American National Government

Individual Rights and the Obligations of Government

Prepare: Prior to beginning work on this discussion, read chapters 8, 9, and 10 in American Government and watch the video, Episode II - It’s a Free Country.

Reflect: Our political system is characterized by certain fundamental features to include a system of laws, rights, and liberties. The laws, created and supported by the Constitutional framework, are designed to protect and secure the rights and liberties of individuals and groups throughout the U.S. However, the government also has an obligation to provide for the security of its citizens from serious internal and external threats that could cause grave or severe damage to our country. The need for homeland and national security can create a dilemma where conflicts emerge between these security needs and the demands for civil rights and liberties.

Write: In your initial post, explain what obligations the U.S. government has towards its citizens and how can these obligations impact individual and group rights? Provide real-world examples to support your explanation. Fully respond to all parts of the prompt and write your response in your own words. Your initial response must be 200 to 250 words. Support your position with APA citations to two or more of the assigned resources required for this discussion. Please be sure that you demonstrate understanding of these resources, integrate them into your argument, and cite them properly.

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Week Four Reflection

Prepare: Prior to beginning work on this discussion, read chapters 8, 9, and 10 in American Government, watch the video, Episode II - It’s a Free Country, and review your results from the Political Typology Quiz.

Reflect: Political parties mobilize voters to win elections and implement policy goals. Parties use their stated policy goals (i.e., their platforms) as a way to mobilize voter support. Generally, in order to be successful in a two-party system, parties must have policy goals across a broad range of issue areas to appeal to a broad range of voters.

Write: Identify one issue area that you want investigate. Use the assigned resources required for this discussion to gather information about the goals and proposals, in that issue area, of three U.S. political parties – the Democratic and Republican parties and a third party. Summarize each of the three parties’ policy goals in your issue area. Evaluate each party's goals from two perspectives:

• According on your own political philosophy, values, or ideology based on the Political Typology Quiz results, which party’s position on this issue is closest to your own and which is furthest and why?
• Does each party currently have national popular support on this issue? If so, why, and if not, why not?

For example, if you are a ‘Steadfast Conservative,’ what do the Democratic Party, the Republican Party, and a third party have to say about your position on taxation? If you are a ‘Solid Liberal,’ what do Democrats, Republicans, and a third party say about your views on environmental issues? Who is the closest? Furthest away? Why?

Your initial response must be 200 to 250 words. Justify your conclusions with facts and persuasive reasoning. Fully respond to all parts of the question and write your response in your own words. Support your position with APA citations to two or more of the assigned resources required for this discussion. Please be sure that you demonstrate understanding of these resources, integrate them into your argument, and cite them properly.