Cynic's Guide to American Government
A hand-drawn satirical table describing the three branches of U.S. government.
Content note: Political satire of U.S. government; mentions death.
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Free for classrooms, worksheets, slides and other non-commercial use under CC BY-NC 4.0, with credit to Ben Orlin.
Cartoon by Ben Orlin, Math with Bad Drawings. https://cartoons.mathwithbaddrawings.com/2017-05-04-cynic-s-guide-to-american-government/ (CC BY-NC 4.0)Transcript
[Table: Executive | Legislative | Judicial]
Basic Purpose: Entertainment | Gridlock | Unpredictability
Selection Process: elaborate two-year reality TV tournament | citizens of one region choose a champion to inflict their local prejudices on the whole country | whim of sitting president (subject to whims of Senate majority)
Primary Activity: lightning rod for televised controversy | prevent policy from being enacted | avant-garde poetic reinterpretation of the Constitution
Key Qualification: memorable hair | intransigence | lifetime of non-controversiality, to ensure maximum surprise factor once appointed
Check on Power: impeachment, which instantly ups the entertainment | primary challenges, which occur if congressperson makes mistake of actually supporting compromise | death