Congress & Presidency
Political Science 166
Spring 2003

Section 1--Professor Munger


TA:  Amy McKay (email Amy)

Textbooks        Grading Policy        Syllabus/Readings        Exam/Duke Calendar

WWW Resources

See also Professor Munger's Links Page
Syllabus
 
Michael C. Munger 
michael.munger@duke.edu 
Office:   Perkins Library, Room 303a 
Office Phone:  966-4301
Home Phone:  844-0154 (before 9 pm!)

T-Th 10:55-12:10

Perkins Library, Room 307
Office Hours:    11-12 W, 

           & 2:00 -3:00 pm W
           & by appointment

Duke Calendar (bottom of page)
Policy in the United States is made within a framework of “divided government”:  Some powers the Constitution awards to the President, and others are controlled by the Congress.  The two branches have a relationship that can be characterized as both adversarial and cooperative.  In particular, the executive controls most of the machinery of implementation and enforcement, and has the power to make appointments to government departments and regulatory agencies.  Congress controls “the purse,” with power over agencies’ budgets, as well has having final say over who can be appointed.  Further, Congress can pass legislation the creates, or destroys, agencies and departments.

Understanding this tension between Congress and the President is fundamental to understanding the U.S. policy process.  In this course, we will look at the two branches in detail, and examine both theories and case studies of how they interact.

I encourage you to read a newspaper every day, at least for the duration of the class.  We will  often talk about “current events” in class, and try to place these events in the context of the larger political system we are studying.  Here are two possibilities:

Washington Post:  http://www.washingtonpost.com/        New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/

And, of course, one should not ignore "alternative" news sources:

Drudge Report:    http://www.drudgereport.com/     The Onion:    http://www.theonion.com/ 

PAPER:

This is a writing course.  For more information on the writing component of this course, click 

                                                here

back to top

GRADES:
Grades for this class will be derived from the students performance on the final exam, the four papers, and the presentation, as well as class participation.   These will have the following weights:
 
ITEM
WEIGHT
1.  Final Exam -- Essay format, in scheduled exam period (5/1, 9 am - noon).
30% 

2.  4 Papers -- Each paper counts 10 percent of your final grade
40%
3.  Presentation
15% 
4.  Class Participation
15% 
TOTAL
100%

back to top

TEXTS:
The main texts for the course are:

In addition, there are occasional handouts and other assignments that will be distributed as the semester progresses.

 

READING SCHEDULE:                                                    back to top

Organizational Meeting:  January 9

Week 1 (Jan 14 and 16):  The Problem of Institutional Design

Week 2 (Jan 21 and 23):  The Rules of the Game

Week 3 (Jan 28 and 30):  The President:  The Power to Persuade Week 4 (Feb 4 and 6):  The Presidential Elections System

NOTE:  February 4 class will meet IN THE LIBRARY!  Details in class...

Week 5 (Feb 11 and 13):  Congress I:  Organization and Structure

Week 6 (Feb 18 and 20):  Congress II:  The Problem of Institutional Design

Week 7 (Feb 25 and 27):  Foreign Policy

 Week 8 (March 4 and 6):  Economic Politics

NO CLASS March 11 or 13:  Spring Break!!!!

Week 9 (March 18 and 20)  Impeachment March 25 and 27, April 1, 3, 8, 10, 15, and 17:
Paper Presentations (15 Minutes, Maximum, plus 5 minutes for response, 5 minutes for questions)

NB:  The final will contain a selection of FIVE QUESTIONS from presentations, which you will be required to answer.  These five questions will be short essays, and will count 2 points each.

Last Class (April 22):  Course Review, Prepare for Final

EXAM FOR THIS CLASS:

              Thursday, May 1            9 am - noon
 
 
 back to top
 


 

SPRING 2003 Calendar

(for details, go to Registrar’s Calendar Page)

 

January 8   Wednesday. 8:00 a.m. Spring Semester begins: ALL classes normally meeting on Mondays meet on this Wednesday only; Wednesday ONLY classes begin Wednesday, January 15; Drop/Add continues

January 20   Monday. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day holiday: classes are rescheduled on Wednesday, January 8

January 22   Wednesday. 5:00 pm, Drop/Add ends

February 21 Friday. Last day for reporting midsemester grades

March 7        Friday. 7:00 p.m. Spring recess begins

March 17      Monday. 8:00 a.m. Classes resume

March 26     Wednesday. Registration begins for Fall Semester, 2003, and Summer 2003

April 11      Friday. Registration ends for Fall Semester, 2003;  Summer 2003 registration continues

April 12     Saturday. Drop/Add begins

April 18     Friday. Graduate classes end

April 19-27   Saturday-Sunday. Graduate reading period; length of the 200-level course reading period is determined by the professor

April 23     Wednesday. Undergraduate classes end

April 24-27  Thursday-Sunday. Undergraduate reading period

April 28    Monday. Final examinations begin

May 3   Saturday. 10:00 p.m. Final examinations end

May 9   Friday. Commencement begins

May 11 Sunday. Graduation exercises; conferring of degrees

back to top