American Constitutional Development I — Structures and Processes

Welcome to Dr. Alan Sager’s Spring 2023 course.

GOV320K Mon-Wed 2:30-400 Wagner 214

(Website: http://sites.la.utexas.edu/amcondev1/)

About Dr.Sager

I look forward to teaching and working with you this semester in this
live course. . In case you do not know me, I have a law degree and a Ph.d. in Political Science. I have done many things in my life including practicing law, teaching, being in the political polling and consulting business, working on the staff of Chief Justice Warren Burger among other things. I have taught part time at U.T. for more than 25 years. I also taught full-time back in the late 60’s and early 70’s before I went to the Supreme Court and then the Federal Judicial Center.

I continue teaching because I love doing it and I love the law, The Constitution, judicial process and politics. Finally, I have been involved in the judicial and legal process as a lawyer, administrator, scholar, politician and even a party during a 20 year long law suit involving my business.

Overview

This course focuses on the development of American Constitutional law in the areas of structures, e.g. federalism, and processes, e.g. how cases get to the Supreme Court. Most of the assignments involve reading and analyzing judicial opinions in actual cases. These opinions not only reveal what various justices, scholars and leaders think the Constitution says about the issues at hand, they also reveal how, and perhaps why, justices think and reason as they do. In reading and studying these opinions, we will also pay close attention to the theories and methods of interpretation embedded, often to the point of being purposely hidden, in all of these opinions.

In part due to the growth of Youtube, there are a large number of real and recreated historical videos related to actual cases. Many are assigned for students viewing. These can be found on the videopage which is also linked on the schedule page.

This course is designed for students who want to know more about role of the Constitution in structuring American political life, students who are planning to attend or think they want to attend law school, and future teachers of government and political science at any level of our educational system. It is also for students who want to expand their skills in reading and interpreting political texts.

Course Goals (promises)

There are four major goals for this course:

To identify the major historical themes and controversies about our Constitution
To better understand Constitutionalism and our Constitution; what our Constitution is and is not and how it has changed and developed over the past 200 years.
To have students develop a high level of skill in reading, briefing and understanding Supreme Court opinions, with special attention on what questions to ask when reading an opinion Part of this skill includes being able to see and understand the point of view of the person writing an opinion.
To raise participants’ “cultural literacy” about the Supreme Court including improtant Justices and major cases, our Consitution and the historical, social, and cultural context in which the Court and Constitution exist.

To fulfill these goals, some of the questions we will attempt to answer as we work through major Supreme Court cases in historical order include:

What is a Constitution supposed to do and who is supposed to interpret it?
From where did our Constitution come and does that even matter today?
What differences, if any, have existed among the justices as to what the Constitution means?
How do various justices go about interpreting the Constitution? What accounts for their differences? In other words, what are the various theories of constitutional interpretation?
What impact does the Court and Constitution have on American society.?

We will also be constantly searching for the unspoken or assumed premises of the justices and even ourselves as we study these materials.
Bringing such premises to light will sharpen and enhance your analytical skills and ability to create distinctions. Being able to see and create distinctions is the building block of learning and most efficient way to expand what understanding of the world around you.

What is required of students in the course:
A. Keep up with reading and briefing for each class.

B. Know the basics of the cases before coming to class. This means know them in a way you can answer questions as to when, who, what and why.

C. A willingness to be an active participant in the class.

D. A willingness to go beyond any self imposed academic limits.

Course Requirements
1. 3 hours exams approximately 65%(40% objective,60% essay)
2. 2 short papers 3-4 pages approximately 20%
3. Class attendance and participation approximately 15%

T.A. and Office Hours

My T.A. this semester is Mr. Samuel Mead His office hours will be announced on the first day of class

Dr. Sager holds office hours in Union Dining area Mon/Wed 1:15-2:15
Wed office hours are at Cactus Cafe in Union near coffee sho 4:15-??

Also available by appointment.

Who Should Not Take This Course?
Anyone prone to putting everything off until the exam and not being willing to keep up with daily assignment–that is unrepentant and unchangeable PROCRASTINATORS.

How Can Students Make This Course Easier?
Spend all the time necessary in the first few weeks to do good to excellent briefs and put together a study group. Bring written briefs to class to use if called on. Can also commit briefs to memory.

Prizes
It is my custom to award prizes for the best scores on each exam and the highest average for the semester. For the highest individual exam scores the prize is a U.S. Supreme Court coffee mug. For the highest average , the prize is a personally engraved plaque with a gavel and the Supreme Court seal and a signed copy, to the winner, of Clarence Thomas’s autobiography, My Grandfather’s Son. There are other prizes as well, e.g., for most improvement from one exam to another

SUGGESTION Students have found that study groups of from 4 to 8 classmates are extremely helpful in mastering this course.

Highlights:
(Current News & Opinion)
This section contains articles that directly or indirectly relate to this course. course. If any will be covered on the exam, it will be so noted in class.