Assignment:
Research Paper
You will research and write a paper on a specific issue of constitutional law. The paper will focus on the Court's treatment of an issue and competing perspectives on it (both on and off the Court), and provide an evaluation and critique of those perspectives.
• Scope and limits of the presidential power to pardon
• The concept of Executive Privilege
• The impact of N.S. v. Chadha (1983).
• The constitutional dimensions of the Iran-Contra Affair
• The "Pocket Veto"
• The "Line Item Veto"
• The jurisprudence of "original intent"
• Presidential Immunity from Civil Actions after Clinton Jones (1997)
1. Papers will be 10 to 15 pages long and typed.
2. A prospectus (topic, thesis, and annotated bibliography) will be due in class on November 26th of November. The prospectus will be graded and returned to you, with comments, for your consideration in the preparation of the final version of the paper. It must be turned in with the final copy of the paper.
3. Papers will be prepared in standard term paper style (consult Turabian, A Manual for Writers, or the AP Handbook), and will have a title page on which-- and only on which-- your name will appear.