Who is your representative?

How did your representative vote on any one of the five measures cited above? Did they give a reason for their vote?

1. What does Hubbard give as the positive element of our health care system?
2. How does the president differ from some in Congress on how to cover children in middle-class families and other Americans?
3. What three reasons does Allan B. Hubbard give as to why the Baucus-Grassley proposal would be detrimental to the health care system?
4. How should the tax code be reformed?
5. What effect would result from these reforms?

1. Until now, one or two senators could block provisions that had not been passed by either Senate or House. How many senators are now needed to block proposals and how will this affect special interest?
2. Why did the Congress hold the final ethics bill after passage on August 2, 2007?
3. Why do you think Senator Coburn wanted policing of pork barrel earmarks to be overseen by the Senate’s non-partisan parliamentarian?
4. What does Senate Rule 28 cover? How many votes did it take to suspend the rules? Now how many votes will be needed to add multiple earmarks and how long will they have to debate? (3 part question)
5. What two actions can the majority leader and/or the minority leader now take regarding the newly identified earmark postings on the Internet? ( 2 part question)
6. With no recourse to the pocket veto, what three choices does the President have at his disposal?

www.capitol.state.tx.us/

Scroll down to 80 (R) 2007. Click on the Bill Number circle. Type in SJR 29 in the allotted area.

1. Describe the caption text.
2. Which Senate Committee was involved with this measure? How many voted Ayes/ Nays? How many absent?
3. Which House Committee was involved with this measure? How many voted Ayes/ Nays? How many absent?
4. When did the Senate approve the bill? When did the House approve the bill? When was the bill filed with the Secretary of State? (This was a bill proposing a constitutional amendment so it did not have to go to the Governor for his signature)

1. What does the Parental Consent Bill, signed on June 5 now require?
2. How did many legislators view this bill?
3. Which committee in the House considered the Parental Consent Bill and was it favorably reported out of committee? (Two part question)
4. What were Representative Garnet Coleman’s two points of order? What effect did the first point of order have? What did Rep. Phil King do as a result of Coleman’s second point of order? (Three part question)
5. While the House was considering a routine agency authorization bill that had been approved by the Senate (SB # 419), what did Rep. Will Hartnett (R- Dallas) do and how would this Hartnett-King amendment affect doctors?
6. What was the second action by Rep. Hartnett and what specific disciplinary action can the Board of Medical Examiners utilize to prevent third-trimester abortions that do not include the noted exemptions?
7. Now with these amendments in the House to the Senate originated Board of Medical Examiners Reauthorization Bill, the bill went to a joint conference committee. What happened in this joint committee?
8. What happened during the last week of the session?
9. Do you still need to only notify parents or do you now need to have a written consent from the parents before performing an abortion on a minor?

Bonus/Extra Credit -State your State Texas Representative (1) and State Texas Senator (1). www.capitol.state.tx.us/

1. Pick one article from any newspaper dealing with the presidency. (Please do not pick an article discussing the campaign of either of the candidates. Pick an article that discusses the activities of the current president.)
2. Give a brief summary of the article.
3. Identify the specific presidential power(s) and responsibilities in the article. The article many contain one or several powers discussed on page 306- 312. Please do not state any power unless it is specifically identified in the article.
4. Identify the neutral, positive, or negative comments towards the president. Do you think the article was balanced? Why or why not?
5. Was the information in the article generated by the White House (i.e. press conference, press release) bureaucratic leak (unnamed source), from the press, or from the other political party.
6. List the names of the all the advisers or critical players mentioned in the article and identify their particular roles in government, business, etc. (Example: members of the White House staff, members of Congress, members of the Cabinet (Dr. Condoleezza Rice (Sec. Of State) Robert Gates (Sec. Of Defense). Also include administrative heads of interest groups, agencies, businesses, and think tanks. .
7. Assignment will not be accepted unless the article is attached to the assignment.