Assignment:
Choose one US Senator or US Representative from your local state and write a report on a political position he or she supports. Your thesis will agree or disagree with his political stance. Proper grammar and spelling are required. Papers must include a cover page, at least two-four full pages of content, and a bibliography. All sources must be legit, academic, or peer reviewed sources. This means most websites (Wikipedia, answers.com, and similar websites) are disqualified. If you can't identify an author and date that's a good sign that the source needs to be carefully evaluated and, most likely, not used. The UMUC online databases are recommended as a way to find good academic sources, particularly journal articles. One source must be listed as an annotated bibliography.
Choose a Senator or congressman you would like to profile. Find online sources for information about the politician, including the official website of their campaign. Based on these sources, outline
Choose some of the bullets below to help you get started.
- Discuss the Senator's background, education, beliefs, religion and previous career.
- Consider the Senator's basic political ideology.
- Electoral history.
- Should cover the Senator's position in congress, including committee and subcommittee assignments.
- Consider the Senator's role/status in the national party.
- Position on at least four major issues, such as immigration, the environment, energy policy, middle eastern policy, national security and the economy.
- Should consider the demographics of his/her state and demonstrate how the interests of those demographic groups are reflected in the Senators voting patterns.
- Consider the Senator's voting record in Congress and rate of Absenteeism.
You are welcome to contact your Senator if you wish. If you do, they should be cited as a source in your paper.
Use the following guidelines:
1) The paper should be at least two-four pages long (not including the cover-age and references page - MLA or APA format). The report should be double-spaced and include correct citations as well as a bibliography of sources used. One-inch margins and 12 Times New Roman
2) Choose a US Senator or US Representative you would like to profile from your home state.
3) Determine his or hers position on a key issue (Capital Punishment, Gun Control, Abortion, etcetera....)
4) Write a third person paper supporting or not supporting the key issue. Create a thesis statement. (Avoid using I phrases). Provide three supporting or rebutting ideas. Provide a counter argument. (find a senator/ representative with opposite view)
5) Create an outline.
6) Gather sources and create an annotated bibliography.
7) We will work on this report in phases, please see below for dates.