Ashford 4: – Week 3 – Journal

Week Three Journal

Prepare: Prior to beginning your reflection this week, read Chapters 5, 6, and 7 in American Government, review the Week Three Instructor Guidance.

Reflect: The executive and judicial branches
of the U.S. national government often seem to operate independently and
with little conflict. Many laws are signed by the President and then
implemented without a word from the judicial branch. However, there are
times when executive decisions are challenged by the judicial branch in
a process called judicial review. In addition, there are times when a
judicial review has direct impact on your life. For example, when the
Supreme Court declared the Affordable Care Act constitutional,
many people without health care insurance were finally able to purchase
health care insurance. Additionally, when the Supreme Court declared
sections of the Defense of Marriage Act unconstitutional, some of the
constraints that prevented many gay and lesbian couples from marrying
were eliminated. Executive Order 13658 on February 20, 2014 also had a
direct impact on many business people that contract with the federal
government by increasing the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour. Clearly,
the actions of the executive and judicial branches often directly affect
our lives. Think about how you have been personally impacted by a
Supreme Court decision.

Write: In your journal, explain how the actions of the executive and/or judicial branches have personally affected your life.

Your journal response must be a minimum one page,
double-spaced. Justify your conclusions with facts and persuasive
reasoning. Fully respond to all parts of the question and write your
response in your own words. Outside research and references are not
required for journal assignments, but if you choose to utilize outside
sources they must be correctly cited utilizing APA format both within
the body of your journal and include a full reference page.

Carefully review the Grading Rubric for the criteria that will be used to evaluate your assignment.