America’s government is an incredible achievement that on paper shouldn’t have worked. But most people don’t know how hard it was to get to where we are. With the Nevada Caucus on Saturday and Indiana’s primary coming up in May, it’s could be vital to know what’s going on.

Not knowing the rich history of our nation isn’t terrible; not many conversations nowadays will branch off into thoughts of the Federalist Papers and the Trail of Tears. But what is popular no matter where you go, whether it be news, social media, television or movies, is our current political situation.

Everything is political. If you aren’t in tune with the talk of House of Representatives and impeachment then it probably seems like people are speaking an alien language. Politics are complicated, slow, depressing and even scary. But they also can teach us a lot about how unique our country is, as well as not make you sound like an idiot on Twitter.

Many think they know a lot about politics, but it’s time that Carroll High School gets put to the test. Random students like you, have been asked questions based on what is going on in Washington D.C. We are the next generation, let’s see how much we know. To keep these students from embarrassment we are going to keep them anonymous.

Question 1: Donald Trump has just recently been impeached by the house? Why has he been impeached?

Answer: “We talked about this in class, I think he threatened a Russian leader or something over the phone and then lied about it. Maybe it also has something to do with how he supposedly cheated to win the election a few years ago,” said the student.

Impeachment is all the talk and rightfully so, only three presidents in history have been impeached. But an important thing to remember if you want to not be corrected online is that Trump is impeached but he is not removed from office.

Speaking of the president and his days in office, impeachment or not, his days could be limited. The 2020 presidential election is just around the corner and debates are just starting to get underway. And many students are now able to join in on the voting process.

Question 2: Name three people running for the Democratic Party nomination in the 2020 election.

Answer: “I think Bernie Sanders is still running, Joe Biden I know is because Trump tried to find dirt on his son…oh shoot I can’t name another one,” said the student.

Question 3: How does the electoral college play into the process of the presidential election?

Answer: “I’m pretty sure the electoral college is what they use when there is a tie between candidates and a group of people get together and decide,” said the student.

Memes could become the future of how we receive our news. Everyone loves memes, and the biggest one to come out in the new year is World War 3. The tensions between U.S. and Iran have served as a good laugh but beyond the dank memes, what really is going on between our nation and the Iranian government and how did we get here?

Question 4: What did Trump do to push tensions with Iran?

“That’s easy, he fired and missile at the Iran leader.” said the student.

(That was actually the first correct answer…thanks memes.)

Some students do spend their free time following the ongoing of our nation’s capital.  That could be just to have well-rounded knowledge of our country or because they hope one day to go into politics themselves. One such student is senior Kyle Hoerr, who is always up for a chat about government.

“I wasn’t born with an immediate interest in politics its something that over the years I have grown to love and appreciate how it can be used to help others. How I did grow to love the government is because of the politicians themselves and the abilities they have,” said Kyle.

The future of the government, and heck the world, as a whole can be a scary thought. Many people think we could actually kill off our planet before the next century. Is there any hope for our country and its people?

“I am very optimistic about the next generation because people like us who will eventually be in politics are more progressive. Even though many would say that our country is surrounded by debates and arguments, I know it will clear,” said Kyle.

Another aspect of the government that pushes people away from learning more, is because people find it so depressing. When it comes down to it, it does seem that the government is mostly old people yelling at each other.

But when a younger generation like ours takes an interest in it, like Kyle, then the future of the government may be bright. Our generation and students, in general, get a lot of our knowledge of the government from the classroom. AP Government teacher, Mr. Robbie McKerr is one of these teachers tasked with informing our students about our government.

“Learning about our government helps them understand how the government affects our lives. I always like pointing out how the government is involved in our lives constantly, from driving on roads to the standards your teachers must follow, to taxes, and how voting results in policies that will affect their lives either negatively or positively based on their beliefs and values. I also believe learning about government makes our students better citizens, and if they plan on living in the United States they should understand their rights and responsibilities as a citizen,” said Mr. McKerr.

Many people may think that it can only be spotted in courts and mayor offices, but government is everywhere. From something big like to 2020 election to something as local as the roads you took to school today, it’s all because of the government.

“Of course, people have drastically different opinions about the scope and role of government in our lives. I deal with it by encouraging it! Citizens should have a variety of opinions of what works and does not work, I hope my students understand that they should be skilled at how to use sources, data, and evidence to support their claims and not to believe everything they hear, whether that be from the media, family, friends, whatever,” said Mr. McKerr.

It’s clear that our country right now has been split on who should be in power and with the election this year it’s bound to be even tenser. But it’s okay to disagree on things and if people feel passionate about their beliefs then, by all means, speak out, just be sure to have a solid understanding and listen to both sides.

No one said that learning and understanding politics was easy. What is true is that it is important, now that doesn’t mean everyone should go into a government major in college or even spend all day checking their phones for the next CNN or FOX update.

Find the middle ground where there is a grasp of what goes on and how everything works so @JFKlover5332 on Twitter doesn’t make a fool out of you. Our country is amazing and our government is a complicated, but fascinating to learn about. When it comes all down to it, students are the next generation of politicians and voters, pretty soon it’s on us.

“I would encourage everyone to get involved and discover more about politics. It’s also important to remember its okay to disagree, what’s valuable is the opinions and conclusions we can come to through research and getting involved,” said Kyle.