Upgrade to remove ads
Only $2.99/month

American History and Politics Midterm

Terms in this set (154)

Delegates to the Constitutional Convention decided that the Constitution would take effect when ratified by popularly elected conventions in how many states?
Nine
Which of the following states failed to ratify the Constitution in 1788?
Rhode Island
Which of the following was the subject of the Three-Fifths Compromise?
Taxation, slave counts, representation
In the seventeenth century, the word democracy was used in a loose sense to refer to a system of government that encourages __________.
demagogues and mobs
Federalist James Madison triumphed over Anti-Federalist Patrick Henry at the Virginia state ratifying convention by __________.
bill of rights added to constitution
In practice, the operating principle of democracy becomes __________ rule.
plurality
The Annapolis Convention was __________.
concerned with problems of trade and navigation
This _________ clause of the Constitution was anticipated in the proposed New Jersey Plan at the Philadelphia Convention.
supremacy
A major reason the Anti-Federalists criticized the Constitution was
the Constitution did not have a bill of rights
The ratification of the Constitution hinged on the support of which of the following states?
New York and Virginia
Which of the following the subject of a famous compromise at the Philadelphia Convention?
representation of large states and small states in congress, regulation and taxation of foreign commerce, representation of slaves
The Constitution consists of what four primary elements?
Freedom to belong, freedom to have, freedom of peace and freedom of life
Which of the following principles illustrates the staggered terms of office of the president, representatives, and senators, ensuring that a majority of the voters can win control over only a part of the government at one time?
checks and balances
Why do state constitutions need to be amended more frequently than the national Constitution?
They are so detailed that they handcuff officials, necessitating frequent revisions
In Marbury v. Madison, what was John Marshall's decision?
The Supreme Court did not have constitutional jurisdiction in this case
As the United States assumed the role of a world power, the concept of checks and balances proved unable to prevent a concentration of power in which structure of government?
The presidency
Which of the following illustrates the concept of dispersed power as incorporated into the Constitution?
The legacy of colonial government
Which of the following does judicial review gives judges the power to do?
Strike down laws or regulations as unconstitutional
Which method of keeping the Constitution up to date is used least frequently?
Formal amendments
In the United States, the ultimate power to interpret the Constitution rests with which of the following?
Supreme Court
True or false. The president has no formal authority over constitutional amendments
True
Which of the following are impeachable offenses as defined in the Constitution?
high crimes and misdemeanors
True or false. The framers of the Constitution were concerned about the excessive powers of the previous charter.
False
A ________ is the method by which all formal amendments have been proposed.
two-thirds vote of both houses of Congress
Which of the following doctrines regarding the amending process has the Supreme Court pronounced?
Ratification by the states must occur within a reasonable time
According to Article I of the Constitution, the ______ has been given the sole power of impeachment
House of Representatives
Which of the following is an unused method of proposing amendments to the Constitution?
judicial interpretation
In which of the following instances does the Supreme Court possess original jurisdiction under the Constitution?
when an ambassador is affected
The constitutional principle of separation of powers provides that
authority is allocated to each of the three branches of the national government
What is known as the right of the president to withhold information?
Executive privilege
Which of the following are public officials most likely to observe constitutional limits on their powers when they are subject to political controls?
Regular and fair elections
After an amendment is proposed by Congress, which of the following happens?
ratified by the states
When each branch of government has some authority over the actions of the others and each is politically independent of the others, which of the following is known as the constitutional limit being applied to their powers?
checks and balances
True or false. The Constitution itself is silent about who should have the final word in disputes over its meaning.
true
Which of the following were judges not expected to do under our original government structure?
claim the power of judicial review
Centralist interpretation of the US Constitution are based upon the
The idea of popular sovereignty
Which of the following statements about the formal constitutional framework of the federal system is correct?
Due to constitutional limits, some powers are denied to both state and national governments
Which of the following constitutional clauses did John Marshall interpret in McCulloch v. Maryland?
Necessary and proper
Which law did Congress pass in 1995 to try to change the balance of power between the national and state governments?
The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995
Among those who favored the states' rights interpretation of federalism, or decentralism, was __________.
Thomas Jefferson
Which of the following laws can be overridden as a result of the supremacy clause?
state statutes
An example of a concurrent power is the power to __________.
tax citizens and businesses
According to the US Constitution, states may not __________.
coin money
States play a strong role in all of the following policy areas except __________.
national defense
The commerce clause was instrumental in __________.
Promoting the national common market, enabling Congress to impose regulations upon various activities throughout the economy, enforcing the Civil Rights Act of 1964
Centralist interpretations of the US Constitution are based upon the __________
idea of popular sovereignty
According to the US Constitution, states may
establish republican governments
Which of the following is a logical development of Franklin D. Roosevelt's "Second Bill of Rights"?
Lyndon Johnson's "Great Society"
Probably the most prevalent philosophy in the United States is that America __________.
is unconstrained by a patterned ideology
New Deal liberals tend to emphasize issues involving all of the following except __________.
individual liberty
The American rebellion against European tradition during the American Revolution was primarily driven by _________ values.
classical liberal
Americans' reverence for the common person helps to explain their ambivalence toward __________.
government authority
Affirmative action programs are favored by __________.
liberals
Which president outlined a "Second Bill of Rights"?
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Which ideology did Karl Marx once describe as a transitional stage toward the attainment of communism?
socialism
During the New Deal period, which of the following ideals was stressed?
Equal opportunity and social justice
The American Dream is fundamentally linked to __________.
The right to own property
When the US Constitution was drafted, how did the Framers address the question of nobility? Titles of nobility ___________.
were banned
Our economic system, as it stands today, can be defined as __________.
mixed free enterprise
True or false. American cities have become increasingly poor and Democratic.
true
How can the American political landscape best be described?
having cross-cutting cleavages
What do many of the most contentious political debates concern today?
gay rights
True or false. Sectional differences in the United States are primarily ethnic and religious.
false
Who are the largest employers in America?
governments
Aside from race, ___________ may be the single most important factor in explaining views on issues and partisanship.
income
True or false. Ethnocentrism is a selective perception based on one's individual background attitudes and biases.
true
Which state has had the greatest economic and political impact throughout the twentieth century?
California
True or false. The South was integrated into the national economy by the civil rights movement in the 1960s.
true
Families that fall below the poverty line are ________________.
headed mostly by single females
As a percentage of the labor force, which occupations increased the most through the twentieth century?
white collar
The largest ethnic group in America today consists of people from ___________ backgrounds.
English, Scottish and Welsh
When most Americans are asked to identify their socioeconomic group, how do they define themselves usually?
middle class
Which of the following rights does the Constitution not protect or secure?
public disclosure of campaign funds
How can an interest group modify governmental agency rules it does not like?
Lobbying the US Congress to change the legal mandate for the agency
Which of the following represent important characteristics of interest groups and organizations?
size, resources, cohesiveness
What do group leaders mean usually when they say they are nonpolitical?
are not partisan
Today, what are factions most commonly called?
interest groups
Why is organized labor's membership dwindling?
transformation of the US economy from an industrial to a service economy
Which of the following did Madison argue the causes of factions can be traced to?
human nature
Today, whose interests do a majority of PACs represent?
business and trade associations
What is the largest farm group called today?
American Farm Bureau Federation
Which of the following does not occur in a two-party system?
policy changes are more dramatic
By whom were the reforms of the Progressive Era led?
Progressive wing of the Republican Party
What do party regulars tend to do?
value the party first
Which of the following is a tenet of Roosevelt's New Deal?
keynesian economics
To which group does the "Grand Old Party" refer?
republicans
What is the political party originally led by Thomas Jefferson known as today?
democrats
Who were the Federalists succeeded by as the principal opposition party?
Whigs
The composition of, and rules for, the state party committees are determined by which of the following?
state law
Which reforms led to the downfall of bosses, as well as to an increase in voter involvement?
direct primaries
What is a central feature of party leaders in American politics today?
they have less influence over party nominations
Why do issue activists join a political organization?
to push a party in the direction of a narrow interest
What is a group of elected officials meeting together to choose a candidate called?
caucus
What percentage of Americans eligible to vote might be called "part-time citizens"?
50 percent
On May 3, 2003, the day after President Bush announced "mission accomplished" in the Iraq War, what percentage of Americans approved of the way Bush had handled the situation in Iraq?
72 percent
A political opinion that exists merely as a potential, and must be aroused and converted into political action, is referred to as a___________ opinion.
latent
In the course of events, elected officials are more likely to __________ public opinion.
follow
What is often the central issue in the outcome of an election in any given year?
the economy
How do Americans tend to form their political opinions?
In groups based on demographics, family ties and so forth
True or false. Americans have more elections for more offices than any other western democracy.
True
What percentage of Americans is interested in politics most of the time?
25 percent
With respect to issue voting, how do most voters vote?
retrospectively, punishing or rewarding the party previously in power
True or false. Salience tends to rise sharply where personal concerns are connected with political issues.
True
Which of the following states holds the first presidential caucus to select delegates to the national convention?
Iowa
Which of the following is not a feature of the American election system?
proportional representation
True or false. In the last twenty years in congressional elections, incumbents have won more than nine out of ten races
True
Today, what purpose do party conventions serve in demonstrating?
how unity and enthusiasm have to combine for the fall campaign
In the last two House elections, where did the majority of incumbents get their largest amount of money from?
PAC's (politcal action committees)
What is one of the main hurdles that a challenger faces in mounting a primary campaign?
gaining visibility
Which of the following is an example of soft money?
funds given to state and local parties by national parties, individuals or PAC's for voter registration drives and party mailings
Traditionally, by whom is the vice-presidential nominees selected?
presidential nominee
What did the 2002 campaign finance reforms not do?
allowed limited soft money contributions to national party committees
True or false. Presidential primaries have become the main method of choosing delegates.
True
What would the National Bonus Plan do?
increase the number of electoral votes
Which proposed reform of presidential nominations would enhance the role of the party and make candidates more dependent on political activists?
greater use of caucuses
Which of the following refers to the media?
the fourth branch of government
What is a relatively new development in elections?
the use of media consultants
At the local level of politics, the media's influence is generally which of the following?
greater, because fewer news sources cover local politics
In recent elections, the media has increasingly experimented with civic journalism which focuses on which of the following?
issues from the point of view of ordinary citizens
Movement from financial support of the press by political parties to expanded circulation and more emphasis on advertising led to the development of ____________.
the penny press
Which of the political institution least dependent upon the press?
the supreme court
What can journalists with close working relationships with politicians endanger?
professional neutrality
In comparison to their reporters, what direction do editors lean toward?
conservative
What is one negative side effect of negative political campaigning?
it tends to cause a decrease in voter turnout
The lack of media interest in policy implementation explains the lack of press coverage of which of the following?
bureaucracy
Which president was called the "Great Communicator?"
Ronald Reagan
In 1959, what was the most important news source for Americans?
newspapers
What can defeat a filibuster?
cloture rule
what is a seat in Congress which is predictably won by one party or the other called?
safe seat
What does logrolling refers to?
voting in accordance with a colleague's interest while expecting a return favor in the future
What in the US Constitution gives Congress the right to make all laws?
necessary and proper for executing enumerated powers
Which of the following sets of functions can be included among those performed by Congress today?
representation, lawmaking, and overseeing the bureaucracy
After a treaty is created by the president, it must be consented to by a two-thirds vote from which of the following?
senate
What is one of the functions of the House Rules Committee?
determine time limits for debate and the indication of appropriate amendments
When does redistricting of state congressional districts occur?
every ten years
What is a nonlegislative function granted to Congress by the US Constitution?
impeachment
What is the drawing of congressional district boundaries in ways that secure as many representatives as possible for one party known as?
gerrymandering
Where does the US Constitution provide that all revenue bills must originate?
the house
What is it called if a senator wants to insert a particular provision, which the president is known to oppose, into a bill which the president otherwise favors?
rider
Who was the only political scientist to become president, who argued "Congress in committee is Congress at work"?
Woodrow wilson
What can defeat a filibuster?
...
what is a seat in Congress which is predictably won by one party or the other called?
...
What does logrolling refers to?
...
What in the US Constitution gives Congress the right to make all laws?
...
Which of the following sets of functions can be included among those performed by Congress today?
...
After a treaty is created by the president, it must be consented to by a two-thirds vote from which of the following?
...
What is one of the functions of the House Rules Committee?
...
When does redistricting of state congressional districts occur?
...
What is a nonlegislative function granted to Congress by the US Constitution?
...
What can defeat a filibuster?
...
what is a seat in Congress which is predictably won by one party or the other called?
...
What does logrolling refers to?
...
What in the US Constitution gives Congress the right to make all laws?
...
Which of the following sets of functions can be included among those performed by Congress today?
...
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE...