Congress:
- How do you regard Congress?
- Does it represent your aims?
- How effective is it in delivering on its power of oversight?
- Is the balance right between Congress and the President?
The Presidency
- Are you comfortable with the way the President uses his powers?
- How would you score the current presidency out of 10 - and why?
- Who is/was the USA's greatest president - and why?
- Who's at the bottom of the Presidential poll for you - and why|
- Do you believe presidential power is in decline? Why/why not?
- Who will be the white House's next incumbent and why?
- Do you believe Americans understand the role that the Supreme Court plays in government today?
- Is the Court doing a good job? Why/why not?
- Inverting Alexander Hamilton, some commentators regard the Supreme Court as the most dangerous and least democratic aspect of US government today. Is that a fair assessment? Why/why not?
- How effective do you feel the two party system is in US politics?
- In your opinion, what unites and what divides each of the US' two main parties?
- What do the Republicans need to do to regain the White House?
- What do the Democrats need to do to retain the White House?
- Why is there so often a disconnect between voting patterns at local/State/Congressional and presidential levels?
- Can one party ever dominate across the US political spectrum?
- What effect has sequestration had on your views on the current US political situation?
- Do you believe the wrangling over healthcare reform has enhanced or damaged both the President and Congressional opponents?
- What impact is Syria having on the standing of the President and Congress?
- Have recent debates around gay marriage and also voting rights affected your view of the Supreme Court?
- Why are so many Americans often so critical of 'big government'?
- What role does the media play in US politics today?
- Do you feel the media is a power for good in US politics? Why/why not?
- Is social media affecting today's political scene - and if so, how?
- What's your view on the death penalty - is it right that the US retains the right to execute wrongdoers?
- What's your view on gun control?
- Why is it such a contentious issue in US politics?
- Will events such as Aurora, Newtown or the Navy Yard shootings have any effect politically?
- Which interest groups have the greatest impact on US politics, and why?
- Do interest groups enhance or detract from the US political scene - why and how?
- Do you believe the US is now a fair and equitable society for all? Why/why not?
- How much power and influence does religion have in US politics?
- Is that power on the rise or decline?
- Does its rise or decline matter?
- What effect, if any, do you feel that current US politics has on the standing of the nation in the world?
- Does the rest of the world's view of the US actually matter? Why/why not?
No responses need to be attributed fully - I'm looking at something like 'Fred, a store owner from Florida said...' - just enough to give the students a sense of whose opinion they're hearing.
I'm very happy to take written responses to all or any of the questions - or, for the more daring, sound or even movie files.
Interested? If you'd like to find out more or are even tentatively interested in taking part, email me at m.j.shanahan@reading.ac.uk and I can fill you in on the details
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