Course Syllabus
Week 1. September, 2.
Introduction to the course.
Week 2. September, 9.
Political, geographic, administrative and election regions of the U.S.
Required reading:
• USA Map with Facts in Brief
Recommended reading:
• An Outline of American Geography by S.S. Birdsall and J. Florin
• Map Collections: 1500-date
Week 3. September, 16.
The Constitutional Framework: Federalism, the Separation of Powers, Civil Liberties and Civil Rights Required reading:
• The Challenge of Democracy: American Government in Global Politics. K. Janda, J. Berry, J. Goldman, K. Hula 12th Edition, chapters 3, 4
Recommended reading:
• Federalism in the Constitution
• The U.S. Constitution Online
• Bill of Rights
• An Outline of the U.S. Government
Week 4. September, 23.
Federal, State, County and Local Governments: duties, responsibilities, relationships
Required reading:
• Pluralism and Democracy. K. Janda 2006, eJournal USA, United States State Department
• The Challenge of Democracy: American Government in Global Politics. K. Janda, J. Berry, J. Goldman, K. Hula 12th Edition, chapter 4
• Democracy in Brief
Recommended reading:
• State and Local Governments: Library of Congress Resource page
• National Association of Counties
• Governing: The Magazine of States and Localities
Congress and Presidency (Power Point Presentation)
Week 5. September, 30.
Congress and the Presidency
Required reading:
• The Challenge of Democracy: American Government in Global Politics. K. Janda, J. Berry, J. Goldman, K. Hula 12th Edition, chapters 11, 12
Recommended reading:
• The White House
• American Presidency Project
• Congress via Thomas
• Congress via GovTrack
• CongressLink
Week 6. October, 7.
Judicial Review and Limited Government
Required reading:
• The Challenge of Democracy: American Government in Global Politics. K. Janda, J. Berry, J. Goldman, K. Hula 12th Edition, chapter 14
• The U.S. Supreme Court: Equal Justice Under the Law
Recommended reading:
• U.S. Court System
• Supreme Court
• Oyez Project: Oral Arguments before the Supreme Court
• National Archives and Records Administration
PowerPointPresentation>>>
Week 7. October, 14.
Colloquium #1, Group Portfolio Presentations
Week 8. October, 21.
Midterm.
Week 9. October, 28.
Regional Patterns of Political Parties in the U.S.
Required reading:
• The Challenge of Democracy: American Government in Global Politics. K. Janda, J. Berry, J. Goldman, K. Hula 12th Edition, chapter 8
Recommended reading:
• PoliTxts
• Stateline
• Party Platforms
Week 10. November, 11.
Political Participation and Elections. Digital technologies in preelection campaigns today
Required reading:
• The Challenge of Democracy: American Government in Global Politics. K. Janda, J. Berry, J. Goldman, K. Hula 12th Edition, chapters 7, 9
• USA Elections in Brief
Recommended reading:
• PoliTxts
• eDemocracy
• Vote Smart Web
• Future of E-Democracy
• Public Strategies for the Online World
• Pew Internet and American Life
Week 11. November, 18.
Interest groups and Policy making in the U.S.
Required reading:
• The Challenge of Democracy: American Government in Global Politics. K. Janda, J. Berry, J. Goldman, K. Hula 12th Edition, chapter 10
• The NGO Handbook
Recommended reading:
• National Archives and Records Administration
• PoliTxts
• VoteSmart: Interest Group Ratings of Members of Congress
• Center for Responsive Politics: OpenSecrets.org
Week 12. November, 25.
Foreign policy of the U.S. and Geopolitical Interests today
Required reading:
• The Challenge of Democracy: American Government in Global Politics. K. Janda, J. Berry, J. Goldman, K. Hula 12th Edition, chapter 19
Recommended reading:
• U.S. State Department - Policy
• American Foreign Policy Council
• Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
• Foreign Policy Magazine
• National Archives and Records Administration
Week 13. December, 2.
Anti-Terrorism as the main priority in foreign policy making
Required reading:
• Global Terrorism, Domestic Order, and the United States in Anatoly Kulik (ed.), Professionals for Cooperation, Volume 5, Moscow: 2002.
Recommended reading:
• U.S. State Department - Policy
• GAO Reports on Terrorism
• Homeland Security Actions
• Department of Treasury: Terrorism and Financial Intelligence
Week 14. December, 9.
Group Portfolio Presentation - Web Projects Rough Drafts
Week 15. December, 16.
Colloquium #2
