How does the American two-party system facilitate or hinder democracy?
Compare the U.S. electoral system to multiparty systems. How did the American electoral system arise, and who has manipulated it? Offer an analysis of the potential for realistic prodemocratic change in the U.S. electoral system.
An ideal response will:
1. Describe the constitutional factors that have shaped the U.S. electoral system.
2. Explain how the U.S. electoral system differs from most European democracies.
3. Investigate the effects of progressive reforms and other factors that have altered the electoral system for better or worse. Campaign financing should be assessed in detail.
4. Assess the strengths and deficiencies in the American system in relation to other democracies, offering suggestions for feasible and useful change in promoting American democracy.
5. Offer a compelling summary and conclusion.
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Which of the following is NOT considered to be a check on the independence of the Supreme Court?
a. Congress passes a law to reverse a decision made by the Court. b. The president threatens to pack the Court with justices who have pledged to support his or her policy preferences. c. The power to appoint justices is shared by the president and the Senate, thereby freeing the Court from being beholden to any one institution or individual. d. Congress decides to no longer permit the Court to review capital punishment cases. e. The Congress has the power to set the jurisdiction of courts.
The extent of a court's power depends mostly on its
a. justices' political party affiliations. b. independence. c. conservatism. d. jurisdiction. e. relationship with Congress.