60-Second Civics: Episode 2820, General Warrants and the American Revolution The British government's use of general warrants on the American colonies was part of the spark leading to the American Revolution.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2819, General Warrants in the Colonies Though general warrants were illegal under British common law, that didn't stop Parliament from implementing them in the colonies.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2818, A Man???s Home Is His Castle The English common law observance of the right to privacy in one's home created the phrase "a man's home is his castle."
60-Second Civics: Episode 2817, Freedom of Association and American Citizenship Scholar Alexis de Tocqueville had many keen observations about the implications of the right to assemble on American society.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2816, Discrimination and Government Interference If an organization meets certain criteria, it must follow government anti-discrimination laws.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2815, The Right to Associate The right to associate, while not explicitly stated in the Constitution, has evolved through court precedence.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2814, Time, Place, and Manner Restrictions Court precedence has determined that the right to assemble may be limited if certain time, place, and manner conditions are met.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2813, Civil Rights Movements and Assembly The civil rights movement of the mid-twentieth century is an example of a group successfully petitioning the government.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2812, Women and the Right to Petition Throughout United States history, women have petitioned the government for a variety of purposes.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2811, Silencing Critics Several times in the past, the government has silenced petitioners. The treatment of Bonus Army is one example of this.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2810, The Gag Rule and Slavery In the 1800's, the American political system enacted something known as a "gag rule" in order to maintain slavery in the United States.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2807, The Importance of the Rights to Assemble and Petition The right to petition was a fundamental building block of the early United States.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2806, The Rights to Petition and Associate The right to associate, while not mentioned in the First Amendment, has evolved through Supreme Court cases.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2805, Freedom of Assembly The right of a group to assemble is protected by the First Amendment and helps create governmental change.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2804, The Rights to Assemble, Petition, and Associate These elements of the First Amendment allow citizens to hold the government accountable for their policies.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2802, More Limitations on the Power to Restrict Speech In order for the government to fairly regulate free speech, they must observe certain ethical guidelines.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2801, Limitations on the Power to Restrict Speech Though the government can regulate certain kinds of speech, there are limitations on just how far those regulations can go.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2799, More Exceptions to Free Speech These continued restrictions to free speech include obscenity laws, as well as time, place, and manner restrictions.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2798, Exceptions to Free Speech Libel, defamation, and incitement to crime are all forms of speech not protected by the First Amendment.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2797, Limitations to Free Speech The freedom of speech does have its limits, and many feel certain restrictions are necessary.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2793, A Free Press in the Early Republic The First Amendment was created in part to help ease fears that the government would manipulate the press.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2789, Benefits of Freedom of Expression, Part 2 In addition to promoting individual liberties, the freedom of expression helps boost representative government.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2785, Justice O'Connor on Free Exercise The Supreme Court case Rosenberger v. University of Virginia helped establish the idea of "bedrock principles."
60-Second Civics: Episode 2784, Two Cases Test the Free Exercise Clause These two Supreme Court cases helped establish the bounds of the free exercise clause.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2783, Testing Whether a Law Violates the Free Exercise Clause In order to determine if a law is in violation of the free exercise clause, the courts must ask themselves certain questions.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2782, Limiting Free Exercise of Religion In certain cases, the court will find it necessary to interfere with the free exercise of religion.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2781, The Free Exercise Clause The free exercise clause is another element of the First Amendment that protects religious freedoms.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2779, Interpreting the Establishment Clause People hold differing views about what rights the establishment clause gives and takes away.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2778, The Establishment Clause How this important piece of the Constitution came to be, and how it has been interpreted over time.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2775, Religious Conflicts in Europe Before the United States was founded, religious turmoil in Europe paved a path for a religiously free nation.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2774, Ignorance of the Bill of Rights A 1991 survey of Americans revealed that not many know about the history and significance of the Bill of Rights.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2772, The Constitution As a Bill of Rights In addition to amendments, the Constitution itself was written to protect certain freedoms.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2764, Limitations on Government in the Virginia Declaration of Rights The Virginia Declaration of Rights was a trailblazing document that informed our Bill of Rights.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2762, Ordinary Legislation vs. a Bill of Rights The English Bill of Rights of 1689 is important for understanding the evolution of bills of rights in the United States.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2761, Early Documents That Established Rights Before the U.S. Bill of Rights, there were a few other documents that helped pave the way for the protection of individual liberties.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2760, The Eighth, Ninth, and Tenth Amendments These final pieces of the Bill of Rights deal with crime, punishment, and states rights.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2757, The First Three Amendments These three Constitutional amendments protect some of our most fundamental rights as citizens.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2753, Ballot Initiatives Initiative, referendum, recall are a trio of methods, begun during the Progressive era of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, which allow citizens to participate in direct democracy in their states.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2750, How the Depression Changed Government The Great Depression changed the relationship between the federal government and state governments.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2747, Regulation of Commerce Regulation of commerce cases demonstrate the kinds of issues that are common in America's system of shared governmental authority.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2746, State Constitutional Amendments State constitutional amendments often reflect state responses to policy debates occurring throughout the United States.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2745, State Constitutions Since the first state constitutions were adopted in 1776, state constitutional conventions have resulted in new constitutions being adopted some 144 times.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2743, Municipal Governments There are three broad categories of local governments in the United States: Counties, municipalities, and special districts.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2742, County Governments State constitutions give legislatures power to create local governments, which receive charters, or grants of authority, to carry out a wide range of governmental responsibilities.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2741, Lieutenant Governors Lieutenant governors have been considered the fifth wheel of American politics. In reality, they have important responsibilities.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2740, State Executive and Legislative Branches Learn about the executive and legislative branches of state government on today's podcast.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2728, Presidents and Enforcement of Supreme Court Decisions Sometimes, presidents balk at having to enforce Supreme Court decisions.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2727, Presidential Influence Over the Supreme Court How do Supreme Court justices get nominated? Find out on today's episode.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2726, Limits on the Power of the Supreme Court Are there limits on the power of the Supreme Court? We find out on today's podcast.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2725, Fundamental Principles and Modernism Today we look at the fundamental principles and modernism approaches to constitutional interpretation.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2724, Strict Construction and Original Intent Today we examine the strict construction and original intent methods of constitutional interpretation.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2718, Federal Courts Today we present a one-minute overview the powers of federal courts under Article III of the Constitution.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2716, Courts and Federalism Check Administrative Agencies The courts and our federal system check the power of administrative agencies.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2715, Congressional Oversight of Administrative Agencies The president has appointment powers, but Congress has the power to oversee administrative agencies.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2713, Patronage vs. Civil Service In general, public employees can't be fired for refusing to support the political party in power.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2708, Expanding and Contracting Bureaucracy Sometimes, the bureaucracy shrinks. Learn about the expanding and shrinking of federal agencies on today's podcast.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2706, Limits on the Power of Administrative Agencies Administrative agencies are powerful, but their power is limited. Find out how on today's podcast.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2700, The President and America's Reputation Why is the president the preeminent figure in domestic and international politics? Find out on today's episode.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2697, Differences Between Parliament and Congress There are critical differences between Parliament and Congress. Learn what these are on today's podcast.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2696, Parliament and the Prime Minister How do Parliament and the prime minister differ from the American system? Find out on today's podcast.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2695, Congress and the Supreme Court Limit the President Congress, the Supreme Court, and public opinion limit the power of the president.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2688, Congress and the Court reign in the president Can Congress and the Supreme Court reign in the power of the president? You bet.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2687, Presidential Power in Emergency and Crisis What does the Constitution say about presidential powers during emergencies or crisis? The answer may surprise you.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2686, Wars, Emergencies, and FDR With the support of Congress, FDR responded to the multiple crises that occurred during his administration.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2681, The President As Leader in Foreign Policy The president has a number of important powers, but the president's powers are limited in important ways.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2680, Franklin D. Roosevelt Find out why Franklin D. Roosevelt was arguably the most influential president of the 20th century.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2676, A Strong President, But Not Too Strong The Framers of the Constitution wanted the president to be strong, but not too strong.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2675, Above Partisan Politics The Framers of the Constitution expected presidents to be above partisan bickering. It didn't work out that way.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2673, Presidential Power and the Courts Today we learn about Supreme Court Justice Robert Jackson's opinion in Youngstown Sheet vs. Sawyer.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2670, Impeachment Any member of the House can initiate impeachment proceedings, but two-thirds of the Senate is required for removal from office.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2669, Investigations and the balance of power Congress uses its powers of investigation most frequently when the majority are of a different party than the president.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2667, The authority of Congress to conduct investigations Even though it's not mentioned in the Constitution, Congress has the authority to carry out investigations.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2664, The executive branch as a source for laws The president has the constitutional authority to recommend measures for congressional consideration.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2660, Lawmaking, Part 4: Conference committees and the veto What happens when the House and Senate versions differ? Find out on today's podcast.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2659, Lawmaking, Part 3: The committee vote What happens when a bill is passed by one chamber of Congress? Find out on today's episode.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2653, Office of Speaker in England and America Today we contrast the speaker of the House of Commons with that of the House of Representatives.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2648, Rules for House committees Rules, rules, rules. Your mom has them, your school has them, even the House of Representatives has them.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2647, The purpose of congressional committees The careful, deliberative work of Congress often occurs during committee meetings.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2646, Congressional committees Today we start our series on how Congress performs its functions in the American constitutional system.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2644, Communication with constituents According to C-SPAN, there are 570 official congressional Twitter accounts. Do you follow your members of Congress?
60-Second Civics: Episode 2642, The size of Congress How large is the U.S. Congress compared to other national legislatures? Find out on today's podcast.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2638, Legislative districts What can you do if you don't like the way your congressional district is drawn? Find out on today's podcast.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2636, Inherent powers The power to conduct investigations and compel testimony goes back to Parliament and the colonial legislatures.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2635, Enforcement powers The enforcement powers of Congress have been used to enact sweeping civil rights, voting rights, and voting laws.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2628, How the Framers limited the power of Congress The Framers of the Constitution mistrusted concentrations of power in government, so they sought to limit the power of Congress.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2626, Lengths of terms of parliamentarians and members of Congress Elections to the UK Parliament can occur at irregular intervals, but members of Congress are elected at regular intervals.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2624, Parliamentary government prohibited The Constitution forbids establishment of a parliamentary system for the United States.
60-Second Civics: Episode 2619, Removing obstacles to Native American voting Native Americans were often deprived of their right to vote until Congress took action.
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This site is brought to you by the Center for Civic Education. The Center's mission is to promote an enlightened and responsible citizenry committed to democratic principles and actively engaged in the practice of democracy. The Center has reached more than 30 million students and their teachers since 1965. Learn more.
