HOUSE ARMED SERVICES: : House Simulation Post Testimony Session - Assigned Wed. 9th - By Committee

This is a 2 part blog.  Each House member is expected to post twice before Monday.  

1 post is to the committee as a whole (including opposing parties).  This will involve some pre-negotiation discussion.  

2nd post is just among your party within your committee.  Look for the post from your committee chair (Reps) or ranking member (Dems) to discuss strategy for passage of your interests.  You may respond to this person, or a member who has previously posted.

This second post must include some evidence of concern / relevance of interest group appeal and / or reference to your demographics of what your party is considering relative to this bill.  

HOUSE WAYS AND MEANS: House Simulation Post Testimony Session - Assigned Wed. 9th - By Committee

This is a 2 part blog.  Each House member is expected to post twice before Monday.

1 post is to the committee as a whole (including opposing parties).  This will involve some pre-negotiation discussion.

2nd post is just among your party within your committee.  Look for the post from your committee chair (Reps) or ranking member (Dems) to discuss strategy for passage of your interests.  You may respond to this person, or a member who has previously posted.
This second post must include some evidence of concern / relevance of interest group appeal and / or reference to your demographics of what your party is considering relative to this bill.

HOUSE APPROPRIATIONS: House Simulation Post Testimony Session - Assigned Wed. 9th - By Committee

This is a 2 part blog.  Each House member is expected to post twice before Monday.

1 post is to the committee as a whole (including opposing parties).  This will involve some pre-negotiation discussion.

2nd post is just among your party within your committee.  Look for the post from your committee chair (Reps) or ranking member (Dems) to discuss strategy for passage of your interests.  You may respond to this person, or a member who has previously posted.
This second post must include some evidence of concern / relevance of interest group appeal and / or reference to your demographics of what your party is considering relative to this bill.

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES SIMULATION BLOG

FRIDAY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES BLOG

The voters have not been happy with Congress of late, so both the House and the Senate have begun to blog daily to a public blog to increase transparency in the institution.   Consider that while only House members are allowed to publish to the blog, it does have a healthy readership from across the country.

There will be a specified day later in the week that will be an interior blog - for the House members eyes only, but unless otherwise stated, assume that it is public.

Tuesday's session involved the assignment of committees, leadership positions, referral of some bills, and some general intra - party strategizing.  What is your take on todays session, considering your demographics, your goals, and cross-pressures?

EACH POST SHOULD MEET THESE REQUIREMENTS:

1.  BE ROUGHLY A PARAGRAPH
2.  INCLUDE NO LESS THAN 2 VOCABULARY WORDS USED ACCURATELY
3.  INDICATE SOME KNOWLEDGE - OF THE PROCESS AND AFTER THIS FIRST ONE EVIDENCE SOME RESEARCH ON THE SUBJECT OF THE LEGISLATION YOU DISCUSSED THAT DAY

HINTS:

1.  Speak respectfully about each other, referring to another Congressperson with both a title and a home state.  Congresswoman / Congressperson / my honorable colleague / etc...) Bridget Quesnell from Massechusetts.

2.  Your constituents are reading the blog, not just your own post, so we don't have to keep repeating the same information over and over again.  The summary of what was accomplished in committee should have gotten shorter and shorter, to where you just add on what you viewed / experienced differently.

3.  Partisanship in the blog:  Remember this blog was created to make transparent the inner workings of the "do-nothing-Congress".  Americans are already fed up with you, especially those active enough to read this blog.  Any negativity you feel toward each other should be veiled, and ultimately, as frustration grows in committees, blamed on the other party of course!

Legacy of the Election of 2016 SEE BELOW LIST FOR THE DIRECTIONS FOR THE COURSE BLOG FOR THE WEEK 10/31 - 11/4

We are participants today in history being made.  The election of 2016 will one day fill a few pages of future AP Gov. texts.  What will it say?  Think about, and research this election particularly about one of the following sub topics.  Share one site's link that you used for help and write a paragraph summary about how this election changes the way we look at this topic.

use of polls
importance of media
polarization
dealignment
use of negative ads
money in politics
flawed electoral process / primary process

FOR WEEK 10/31 - 11/4, skim through your classmate's posts from last week, and find one you would like to respond to.  You should not just echo their information, but add something new.  Agree with it for a different reason, point out another relevant point from the article (remember the links are there for you to look to), discuss the implications of this fact, suggest a reform that may fix a problem mentioned...etc...  Extra credit is available on this one, as much as 15/10 depending on the quality of your addition.

UNITED STATES FOREIGN POLICY PLAYERS

Select one of the players of U.S. foreign policy:

Congress
President
Department of State
Department of Defense
Deparment of Homeland Security
Central Intelligence Agency
National Security Agency

Research and post the link to an article that shares your choice and some way in which they have played a role in the United State's foreign policy challenge of ISIS (ISIL).  Summarize in a paragraph what your agency's involvement has been.  Skim through some other posts of other organizations to prepare you for the flip activity and the Policy Day activity on Friday.

POSTPONED - THIS IS NEXT WEEK'S POLICY DAY BLOG - NONE DUE THIS WEEK -- Does Obama Deserve the Title: "The Environmental President"? A look at his record...

Explore some elements of "The Record".  There are several interactive elements in the site, including excerpts of speeches, fact sheets, etc., accessible once you click on the check mark box on which you choose to focus.

Search one of the topics to find "the other side".  What do his opponents say about his record on... you pick.  Is the record an exaggerated claim, had negative consequences that outweigh the benefit, did his actions not go far enough?

Find one source, paste the link, and explain in a paragraph what the Obama claim was and share what your research countered with.                       try this link instead

Taxation ... really! To raise or to lower, and on whom?

Do Hillary Clinton And Donald Trump's Tax Proposals Add Up?

Listen to the audio of this broadcast from 9/12.  Use the content there as the basis for your search to help you decide where you sit on the continuum...

I love Hillary's --------------------------------------------------------------I love Trump's
tax proposals!---------------------------------------------------------------tax proposals!

Post a link to an article that helps you decide, and explain briefly why you like the one you like better, adding a little of what your article contributed to your decision.

Should there be a path to U.S. citizenship for any Illegals?

Take any claim, made by Pro or Con, and research it.  In your comment to this post first state the claim you selected, then paste the link to 1 quality source and briefly noted evidence that either proves or disproves the claim you selected.  As a class essentially this is debate prep.  You would be well served to peruse some of the research your classmates have posted as well.

Minimum Wage

     After watching the video, like many of my peers, I was lead to believe increasing the minimum wage would be beneficial. Increasing the wage for the betterment of low income families seems reasonable, but the video felt fairly biased on its position towards this topic. Although it is a reality that many families rely off of minimum wage paying jobs, they are not specifically designed to serve that purpose. One major contributing factor in the reliance of minimum wage paying jobs is the lack of uneducated individuals. It does not require much skill to work a minimum wage paying job and that is why uneducated people turn to those occupations. Additionally, raising the wage would incline businesses to lay off their employees. According to the Congressional Budget Office, it is projected that 500,000 jobs would be lost if increasing the minimum wage became a reality. Small businesses could simply not afford to employ many workers which would further cause these companies to close. I want to reiterate the influence higher education has on this issue. The more education, the more skill, the more opportunity to seek a well paying job. Lastly, to be perfectly honest, I did not hold much of a stance on this topic before writing this blog, so I anticipate my loose position to be swayed and change as I learn more about it.

http://minimum-wage.procon.org

To Tax or to Spend?

Watch the video above, think about where you stand (at this point) on the issue of whether or not to raise the minimum wage. Then look for an article that likely opposes what you think.  Post a link to your quality source in your comment, then react to that article in a paragraph.  Sometime during the rest of the week, read at least one other classmates paragraph, and react to their paragraph in a sentence or two, respectfully.

AP Gov Blog #1

     I feel President Obama was accurate in removing the pledge of allegiance in schools nationwide. Growing up pledging to the flag every morning, I did not think much about the words I was saying, I did it subconsciously. It was not until now, that I recited the pledge in my head, that o realized how inapplicable it is. Some of the terminology used no longer holds true to the values of America. The United States has evolved immensely since 1942, when the pledge was adopted by congress. Our country's outlook and beliefs have developed greatly since that time. The pledge is divisive as it does not include many of the Americans that impact our country. The fact of the matter is many minorities in this country do not feel they posses "liberty and justice for all." Additionally, the reference to our nation being under God, excludes a variety of faiths held by impactful individuals in America. I agree with my classmates in saying the punishment of $10,000 and up to a year in prison is rather intense for the violation of the order. Essentially, the pledge soon needs to be revised to display an accurate depiction of America's values, but until then, we should no longer pledge in schools nation wide.

     I would have to disagree with Obama's choice to ban the pledge of allegiance. Just like all my classmates I'm sure, I have grown up siting this anthem many times before. I do agree that it may not relate directly to everyone person in the U.S but I don't think it should have been banned completely. As a Christain, I can relate to the words it's saying, but I do understand how it can be "offensive" or not corolate to ones religion or values. I think we should keep the anthem but it is up to the person whether they recite it or not.

I partially agree with President Obama's decision to ban the Pledge of Allegiance in schools nationwide. This country was founded by leaders who were primarily Christian and believed in Christian ideals. It is evident that the constitution was written based off many Christian ideals. So, it is no surprise that the pledge of allegiance alludes to Christian beliefs and ideals. The United States includes people from all over the world, from all different cultures, and from all different religions. In my opinion, every legal citizen of the United States is just as "American" as one another, regardless of their background or ethnicity. As a result, every citizen of this country should be respected and treated equally. They should not be forced to participate in a practice that conflicts with their personal beliefs. However, if our country has always been influenced by Christian ideals, then I also think those ideals should be respected as well. A better solution to this problem would have been to allow schools to permit the pledge of allegiance, but not require it. So, schools could recite the pledge, but students would not be required to engage if they felt that the words went against their beliefs. They could either remain silent or go to another location while other students recited the pledge. This would ensure that nobody is forced to engage in an activity that contradicts their beliefs, but also respects the very ideals our country was founded on.

Policy Day Blog #1

Read the following article.


Obama Signs Executive Order Banning the Pledge of Allegiance in Schools Nationwide


Post a comment that provides your personal reaction to the article or to any comment previously stated by your classmates.  1 paragraph is adequate for this first blog.  This will be the basis of our policy discussion on Friday, so for any credit it must be posted prior to class start.

Congress Simulation - Post Floor Action on Thursday March 24, 2016

Report the results of this Congressional session to your constituents.  Brag about what you accomplished for them or defend what you gave up (incorporate evidence of demographics and partisanship in your post).

A second paragraph should look ahead - giving your constituents a reason to re-elect you  in the upcoming election.

Comment on a fellow Congressmen / women's post either with a thanks / compliment or a carefully / respectfully worded attack relating to either decisions made during committee work or during Floor Action.

20 points possible.

Do you want to go to the Capital with me?

Student Voices Matter Rally is on Tuesday April 5th in Des Moines.

We would leave by school van at 6:45.

Schedule includes:

We would return about 6 pm.

I would want to go only if I have at least 5 enthusiastic students who want to go.  Don't feel pressured at all.  I will be at a conference through Monday night, and will be back in plenty of time to take you Tuesday morning.  I wouldn't offer the opportunity if I didn't think it would be valuable.

If you are interested and it fits your schedule, please email me this evening or before school tomorrow, just letting me know that you are interested.

CONGRESS SIMULATION - Blog 2 - Tuesday night

The voters have not been happy with Congress of late, so both the House and the Senate have begun to blog daily to a public blog to increase transparency in the institution.   Consider that while only House members are allowed to publish to the blog, it does have a healthy readership from across the country.

Partisanship in the blog:  Remember this blog was created to make transparent the inner workings of the "do-nothing-Congress".  Americans are already fed up with you, especially those active enough to read this blog.  Any negativity you feel toward each other should be veiled, and ultimately, as frustration grows in committees, blamed on the other party of course!

Speak respectfully about each other, referring to another Congressperson with both a title and a home state.  Congresswoman / Congressperson / my honorable colleague / etc...) ie. Congresswoman Montana Keys from California

POST TOPIC:  What is your take on today’s session, considering your demographics, your goals, and cross-pressures?  (Consider the “permanent campaign” reality!)  What do you want your constituents to know?

EACH POST SHOULD MEET THESE REQUIREMENTS:

1.  BE ROUGHLY A PARAGRAPH

2.  INCLUDE NO LESS THAN 2 VOCABULARY WORDS USED ACCURATELY

3.  INDICATE SOME KNOWLEDGE - OF THE PROCESS

4.  BUILD ON PREVIOUS POSTS

5.  YOUR AUDIENCE IS YOUR CONSTITUENTS!!!  

CONGRESS SIMULATION - Blog 1 - Monday night

The voters have not been happy with Congress of late, so both the House and the Senate have begun to blog daily to a public blog to increase transparency in the institution.   Consider that while only House members are allowed to publish to the blog, it does have a healthy readership from across the country.

Partisanship in the blog:  Remember this blog was created to make transparent the inner workings of the "do-nothing-Congress".  Americans are already fed up with you, especially those active enough to read this blog.  Any negativity you feel toward each other should be veiled, and ultimately, as frustration grows in committees, blamed on the other party of course!

Speak respectfully about each other, referring to another Congressperson with both a title and a home state.  Congresswoman / Congressperson / my honorable colleague / etc...) ie. Congresswoman Montana Keys from California

POST TOPIC:  What is your take on today’s session, considering your demographics, your goals, and cross-pressures?  (Consider the “permanent campaign” reality!)  What do you want your constituents to know?

EACH POST SHOULD MEET THESE REQUIREMENTS:

1.  BE ROUGHLY A PARAGRAPH

2.  INCLUDE NO LESS THAN 2 VOCABULARY WORDS USED ACCURATELY

3.  INDICATE SOME KNOWLEDGE - OF THE PROCESS

4.  BUILD ON PREVIOUS POSTS

Is Congress Broken?

Christian Science Monitor - Top 9 Reasons Broken
Politico - Why Congress is Broken
Washington Post - 3 Reasons Broken

Read one of the above articles and write a post that ...

1.  Summarizes 3 of the contentions made      and

2.  Respond to 1 contention with support from an outside source:  Agree or disagree and provide a basis from your research, and the url from which you gained information

The United States National Debt

Watch the following 3 video segments.

Hip Hughes - The Balanced Budget Amendment

What is U.S. Debt?

Comparing U.S. Debt to GDP


Read one article of your choice about the how to address the national debt and post the following:

1.  One paragraph - summarize the article (post the link)

2.  One paragraph - your reaction / opinion

Your article can not be the same as another student's - so survey other students posts before you look for an article (it might give you an idea of a specific key word to use).  Post comments to at least 1 students post.

1. Understandings

• Iran has agreed to limit its enrichment power to 3.7% which is considered insufficient for a bomb rush
• Iran was constructing a natural reactor at Arak which used natural uranium which can fuel bombs
• Iran has agreed to give the International Atomic Energy Agency greater access and information about nuclear sites to allow the agency access to inspect and investigate any suspicious sites 

http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/data-mine/2015/08/24/where-democrats-stand-on-the-iran-deal

• The administration is counting on getting enough Democratic votes on Obama's side to prevent Congress from interfering with the decision
• Most support the decision and hope to have it passed 

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/sep/16/republican-debate-candidates-clash-over-iran-nucle/

• Ted Cruz vows to rip up the Iranian nuclear accord if he is elected and his party does not agree with it 
• Believes this threatens Israel immediately 

Tweet:

I believe this is not a good  plan because giving Iran  $150 billion is way too much and could possibly be spent on secret nuclear weapon construction. This also puts Israel in an even more dangerous position by giving money to the country wanting to annihilate them. 

Iran Nuclear Deal and Election Politics

Explore all 3 sites below as you strive to gain an understanding of this complex negotiation.  It is an extremely divisive issue in this election year, so most of what you see written or shared audio / visually will be biased.  This post asks you to sort through some of that.

NY Times Interactive on Iran Nuke Deal

Dennis Prager on Nuke Deal Video

Audio clip on Iran Nuclear Deal And Presidential Campaigns - National Pubic Radio

1.  Post 2 - 3 Understandings (bullet point facts) that you learned from exploring each of the above sources - these should not repeat those posted prior to your post (read and add to this list).

2.  Post 1-2 Democrat Party beliefs about this deal
these should not repeat those posted prior to your post (read and add to this list).

3.  Post 1-2 Republican Party beliefs about this deal
these should not repeat those posted prior to your post (read and add to this list).

To post the beliefs, you may have to search candidate stances.  If you draw your content from another source, be sure to include the URL in your comment.

4.  TWEET WRAP:  Post a succinct tweet sized personal opinion about the Iran Nuclear Deal.

5.  Comment on someone else's TWEET WRAP.

THIS BLOG IS WORTH 25 POINTS, 5 points for each of the above.

This article on whether or not drug testing welfare recipients is a good or bad idea. It starts out by explaining the history of drug testing by employers to their employees. The article then goes on to exclaim the actual process of how a state would go about drug testing people on welfare. It says that first has to suspect that a welfare recipient is doing a drug, they find this out through a questionnaire they administer to recipients. If one is suspected then the state will administers drug test, and if failed, that person will stop receiving benefits. After explaining the process, the article then explains those views in favor of drug testing welfare recipients. It explains how they feel that the money gained from cutting benefits from drug users would help fund the drug testing program. The article then explains the other side of the argument by explaining how the process is very inefficient. Those opposed say that the system is all to easy to cheat. This article is mainly about explaining the process of drug testing welfare recipients, and then contrasting the two sides of the argument for and against this process.
My opinion on the topic of drug testing welfare recipients is that I agree with the process. My reasoning behind why I agree with this process is because why should others who work hard for a living be drug tested, then why should those who live off the government not be drug tested. Moreover, if these welfare recipients use their welfare money for drugs then the government is essentially funding drug abuse. I do feel, however, that there needs to be a better way of screening whether or not someone may be using drugs. I feel that welfare is a major problem all in its self, but funding drug problems just makes this issue even more worse.

Corporate Myth

I chose to pick the myth on the corporate taxes. It says that the majority of corporations pay about 13% in taxes, while the corporation tax is 35%. As a reader, this angered me to hear that the richest people are not paying that much in taxes, when everyday Americans pay a lot in taxes, so I did some more research. Turns out that if a business is labeled a partnership, then it is exempt from the corporation tax and only has to pay taxes on their profits, which is why the majority of businesses only pay 13% in taxes. So the myth that was given, did not give all of what should have been said about the corporation tax. In reaction to all of my findings, I believe that the businesses labeled a partnership, also need to pay the corporation tax. Overall, the rich need to pay their fair share of taxes through regulations, and need to pay those who work for them a salary that someone can live off us.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/timworstall/2014/12/23/more-than-90-of-us-businesses-dont-pay-the-corporate-income-tax/#1f85527d52c4

Welfare Recipients and Drug Testing

The following article seems to have unconcluded results when to decided whether or not to drug test welfare recipients. It makes sense, many citizens feel that if they should be subject to a drug test at their job to maintain work, welfare recipients should too, in order to maintain their welfare income. Unfortunately, the cost of implementation seems to be high, as the process is longer than people think, costing more tax dollars. Additionally, welfare recipients can lie on their questionnaire and give answers that are non suspicious and then they don't have to have to get physical drug testing. Also to lie, recipients who use drugs can stop using drugs for a couple days so their system is cleared and they can pass urine sample. I don't know all of the welfare options out there, but I know a person cannot buy drugs with their EBT card from a grocery store. They do have to eat, so I guess I don't directly see the correlation between why drugs affects personal need? Yes I agree these people who can barely buy food shouldn't be buying drugs, but they do have an addiction, and by merely cutting off their funds doesn't help their problem. I believe that if they test positive they should go through rehab, and have to finish to get their welfare. I overall do think implementation would be a good idea, I just don't know how it could be effective enough, seeing as citizens can lie on the questionnaire,

Should We Drug Test Welfare Recipients

In 2011 welfare drug testing took off when three states, Arizona, Florida, and Mississippi required drug testing for at least some groups of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). Most of these tests are for suspicious reasons and the government must have a suspicion and individual is using drugs in order to mandate a test for them. Many news article state that welfare test results have stated positive test results but that is because most of them were just who filled out the questionnaire and not the number of people who actually took the drug test. Some people argue that the system is beatable and is completely possible to cheat through. Because it is not legal to surprise drug test most recipients can stop drug use before the test to get it out of their system or they can lie about the use of drugs on the questionnaire. Seven states have active drug testing for welfare recipients and each state seems to benefit from the cost and the cost of the actual drug test is minimal. The following states have active drug testing for welfare recipients: Arizona, Kansas, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Utah.
In my opinion, I think this should be a law for all states to follow. I believe in order to receive welfare the family members should be clean of drug use and not just sitting around doing drugs while others are paying for their benefits. I liked how some states who saw that recipient failed their drug tests were then checked into a rehab to help with their drug problem. This is a way to allow some cushioning for people who need to get back on their feet but not a ridiculous amount. It is important in this day and age especially with the competitive economy to keep a job and provide for your family. If someone is just wasting their money on drugs and still receiving the benefits from people who do actually work then that is not solving anything and has a negative effect on our economy.

DOUBLE POLICY DAY FRIDAY: MINIMUM WAGE AND WELFARE - Be sure to have posted and commented to both weeks prior to class Friday.

Putting the Smack Down

Read the article above and complete the following:

Paragraph 1:  Summarize 3 - 4 most important points of the article.

Paragraph 2:  React / Opine   Give your opinion with support.

Read some of your classmate's opinions, and react respectfully to at least 1.

Myth #4 Flat Tax

The myth stated that having a Flat Tax would simplify the tax system and make it fairer for everyone. This is not true because of how progressive the income tax is. It is changing all the time and the higher your income the higher your tax rate, so having a flat tax rate would be similar to communism. A high-class working millionaire would then pay the same as a school teacher which is obviously nor fair due to different income. People who oppose the flat tax also state that it penalizes the low-income segment population. They have to spend the same amount of money on household necessities as high-income people do, but because they have less money they won't have as much left over to pay taxes than the people of a higher income tax. IRS employees will most likely lose their jobs because they were trained to work in the tax industry which would be greatly affected by the flat tax system. The government also relies heavily on revenue generated from income taxes. The flat tax system seems unfair and not logical at all because it resembles communism so much it is extremely unfair and would benefit the high-income population. It is not a solution to make the tax system a fairer system for the people but rather a bigger problem.

http://smallbusiness.chron.com/pros-cons-flat-tax-4210.html

Income "Gap" and Taxation

Important as a campaign issue, underlying the division between the haves and the have nots, and also clearly economic, lets look at the income gap and taxation this next week.

Posted is a video that provides the history of the minimum wage:

An Animated History of the Minimum Wage

Watching that will provide you with some historical perspective.  Then read the following article that claims to reveal 

5 Tax Myths You'll Hear During Republican Presidential Debate

In your post take one of the myths and explore its accuracy. Find a source that will provide you with some help and be sure and post the url.

You should write about your findings / implications and your reaction to this information.

Hillary Clinton

Gabi Schermer
AP Gov

Hillary Clinton is mostly being supported by Individual Incorporations. Small Individual Corporations make up for 17% of the funding while Large Corporations make up 81% of the funding. PAC Contributions makes up 1% of the contributions. The donations from the corporations is about 76,000,000 dollars. PAC is roughly 600,000 dollars. The reasons behind corporations supporting her is the business she is involved in and some corporations will get notice if she represents the democratic party and is basically benefitting themselves while funding her. The people in the corporation's funding her the main one being Hillary for America is her campaign corporation which is mostly for her supporters who donate to hopefully see Hillary as the democratic candidate. They fund her because they support her in the election.

I think the money involved in politics is a huge problem. Especially when competing in an election the candidates spend millions, our country throws millions of dollars into election campaigns. It is unnecessary how much money this country spends on advocating for our next president when the money could be used to help better our country. I am shocked out how much money is donated to each candidate's individual funding campaign. Millions and millions of dollar for each candidate who may not even make it to the actual election. Nothing about the money involvement assures me because I think the whole thing is ridiculous when we could be using the money for more valuable issues then attacking your opponent over the TV.

Hillary Big Money

The candidate that I have chosen to follow is Hillary Clinton. After exploring open secrets, I found were Hillary was receiving the majority of her money for her campaign. Her campaign committee, Hillary for America, has raised over 77 million dollars for her campaign. I went to the committee official website and right on the front it says join the campaign and then to give a donation right at the top of my the page in big letters. As you scroll down a bit further it gives news on policies that Clinton wants to have as president. After exploring Hillary for America I researched her second biggest donor for her campaign; it was a super PAC called Priorities USA Action, which raised by over 15 million so far. After doing research I found that the super PAC gets the majority of their donation from individual donors who usually donate 500,000 or more at a time. When I say individual donors, I mean big corporations and unions.
Personally, I believe that money has way too big of an influence on politics and the election process for that matter. Big corporations give these huge donations to candidates in order to get what they want if that candidate happens to get into office. Not only that these corporations also think that they're above the law since they can throw there big money at the government, not only does this influence politics but it also effectively influences everyday life for everyone. If money keeps becoming such a huge factor in politics, we will soon turn into an obligatory society, which is horrid to think of. Something I was confused about was that Hillary's campaign committee, Hillary for America, was in debt by altitude over half a million dollars, even though they had over 32 million dollars on hand. How is it possible that they're in debt even though they easily have the money to pay it off? A concerning thing about all this money in politics is that, as of the past couple elections, the Democrats have focused more on receiving money from super PACS, even though they're suppose to be opposed of all this big money. So if the Democrats are sitting aside their believes for money, it shows how big of an influence money has on politics, which concerns me now, but more importantly for the future.

The Influence of Money in Politics

Read the article:

The Families Funding the 2016 Presidential Election

then explore this web site, seeking information about who is supporting your preferred candidate:

Who is supporting him / her?  How big are the donations?  What might be the reasons behind this support?  What do these people / organizations / super PACs believe?

opensecrets.org

Finally, react to this information.  Is the influence of money in politics a problem?  Why or why not?  What questions do you have, what surprises you, reassures you?

There should be at least 2 paragraphs, 1 discussing results from Open Secrets, the other your reaction.  You must also react to one other students' post, respectfully.

Post all this is a comment to this post.  You can comment directly to another students comments within this as well.  DUE FRIDAY - FOR POLICY DAY