This unit is designed to help you get involved in the political process. You will be guided through a survey of how the national government works. You will be asked to investigate some current, controversial issues. You will develop an opinion regarding these issues and create a persuasive argument which you will send to your political representative (s).

In order to influence your politicians concerning future legislation, you must first understand the process for passing laws. For this project we are going to focus primarily on the specific roles of the Legislative and Executive branches. For Phase I you will need to answer a series of 20 questions in order to build your understanding of the legislation process. This knowledge will lead you into the following three stages and culminate with a persuasive letter to your congress person(s).

Send a letter or e-mail to one of your political representatives convincing them how to vote on a current or future political issue. You might compliment them on some of their views  and/or you might try to  convince them of your views. Either way you need to create a persuasive argument concerning a contemporary issue and form it into a letter or e-mail to one or more of your appropriate representatives.

How does the National Government work? Use the links below to answer the following questions. List your answers in complete sentences.

 Look into current issues and voting inside the House and Senate. What are current topics in Congress? Which issues are being debated on now? Which bills have been introduced and ratified? Use the links provided from phase one to guide you and maybe these can help also.

Be sure to visit your Senators' and Representatives' home pages for additional issues.

Identify an issue of contemporary importance that you feel is important. There are some current issues provided below for your convenience. Try to find one that ties itself to upcoming votes in the Senate or House of Representatives. Remember, in some way most of these issues will be discussed and probably voted upon in the future.

Investigate an issue and decide where you stand? Do you support or do you oppose?

Create a persuasive argument that will support your position on the issue.  

Here are two arguments supporting and disagreeing with censorship. You should start by identifying an issue and learning more about both sides of the issue. Then develop support for your position and eventually create a thesis statement. Here are two examples of a thesis statement on different sides of the same issue.

List of Controversial Issues

Send a letter or e-mail to one of your political representatives convincing them how to vote on a current or future political issue. You might compliment them on some of their views  and/or you might try to  convince them of your views. Either way you need to create a persuasive argument concerning a contemporary issue and form it into a letter or e-mail to one or more of your appropriate representatives. Be sure you are polite, accurate, realistic and serious. Turn in a copy to your instructor.

Include an Introduction, Body and a Conclusion and follow the guidelines below.

You might want to use Microsoft Word to create a Professional Business Letter.

You may also write a letter and mail it through the UPS.

Proofread for errors and style.

Be sure to make a copy to show your teacher.

Introduction:

Body:

Conclusion:

Hopefully you have realized that you can influence the political process. It always helps to create good, strong persuasive arguments. It also helps to know what your politicians think concerning different issues. Hopefully you will receive a reply to your letter.