The courts, therefore, plays a significant role in ensuring that there is uniformity in the decision on abortion in all states. It has been argued that this is undemocratic since the decision is made by justices who are not elected officials. In the situation where the ruling was to be overturned, the authority to legalize abortion would fall back to the states. This would reflect the majority opinion since the state legislators are elected through a democratic voting process. However, it would mean that there will be significant differences in the laws in conservative and prochoice states. This would mean that the women desiring to seek an abortion would simply need to cross state lines to obtain one which would have no effect on illegalizing abortion. States should not have their own say in the abortion laws as a result of this. Therefore, the courts play a huge role in unifying the state laws on abortion and states should not be allowed to have a say on the legality of abortion within their own borders.
Should juveniles charged with serious crimes be treated as adults?
Juveniles have managed to escape punishment as a result of the justice system providing them with a leeway for their age. Juvenile justice advocates say that those below the legal age such as teenagers should not be treated as adults even for the same crime. However, research has shown that the number of juvenile offenders is increasing at an alarming rate which has made many juvenile justice advocates to join their counterparts in arguing for reforms that protect the public...
American Government Politics. Discussed is the fourth amendment and the current policies of searches and seizures. Four sources used. Footnotes. Fourth Amendment Americans hold very dear the Bill of Rights. Among the ten amendments that make up the Bill of Rights is the Fourth, one many refer to as the most ambiguous of the all the amendments. Search and seizure law is drawn from the Fourth and over the years the
Suppose I was asked to donate money to "Citizens for Better Schools," what would I need to find out about the group first? The first thing would be find out if they are a bona fide public charity -- a 501 C3 -- and if they were, I would examine their bylaws and mission statement. Secondly, I would locate board members and examine public statements they have made and projects
Government and Elections Should foreign interest groups be banned from attempting to influence the course of American government? Are foreign interest groups always opposed to the interests of U.S. companies and citizens? It is reported in the work of Benen (2010) that a speech delivered by President Obama warned of "corporate takeover of our democracy" in the form of "shadowy groups raising millions in secret to help buy elections for Republicans. Benen
When bureaucrats in a particular state see that a large segment of society is struggling with a particular rule or regulation, it may be time to address some changes to that rule. Texas and other states do this, but they are restricted somewhat in that federal regulations always supersede state regulations. Texas passes laws by presenting bills and having them move through the state legislature. If the bill gets enough
American Government Response Summarizing the Readings: In his article "Constitutional Democracy and Bureaucratic Power," Peter Woll discusses the administrative branch of the government and the various departments who are in control of the funds which keep federal and state governments working. The bureaucracy is a highly influential part of the government and has a degree of control over both the President and Congress with far fewer legal checks to their actions than
It was during the same period that hostilities with the communist leadership culminated into the bombing of Libya, loggerheads with the Soviet Union and a stiff arms race with the U.S.S.R. It is also significant to note that it was during the same time that he successfully engaged Mikhail Gorbachev who was then the Soviet General secretary and culminated into the signing of Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty that signaled
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