Current Issues and The Constitution

37 – Hope and Change?

03.02.2015 - By Professor Woody Wilson & Felice GerwitzPlay

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Hope and Change? What Do You Think?

Personally I think there is always plenty of hope and change - but not necessarily GOOD change since the election of the President. However in six years you can be sure that 2000 years of history can't be changed - and not with conservative watch dogs, thank-fully!

Do you know your civics? We discuss several states considering giving students a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services exam as a prerequisite for graduation. Most candidates who take the naturalization exam are presented ten questions which they answer orally and pass it, on average at 91 percent on their first try.

How did the American students fair in comparison? Here is a quick snapshot of the outcome of a random test given to students in the following states: Oklahoma: 2.8 percent passed; and Arizona: 3.5 percent passed. Reportedly only 23 percent knew that George Washington was the first president! Are you surprised?

Illegal Immigration:

* New report isis crossing Mexican border – need to secure border

* Illegal immigrant, Pedro Espinoza, released from prison, murders black youth Jamiel Shaw - 2008? Los Angeles

* Jeb Bush, 2013, “accelerated path to citizenship.” In the primaries, can he overcome this and his support for Common Core?

ISIS:

* New White House spin – Isis problem is poverty – Obama, Susan Rice, State Department spokeswoman

* Holy War?

Keystone Pipeline:

* January 31, 2014, The State Department concluded in its final environmental assessment issued Friday that the proposed Keystone XL pipeline would be unlikely to alter global greenhouse gas emissions.

* Senate 62-36 – House 252-161 (incl. 31 democrats)

* President vetoes congressional legislation

* Hampers relations with Canada

USA fundamentally changed during last six years?

* National Debt

* Economic doldrums

* Government growth and expansion, bureaucratic malfeasance

* Affordable Care Act

* Abdication of leadership in foreign affairs

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu headed to Washington on Sunday (3/1) to press his case against an emerging deal on Iran's nuclear program in a contentious address to the U.S. Congress, which he said he is delivering out of concern for Israel's security.

America’s Christian Foundations

* Freedom from religious persecution, colonial era

* Declaration of Independence

* Declaration of Independence recalled (1820s)

* US Constitution, Constitutional Convention

* Early America - Second Great Awakening (1790-1840)

Declaration of Independence Online Version: http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/declaration_transcript.html

PDF - Please download this copy with highlights that Professor Wilson discussed.Declaration of Independence - Highlights For Show

 

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