American Government  

Focusing on the impact of significant Supreme Court decisions onthe rights and freedoms of the individual,The Supreme Court and Individual Rights provides full coverage of the freedoms enumerated in the Bill of Rights.

This updated edition examines the impact of significant Supreme Court decisions on the Executive and Legislative branches of the U.S. government, under the U.S.Constitutions concept of Separation of Powers, as enumerated in Articles I III.

This book stands against the current of judgments long settled in the schools of law in regard to classic cases such as Lochner v. New York, Near v. Minnesota, the Pentagon Papers case, and Bob Jones University v. United States. Professor Hadley Arkes takes as his subject concepts long regarded as familiar, settled principles in our law - "prior restraints," ex post facto laws - and he shows that there is actually a mystery about them, that their meaning is not as settled or clear as we have long supposed. Those mysteries have often given rise to illusions or at least a series of puzzles in our law. They have at times acted as a lens through which we view the landscape of the law. We often see what the lens has made us used to seeing, instead of seeing what is actually there. Arkes tries to show, in this text, that the logic of the natural law provides the key to this chain of puzzles.

We Hold These Truths. . . . presents 54 historically powerful quotes from the country's founders and founding documents and provides rich narratives that highlight their astounding, and generally unknown, origins.

Part of a series of books on the amendments to the constitution.

To this day, nobody knows what prompted Martin Luther King Jr. to depart from his prepared remarks during the August 28, 1963, March on Washington and deliver what is probably the most famous impromptu speech in American history. Was it the realization that the 40-year-old preacher from Atlanta hadn't yet connected with his audience? Was it the manifest destiny he felt as a child, that one day he would have me some big words like the preacher of his own church?

What is democracy and what does it truly mean to be free? Americans often take their freedom for granted because it is all they have ever known.

This DVD explains the origin of democracy in America and throughout the world, from Great Britain's Magna Carta to America's Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution. In this program, we examine how American democracy has spread like wildfire to almost every region on earth. Freedom is not a right; it is a privilege that has been paid for through countless wars and demonstrations. Democracy is a constant struggle and freedom is its just reward.

The “History and Function” series exams how politics and honor have co-existed to strengthen our government. Over time and across years, changes in the spirit and practice of government offices have moved from development and cohesion to enlightenment and understanding. The preservation of balances has long been pursued in the course of evolving offices. The Supreme Court of the United States is the most powerful judicial body in the United States, if not in the World. In this video, we look at the early days of the Court and its landmark cases up to the present day. Alexander Hamilton claimed that the Supreme Court was "the weakest department of power." However through benchmark cases such as Marbury v. Madison, Dred Scott v. Sanford and Brown v. Board of Education, the Court has distinguished itself. Learn about these facts and more in this DVD.

From the question of who can vote to the tricky problem of accurately organizing, running, and tabulating the results of a popular election, voting remains a work in progress in the United States. Taking a chronological approach, The Supreme Court and Elections explores the ways in which the Court has struggled with these questions throughout American history. The essays and documents in this reference illuminate the multifaceted nature of voting and election law. Topics addressed in The Supreme Court and Elections include the impact of the Civil Rights Amendments; voting in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; vote denial and vote dilution; the Voting Rights Act; reapportionment and redistricting; One Person, One Vote; majority-minority districts; campaign finance reform; Bush v. Gore; and electoral administration.

Directed by award-winning filmmaker Rory Kennedy, Thank You, Mr. President: Helen Thomas at the White House profiles the iconic journalist, a legend in political reporting, who has covered the White House and every president since John F. Kennedy. In this 38-minute film, Thomas, still as sharp as ever, sits down for a one-on-one interview in which she reflects on her storied career, the distinct personalities and foibles of the presidents she has covered, as well as some of the scandals that have rocked the White House over the years. Supplemented by clips of Thomas in action, plus archival photos and footage, the film offers a rare glimpse of a veteran member of the White House Press Corps, who was one of only a handful of female correspondents when she began covering the presidency in the 1960s. Idolized by many and despised by some, Thomas is without a doubt a determined and steadfast journalist, who maintains the utmost respect for the office of the presidency, while knowing it is her job to ask the tough questions.