Activity #2-1: Two Policy Issues

People have considered a variety of policy issues. Brainstorm about two policy issues that are important to you or your family.

Q 1: List these two issues and briefly explain why these are important to you or your family. (You are required to write 150 words).

Activity #2-2: Immigration Agenda Setting

Since 9/11, 2001, the United States government has been rethinking and reexamining immigration policy and its enforcement. In recent years, the debate over whether to allow illegal or undocumented aliens to apply for permanent residency—or even citizenship—has centered on the perceived costs and benefits of assimilating this group into American culture.

As discussed in chapters 3 and 5, before policymakers can tackle a public problem or issue through public policy, they have to first agree that the public problem or issue is worthy of being addressed.

Q 2: Who decided that immigration issue needed to be addressed over others? What individuals and/or forces seem to have the most say in setting the nation’s immigration policy agenda? Look over the following list of individuals and rank them, starting with the one who has the most ability to put an item on the public agenda related to immigration and ending with the one who has the least power to put that issue on the agenda. Briefly explain your judgments (You are required to write 150 words), which will be revealing of your views of who has power and to what ends they are exercising it. In this question, I want to see how you reasonably justify your choice.

a. The president of General Motors

b. The president of Walmart

c. A U.S. senator

d. A homeless person

e. An average blue-collar worker

f. A member of the House of Representatives

g. A agribusiness

h. A church member

i. A stay-at-home parent

j. An editor of the New York Times

Activity #2-3:

Why do we pay taxes? Would you rather live in a state with high taxes and lots of services or low taxes and few services? Provide your choice and why.

Make sure to post one original post requiring 300 words in length

Activity #2-4:

What responsibility does the U.S. government have to the poor? Are the opportunities provided for the poor in the American system sufficient to justify the responsibilities they are expected to live up to? Do you think it good or bad that the United States government provides fewer benefits for the poor than do comparable Western democracies?

Make sure to post one original post requiring 300 words in length