1. Government Ch. 3: The Constitution Sec. 2: An Enduring Document Amendment Articles Project

2. Directions Create your own Amendment that you would like to see added to our Constitution –You can use the wording from an existing amendment & simply change a few words around to fit your new proposal Choose a proposal/ratification route that will give your proposed amendment the best chance to succeed –Rewrite the route (A  C; A  D; B  C; B  D) Pretend you are a newspaper reporter assigned to cover both the proposal and ratification process for this amendment You will write 2 articles. One will be written after you have covered the proposal process and the other will be written after you have covered the ratification process –Each process will take about 4 months

3. Proposed Amendment Proposed Amendment (5pts.) Write down your proposed amendment on notebook paper Proposal/Ratification Method Proposal/Ratification Method (5pts.) Write down the method chosen Proposal Article Proposal Article (15pts.) Make it look like a real newspaper article (title, 2 columns, etc.) Start with the actual wording of your proposed amendment Include a quote for and a quote against this proposed amendment from 2 fictitious sources Include statistics/data illustrating the proposal process chosen Conclude your article with a preview of the ratification process Write a rough draft and then a final revised draft

4. Ratification Article Ratification Article (15pts.) Make it look like a real newspaper article (title, 2 columns, etc.) Start with the actual wording of your proposed amendment Include a quote for and a quote against this proposed amendment from 2 fictitious sources Include statistics/data illustrating the ratification process chosen Write a rough draft and then a final revised draft

5. THE PLAIN DEALER October 25 th, 2015 Friday $1.50 VOTING AGE POSSIBLY SET AT 16 CLEVELAND – A new Amendment has been proposed to the Constitution. It calls for lowering the voting age to 16. Introduced into the Senate in September by Senator Patrick Starr (D) – Bikini Bottom, it reads “The right of citizens of the U.S. who are sixteen years of age or older to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the U.S. or any state on account of age.” Gov. Greg Deegan (D) – Idaho supported this new Constitutional addition stating, “Look, if sixteen year olds are responsible enough to get a driver’s license, than they are responsible enough to vote. The Common Core expects our high school students to think at higher cognitive levels, engage in project based learning, and participate in deeper learning activities. Lowering the Voting Age to 16 is an excellent way to engage our teenagers in opportunities for civic responsibility!” Gov. Greg Deegan (D) – Idaho supported this new Constitutional addition stating, “Look, if sixteen year olds are responsible enough to get a driver’s license, than they are responsible enough to vote. The Common Core expects our high school students to think at higher cognitive levels, engage in project based learning, and participate in deeper learning activities. Lowering the Voting Age to 16 is an excellent way to engage our teenagers in opportunities for civic responsibility!” Last week, the House of Rep. passed this proposed amendment with 245 votes for and 50 votes against, gaining the required two-thirds vote needed. Last week, the House of Rep. passed this proposed amendment with 245 votes for and 50 votes against, gaining the required two-thirds vote needed. It passed by a smaller margin in the Senate with 68 votes for and 33 votes against. It passed by a smaller margin in the Senate with 68 votes for and 33 votes against. California Senator Eugene Krabs (R) spoke out against this new proposal declaring, “Teenagers are not mature enough or responsible enough to have this big of an impact on our voting procedures. We can not afford to allow these kids to influence who does or does not get elected. Too much is at stake in our country to allow that to happen. I am extremely upset by this proposal and will work hard to make sure it doesn’t pass ratification!” California Senator Eugene Krabs (R) spoke out against this new proposal declaring, “Teenagers are not mature enough or responsible enough to have this big of an impact on our voting procedures. We can not afford to allow these kids to influence who does or does not get elected. Too much is at stake in our country to allow that to happen. I am extremely upset by this proposal and will work hard to make sure it doesn’t pass ratification!” sixteen Proposed 28 th Amendment 28th

6. THE PLAIN DEALER February 17 th, 2016 Thursday $1.50 VOTING AGE SET AT 16 CLEVELAND – A new Amendment has finally passed the ratification stage and will go into effect in March of this year. It calls for lowering the voting age to 16. Introduced into the Senate in September by Senator Patrick Starr (D) – Bikini Bottom, it reads “The right of citizens of the U.S. who are sixteen years of age or older to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the U.S. or any state on account of age.” Now that it has been ratified, it will subsequently repeal the 26 th Amendment which had set the voting age at eighteen. Senator Dominic Velotta (I) – Ohio supported this new Constitutional addition stating, “I think it’s wonderful to see our government give sixteen year olds the right to vote and express their views on politics. With so much emphasis on state standards in citizenship, you can’t ask for a better environment for teen participation in the civic arena. As a former Government teacher, I am absolutely thrilled about this concept and I support it 100%!” Late last night, the Virginia state Legislature became the 38 th and final State needed to ratify this proposed amendment. Interestingly, Virginia Governor Ben Dover (R) harshly criticized the newly ratified 28 th Amendment declaring, “This is absolutely ridiculous! I am appalled that our elected officials at the state and national levels have proposed and ratified this new amendment. Do you people realize how this will drastically alter our election results in future elections? We might very well see pot heads and losers elected into public office!” Under this new amendment, 16 and 17 year olds will be able to vote!