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Join hosts Joe Ulery and Bobbi Fisher as they tackle 5 more common misconceptions about our government. These misconceptions include the impeachment process, whether the U.S. is a democracy, use of the Bible for swearing in officials, straight ticket voting, and removal of the President using the 25th Amendment. So join the hosts as they attempt to educate you about these misconceptions.

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In this second special holiday episode of Plain Civics, join host Bobbi Fisher as she tells the story of an ambitious battle plan devised by General George Washington to take place on Christmas night 1776. Up to this point in the Revolutionary War the Americans had achieved little success on the battlefield and troop morale was extremely low. Gen. Washington hoped that a surprise attack at Trenton, NJ, on unsuspecting Hessian soldiers might give the American soldiers the boost in morale that they needed to continue fighting for the cause. Listen and learn about Washington’s bold plan and how it turned out.

Joe Ulery has this episode off and both of us will return on January 15 with the first episode of Season 2 of Plain Civics…another “Say What” episode where we clear up five more misconceptions about our government.

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The holiday season slows the country down — but civics doesn’t stop.

In this special episode of Plain Civics, Joe Ulery looks at how holidays fit into American civic life. From early debates over Christmas in colonial America to Congress making it a federal holiday, from George Washington’s Christmas-night gamble to how government continues operating during the holidays today.

This episode focuses on history, constitutional context, and civic reality — not politics of the moment. It’s a calm, fact-based look at how shared traditions, public service, and democratic institutions intersect during the holiday season.

Bobbi Fisher has the day off. She’ll return next episode.

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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss the “freedom of religion” portion of the First Amendment. The First Amendment actually provides us with 5 freedoms, including freedom of religion, which includes the Establishment Clause and the Free Exercise Clause; and freedoms of speech, press, assembly, and petition which we covered in episodes 21 and 22. There is a reason the Framers included all of these in the very first amendment, so listen in and find out why these freedoms are so important to us as Americans.

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We will return in Episode 24 with the freedom of religion part of the First Amendment. In this episode, join the hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss times in our almost 250-year history when the situation in the U.S. looked as bleak, or even bleaker, than they do today, but Americans were able to fight and claw in their quest for equal rights and a more perfect union to survive and advance our nation. 

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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss the “freedom of expression” portion of the First Amendment. The First Amendment actually provides us with 5 freedoms, including freedom of religion, which we will examine in an upcoming episode, and freedoms of speech, press, assembly, and petition. We covered speech in the last episode and, in this one, we will examine press, assembly, and petition. There is a reason the Framers included all of these in the very first amendment, so listen in and find out why these freedoms are so important to us as Americans.

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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss the “freedom of expression” portion of the First Amendment. The First Amendment actually provides us with 5 freedoms, including freedom of religion, which we will examine in episode 24, and freedoms of speech, press, assembly, and petition. There is a reason the Framers included all of these in the very first amendment, so listen in and find out why these freedoms are so important to us as Americans.

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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they unwrap how polarization and civil discourse are related, tell about how we, as a nation, have been here before, and how we overcame those difficult episodes of civil discourse. What is different this time around and how we can still overcome the tough period of polarization and uncivil discourse.

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Joins hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss political polarization in America.  They unwrap what is meant by polarization, possible reasons for it, why it seems worse right now, and what we can do to lessen it and why we need to.

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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they take a deep dive into gerrymandering. They explain what it is, how it and the name came about, and how it it relates to the census and state redistributing after each census.

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