As part of the senior AP United States Government and Politics class at TABC, students carefully study and analyze the United States Constitution. One of the important principles reviewed is the powers of each branch of government and the check and balance system that is part of the American governmental system. To demonstrate the students’ understanding of the powers of each branch, the class, taught by Dr. Garry Katz, went through a series of scenarios and considered who had the power in each case. Each group (representing either the Executive, Legislative, or Judicial branch) had to decide to claim the power or not claim the power and use the Constitution to justify their decision. Some questions posed included: If the United States needed a new ambassador to Libya, whose power would it be to appoint one? If there is a vacancy on the Supreme Court, who is involved in seating a new judge? If the state of Arizona is suing California over water rights, whose power is involved?

AP Gov is an enormously popular course at TABC, and year after year, students score highly on the AP exam.