Welcome to The Dirksen Congressional Center's Communicator - a web-based e-newsletter providing educators with news and ideas to enhance civic education and improve the understanding of Congress -- http://www.webcommunicator.org

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NEWS FROM THE DIRKSEN CENTER
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CongressLink: A Popular Feature on Congressional Web Sites

If you visit the House of Representatives Web site - http://www.house.gov - and enter CongressLink in the search box, you will wind up with 172,479 hits! A random check of the sites of individual members shows that CongressLink appears on every one as a basic resource about the people's branch of government. The word is getting out!

Link Popularity - Congress for Kids

The Philadelphia Inquirer has cited Congress for Kids under Web Sites About the Constitution -- http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/special_packages/constitution_center/6169005.htm

FamilyFirst.com, a site for family-friendly Web site reviews, has reviewed over 2000 sites since 1995. Congress for Kids - http://www.congressforkids.net - was recently reviewed and included in their Government section -- http://www.familyfirst.com/archives/cat_government.html

AskEric includes Congress for Kids as a useful Internet resource for their lesson plan, Our Country, Our Constitution --
http://askeric.org/cgi-bin/printlessons.cgi/Virtual/Lessons/Social_Studies/US_Government/GOV0204.html

The Functions of the President

The president of the United State has several duties. The Constitution spells out some of them; other have evolved over time. How a president performs these roles depends on his personality, his view of the role of government, and the situation facing him.

For basic information about presidential duties (and their relationship to congressional action), link to Article II in CongressLink's online version of the U.S. Constitution at:
http://www.congresslink.org/artcl2.html

This month's featured lesson plan looks at the relationship between the president and Congress in the conduct of foreign policy. Although the president is often described as the nation's "Chief Diplomat," what role does Congress play in the formulation and development of foreign policy? Link to What in the World Should Congress Do? at:
http://www.congresslink.org/lessonplans/MEDforeignpolicy.html

In diplomacy and domestic policy, a president can sometimes get around Congress by issuing executive orders. Learn more about these legally binding actions, find What is an Executive Order? -- ThisNation.com at: http://www.aboutgovernment.org/executivebranch.htm#functions

*NEW* Because of court decisions, customs, laws, and other developments, the president's role has greatly expanded over the years due to his responsibilities and powers. Teachers, to help your students remember the achievements and roles of some of America's presidents have them take the game show quiz found on Congress for Kids. Find American Presidency Game Show Quiz at: http://www.congressforkids.net/games/executivebranch/2_execbranch.htm

Featured Grant-Funded Project

In addition to setting the moral tone for the nation and performing specific government functions, the president serves as the "titular head" of a political party. A president is expected to support the party's platform, help raise money for the party, and campaign for the party's candidates. This month our featured project is a Congressional Research Award of $3,500 granted to Casey Byrne Knudsen Dominguez from the University of California at Berkeley. Casey's project, Before the Primary: Party Participation in Congressional Elections, investigates party elites' motivations for supporting congressional primary candidates. Learn more about this project and others at: http://www.dirksencenter.org/grantcongresearchaward.htm#Grntrecipient00

Role Riddles

1. Which of the following is NOT a formal, constitutionally based role of the president:

A. Chief of the Judiciary
B. Chief Diplomat
C. Chief Legislator
D. Commander in Chief
E. None of the above

2. One of the president's most important ceremonial duties as head of state is...

A. Serving as host to visiting heads of government.
B. Meeting celebrities such as musicians.
C. Throwing out the first ball of the baseball season.
D. Lighting the national Christmas tree.

3. True or False: The Employment Act of 1946 gave the president the new duty of controlling prices and wages by using 90-day freezes.

Answers to the June issue of Fun, Facts, and Trivia link here: http://www.webcommunicator.org/funfactstrivia0603ans.htm

Hope you are enjoying your summer! Encourage your colleagues to subscribe to the Communicator. If you have questions, comments, or suggestions, contact Cindy Koeppel at mailto:ckoeppel@dirksencenter.org Your feedback makes a difference!

If you experience any problem, send an e-mail to Cindy Koeppel at mailto:ckoeppel@dirksencenter.org.