Analyze federal government domestic and foreign policy responsibilities

Climate Adaptation Strategies

Miami is spending $4 billion raising roads and seawalls. Phoenix is painting rooftops white to fight heat. Climate adaptation is happening now because some impacts are already unavoidable.

case_study

8 min · advanced

School Choice Debate

Parents in low-income neighborhoods face impossible choices between struggling public schools and lottery spots at charter schools. The debate is about whether competition improves schools or drains resources from students who need them most.

comparison

8 min · advanced

Who Decides What You Learn?

Every textbook and curriculum is chosen by someone. The question isn't whether politics shapes what students learn—it's whose politics wins.

mechanism

7 min · advanced

Article VII: Ratification

When the Constitutional Convention ended in 1787, delegates had created a document but it was just paper. Nine states needed to approve it. The ratification debate became America's first great political fight.

concept

5 min · beginner

Border Patrol Authority

Border Patrol runs checkpoints up to 100 miles from any border. The Supreme Court gave them special Fourth Amendment exceptions that regular police don't have.

mechanism

5 min · beginner

Border Wall Debate

The U.S.-Mexico border is 1,954 miles with 700 miles of barriers. The wall debate isn't really about concrete and steel—it's about how America manages immigration and which tools actually work.

comparison

8 min · advanced

Campaign Finance and Super PACs

Super PACs spent $2.7 billion on federal elections in 2024. They accept unlimited donations from billionaires and corporations. This was illegal before the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision changed everything.

case_study

7 min · intermediate

Citizens United v FEC: Campaign Finance

The First Amendment says Congress shall make no law restricting free speech. But what happens when unlimited corporate spending drowns out ordinary citizens? Citizens United chose free speech over anti-corruption safeguards.

case_study

8 min · advanced

Corporate Power vs Public Interest

Pharmaceutical companies spend $380 million annually lobbying Congress. Drug prices stay the highest in the developed world. Concentrated wealth creates asymmetric access to decision-makers.

comparison

8 min · advanced

Corporate Taxes and Loopholes

From 2018 to 2022, 55 major corporations including Nike and FedEx paid zero federal income tax despite earning billions. The statutory rate is 21%, but profitable companies paid just 11.3% on average.

comparison

8 min · intermediate

Electronic Voting Security

After 2020, election security became the most contested topic in American politics. Most confident claims from both sides were wrong. The actual system has specific strengths and vulnerabilities that aren't evenly distributed.

mechanism

7 min · advanced

Grassroots vs. Astroturf: Real and Fake Movements

When thousands protest, how do you know if it's real? Sometimes grassroots uprisings are corporate-funded campaigns designed to manufacture popular support. It looks real from a distance but it's plastic all the way down.

case_study

7 min · advanced