Name:	HR/IG: 	

Date: __________________________________________________________________

Dear fifth graders,
Today, you will prepare one of your position papers for our Mock Constitutional Convention.  Our topic today will be presidential power.  As you write, think about the following questions:
•	Should the president be commander-in-chief of the armed forces?
•	Should presidents get to serve for their entire lives?
•	Should presidents be able to veto (i.e. eliminate) a law passed by Congress?
Please think carefully about these issues and choose one as a focus for your position paper.  Complete the t-chart and other activities on the reverse of this paper; they will be collected at the end of class.  To help you, I have included a sample below.  I look forward to hearing your ideas next time we meet.

Take care,
Mr. jeda

Part I: Choose topic focus
Topic Focus: 	
Should presidents get to serve for their entire lives?	

Part II: List pros and cons (i.e. good points and bad points)
Pros	
Cons	

•	If we had a great leader, he would be around for a long time.
•	Presidents would become experts at their jobs because they would serve for so long.
•	Presidents would not be distracted by the craziness of elections.	
•	If we had a horrible leader, he would be around for a long time.
•	Presidents could completely ignore the will of the people after being elected just once.	

Part III: Explain how your delegate might feel about this issue
My delegate is George Washington of Virginia.  He probably would have NOT	

have wanted presidents serving for their entire lives.  He quit when we was 	

General of the Army because he did not like the idea of people holding onto	

power for too long.	

	

Part IV: Outline my main points
George Washington would presidents should have to be reelected every few years	

for the following reasons:	

•	Not everyone can be trusted forever	

•	Presidents should have to listen to the people	

•	Having presidents serve for life is like having a king!!!	

Part I: Choose topic focus
Topic Focus: 		

Part II: List pros and cons (i.e. good points and bad points)

Pros	Cons	

		

Part III: Explain how your delegate might feel about this issue

	

	

Part IV: Outline my main points