Houghton Mifflin Textbook - Enduring Questions

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	American Government Brief Version, Seventh Edition James Q. Wilson, University of California, Los Angeles



	Enduring Questions Chapter 1: What Should We Know about American Government? Chapter 2: The Constitution Chapter 3: Civil Liberties and Civil Rights Chapter 4: Federalism Chapter 5: Public Opinion and the Media Chapter 6: Political Parties and Interest Groups Chapter 7: Campaigns and Elections Chapter 8: Congress Chapter 9: The Presidency Chapter 10: The Bureaucracy Chapter 11: The Judiciary Chapter 12: Making Domestic Policy Chapter 13: Making Foreign and Military Policy Chapter 1: What Should We Know about American Government? If citizens are fit to select political leaders, why may they be unfit to govern themselves without such leaders? What is the difference between authority and power? What is democracy, and why is democracy alone not sufficient to protect people? Top Chapter 2: The Constitution What was wrong with the Articles of Confederation? How did the authors of the Constitution view human nature? How can a government be strong enough to govern without threatening freedom? Has the system of separated powers and checks-and-balances protected liberty? Top Chapter 3: Civil Liberties and Civil Rights Why not display religious symbols on government property? If a person confesses that he has committed a crime, why is that confession sometimes not presented in court? Should numerical goals be used to ensure that students and workers are drawn from every racial group? Why has abortion become so controversial an issue? Top Chapter 4: Federalism What is “sovereignty” and where is it located in the United States government? How does the Constitution divide power between the state and federal governments? How has that division changed since the first days of the republic? Top Chapter 5: Public Opinion and the Media Under the United States Constitution, how big a role should public opinion play in making policy? What are the biggest sources of the political views of Americans? What is meant by “liberal” and “conservative”? Why is television news different from that in newspapers? Are reporters biased in how they cover politics? Top Chapter 6: Political Parties and Interest Groups Why are political parties weaker today than in the past? Why do we have just two major political parties? Why does the United States have so many interest groups? > Top Chapter 7: Campaigns and Elections What is the best way to calculate the rate at which Americans vote? What factors chiefly influence who wins a presidential election? Can federal laws keep big money out of political campaigns? Top Chapter 8: Congress Are the members of Congress representative of the American people? Does Congress prefer strong leadership, and does it allow its member a lot of freedom? How important are political parties in Congress? Why does it take so long for Congress to act? Top Chapter 9: The Presidency Did the Founding Fathers want the president to be stronger or weaker than Congress? Does presidential character influence how he does his job? Should we abolish the Electoral College? Top Chapter 10: The Bureaucracy Why did the bureaucracy become the “fourth branch” of American government? How many people work for the federal government? What can be done to improve bureaucratic performance? Top Chapter 11: The Judiciary Should judges be limited to interpreting what the Constitution and federal laws say? Why should federal courts be able to declare an act of Congress unconstitutional? Why is the Supreme Court so deeply divided on so many questions? Top Chapter 12: Making Domestic Policy Do interest groups have too much power? Can the president make the country prosperous? Why do we have a public debt? Why are some public assistance programs popular and others unpopular? Top Chapter 13: Making Foreign and Military Policy How has terrorism changed American foreign and military policy? Does the United States know how to rebuild nations? How important is the United Nations to the United States taking military action abroad? Top





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