Overview

This module invites you to learn more about the federal government creation, actions, and responsibilities.

Learner Outcomes

Upon completion of this module, you will be able to:

Understand federal, state, and local government organization and procedures.
Evaluate electoral issues, including elections, ballot measures, initiatives, and referenda.
Analyze and evaluate ways of influencing local, state, and national governments to preserve individual rights and promote the common good.

Why This is Important

If you were going to start a government, what powers would you grant it? How would you justify the scope of that authority? What rights and liberties would it respect? Who would make decisions and when? How would you allow for changes to your basic framework of government when those became necessary?

These are the sorts of questions the framers of the U.S. Constitution considered. How did they think about them, and what were their answers? Did they get them right? How should we think about the constitutional framework they created, as well as the changes (both formal and informal) that have taken place over time?