1. One of the attempts to use the Constitution to achieve a social policy was Prohibition. Review the twenty-seven amendments to the Constitution. Other than the Bill of Rights, can you identify other amendments used to achieve social policy?

2. Can you name your representatives in the House of Representatives and the Senate? Who is the current Speaker of the House and the Senate Majority Leader?

3. Can you think of current examples where legislation that is popular with the majority of Americans is held up in the Senate, especially by Senators from smaller states?

4. Simon believes that people in the United States have a right to a clean environment. He has organized a grassroots effort to make this into a "constitutional right." What might he do to achieve his goal? What challenges does he face?

5. Even in states where medical marijuana is legal, many large employers have company-wide policies that prohibit the hiring of anyone who tests positive for recent marijuana use. How do you think Congress should respond to protect the rights of citizens to medical marijuana while protecting the interests of employers?

6. The EPA has allowed California to establish its own emissions standards in the decades since the passage of the Clean Air Act. In 2018, however, the EPA indicated it would try to end some of its waivers with respect to California's mandate for zero emissions vehicles. Under what circumstances do you believe states should be able to regulate their own environmental quality standards, even if they place burdens on the economy?

7.Preemption can be used by states to prevent cities from adopting standards that deviate from statewide standards. In Ohio, for example, a statewide law prohibits cities from raising the minimum wage to a level higher than that set by the federal government. What are the arguments for and against a statewide law such as this?

8. Today the United States is one of the few remaining countries to refuse the adoption of the metric system for weights and measures. Would the decision to "go metric" be within the powers of Congress?

9. Congressional authority to regulate foreign trade extends to the use of economic sanctions against rogue foreign nations. How effective have these sanctions been in the past? Do you believe it is more effective for Congress to ban trade with a foreign nation to encourage its citizens to overthrow hostile governments or for Congress to encourage trade so that those citizens may prosper economically?

10. If states are prohibited by the dormant commerce clause from discriminating against out-of-state commerce, how can state universities charge a lower tuition rate to in-state residents? Can you distinguish the role the state is playing when it does so, between that of a spender and that of a collector of monies?

11. In 2005, in an effort to coerce states to tighten up standards for issuing identity cards and driver licenses in the fight against terrorism, Congress passed the REAL ID Act stipulating certain requirements for state-issued identification. States that failed to comply would be punished by its citizens being denied access to federally run facilities including airports. How is this an exercise of the spending power? Do you believe Congress should have the ability to stipulate who can use federally funded airports?

12. Although the First Amendment prohibits the government from establishing religion, there is no prohibition on spending money to support religious life generally. For example, the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships provides funding to several religious organizations, including organizations that maintain discriminatory policies toward gays and lesbians and routinely engage in proselytizing activity. Do you believe that public money should be used to fund these groups? Why or why not?

13. In 2006, Ohio passed a law requiring all public schools that receive a donation of a plaque or poster with Ohio's state motto, "In God We Trust," to display the donation prominently in a school cafeteria or classroom. Do you believe this law is a violation of the First Amendment? Why or why not?

14. During the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show, a performance by Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake ended in a "wardrobe malfunction" when Janet Jackson's breast was exposed for a split second. CBS was fined more than half a million dollars for this violation after a record number of complaints were filed with the FCC. Do you believe that the government's action was fair?

15. In 1969, the Supreme Court ruled that school officials could not restrict students from wearing black armbands as a peace sign protesting the U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War, ruling that students do not shed their constitutional rights at the schoolhouse gates. In 2007, the Supreme Court held that school officials could restrict students from engaging in speech that might undermine the school's zero-tolerance policy on drug use. What factors do you think might explain the Court's decisions in these two cases?

16. Try to find out if the Supreme Court has ever overturned Buck v. Bell. Do you believe that an attempt by the state to force sterilization on mentally disabled women would survive a due process challenge today? If the government is permitted to force sterilization, does that mean that the government also has the power to force women to have children if it can articulate compelling enough reasons to do so?

17. Laws discriminating on the basis of age fall into the minimal basis scrutiny category. A state that wishes to raise the drinking age to twenty-five or the driving age to twenty, for example, needs to put forward only a rational basis for that law. Do you believe that age should fall into this category or into one of the other two categories for heightened review?

18. Do you believe that public universities should be able to consider race as a factor in deciding whether or not to admit a student? If a university is unable to consider race, how else might it design an admissions program to achieve a diverse classroom? What would have been the impact if the Grutter case had been decided in favor of the plaintiff?

19. Hypothetical (and one hundred percent fiction): The State of Oregon decided that e-waste was becoming a major problem. Accordingly, it enacted a statute that required all products sold in Oregon that could eventually become e-waste to bear a label with the following statement: "This product will become e-waste, which is harmful to the planet and to you. Dispose responsibly."

Setting aside any Commerce Clause concerns for the moment, analyze this statute under the First Amendment. Does the statute violate the First Amendment?

Add the following sentence to the facts stated: "The State of Oregon exempted all Oregon manufacturers of products that might become e-waste from bearing that label." The legislative body in Oregon exempted Oregon manufacturers from this requirement, because it wanted to ensure that Oregon manufacturers were relatively well positioned in the market as compared to other manufacturers. Setting aside any First Amendment concerns for the moment, analyze whether this statute violates the Commerce Clause.

20. In Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, Justice Kennedy wrote, "There is [...] little evidence of abuse that cannot be corrected by shareholders "through the procedures of corporate democracy" (citing First National Bank of Boston v. Bellotti, 435 U.S. 765, at 794 (1978)). Do you agree with this assertion? Can you think of examples of abuse that do not seem to be correctable by "corporate democracy"?

21. Considering the majority opinion in Obergefell v. Hodges here: Which level of scrutiny does the court appear to apply? If you cannot identify a level of scrutiny, upon what legal basis does the opinion rest?