LEARNING ACTIVITY WORKSHEET - Week One
Please review the full assignment prompt located within the classroom and in the POL 201 Course Guide before beginning this assignment.
Utilizing the worksheet below, develop detailed paragraphs that focus onthe first main point for your final paper.For each section, a minimum of one fully-developed paragraph is required. Each paragraph should include at least one in-text APA citation that provides support for the topic.
At least two scholarly sources from the Ashford University library (not including your textbook) with in-text citations utilized within your paragraphs are required. Two new sources should be utilized each week to meet the minimum of eight required sources for the final. By finding and supporting your material with these sources each week, you will have the research necessary to construct a strong final paper. For help with writing and citations, please review the handouts and tutorials provided by the Ashford Writing Center.
1. The Constitution:
A. One strength of the U.S. Constitution
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The separation of powers, which structures the government into three arms, namely legislature, executive and judiciary, is one of the strengths of the US Constitution. Separation of powers allows for overlap of the authority among the institutions of the government and bars power concentration in a single institution. It makes the government structure simple by designating functions to each arm.
B. One weakness of the U.S. Constitution
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A weakness of the US Constitution is the existing Congressional stagnation. According to Larson (2012), the Congress has no term limits and has been a source of controversy and debate amongst the politicians (pg.6). The absence of Congressional term limits implies that inexperienced individuals taking over is not easy since those in power get reelected to the extent that they have an established Congressional career. Furthermore, the public is less interested in voting for Congress candidates as compared to presidential candidates; hence leading to reelection of candidates.
C. One option to maintain the strength of the U.S. Constitution
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The separation of power is critical to ensure checks and balances between the three branches. This ensures that there is no branch of the government that is too powerful as compared to another. It also ensures that the executive doesn't rule with an iron fist. According to Separation of Powers (2016), separation of powers prevents any one of the three branches of the US government from becoming autocratic (para. 2).
D. One option to correct the weakness of the U.S. Constitution
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One option to correct the weakness is enacting a law that gives a reasonable term limit for the members of the Congress. This will ensure that new members get elected and fill the positions rather than having people taking the position as a career.
2. Reference List (utilizing full APA citations)
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Larson, K. J. (2012). Republican Revolutionaries and Tea Party Patriots: A Public Choice Analysis of Congressional Term Limits. St. John's Law Review, 86761.
Separation of Powers. (2016). Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, 1p. 1.