the Government project

Posted: March 24th, 2022

For this project, you will need to select a particular policy proposal to explore. Note that you need to decide on a specific policy or law, not just a policy area – Gun Control or Gun Rights are NOT policies; concealed carry on college campuses or a ban on assault weapons ARE policies. It may be a policy been proposed and debated within the US political structure, or something that you come up with from your own experiences and perspective.

For the policy you decide on, you need to address the following issues:

PART ONE (max 25% of the project)

The actual contents of the policy – what the law or proposal does (or wants to do) and the problem it is seeking to solve.
How does this policy alter the status quo? So what, specifically, is the status quo and how does your policy alter it?
The interest groups that are relevant to your policy. Include BOTH supporters and opponents, and some indication of WHY and HOW they act or have acted on this issue. Political parties, individual actors, citizen groups, PACs, business associations, etc. are all fair game. For individual people and organized groups, be sure to include a name. Remember, groups can be more informal — those groups are fine to include as well.

PART TWO (the rest of the project, 75% or more — this is the more important stuff)

Now that you have the policy and groups broadly outlined, let’s get into the details of the politics involved. From the groundwork you laid in part one, explore your chosen policy issue through the lenses that we’ve been developing this semester. Specifically, you should address the following:

Assess the issue in light of the civil rights, liberties, freedom, and equality concerns — what rights, freedoms, etc. are at stake with your policy issue?
Assess the relative power held by the major groups shaping the policy issue — what form of power and how is it used?
Assess the methods of outreach and influence over regular folks and decision makers — think here about media and information. (3rd dimension of power?!?)
Consider, if applicable, the political structures such as the legislature, executive/bureaucracy, and courts and how they are likely to decide on your issue.
Finally, evaluate the likely outcome on the issue you proposed, given the group and decision-making dynamics of the government. To what extent is this the proper outcome? If it’s not the proper outcome, what would the proper outcome be and what barriers are preventing the proper outcome from occurring?