Write a comprehensive essays totaling between 5 and 15 pages . You may allocate more space to one or the other essay if you like. However, keep in mind that each one counts equally (i.e., 50% of your grade for this analytic essay assignment). Please be sure to clearly indicate where your answer to Essay #1 ends and where your answer to Essay #2 begins.
Essay #1:
In the early part of this course you were told that the theory of American government led to a system which may not be very efficient but is excellent at preventing things we don’t want. As a result, we have a political system that maximizes input into the decision-making process. But the system is also one that minimizes the potential for policy change.
Write an essay explaining this state of affairs, focusing on: 1) how interest groups make their points of view heard through the political process, and the factors that make them more likely to be successful; 2) the various procedural roadblocks to passing legislation through the Congress; and 3) how the lack of party discipline makes it more difficult for Congress to pass legislation than in a parliamentary democracy.
Essay #2:
It has often been said that the power of the American presidency mostly involves the power to persuade rather than to command. Taking into consideration all that you have learned in this class, write an essay elaborating on: 1) how Congress and the Supreme Court can constrain presidential power; 2) why the president has more power with regard to foreign policy than domestic policy; and 3) how presidents have sometimes been able to use executive orders to accomplish important goals by command.
