ND may require students to be as smart as immigrants

In a survey a few years ago, one-quarter of U.S. citizens could not name the country from which the colonies declared their independence. Earlier this year, a study found that a third of the people who live here couldn’t name a single branch of government (Psst: executive, judicial, and legislative. But you didn’t hear that from me).

Now, North Dakota may do something about that ignorance.

State school chief Kirsten Baesler and first lady Betsy Dalrymple announced a bill they will have filed that will require high school kids to answer questions on the citizenship test as a requirement for graduation.

They would need to answer 60 percent of the questions correctly, the same requirement the U.S. has for people seeking citizenship.

Here are some typical questions:

We elect a U.S. Senator for how many years?
Who is one of your state’s U.S. Senators now?
The House of Representatives has how many voting members?
We elect a U.S. Representative for how many years?
Name your U.S. Representative.
Who does a U.S. Senator represent?
Why do some states have more Representatives than other states?
We elect a President for how many years?
In what month do we vote for President?
What is the name of the President of the United States now?
What is the name of the Vice President of the United States