Question

Read the following quote. The answer the following questions. Answer each question with 3 sentences in a 5th graders response

“It usually takes a hundred years to make a law, and then after it has done its work, it usually takes a hundred years to get rid of it.”


—Henry Ward Beecher

Do you agree or disagree with this quote about the lawmaking process in the United States? Explain your answer.

How could the lawmaking process be improved? Explain your answer.

Use details and examples to support your answer.

Answer 1

I mostly agree with the quote because making and changing laws in the United States usually takes a very long time. Laws must move through committees, both houses of Congress, the President, and sometimes the courts, which slows things down. For example, rules about the internet or voting can be outdated for many years before people finally change them, so Beecher's idea makes sense.

We could make the lawmaking process better by giving deadlines for action, using citizen panels, and writing sunset clauses that make laws end unless renewed. Deadlines would stop bills from getting stuck in committee, citizen panels and online surveys would help lawmakers hear what people want, and sunset clauses would force lawmakers to review old laws. For example, a sunset clause on a law about cellphone rules would make lawmakers update it quickly when phones change, so laws stay useful and fair.