February 2, 2010

POS 359--The Current Supreme Court Term
In class today, Tuesday 2/2, I distributed one handout, Assignment #1, which is reproduced below. We began with announcements about the Maine Public Policy Scholars Program and the Graton Constitutional Essay Contest, both programs that are worthy of your attention. After going over the writing assignment due Thursday 2/11, we went on to discussing some points in the Citizens United case, such as the way in which the Supreme Court reached the constitutional issue, the other issues that were discussed in the sections of the opinion that I did not assign, and the role of majority and concurring opinions.

Assignment #1

For this assignment, I would like you to write a paper about your own agreement or disagreement with the two assigned portions of the Citizen’s United decision (Part III of each opinion). Do you agree with Justice Kennedy, or with Justice Stevens (or neither one, or portions of both)? What makes one viewpoint more persuasive than the other?

I’m not looking for an introduction to the case, or a summary of it—all of that is assumed. I’m looking for your recognition of the specific points on which Kennedy and Stevens clash, and a reasoned analysis about why you find one viewpoint more persuasive than the other. The paper should also briefly go over any major points on which the two opinions agree.

The writing should be your own words. I don’t want long quotations dropped into the paper. Any quotations that you use should just be snippets. When you do quote, be sure to provide a page citation. For example, you might write:
Kennedy distinguished some previous cases that did allow speech restrictions based on who was speaking. He said that those cases were all based on allowing governments to “perform their functions”. Kennedy at p. 24.

Make sure that you deal specifically with the issues raised by the party that is opposed to your view of the case. For example, if you think that Steven’s position on the “government functions” cases is correct, how do you answer Kennedy’s points about how those cases are different?

Your papers will not be graded on which view of the case you take, but rather on how well you support your position. The paper will also be graded on how well you write English, and how clearly you organize your thoughts. I like short clear sentences better than long complicated ones. I like correct grammar. I encourage you to use the UM writing center to help with your English.

The paper should be a minimum of 3 pages long, and no more than 5 pages (double spaced). Brevity should be seen as an asset, not a liability. It will be due at the beginning of the class on Thursday, February 11. If you are unable to attend class on that date, you should e-mail the paper to me by the beginning of class. (If your computer uses the newer doc.x format, please copy and paste the paper into the e-mail, rather than attaching it). I will acknowledge receipt of any e-mailed papers--if you don’t get an acknowledgment, that means that I didn’t get the paper. If you do not have the paper done on time, be in touch with me right away.

The work should be entirely your own. See the syllabus regarding plagiarism.