Professor Adam Brown (about me)
Email: brown@byu.edu
Office phone: (801) 422-2182
Office: 772 KMBL

Current syllabus: https://adambrown.info/p/courses/2021/winter/110
Syllabus version: October 29th, 2020

My office hours: TBA

What's this course about?

Here is the BYU catalog's course description for Poli 110: "Origin and development of federal Constitution; national, state, and local governments and politics." Let's unpack that. This course consists of three major units:

• Political development. The origin of our state and national constitutions. Subsequent changes to our constitutional order, especially regarding federalism, civil rights, and civil liberties.
• Political behavior. What individuals know about politics. How voters evaluate candidates. The role of parties, interest groups, and media in those processes.
• Political institutions. Operation of the legislative, judicial, and executive branches. Frequent comparison to the alternative arrangements found in the states (especially Utah) and abroad.

This course meets general education requirements. We will discuss the scientific methods, theories, and assumptions used to study human behavior to satisfy the social science requirement. This course also contributes to the American heritage requirement. See the GE foundation documents for detail.

All the above motivates this course's official learning outcomes:

• Analyze current events in American politics using political science concepts.
• Describe the most important Constitutional provisions in American national and state government and how they have changed over time.
• Assess the functions and interactions of American political institutions at the national and state levels.
• Explain the role individuals play in American national and state government and what factors influence their behavior.
• Evaluate how you as an individual can effectively participate in the political process.

Required and recommended materials (and ways to save)

Download free electronic copies of required books from Learning Suite or using this link: https://reserve.lib.byu.edu/course/31099/

Required: Kernell et al., The Logic of American Politics. 7th, 8th, or 9th edition. A free PDF copy (8th edition) is available through course reserve. If you prefer hard copy, buy used on Amazon: 7th, 8th, 9th. The examples change in each edition, but the core concepts change minimally. Still, a caveat (that has never been a problem in practice): Relying on an older edition does not provide grounds to appeal an exam question that draws on the current one. Pro-tip: Use the practice quizzes and other study resources at the book's website.

Required: Brown, Utah Politics and Government. A free PDF copy is available through course reserve. If you prefer hard copy, the press waives my royalty for BYU students, saving you 30%, but you must order directly from the press (online or 800-848-6224) and use discount code 6UTPO. Also in the BYU Store and on Amazon. We will use Utah's political system as a frequent comparison point to the national system. This book also helps satisfy BYU students' natural curiosity about Latter-day Saints and politics.

Required: Follow American political news daily. To ensure we all see a common set of stories each day, sign up for the free daily news summary from the New York Times. Visit this link and subscribe to "The Morning" email. I have no particular attachment to the NYT, and I encourage you to consume news from a variety of sources. The email is free, but if you click through to see longer stories at the NYT website you will eventually hit the NYT paywall. Consider a student discount subscription, or get free access via the BYU library.

Optional: You do not need to read anything beyond what I assign below. Occasionally international students and others ask me to suggest additional background material to help them prepare. If you wish, consider reading one or both of these two short books: American History: A Very Short Introduction and American Politics: A Very Short Introduction.

Assignments, grading, and important policies

9%	Quizzes
1%	Completing student ratings
21%	Debate papers (download instructions and submit online)
20%	Midterm 1
20%	Midterm 2
29%	Final exam (29% = 20% new material + 9% comprehensive)
Bonus	Government meetings (download instructions and submit online)

You are responsible for all the information in this syllabus, recognizing that a syllabus is a plan, not a contract. Check your email daily for updates, including your spam. Visit me or a TA with questions.

Course website. You will submit all quizzes, exams, and written assignments through Learning Suite. I find it easier to deliver readings and the course schedule through my personal website, though. Consider creating a username and password for my website (after the add/drop deadline), which will make it somewhat easier to download PDFs from this site. Using the menu at the top or bottom of the page, click "log in" to get to the login screen, then "what's my password" to reset your password. Contact me if you have trouble.

Quizzes. Research shows that frequent low-stakes quizzes improve learning. To keep the stakes low, I will drop 4 quizzes by the end of the semester. Quizzes emphasize assigned readings, recent lectures, and perhaps current events. Complete all the readings and watch all the videos assigned for a particular day before attempting that day's quiz. Quizzes are timed and administered via Learning Suite.

Late policy for Learning Suite quizzes and exams: Deadlines and late penalties will be clearly stated on Learning Suite. I accept late work only to accommodate emergencies and documented disabilities. If you're not sure what qualifies, please ask.

Submit written assignments by 4pm on the due date. Late policy: Late penalties are shown on the submission menu. I waive these penalties or make other individual exceptions only to accommodate emergencies and documented disabilities. If you're not sure what qualifies, ask. You will submit written assignments using this website. I provide a multiday submission window; please submit early enough to preempt unforeseen circumstances. The system will accept submissions without penalty until midnight, but I consider all assignments due by 4pm so that I am available to assist you with any website issues. If an internet outage or technical problem with the website arises prior to 4pm, tell me and I will either fix the problem or extend the deadline. You assume all risk for issues that arise after 4pm.

(Optional) government meeting assignment. I encourage you to attend local government meetings to observe politics in practice. If you complete this government meeting assignment, I will raise your overall percentage in the course by 1.25 percentage points. Complete it twice for 2.50 percentage points.

Grade appeals process for written work. TAs and I are happy to discuss your graded paper with you and suggest ways to improve, which is usually more productive than revisiting past grades. Still, I value fair and consistent grading, and I take appeals seriously. Actual appeals must come to me, not a TA. To appeal: Cool off for 24 hours, then re-read the complete assignment instructions, your submission, and any feedback you received. Then, within a week of first receiving your grade, send me a one-sentence email requesting that I review the grade, no justification needed. I will read the paper without checking the original grade and assign a score. The grade I assign stands, whether it is higher or lower. If there are many appeals, I may first refer your essay to another TA and then grade the essay myself only if the two TA scores differ by more than a few points.

Missed exams. If you know of a conflict in advance, email me beforehand to arrange an alternative time. If you miss an exam because of unforeseen circumstances, contact me as soon as possible to work things out. Each exam will be available for plenty of time. Take exams early enough to preempt unexpected problems.

Final exam mercy rule: If you do better on the final than on one or both of the midterms, then whichever midterm you perform worst on will have its weight reduced by 5 percentage points and the final will have its weight increased by 5 percentage points.

Do you have a disability? I want you to succeed. Please find the "equal opportunity" heading below.

Do you have a university-excused absence letter? I treat university travel the same as other excusable absences such as illnesses, disabilities, personal and family emergencies, and so on. I have probably already built enough flexibility into this syllabus to accommodate your travel. Visit with me if you have questions.

A freshman FAQ: Nearly all faculty at BYU hold doctorates in their respective fields. Most exceptions you will encounter are adjunct instructors in the freshman writing program. Unless directed otherwise, address university faculty as Professor or Doctor So-and-So. ("Doctrine" means "that which is taught," and "doctor" meant "one who teaches" or "learned one" until physicians started coopting the title.) Some students belittle my female colleagues without realizing it by calling them "Sister" while calling male faculty "Professor" or "Doctor"; don't.

How to get help, and teaching assistants' role

Office hours provide drop-in opportunities for help, with no appointment needed. Both TAs and I hold office hours. See the schedule at the top of this page. Receive one-on-one help with papers, lecture review, test prep, and so on. If you need to meet with a specific person whose hours conflict with your schedule, email for an appointment. Due to current conditions, all office hours will be held online using Zoom. Find the link in the oldest announcement on Learning Suite.

Office hours are not limited to course-specific questions. I especially encourage first-generation students and students who feel they are scraping by on the margins at BYU to come visit me in office hours, even if all you want is to introduce yourself.

Group Q&A sessions: We will hold frequent Q&A sessions. We open by briefly highlighting essential or confusing material, then we take questions. Sessions adjourn when questions stop. Attendance is often low enough that these wind up as TA- or instructor-led study groups, a great format for improving comprehension. See the schedule above.

Help with papers. Consider bringing an outline to office hours, since a good discussion early on will probably improve your argument more than asking me or a TA to read a complete draft. If you mostly want help with grammar or mechanics, visit the FHSS writing lab or the BYU writing center. Due to current conditions, they now offer support over Zoom.

TA boundaries. It is inappropriate to ask a TA on a date or offer a gift before grades are posted. It is also inappropriate to offer a TA money for tutoring; their services are free to students in this course.

Difficulty, grade cutoffs, curving, and workload

Is this a weeder class? No. Weeders ensure only the "best" students enter a certain major. If your major requires "pre-major" courses, those are weeders. You can fail Poli 110 and still declare in political science.

Can non-majors succeed? Yes. Only 5-15% of Poli 110 students are majors, since most majors take Poli 210 instead. Majors who do take this course perform no better on average than non-majors. Nor do seniors earn higher average scores than freshmen, incidentally. In introductory GE courses, grades mostly reflect effort and dedication.

So grades are based on effort? No. But consider sage counsel from Thomas S. Monson: "Thinking is the hardest work anyone can do, which is probably the reason why we have so few thinkers.... What the public takes for brilliance is really the result of thorough, painstaking investigation and downright hard work." (In "Constant Truths," Pathways to Perfection.)

Do you curve? Uncurved cutoffs are 93.0+ A, 90.0+ A-, 87.0+ B+, 83.0+ B, etc., rounded to the 0.1 place. I never curve down. I curve up when needed by lowering cutoffs (not by adding points to your score) to ensure at least a quarter of students earn an A/A- and at least two-thirds earn a B- or better. Grades below C- are very rare for those who attend regularly and complete all assignments. This distribution resembles those found in other introductory social science courses. I curve before adding bonus assignments to your score, so that students who choose not to complete optional assignments face no penalty.

How much time should students spend on this class? At BYU, "The expectation for undergraduate courses is three hours of work per week per credit hour for the average student who is appropriately prepared; much more time may be required to achieve excellence" (source). BYU defines an A as "excellent," a B as "good," and a C as "satisfactory." Thus, an "average student" (28.6 ACT, 3.87 high school GPA) who is "appropriately prepared" should plan on 9 hours per week to "satisfy" (B or C) course requirements, while "much more time may be required" to "achieve excellence" (an A). More generally, an average student enrolled for 15 credits should plan 45 hours for school each week to maintain a B or C average. Plan on more time out of class than in: A typical AP Government class uses 180 hours of in-person instruction (5 hours per week for 36 weeks) to cover a similar amount of material as we will cover in roughly 42 lecture hours (3 hours per week for 14 weeks). College classes assume more work outside lecture than in.

Tips for success

Performing well requires (1) comprehending the material and (2) retaining what you have comprehended. Reexposure (reviewing notes, re-reading books, attending review sessions) boosts comprehension, but research demonstrates that retention requires different strategies.

Improving comprehension of lectures.

• Slides are visual aids, not notes. Take your own notes, but do not transcribe every word. Make an outline and write down the most important points.
• If you choose to take notes on a laptop or tablet, put it in airplane mode and close all other programs to minimize distractions. Put your phone away during class.
• Consider taking STDEV 109 ("Effective Study and Learning") to improve your note-taking skills.

Improving comprehension of readings.

• Textbooks aren't novels, so don't read them the same way. First, skim. Read the introduction and conclusion. Read the headings, boldfaced/highlighted text, tables, figures, etc. Read the chapter's terms list and review questions. Prime your mind to recognize what's important. Second, read. Speed up for easy material and slow down for hard stuff. Third, skim again. Review the introduction and conclusion. Stop at each heading and try recalling that section's main point. Quiz yourself on the review questions.
• For non-textbook readings, find the central point. Practice summarizing these readings in 1-2 sentences per assigned page.
• Find a place to study without distractions. Turn off your phone and wifi.
• Catching up is harder than staying current. Use the reading load planner to plan ahead for big days.
• Consider taking STDEV 205 ("Success in College Reading") or STDEV 305 ("Advanced Strategies for College Success") to learn speed-reading and other skills.

Improving retention. Retrieval aids retention more than reexposure does. Retrieval means forcing yourself to try remembering something. Retrieval boosts learning even more when you retrieve regularly. Retrieving for 15 minutes three times a week is more effective than retrieving for 60 minutes once a week. Your study should include only enough reexposure to ensure comprehension. After that, emphasize retrieval as your study strategy.

• Raise your hand often in class or participate regularly in a study group, both to ask questions and to participate in discussions. Formulating ideas in your own words is a powerful retrieval exercise.
• Use terms lists and review questions to quiz yourself. Do not check yourself against your notes until you have finished the day's list.
• Use the textbook's website. It has flashcards, practice quizzes, and other retrieval exercises.
• Write down 5 things you learned after each lecture or after each reading. Doing this a couple hours after class (rather than immediately afterward) will make retrieval more challenging and therefore more effective.
• Set up a schedule for these exercises. For example, a couple hours after each lecture, take 10 minutes retrieving information from that day's material, 10 minutes retrieving information from the previous day's material, and 10 minutes retrieving information from the lecture before that. This schedule will lead you to review everything three times, dramatically boosting your retention later.
• Power tip: Meet with 2-3 friends at a scheduled time every week. Discuss all the review questions and terms—both those I provide, and those you prepare yourselves. Explain each out loud in your own words. Argue about what was most important. Find any other strategies you can think of that help you practice retrieval rather than mere reexposure.
• Some of these tips are drawn from Make it Stick: The Science of Successful Learning.

Improving your writing. Writing in the social sciences means defending a position. Debate papers must have (1) a central claim, clearly stated as you open and close; (2) logical arguments (reasons) supporting your claim; and (3) compelling evidence supporting each reason.

• Read the assignment instructions carefully before beginning and again before submitting. Ask questions.
• After outlining one argument, write a new outline taking the opposite stance—or show your outline to a friend, a TA, or me and invite a rebuttal.
• Proofread, proofread, proofread. Read your work out loud. Don't let errors or awkward phrasing obscure your ideas. Visit the FHSS writing lab or BYU writing center for help with mechanics.
• Finish your draft a couple days before the deadline so you can come back to it with fresh eyes.
• Unintentional plagiarism caused by sloppy notetaking is still plagiarism and has consequences. Read the plagiarism policy below and visit me or a TA with questions.

General suggestions

• When you have questions, ask. Take advantage of Q&A sessions and office hours.
• Take breaks from school—short breaks each day, and longer breaks each week. Your mind needs rest. Sometimes "we have to forego some good things… to choose others that are better" (from "Good, Better, Best"). Higher education is good, but leave time to socialize, worship, serve, and relax.
• Exercise, eat nutritious food, and develop healthy sleep habits to "find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge." I like Diet Coke too, but your mind will not function as well on stimulants as on appropriate food, exercise, and sleep.

A matter of a few degrees. Consider a true story related by Dieter Uchtdorf:

In 1979 a large passenger jet with 257 people on board left New Zealand for a sightseeing flight to Antarctica and back. Unknown to the pilots, however, someone had modified the flight coordinates by a mere two degrees. This error placed the aircraft 28 miles (45 km) to the east of where the pilots assumed they were. As they approached Antarctica, the pilots descended to a lower altitude to give the passengers a better look at the landscape. Although both were experienced pilots, neither had made this particular flight before, and they had no way of knowing that the incorrect coordinates had placed them directly in the path of Mount Erebus....

By the time the instruments sounded the warning that the ground was rising fast toward them, it was too late. The airplane crashed into the side of the volcano, killing everyone on board.

It was a terrible tragedy brought on by a minor error—a matter of only a few degrees....

Remember: the heavens will not be filled with those who never made mistakes but with those who recognized that they were off course and who corrected their ways...

Though he had a different point, we can apply this story to school: Good scores don't go to those who never make mistakes, but to those who recognize when they go off course and take prompt corrective action. If an exam or paper early in the course comes back with a lower score than you hoped, then read and apply the tips listed above. Visit me or a TA for help. Don't wait for the volcano to fill your windshield.

University policies and resources

Plagiarism and cheating

While all students sign the honor code, there are still specific skills most students need to master over time in order to correctly cite sources, especially online sources, as well as deal with the stress and strain of college life without resorting to cheating. As your professor, I will notice instances of cheating on exams or plagiarizing on papers. Even if the plagiarism was unintentional, it will have serious consequences for your grade. General information about the honor code can be found at honorcode.byu.edu. Details about Academic Honesty are found in the university catalog

Writing submitted for credit at BYU must consist of the student's own ideas presented in sentences and paragraphs of the student's own construction. The work of other writers or speakers may be included when appropriate (as in a research paper or book review), but such material must support the student's own work (not substitute for it) and must be clearly identified by appropriate introduction ("According to so-and-so...") and punctuation (such as quotation marks) and by footnoting or other standard referencing. Take care with your notetaking to track sources and to differentiate quotations you have jotted down from paraphrases you have written. Unintentional plagiarism caused by sloppy notetaking is still plagiarism.

Substituting another person's work for the student's own or including another person's work without adequate acknowledgment (whether done intentionally or not) is plagiarism. Plagiarism is a violation of academic, ethical, moral, and legal standards and can result in a failing grade not only for the paper but also for the course in which the paper is written. In extreme cases, it can justify expulsion from the university. Because of the seriousness of these consequences, students who wonder if their papers are within these guidelines should visit the Writing Lab or consult with their professor or TA. Useful books to consult on the topic include the current Harbrace College Handbook, the MLA Handbook, and James D. Lester's Writing Research Papers.

Counseling and stress management

Most lifelong mental illnesses emerge in adolescence and early adulthood—the typical college students' age. If you experience frequent sadness, worry, fear, inability to focus, nightmares, forgetfulness, or extreme mood changes; if you are withdrawing socially by avoiding friends and social activities; if you experience significant changes in sleeping habits or eating habits; if you are abusing alcohol, prescription medications, or other substances; or if you are thinking about hurting yourself, then please talk to somebody. You may find that all is well, but please find out.

Mental health concerns and stressful life events can affect students' academic performance and quality of life. BYU Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS, 1500 WSC, 801-422-3035, https://caps.byu.edu) provides individual, couples, and group counseling, as well as stress management services. These services are confidential and are provided by the university at no cost for full-time students. For general information please visit https://caps.byu.edu. For more immediate concerns please visit http://help.byu.edu.

Equal opportunity

Disabilities: Brigham Young University is committed to providing a working and learning atmosphere which reasonably accommodates qualified persons with disabilities. If you have any disability which may impair your ability to complete this course successfully, please contact the University Accessibility Center (801-422-2767). Reasonable academic accommodations are reviewed for all students who have qualified documented disabilities. Services are coordinated with the student and instructor by the UAC office. If you need assistance or if you feel you have been unlawfully discriminated against on the basis of disability, you may seek resolution through established grievance policy and procedures. Contact the Equal Employment Opportunity Office at 801-422-5895, D-282 ASB

Going beyond the boilerplate language above: If you have a disability, including mental health issues or learning disabilities, please visit the University Accessibility Center to receive an accommodation letter. The letter UAC gives you will spare you from needing to explain yourself over and over to each of your instructors; it will also recommend to your instructors specific accommodations that ensure you have a fair opportunity to succeed. The letter will not disclose the disability and I will not ask. I will work with you to identify appropriate accommodations supported by the letter. If you wish to discuss accommodations, I am happy to schedule an appointment at any time, including outside office hours if needed. Even if you have not yet received a letter, please talk to me.

Discrimination and sexual misconduct: In accordance with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Brigham Young University prohibits unlawful sex discrimination against any participant in its education programs or activities. The university also prohibits sexual harassment—including sexual violence—committed by or against students, university employees, and visitors to campus. As outlined in university policy, sexual harassment, dating violence, domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking are considered forms of "sexual misconduct" prohibited by the university. University policy requires all university employees in a teaching, managerial, or supervisory role to report all incidents of sexual misconduct that come to their attention in any way, including but not limited to face-to-face conversations, a written class assignment or paper, class discussion, email, text, or social media post. Incidents of sexual misconduct should be reported to the Title IX Coordinator at t9coordinator@byu.edu or (801) 422-8692. Reports may also be submitted through EthicsPoint at https://titleix.byu.edu/report or 1-888-238-1062 (24-hours a day). BYU offers confidential resources for those affected by sexual misconduct, including the university's Victim Advocate, as well as a number of non-confidential resources and services that may be helpful. Additional information about Title IX, the university's Sexual Misconduct Policy, reporting requirements, and resources can be found at http://titleix.byu.edu or by contacting the university's Title IX Coordinator.

Reading schedule

Dates and deadlines are subject to change. You can also view the reading schedule in calendar format.

• Unit 1. Introduction to political science

• Mon, Jan 11th, 2021. Course overview. What is politics, and why should you care about it?
  Terms	politics; policy; false consensus bias
  Readings 10 pages	Read all preceding information in this syllabus. Understand deadlines, assignments, and course policies well. Reach out to me with any questions. [8 pages] Scroll down a few days to where the first midterm appears. You will see a study guide there. You may want to download it now and work on it as you go. Review BYU's mission and aims, then read Doctrine and Covenants 88:74-80. Why have you chosen to study at BYU? Why do you suppose that a school with BYU's mission and aims requires this course? How will "a knowledge also of countries and of kingdoms" help make you "prepared in all things" (DC 88)? Review the "what's this course about" section at the top of this syllabus as you consider your answer. [2 pages] Watch lecture: Lecture 01: Course overview [45:50]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Recommended: Utah pp xiii-xix. What evidence suggests that Americans underestimate the importance of state politics? What might change this? (Why this book? Poli 110 addresses American politics at the national, state, and local levels. Understanding Utah politics will (1) prepare you to engage state and local politics wherever you may settle and (2) help you better understand national politics.) Recommended: Use the reading load planner and due date calendar to plan your semester. Start the semester right by getting a couple days ahead on readings. Follow national political news every day.
  FYI	Readings marked "recommended" are recommended, not required. This schedule provides recommended pacing, but the only enforced pacing is the due dates for quizzes, assignments, and exams that you will find in Learning Suite. When watching video lectures on YouTube, note that YouTube allows you to speed up or slow down the playback speed. You can also click "cc" to display (auto-generated) closed captions. Reach out with any questions.

• Wed, Jan 13th, 2021. The logic of politics. What is social science? Why might rational behavior in an ungoverned environment produce undesirable outcomes? What are the tradeoffs involved in using governmental authority to address these situations?
  Terms	science; social science; theory; hypothesis; coordination problem; prisoner's dilemma; chicken; free rider problem; tragedy of the commons; transaction costs; conformity costs; all terms from textbook
  Readings 39 pages	Logic 9e 3-33 (8e 1-30; 7e 1-23, 31-35). 9e, 8e, and 7e refer to different editions; read the right pages for your edition. If you are using the PDF copy from course reserve, you are reading the 8th (not 9th) edition. Remember that there is a study site. [32 pages] Doctrine and Covenants 134 It's as interesting to notice what is NOT said as it is to reflect on what IS said. You'll notice, for example, that there is no judgment made between monarchy and representative democracy. What about this section (whether inclusions or omissions) do you find most unexpected? [3 pages] Bednar (2012), "The Powers of Heaven" (or PDF) Elder Bednar argues that two Elders may have the same authority but different power. Applying the same logic, why might two presidents have the same authority but different power? [4 pages] Originally my lecture video included a clip from a TV show, but YouTube blocked it out for violating copyright. So, sorry that this is a little stilted. Watch in three parts: Watch lecture: Lecture 02: The Logic of Politics, part 1 [0:27:55]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Watch clip: Now for the clip I originally included but YouTube made me remove. You need only watch the 3 minutes from 4:00 to 7:00: Golden Balls: Split or Steal. Watch lecture: Lecture 02: The Logic of Politics, part 2 [0:45:01]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Recommended: Click on "Show additional resources" below. Watch each video and see if you can tell what kind of game it is and why. Follow national political news every day.
  Resources	YouTube: Golden Balls: Split or steal? YouTube: "The Prisoner's Dilemma" [5:44] YouTube: Dilbert's interrogation [0:57] YouTube: Clip from Rebel without a cause (1955) [3:42] YouTube: Clip from Footloose (1984) [2:37] YouTube Cuban Missile Crisis in 5 minutes [5:30] YouTube: Fishery management [4:44] YouTube: Public vs private goods [8:13]
  FYI	You will find that I include notes about what to look for in non-textbook readings. For Logic readings, rely on the review questions and terms at the end of each chapter, and definitely check out the study site.

• Fri, Jan 15th, 2021. Catch up and review.
  DUE	Quiz. Check Learning Suite.

• Unit 2. Political development: Forming a union, and expanding rights and liberties

• Wed, Jan 20th, 2021. Constitution Day forums.
  Readings 12 pages	Beeman (2013), "The Founding Fathers of 1787" (40:31) [6 pages] Griffith (2012), "The Hard Work of Understanding the Constitution" watch (42:48) or read [6 pages] Read the US Constitution and all amendments. There are lot of readings next time. Read ahead. Follow national political news every day.
  FYI	BYU celebrates the September 17, 1787, signing of the Constitution with an annual lecture or panel discussion. Please view a couple particularly good Constitution Day form addresses. Richard Beeman goes through the personalities and contributions of several key founders. He also emphasizes several points I discuss in class: The united states becoming the United States, the importance of compromise, the improbable odds, the severity of the disagreement between Virginia and New Jersey plans, etc. Beeman was a prominent historian of the American Revolution until his death a couple years after this address. Thomas Griffith gives a wonderful overview of the different ways that judges read the Constitution, showing, for example, how the originalist and "living Constitution" approaches differ. (We will return to these approaches later when discussing the Supreme Court). His examples concerning the Second Amendment and Commerce Clause are enlightening. He is a BYU grad now serving on the DC circuit court, the most improtant court below the Supreme Court and a frequent source of Supreme Court nominees.

• Fri, Jan 22nd, 2021. Catch up and review.
  FYI	TAs and I hold regular group review opportunities and one-on-one office hours. Please check the schedule at the very top of this syllabus. No quiz today. Work instead on the readings for next time; there is a lot.

• Mon, Jan 25th, 2021. The Constitution. How do institutions matter? What was wrong with the Articles? How did context an interests shape the framers' thinking? Why is it hard to know their intent? Why was compromise important in drafting and ratifying the Constitution? Was the Constitution inspired?
  Terms	institutions; Magna Carta; Glorious Revolution; home rule; Articles of Confederation; Shays's rebellion; Newton's laws; human nature; natural aristocracy; Virginia Plan; New Jersey Plan; three-fifths compromise; plenary power; enumerated powers; separation of powers; federal division of powers; popular sovereignty; rule of law; Bill of Rights; Federalist; Antifederalist; ratification; Federalist Papers; all terms from textbook
  Readings 46 pages	Logic 9e 36-46 (8e 33-41; 7e 39-47) will be review if you have taken US history. Skim, focusing on key terms. Review the 1776 Declaration of Independence. Pay special attention to the first two paragraphs and the last paragraph. [4 pages] Logic 9e 46-52 (8e 42-47; 7e 48-53) [7 pages] Review the 1777 Articles of Confederation. What flaws may have led to a desire to replace this first constitution with a new one? For example, take note of what sort of national executive and judiciary the Articles created. [8 pages] Logic 9e 52-58 (8e 47-54; 7e 53-60) [5 pages] Review the 1787 US Constitution and all amendments. I will regularly assign brief sections of the Constitution throughout the course that you should read closely. Just skim for now, focusing on the big picture, comparing the Constitution to the Articles of Confederation and to the principles in the Declaration of Independence. Look for anything that surprises you. Compare section II in the AofC to Article 6 (second paragraph) of the Constitution to see how these two documents differ on state authority, for example. Compare the powers delegated to Congress in the AofC (mainly Article IX) to those listed in Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution to see how they differ in the central government's role. There are many other such differences you may notice. [22 pages] Watch lecture: Lecture 03a: The Constitution, part 1 [1:11:17]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Follow national political news every day.
  FYI	Many browsers choke on large PDFs. If clicking a particular PDF (such as those assigned for today) doesn't seem to work, try right-clicking and choosing "Save link as" to download the file to your device rather than opening it directly in the browser window. Also, some versions of Safari do a particularly poor job with large PDFs, so switch browsers if needed. If you haven't listened to the Hamilton soundtrack, let me just say... dude. Here's your preview. (If you look up the album, be aware that there are two versions: Explicit and non-explicit.) Learn more in Poli 202, "Western Political Heritage" Learn more in Poli 365, "Early American Political Thought"

• Wed, Jan 27th, 2021. Continued.
  Readings 41 pages	Logic 9e 58-78 (8e 54-72, 79; 7e 60-79). Pay special attention to Fed 10 and 51; see also the notes below. [19 pages] Logic 9e table 2.3 on p 79 (8e table 2.3 on p 72; 7e table 1.1 on p 24). Read this section if the table is unclear. [1 page] Oaks (1992), "The divinely inspired Constitution". Memorize the five points Elder Oaks identifies as inspired. Read the Constitution to see what he omits as (apparently) uninspired. He stresses that this is his opinion, not an apostolic pronouncement. Thus, reflect: What might you add to, remove from, or change in his list? [8 pages] Lee (1992), "The Constitution and the Restoration". Rex E. Lee was BYU president when he delivered this address. He previously served as Solicitor General of the United States and in other influential positions. One of his sons serves on the Utah Supreme Court, another in the US Senate. Pay special attention to his defense of judicial review (under "Genius Features") and to his discussion of the Constitution as "divinely inspired" (under "The Constitution's Significance for Latter-day Saints"). Where do Oaks and Lee agree and disagree? How would you resolve these disagreements? [8 pages] Utah pp 11-15. Why does the Utah Constitution receive so many more amendments than the US Constitution? Because the US Constitution is so much harder to amend, we rely on judicial reinterpretation rather than formal amendments to keep it modern. Should the US Constitution's amendment process be simplified, perhaps to look more like Utah's, so that we can shift to updating it through formal amendments rather than judicial fiat? [5 pages] Watch lecture: Lecture 03b: The Constitution, part 2 [1:01:13]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Follow national political news every day.
  Resources	Brutus (1787), Anti-federalist #3, November 15, 1787 [5 pages] Madison (1787), Federalist #10 (Appendix 4 in Logic) [4 pages] Madison (1787), Federalist #51 (Appendix 5 in Logic) [3 pages]
  FYI	Federalist 10 and 51 address concerns about representation and factionalism raised by the antifederalist Brutus. Federalist 10 presents the proposed union's vast size as a safeguard against factionalism, turning Brutus's argument on its head; since larger unions have more factions competing for influence, Madison argues, it is less likely that any one faction will dominate. Federalist 51 emphasizes the proposed Constitution's checks and balances, both horizontal (executive-judicial-legislative) and vertical (federalism), to argue that the Constitution will effectively prevent any narrow interest from taking over the whole thing. Take care to understand discussion of these important essays in Logic. To go the extra mile, click "show additional resources" for the full text of these essays, and also of the Brutus essay they respond to. To what extent do these two essays fail to address some of Brutus's concerns? Most importantly, consider: Madison's defense of the Constitution did not foresee the emergence of two national political parties. Does his argument in Federalist 10 still work if two parties organize diverse factions into two umbrella coalitions? Does his argument in Federalist 51 still work if a single party can control multiple branches of government, subverting checks and balances? How might Madison and others have designed the national government differently if the two party system were already established?

• Fri, Jan 29th, 2021. Catch up and review.
  DUE	Quiz. Check Learning Suite. Get your password. You will need a username and password for this website to submit assignments. Look for the "login" link at the top of the page. (On mobile devices, expand the menu to see it.)
  FYI	TAs and I hold regular group review opportunities and one-on-one office hours. Please check the schedule at the very top of this syllabus.

• Mon, Feb 1st, 2021. Federalism and centralization. What is federalism? Why has power grown more centralized (or nationalized) over time?
  Terms	state; unitary; confederal; federal; dual federalism; shared federalism; centralization; supremacy clause; necessary and proper clause; commerce clause; McCulloch v Maryland; Gibbons v Ogden; all terms from textbook
  Readings 39 pages	Utah pp 17-23, 30-31, 134-8. Ch 2 key concepts: unitary, confederal, federal, shared federalism, dual federalism, necessary and proper clause, commerce clause, Tenth Amendment, matching grant (e.g. Medicaid), block grant (e.g. TANF), Tea Party, Patrick Henry Caucus. How does Utah's distinctive history shape state-federal relations? How might state-federal relations be different in New York, or in Texas? Ch 9 key concepts: unitary governance, political subdivisions, Dillon's rule, preemption laws. If you are interested in national parks, forests, national monuments, and other public lands, read the unassigned portions of chapter 2 also. [13 pages] Logic 9e 96-107 (8e 86-96; 7e 85-95) overlaps lots with Utah. Skim. Logic 9e 107-130 (8e 96-118; 7e 96-118) [24 pages] US Constitution, Articles IV and VI, Amendments 9-11, 16-17 [2 pages] Watch lecture: Lecture 04: Federalism [48:01]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Skim all of Logic ch 3 after lecture for anything that was not covered Follow national political news every day.
  FYI	Learn more in Poli 311, "State and Local Politics" Learn more in Poli 325, "Politics of Wilderness, National Parks, and Public Lands" Learn more in Poli 420, "Constitutional Law: American Federal System"

• Wed, Feb 3rd, 2021. Civil rights. How are the terms "civil rights" and "civil liberties" used differently? Why did the same northern Republicans who waged the Civil War, ended slavery, and enacted the 13th-15th amendments later tolerate the rise of segregation and Jim Crow? Why did the successful civil rights litigation of the 1950s have so little impact prior to the 1960s civil rights movement? How did the civil rights movement of the 1960s overcome free rider problems?
  Terms	civil rights; civil liberties; procedural equality; substantive equality; 13th amendment; 15th amendment; Civil Rights Act; Voting Rights Act; Plessy v Ferguson; NAACP; Brown v Board of Education; segregation; Martin Luther King; busing; affirmative action; de facto; de jure; all terms from textbook
  Readings 40 pages	Logic 9e 138-140, 164b, 166b, 168b, 170b, 173-182 (8e 126-28, 149b, 151b, 153b, 154b, 158-67; 7e 126-8, 149b, 151b, 153b, 155b, 157-69). To be clear: "166b" means the box on page 166. [15 pages] Doctrine and Covenants 101:76-80. What is the "purpose" mentioned in DC 101:80? (Hint: Read the preceding verse.) [1 page] US Constitution, Amendments 13, 14, and 15 [1 page] Oaks (2020), "Racism and Other Challenges." Why does President Oaks say "Black lives matter ... is an eternal truth all reasonable people should support"? What "textual stains" does he identify in the US Constitution? When he urges "us all to heed our prophet's call to repent, to change, and to improve," what sin does he refer to? [10 pages] Gray for LDS Church (2018), "Healing the Wounds of Racism", Huntsman (2018), "Hard Sayings and Safe Spaces"; Bird (2019), "Everyone loved me as Cosmo the Cougar, but would they love who I was behind the mask?" Lecture and other readings mostly address the government's treatment of historically oppressed classes, but these readings address how we individually relate to others. Darius Gray, longtime president of the Genesis Group, teaches us to recognize and challenge racist thought and behavior. In his BYU devotional, Huntsman invites us to think about how we personally reach out to people who are different from us. In his op-ed, Bird shares his experience as a gay BYU student. If you come form a historically privileged class (e.g. white, male, non-disabled, straight, and especially all those at once), consider: What steps can you take to better understand your peers at BYU and elsewhere whose backgrounds or experiences are profoundly different from yours? [13 pages] Watch lecture: Lecture 05: Civil Rights [1:03:20]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Recommended: Lincoln, a 2012 film showing just how difficult it was to end slavery. Though Congress is very different now, Lincoln also accurately depicts the 19th-century Congress. Recommended: LDS Church, "Race and the Priesthood" (If you see only a couple paragraphs, click "read more.") Take special note of this statement: "Over time, Church leaders and members advanced many theories to explain the priesthood and temple restrictions. None of these explanations is accepted today as the official doctrine of the Church." And later in the essay: "Today, the Church disavows the theories advanced in the past that black skin is a sign of divine disfavor or curse, or that it reflects unrighteous actions in a premortal life; that mixed-race marriages are a sin; or that blacks or people of any other race or ethnicity are inferior in any way to anyone else. Church leaders today unequivocally condemn all racism, past and present, in any form." If you ever hear somebody bring up old LDS racial teachings, point them to this disavowal and to the 9th article of faith. Recommended: LDS Church, "Revelations in context: Witnessing the faithfulness" Follow national political news every day.
  FYI	Learn more in Poli 323, "Race, Ethnicity, and Gender in American Politics" Learn more in Poli 342, "Gender and Politics" Learn more in Poli 421, "Constitutional Law: Rights and Immunities"

• Fri, Feb 5th, 2021. Catch up and review.
  DUE	Quiz. Check Learning Suite. Get your password. You will need a username and password for this website to submit assignments. Look for the "login" link at the top of the page. (On mobile devices, expand the menu to see it.) I count this as if it were a quiz. Log into the course website by the end of today to receive credit.
  FYI	TAs and I hold regular group review opportunities and one-on-one office hours. Please check the schedule at the very top of this syllabus.

• Mon, Feb 8th, 2021. Civil liberties. What are the rights and duties of an American citizen? How have your liberties evolved over time? When are restrictions on free speech constitutionally permissible?
  Terms	civil liberties; ex post facto laws; bills of attainder; habeas corpus; 14th amendment; selective incorporation; 1st amendment; freedom of speech; pure political speech; symbolic speech; speech accompanied by disruptive conduct; incitement; all terms from textbook
  Readings 27 pages	Logic 9e 186-197 (8e 172-82, 196-210; 7e 174-84, 198-12) [26 pages] Logic 9e 197-208 (8e 182-92; 7e 185-95) overlaps lots with lecture material. Skim. US Constitution, Amendments 1, 5, and 14 [1 page] Watch lecture: Lecture 06: Civil liberties [50:49]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Recommended: Don't talk to the police [46:38]. Despite the provocative title, this is an excellent discussion of criminal process rights, particularly the 5th amendment. Highly recommended if you want to understand why Constitutionally guaranteed rights matter. Follow national political news every day.
  FYI	Debate 1 opens today. Read the instructions and then submit online by Friday, February 12th. Learn more in Poli 421, "Constitutional Law: Rights and Immunities"

• Wed, Feb 10th, 2021. Religious liberty. What was the framers' experience with religious liberty? When can free exercise be limited? When is prayer allowed in public schools?
  Terms	Toleration Act; establishment clause; free exercise clause; theocracy; de jure establishment; de facto establishment; incidental burden; Lemon test; neutrality test; Main Street Plaza; school prayer; all terms from textbook
  Readings 30 pages	The previous lecture's assigned Logic reading included the portion on religious liberty. Review as needed. Utah ch 1 (especially pp 1, 3-11, 15-16). Key concepts: Council of Fifty, Utah War (Johnston's Army, Camp Floyd, Alfred Cumming), Camp Douglas, People's Party, Liberal Party, twin relics of barbarism, Edmunds-Tucker Act. Regardless of whether polygamy is a good idea or not, should the First Amendment should protect polygamy (today) among those whose religion allows or requires it? [11 pages] Utah pp 92-96. Key concepts: anticipatory decision making; non-discrimination. [4 pages] Holland (2008), "Lessons from Liberty Jail." Watch the video (44:25) or read the transcript (or PDF) [7 pages] Doctrine and Covenants 121:1-10, 33-40, section 122, section 123 [5 pages] Doctrine and Covenants 127:1-3 [1 page] Doctrine and Covenants 135 [1 page] Doctrine and Covenants 134:4, 9-10 (and section 134 generally). DC 134 is presented as a declaration, not a revelation. How might this declaration have been written differently if it had been adopted in 1844 (after the martyrdom), 1857 (Utah War), 1890 (Edmunds-Tucker Act), 1950s (LDS in cultural mainstream), or today rather than in 1835? Consider LDS priorities and experiences in each era. More generally, what lessons about modern religious liberty do we learn from the early LDS experiences you are reading about today? We usually attribute President Van Buren's decision not to bring federal action against Missouri to his political need to win Missouri's electoral votes. Even so, how might the lack of a 14th amendment (as of 1843-4) have limited Van Buren's ability to help? [1 page] Watch lecture: Lecture 07: Religious liberty [1:00:19]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Recommended: LDS Church, "Peace and Violence among 19th-Century Latter-day Saints" (follow the link, then click "read more" to see it all) Recommended: LDS Church, "Plural Marriage in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints" (follow the link, then click "read more" to see it all) Recommended: Garr (2009), "Joseph Smith: Campaign for President of the United States" (or PDF). Enjoy this brief summary of Joseph Smith's (very) longshot bid for president. Why did JS mount this bid? What were some key parts of his presidential platform? Recommended: LDS Church, Saints (all of it, really) Follow national political news every day.
  Resources	Clark (2005), "'The only game in town': An ACLU perspective," from God and Country: Politics in Utah [16 pages]
  FYI	Learn more in Poli 336, "Government and Religion" Learn more in Poli 421, "Constitutional Law: Rights and Immunities"

• Fri, Feb 12th, 2021. Catch up and review.
  DUE	Quiz. Check Learning Suite. Debate 1. Read the instructions and then submit online.
  FYI	TAs and I hold regular group review opportunities and one-on-one office hours. Please check the schedule at the very top of this syllabus.

• Tue, Feb 16th, 2021. Woohoo! There is no class today. Take the test.
  DUE	Midterm 1. Check Learning Suite for exact dates and times.
  Readings	Exam 1 study guide Follow national political news every day.
  FYI	This portion of your midterm is multiple choice. (The midterm also has a written portion that you already completed: Your first debate paper.) Expect 75 questions, drawing evenly on lecture and readings. Past experience suggests that most students will take 50-70 minutes on this test. The exam is closed book. You will need a computer with a webcam so that Learning Suite can take a photograph of you every minute or so to ensure nobody is helping you and you are not looking away from your screen. Learning Suite will also record whether you click on a different tab or program during the exam. Be sure to close all other programs and tabs before starting the exam. In the event an internet outage or other technical problem that interrupts your exam, contact me as soon as possible. I write new questions every year, making it hard for me to predict what the average score will be. If automated scoring tells you that you scored 60% on the exam, don't assume you failed; I may need to drop some questions or apply a curve, but I cannot make those decisions until the test closes and I review scores. If you have questions about whether I curve grades, how you can raise your grade, or the course's overall difficulty level, read through the syllabus once again. It's all covered there. If you have questions, please ask me.

• Unit 3. Political behavior: Public opinion, voting, parties, and interests

• Wed, Feb 17th, 2021. How voters decide. What are the major candidates and themes of recent elections? How informed are voters? How committed are voters to their party? How do voters select a candidate? Does democracy work? Which explanation of vote choice makes the most sense to you?
  Terms	substance; style; always shuck your tamales; Iran hostage crisis; sociological model; cross-pressure; opinion leader; minimal effects hypothesis; rational choice model; economic model; calculus of voting; information shortcut; endorsements; partisanship as running tally; psychological model; funnel analogy; partisanship as identity; perceptual screening (also called "selective perception" or "motivated reasoning"); all terms from textbook
  Readings	Familiarize yourself briefly with candidates and issues from recent elections by watching the following campaign advertisements. (If you're curious, federal law requires broadcast ads (TV, radio) to include the candidate saying, in his or her own voice, "I'm [candidate], and I approve this message." This is supposed to help voters distinguish candidates' ads from ads produced independently by outside groups. The law does not apply to ads distributed exclusively online.) First, watch some positive ads from the 2016 Republican and Democratic primary races and the 2020 Democratic primary: Video: 2016 Rubio ad: "American dream" [1:01] Video: 2016 Clinton ad: "Fighting for you" [0:56] Video: 2016 Trump ad: "Life changing experience" [0:43] Video: 2016 Sanders ad: "America" [1:00] Video: 2020 Biden ad: "Bones" [1:00] Video: 2020 Harris ad: "America's promise" [1:45] Video: 2020 Trump ad: "Stronger, safer, more prosperous" [0:30] What are the candidates trying to accomplish with these ads? How do these ads make you feel? From these ads alone, which of these candidates are you drawn to? Now, watch some additional ads from the 2016 Republican and Democratic primaries, from the 2016 general election, from the 2020 Democratic primaries, and from (very) early in the 2020 general election: Video: 2016 Cruz primary ad: "Parking lot" [1:00] Video: 2016 Trump primary ad: "Corrupt Marco" [1:00] Video: 2016 Kasich primary ad: "Trump's dangerous rhetoric" [1:06] Video: 2016 Sanders primary ad: "Two visions" [0:30] Video: 2016 Clinton general ad: "Mirrors" [0:30] Video: 2016 Trump general ad: "Two Americas" [0:30] Video: 2016 Clinton general ad: "Role models" [1:00] Video: 2020 Biden primary ad: "Always" [0:30] Video: 2020 Sanders primary ad: "Decimated" [0:30] Video: 2020 Biden general ad: "260,000 words" [1:04] Video: 2020 Trump general ad: "Responsible" [0:30] Video: 2020 Trump general ad: "Kneel" [0:30] Video: 2020 Biden general ad: "Deer in the headlights" [0:52] Again: What are the candidates trying to accomplish with these ads? How do these ads make you feel? From these ads alone, which of these candidates are you drawn to? Outside groups can also run ads. In 2020, we saw something unique: A Republican group running ads against a Republican president. A couple examples: Video: 2020 Lincoln Project ad: Mourning in America [1:00] Video: 2020 Lincoln Project ad: Flag of Treason [1:00] Video: 2020 Lincoln Project ad: War Zone [1:00] How do these outside advertisements compare to the candidate-sponsored ads you viewed in substance and tone? Recommended: Click "Show additional resources" below and watch lots of old campaign ads This material probably won't take you much time, so consider getting ahead. Follow national political news every day.
  Resources	Video: 2008 McCain ad: "Remote control" Video: 2008 Obama ad: "Same" Video: 2008 Obama ad: "Seven" [0:31] Video: 2011 Rick Perry - America's jobs governor [2:20] Video: 2011 Mitt on the Road: The low country, South Carolina [1:18] Video: 2011 Romney ad: "The facts" [0:59] Video: 2011 Perry ad: "Romney's remedy" [0:59] Video: 2011 Romney ad: "Thank you governor Perry" [1:22] Video: 2011 Perry ad: "Mitt Romney - misleading" [0:59] Video: 2016 Cruz ad: "It feels good to be a Clinton" [0:58]
  FYI	Peer reviews for Debate 1 are now open. Submit online by Friday, February 19th. Learn more in Poli 317, "Public Opinion and Voting Behavior" Learn more in Poli 318, "Campaigns and Elections" Learn more in Poli 324, "Political Psychology"

• Fri, Feb 19th, 2021. Catch up and review.
  DUE	Peer reviews for Debate 1. Submit online.
  FYI	TAs and I hold regular group review opportunities and one-on-one office hours. Please check the schedule at the very top of this syllabus.

• Mon, Feb 22nd, 2021. Continued.
  Readings 30 pages	Logic 9e 431-448 (8e 397-414; 7e 398-417) [18 pages] Utah review pp 8-11, then read pp 32-38 and 45-49. Key concepts: People's Party, Liberal Party, twin relics of barbarism, Mormon Moment, Heber J Grant and the New Deal, partisan conversion. Why did Utah experience such wild partisan swings after statehood? Why did a religious-partisan cleavage reemerge in the 1970s? In Utah, how does religion compare to ideology as a predictor of partisanship? What would it take for Utah to become a competitive state? What would it take for Latter-day Saints to become a competitive demographic? More generally, how does all this help you understand the links among attitudes, ideology, and partisanship (as defined in Logic)? [12 pages] Watch lecture: Lecture 11a: How voters decide, part 1 [0:45:35]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Follow national political news every day.
  FYI	Gov mtg 1 (optional) opens today. Read the instructions and then submit online by Friday, February 26th.

• Wed, Feb 24th, 2021. Continued.

  Readings 39 pages

  Logic 9e 448-466, 475-477, 484-488 (8e 414-31, 439-41, 447-52; 7e 417-434, 442-446, 454-458) [25 pages] Klein (2020), "Why are liberals more afraid of the coronavirus than conservatives? Covid-19 and the complex politics of fear.". An accessible essay reviewing some of the psychological foundations of ideology, and exploring how "motivated reasoning" (what we called "perceptual screening" in lecture) can cause partisanship to shape our perceptions rather than the other way around. [6 pages] Thomson-DeVeaux (2020, Republicans and Democrats see COVID-19 very differently. Is that making people sick? More on how partisanship is shaping Americans' response to the pandemic. [8 pages] Watch lecture: Lecture 11b: How voters decide, part 2 [0:54:06]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Follow national political news every day.

• Fri, Feb 26th, 2021. Catch up and review.
  DUE	Quiz. Check Learning Suite. Gov mtg 1 (optional). Read the instructions and then submit online.
  FYI	TAs and I hold regular group review opportunities and one-on-one office hours. Please check the schedule at the very top of this syllabus.

• Mon, Mar 1st, 2021. Public opinion polling. How can you assess a poll's trustworthiness?
  Terms	sampling error; population; sample; margin of error; convenience sample; self-selection; non-response error; response rate; weights; measurement error; double barreled question; social desirability bias; Bradley effect; framing; priming
  Readings 17 pages	Best (2001), Damned Lies and Statistics, pp 45-61. I highly recommend reading all of Joel Best's short and very readable book. It will dramatically increase your confidence when you hear statistical arguments on the news or in political discourse. [17 pages] Watch lecture: Lecture 12: Public opinion polling [1:03:53]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Follow national political news every day.
  FYI	Learn more in Poli 317, "Public Opinion and Voting Behavior" Learn more in Poli 318, "Campaigns and Elections"

• Wed, Mar 3rd, 2021. Turnout and engagement. Who votes? Why? Does it matter? Why do Americans seem to know so little about politics? Does it matter? How do voting rules vary in ways that may affect turnout? Which mobilization tactics are most effective?
  Terms	calculus of voting; civic duty; information costs; civic knowledge; byproduct theory; issue public; participation costs; mobilization; GOTV; social pressure; all terms from textbook
  Readings 32 pages	Logic 9e 477-484 (8e 441-47; 7e 446-454) [8 pages] Utah pp 39-40 (including chart on p 41). Why has turnout in Utah moved from above average to below average? What could turn this around? [2 pages] Popkin (1993), The Reasoning Voter, ch 2. This skimmable reading provides further context on civic knowledge, the byproduct theory, and issue publics. [22 pages] Watch lecture: Lecture 13: Turnout and engagement [0:49:54]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Follow national political news every day.
  FYI	Learn more in Poli 311, "State and Local Politics" Learn more in Poli 317, "Public Opinion and Voting Behavior" Learn more in Poli 318, "Campaigns and Elections" Learn more in Poli 324, "Political Psychology"

• Fri, Mar 5th, 2021. Catch up and review.
  DUE	Quiz. Check Learning Suite.
  FYI	TAs and I hold regular group review opportunities and one-on-one office hours. Please check the schedule at the very top of this syllabus.

• Mon, Mar 8th, 2021. Political parties. Why can there be only two major US parties? Why these two parties? What do the Republican and Democratic coalitions look like today? How do presidential nominations work? What makes horse race polling during multicandidate primary elections so unreliable?
  Terms	party-in-government; party-as-organization; party-in-electorate; major party; minor party; Duverger's law; majoritarian electoral system; proportional system; wasted vote; Ralph Nader (election of 2000); realignment; party system; Southern strategy; moral issues; polarization; Republican; Democrat; "King Caucus"; nominating convention; primary; 1968 Democratic convention; pledged delegate; superdelegate (or "PLEO"); open primary; closed primary; semi-closed primary; runoff; Howard Dean (2004); John Kerry (2004); Hillary Clinton (2008); Barack Obama (2008); Mitt Romney (2012); Donald Trump (2016); all terms from textbook
  Readings 47 pages	Logic 9e 513-559 (8e 479-520; 7e 485-525). Take heart: Much of this overlaps with lecture. [47 pages] Watch lecture: Lecture 14a: Political parties, part 1 [1:08:32]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Watch lecture: Lecture 14b: Political parties, part 2 [0:23:50]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Follow national political news every day.
  FYI	Debate 2 opens today. Read the instructions and then submit online by Friday, March 12th. Learn more in Poli 150, "Comparative Government and Politics" Learn more in Poli 311, "State and Local Politics" Learn more in Poli 316, "American Political Parties" Learn more in Poli 318, "Campaigns and Elections"

• Wed, Mar 10th, 2021. Continued.

  Readings 26 pages

  Utah pp 39-45, 157-61. Key concepts: caucus-convention system, party delegate, direct primary. What are the three major effects of single-party dominance? Why do we see more factionalism among Utah Republicans than among Republicans nationally? [11 pages] Read the preamble to the 2016 Republican platform and 2020 Democratic platform. Then, in each platform, read the first full paragraph under each heading or subheading. Get a sense for where each party stands and what its priorities are. (Republicans took the unusual step in 2020 of issuing a statement "enthusiastically support[ing]" whatever Donald Trump's agenda might be rather than issuing a new platform, which is why I give you the 2016 GOP platform here.) [15 pages] Optional: Compare to the 2016 Democratic platform. Optional: Compare to the 2012 Republican national platform and the 2012 Democratic national platform. Watch lecture: Lecture 14c: Political parties, part 3 [0:59:08]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Follow national political news every day.

• Fri, Mar 12th, 2021. Catch up and review.
  DUE	Quiz. Check Learning Suite. Debate 2. Read the instructions and then submit online.
  FYI	TAs and I hold regular group review opportunities and one-on-one office hours. Please check the schedule at the very top of this syllabus.

• Mon, Mar 15th, 2021. Yay! There is no class today. Take the test.
  DUE	Midterm 2. Check Learning Suite for exact dates and times.
  Readings	Exam 2 study guide Follow national political news every day.
  FYI	This portion of your midterm is multiple choice. (The midterm also has a written portion that you already completed: Your second debate paper.) Expect 75 questions, drawing evenly on lecture and readings. Past experience suggests that most students will take 50-70 minutes on this test. The exam is closed book. You will need a computer with a webcam so that Learning Suite can take a photograph of you every minute or so to ensure nobody is helping you and you are not looking away from your screen. Learning Suite will also record whether you click on a different tab or program during the exam. Be sure to close all other programs and tabs before starting the exam. In the event an internet outage or other technical problem that interrupts your exam, contact me as soon as possible. I write new questions every year, making it hard for me to predict what the average score will be. If automated scoring tells you that you scored 60% on the exam, don't assume you failed; I may need to drop some questions or apply a curve, but I cannot make those decisions until the test closes and I review scores. If you have questions about whether I curve grades, how you can raise your grade, or the course's overall difficulty level, read through the syllabus once again. It's all covered there. If you have questions, please ask me.

• Unit 4. Political institutions: The legislative, executive, and judicial branches

• Wed, Mar 17th, 2021. Introduction to Congress.
  Terms	tyranny; efficiency; Congress; legislature; legislator; term length; chamber size; reapportionment; redistricting; all terms from textbook
  Readings 47 pages	US Constitution, Article I, Amendments 16-17 and 27 [6 pages] Logic 9e 231-50, 260-68, 274-75, 291-94 (8e 213-29, 241-47, 252-54, 267-70; 7e 214-31, 242-48, 254-55, 269-71) [32 pages] Utah pp 50-58. Key concepts: General Session, single subject rule, omnibus bill, interim, party caucus, caucus, leadership, standing committee, staff, professional legislature, citizen legislature. The US Congress is the nation's most professionalized legislature, while the Utah Legislature is among the least. What would happen if we switched that? (Remember the "three s's" of legislative professionalism: Salary, Staff, Session length.) Also, what if the US Congress had a single subject rule? [9 pages] Glance at Logic Appendix 6 (Congressional partisanship) Watch lecture: Lecture 21: Intro to Congress [1:01:39]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Follow national political news every day.
  FYI	Peer reviews for Debate 2 are now open. Submit online by Friday, March 19th. Logic: You will read all of the Congress chapter over the next days. I have assigned it out of order, but if that gets confusing, just read the chapter as written. Portions assigned for this lecture deal with the structure and organization of Congress. Remember, the Utah Legislature is an entirely separate organization from the US Congress, with different procedures, offices, and rules. Keep them separate in your mind. Throughout our unit on political institutions, contrast what you learn about Utah institutions (the legislature, governor, state courts, etc) and federal institutions (Congress, president, federal courts, etc). Consider the strengths and weaknesses of each set of institutions. What would happen if the federal government were designed like the Utah government—or vice versa? Does it make sense for Utah and the federal government to have different institutions? That is, is one set of institutions clearly superior? Or is one set of institutions more suited to a smaller polity like Utah while another is more suited to a large polity? Keep these questions in mind over the coming weeks. Learn about BYU's best internship: The Utah state legislature internship. I am the faculty advisor for this internship and am happy to answer your questions. Learn more in Poli 315, "Congress and the Legislative Process"

• Fri, Mar 19th, 2021.
  DUE	Peer reviews for Debate 2. Submit online.

• Mon, Mar 22nd, 2021. Elections and representation. When do the "best" candidates run? Who serves in office? What creates the incumbency advantage? What is representation? How do Representatives view constituents? How does the Constitutional structure of Congress influence how Representatives behave?
  Terms	strategic entry; amateur candidate; professional candidate; wave election; incumbent; challenger; open seat; incumbency advantage; reelection incentive; advertising; credit claiming; position taking; geographic constituency; reelection constituency; primary constituency; personal constituency (or "intimates"); issue representation (or "substantive representation"); service representation; allocational representation; descriptive representation; delegate; trustee; all terms from textbook
  Readings 32 pages	Logic 9e 250-53, 488-93, 498-504 (8e 229-32, 452-58, 462-67; 7e 231-34, 458-64, 466-70) [13 pages] Utah pp 78-87, 96-100. Important: Chapter 5 uses "delegate" in two unrelated ways: The delegate-trustee tradeoff, and party delegates. These are totally different. If you do not understand what a party delegate is from this chapter, see pp 42-43 for a fuller explanation. Key concepts: geographic constituency, reelection constituency, primary constituency, party delegate, delegate-trustee tradeoff. The geographic-reelection-primary constituency framework was originally developed for the US Congress; I adapt it slightly in my book for the Utah context but will give the standard version in lecture when discussing Congress. [15 pages] Utah pp 144-47. Key concepts: How can you most effectively influence local officeholders? Also, the delegate-trustee tradeoff again. [3 pages] Clarifying discussion about campaign finance below [1 page] Watch lecture: Lecture 22: Elections and representation [0:58:37]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Follow national political news every day.
  FYI	Today's readings contain some discussion of campaign finance issues. For the most part, details about campaign finance law are beyond the scope of this course. Here are some clarifications as far as this course is concerned, though. First, federalism. US law governs contributions to candidates for federal office (Congress/president), while Utah law governs contributions to candidates for state and local office (Legislature/governor/mayor/etc). Thus, discussions of campaign finance in Logic and Utah are discussing different things. Second, legal substance. US campaign finance law is much stricter than Utah campaign finance law. In general, Utah law requires candidates for state office only to disclose their donors; you could give a candidate millions of dollars as long as the candidate provides the proper disclosures to the state. US law likewise requires candidates for federal office to disclose their donors, but then it goes further by limiting those donations. The amount rises with inflation, but in general you cannot give more than a few thousand dollars to any particular federal candidate per election cycle. These contribution limits give rise to two important distinctions you will encounter in Logic. Distinction #1: "Hard money" refers to funds given directly to a federal candidate's campaign (subject to contribution limits). "Soft money" refers to funds given to some outside group that will spend that money independently on behalf of a candidate. Distinction #2: When outside groups spend on behalf of a candidate (rather than give their money to a candidate as "hard money"), it is either a "coordinated expenditure" (outside spending that is coordinated with a candidate's campaign efforts and is therefore legally treated as an in-kind contribution) or "independent campaign spending" (spending by an individual or group in favor of a candidate but without coordinating with the candidate). Logic goes deeper into the weeds of campaign finance law, but if you understand its discussion of these concepts you are doing fine for purposes of this course. Learn about BYU's best internship: The Utah state legislature internship Learn more in Poli 315, "Congress and the Legislative Process"

• Wed, Mar 24th, 2021. Legislating. How does a bill become a law? Who is empowered by the legislative process in the US House? In the US Senate? How do initiatives, referendums, and recalls differ? How do initiatives get on the ballot? Should we have a national initiative process?
  Terms	bill; law; committee; Speaker; conference committee; Rules Committee; open rule; closed rule; modified closed rule; conditional party government; unanimous consent agreement; filling the amendment tree; filibuster; cloture; initiative; direct initiative; indirect initiative; referendum; legislative referendum; popular referendum; recall; all terms from textbook
  Readings 28 pages	Read carefully: Logic 9e 253-60 (8e 232-41; 7e 234-41, 243) [7 pages] Utah pp 65-77 (to contrast Utah Legislature to Congress). Key concepts: "procedures create power," partisan batting averages, vetting. Compared to the US Congress, the Utah Legislature has less partisanship, more bills passed, fewer "no" votes, and much less vetting time. Why? Would you rather have a legislative body like the Utah Legislature or the US Congress? Why? [12 pages] Utah ch 6 (to contrast direct and representative democracy). Key concepts: vouchers, direct democracy, initiative, referendum, gun behind the door. Does direct democracy make Utah politics better or worse? Should we have direct democracy at the federal level? [9 pages] Watch lecture: Lecture 23: Legislating [1:13:41]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Recommended: Logic 9e 276-91 (8e 254-67; 7e 255-68) covers material I will lecture on at length; skim it after lecture to be sure you got it all Recommended: Utah pp 58-65 Follow national political news every day.
  Resources	Video: Schoolhouse Rock: I'm just a bill [3:01] Video: I'm just a bill (parody) [0:11]
  FYI	Learn more about direct democracy in Poli 311, "State and Local Politics" Learn more in Poli 315, "Congress and the Legislative Process"

• Fri, Mar 26th, 2021. Catch up and review.
  DUE	Quiz. Check Learning Suite.
  FYI	TAs and I hold regular group review opportunities and one-on-one office hours. Please check the schedule at the very top of this syllabus.

• Mon, Mar 29th, 2021. The presidency. What do we expect of American presidents? How are our expectations of presidents at odds with their formal powers? How has the presidency evolved over time (Jackson, T Roosevelt, FDR)? How do presidents compensate for their limited formal powers?
  Terms	budget; OMB; veto; veto override; treaty; appointment power; filibuster; chief clerk; bully pulpit; stewardship theory; negotiation; going public; executive order; signing statement; all terms from textbook
  Readings 39 pages	Logic ch 7 especially 9e 299-307, 319-26, 332-34, 339-40 (8e 277-82, 290-92, 294-302, 306-7, 311; 7e 279-83, 292-3, 296-304, 308-9, 313) [19 pages] US Constitution, Article II, Amendments 12, 20, 22, 23, 25 [6 pages] Utah pp 112-15, 119-22 (recommended: ch 7). Key concepts: plural executive vs unitary executive, item veto, full/package veto, veto override, appointment power. Governors vary widely in their powers. Should US presidents share their authority with a plural executive? Should they have an item veto, or should the veto override threshold be changed? Should presidents have appointment power that is more restricted, like the Utah governor's? In general, how does this discussion of gubernatorial power in the states shape your perception of presidential power? [7 pages] Goodwin, "Learning from past presidents," video (19:19) or transcript. If some of Doris Kearns Goodwin's stories sound familiar, that's because she was the consulting historian for the 2012 film Lincoln. [7 pages] Watch lecture: Lecture 24: The presidency [1:21:42]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Follow national political news every day.
  Resources	Logic, Appendix 6 (party control of Congress and presidency) Logic, Appendix 7 (presidential elections)
  FYI	Gov mtg 2 (optional) opens today. Read the instructions and then submit online by Friday, April 2nd. Learn more in Poli 314, "The US Presidency"

• Wed, Mar 31st, 2021. The executive bureaucracy. What is a bureaucracy, and why do we need one? How is the bureaucracy structured, and what are its powers? Why and how have we increased bureaucratic independence? How do Congress and the president control the bureaucracy?
  Terms	bureaucracy; Executive Office of the President; cabinet department; independent agency; merit system; regulation; implementation; oversight; police patrol; fire alarm; Federal Register; OMB; central clearance; all terms from textbook
  Readings 24 pages	Logic, ch 8 especially 9e 349-54, 364-66, 367-75, 378-79, 384-86 (8e 319-24, 332, 334-41, 344-45, 349-50; 7e 320-25, 336, 339-46, 349-50, 353-55) [21 pages] Utah pp 50-52. Key concepts: "Working 4 Utah." How would the federal government be different—and how would the federal bureaucracy's role be different—if the US Congress were as jealous as the Utah Legislature of its authority? [3 pages] Watch lecture: Lecture 25: The bureaucracy [1:00:31]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Follow national political news every day.
  FYI	Learn more in Poli 314, "The US Presidency" Learn more in Poli 315, "Congress and the Legislative Process" Learn more in Poli 333, "Politics of Bureaucracy"

• Fri, Apr 2nd, 2021. Catch up and review.
  DUE	Quiz. Check Learning Suite. Gov mtg 2 (optional). Read the instructions and then submit online.
  FYI	TAs and I hold regular group review opportunities and one-on-one office hours. Please check the schedule at the very top of this syllabus.

• Mon, Apr 5th, 2021. The judiciary. How is the federal judiciary structured? How are state judiciaries different? How did federal courts acquire the power to strike down laws?
  Terms	common law; civil law; precedent; stare decisis; statutory law; constitutional law; administrative law; case law; District Court; Circuit Court of Appeals; U.S. Supreme Court; trial court; specialty court; intermediate court of appeals; state supreme court; judicial review; Marbury v Madison; all terms from textbook
  Readings 36 pages	Logic 9e 394-409, 417-28 (8e 361-74, 383-94; 7e 364-77, 385-96) [29 pages] US Constitution, Articles III, IV, V, and VI [3 pages] Utah pp 123-26. How do state court caseloads compare to federal court caseloads? Why? Utah is one of several states to experiment with specialized courts (e.g. drug courts, teen courts, mental health courts). Should other states try this experiment or not? [4 pages] Recommended: Kerr (2007), How to Read a Judicial Opinion. Kerr (mainly pp 53-61) gives very clear definitions of the complicated terminology we discuss in class, in addition to discussing how cases proceed from trial courts into appeals courts. If today's discussion is at all unclear, read his short, simple essay. Watch lecture: Lecture 26a: The judiciary, part 1 [0:52:36]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Follow national political news every day.
  FYI	Learn more in Poli 311, "State and Local Politics" Learn more in Poli 420, "Constitutional Law: American Federal System" Learn more in Poli 421, "Constitutional Law: Rights and Immunities" Learn more in Poli 364, "Jurisprudence"

• Wed, Apr 7th, 2021. Continued. How does the Supreme Court operate? How do Supreme Court justices interpret the Constitution?
  Terms	decision to decide; rule of four; writ of certiorari; decision on the merits; amicus curiae; majority opinion; dissenting opinion; concurring opinion; originalism; living Constitution; merit plan; all terms from textbook
  Readings 17 pages	Logic 9e 409-17 (8e 374-83; 7e 377-85) [7 pages] Utah pp 126-33. Why do state supreme courts (and the Utah Supreme Court particularly) strike down fewer laws than the US Supreme Court? Understand the merit plan (nominating commission, retention election). What evidence suggests that it is the merit plan rather than partisan agreement that promotes consensus on the Utah Supreme Court? How would American politics change if federal judges were selected using the merit plan? What if judges were elected instead? [7 pages] Hamilton (1787), The Federalist, #78. Hamilton defends the Constitution's provisions for unelected judges with lifelong tenure. He argues that these provisions will guarantee judicial independence, which he characterizes as desirable under certain conditions. What are the conditions? Are those conditions met today? If not, would it be better if judges ran in elections as Republican or Democratic candidates? [3 pages] Watch lecture: Lecture 26b: The judiciary, part 2 [0:50:54]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) We will probably have time to start the next lecture today, so start those readings if possible. Follow national political news every day.
  Resources	Video: Stephen Breyer on Charlie Rose [4:37] Video: Antonin Scalia on judges [1:43]

• Fri, Apr 9th, 2021. Catch up and review.
  DUE	Quiz. Check Learning Suite.
  FYI	Debate 3 opens today. Read the instructions and then submit online by Wednesday, April 14th. TAs and I hold regular group review opportunities and one-on-one office hours. Please check the schedule at the very top of this syllabus.

• Mon, Apr 12th, 2021. Crime and punishment.
  Terms	deterrence; retribution/punishment; incapacitation; rehabilitation; restitution; truth-in-sentencing; three strikes; sex offender registry; mandatory sentencing guidelines; parole; probation; legislation by anecdote; crime news script; Ronnie Lee Gardner; death penalty
  Readings 42 pages	As you read the following materials, ponder: What is the goal of criminal justice policy? What are we trying to accomplish when we impose jail time, fines, community service, probation, drug treatment, and other sentences? (There are several possible answers, so don't stop with one.) For example, with the frozen turkey story, how might the outcome have been different if the perpetrator were imprisoned for 25 years? Or what if Ronnie Lee Gardner had enjoyed access to youth court and drug court in his formative years rather than spending so many of those years institutionalized or incarcerated? Since most of you belong to a church that believes in change and redemption, even for murderers and the vilest sinners, ponder: When is rehabilitation most likely to work, and which approaches are most likely to succeed? Hinckley (2005), "Forgiveness" (or PDF) [6 pages] Faust (2007), "The Healing Power of Forgiveness" (or PDF) [3 pages] Mosiah 28:1-7, Alma 24 (especially verses 10-11), Alma 48: 21-24, 3 Nephi 5:4-6, 3 Nephi 6:3, and John 8:3-11 [2 pages] Read this packet of newspaper articles about the June 18, 2010, execution of Ronnie Lee Gardner, Utah's most recent execution. If you find this interesting, here's an optional (but recommended) follow-up, written a year after the execution: "LDS bishop recounts Ronnie Lee Gardner's final days". [16 pages] Read this packet of newspaper articles about Utah's teen courts [5 pages] Read this packet of newspaper articles about Utah's drug courts [10 pages] Recommended: Read about plea deals for sex offenders (or PDF) Watch lecture: Lecture 27b: Crime and punishment, part 2 [0:43:19]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Watch lecture: Lecture 27a: Crime and punishment, part 1 [0:50:33]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Follow national political news every day.

• Unit 5. Time to declare as a political science major!

• Wed, Apr 14th, 2021. What have we learned?
  DUE	Student ratings. I do not receive your (anonymous) evaluations until after grades are posted, but I do receive a list of participants soon enough to give credit. I appreciate your constructive feedback. https://studentratings.byu.edu/ Debate 3. Read the instructions and then submit online.
  Terms	All terms from textbook
  Readings 13 pages	Utah ch 11. Key concepts: political subculture, Trump's "tremendous problem" in Utah. How will understanding the delegate-trustee tradeoff help you engage officeholders more effectively? [7 pages] Though I do not specifically require Logic ch 15, it reviews several concepts from throughout the book, giving them new applications. Reading it will help prepare you for the final, especially the comprehensive portions. Doctrine and Covenants 88:74-80,118 [1 page] Doctrine and Covenants 93:53 [1 page] Doctrine and Covenants 98:10 [1 page] Doctrine and Covenants 121:39-44 [1 page] Vavreck and Tausanovitch (2019), "It May Not Seem That Way, but Politicians Often Do What Voters Want". Consider this column in light of all we have discussed. Does American government "work" or not? What works well? What needs improvement or reform? [2 pages] The US Constitution underlies much of this course's material. Give it another read. If America's founders saw our nation today, what would surprise them? What would please or disappoint them? How might Federalists (advocates for a strong, centralized union of people) react differently to what they see than Antifederalists (advocates for a strengthened alliance of states)? What have we learned since 1787 that they did not know, and which might have led them to change parts of the Constitution? What amendments, if any, would you propose to the US Constitution? And now that we have completed this course, how do you react to Dallin H. Oaks's list of 5 fundamental features of the Constitution that strike him as inspired—or to Rex E. Lee's list of genius features? I am happy to discuss the pros and cons of the political science major with you at any time. Also, I train and supervise BYU's interns in the Utah legislature. Please ask me if you have questions about this internship. Watch lecture: Lecture 28: What have we learned? [0:55:54]. (Link forthcoming once the class begins.) Follow national political news every day.
  FYI	If you are unable to sell your hardcopy texts, please consider donating them to me. Next time I teach this course, I will place donated books on reserve in the library. You may drop them at my office after taking the final if you wish to donate them.

• Fri, Apr 16th, 2021. Final exam info.

  FYI

  Study guide. Behold Format. The final exam combines a midterm on the last third of the course (75 questions) with comprehensive questions reviewing material from the first two-thirds of the course (30 questions), a total of 105 questions. You already completed the written portion (your third debate paper), so all that remains is the multiple choice section. Scheduling. Please do not ask to take the final examination early. It is against university policy to give final examinations outside of the scheduled final examination period. Do not make any plans that interfere with the final exam schedule. Please do not ask for exceptions except in the most extenuating medical circumstances (such as a baby's due date during finals week). I am not authorized to grant exceptions to attend weddings or other family events. Review opportunities: Regular office hours and group sessions end on the last day of lecture. I will inform you of any special review opportunities offered after that point.