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American Government: Roots and
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How does the Preamble to the Constitution begin? - ANSWER "We the People.. ."
What was the most common initial reason for settlement in North America by the first colonists? - ANSWER Commerce
What is a system of government in which members of the polity meet to discuss all policy decisions and then agree to abide by majority rule? - ANSWER direct democracy
Over time, our notions of what governments should do have expanded along with the size of government. - ANSWER True
The elderly often vote against programs favored by younger voters, such as money for new schools and other expenditures they no longer view as significant. - ANSWER True
Which of the following would have been expected of the federal government 200 years ago? - ANSWER providing national defense
The __________ Amendment protects freedom of assembly. - ANSWER First
The Constitution has been amended __________ times. - ANSWER 27
Congress passed the __________ in 1777. - ANSWER Articles of Confederation
The __________ of powers is a key feature of the government established by the Constitution. - ANSWER separation
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At the Constitutional Convention, the delegates agreed that slaves would be counted as __________ of a person for determining population for representation in the House of Representatives. - ANSWER three-fifths
__________ Rebellion was a protest by Massachusetts farmers to stop foreclosures by state courts. - ANSWER Shay's
Many of the Founders believed that the __________ contract gave the government its legitimacy. - ANSWER social
Which of the following generally opposed the Senate because it would operate as an "aristocratic" upper house? - ANSWER Anti-federalists
The Three-Fifths Compromise specified that only three-fifths of slaves could vote. - ANSWER False
The main weakness of the Articles of Confederation was the lack of a strong national government. - ANSWER True
Over the years, our attitudes about personal liberty have remained unchanged. - ANSWER False
A constitution is a written document establishing the structure, functions, and limitations of a government. - ANSWER True
The New Jersey Plan proposed a powerful central government with three branches. - ANSWER False
What are reserved powers? - ANSWER powers not specifically delegated to the national government by the Constitution
During the __________, national power was significantly expanded. - ANSWER Civil War
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What is the current legal status of American Indian tribes? - ANSWER they are sovereign nations
What did the Supreme Court determine was unconstitutional in Brown v. Board of Education? - ANSWER segregation of schools
What provision of the Fourteenth Amendment serves as a cornerstone of our understanding of civil rights? - ANSWER equal protection clause
How has the Equal Rights Amendment affected women's civil rights? - ANSWER little effect, not formally adopted
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 has expanded educational and sports opportunities for women students. - ANSWER True
Courts have not allowed men to use the Fourteenth Amendment to fight gender-based discrimination, since men are the majority and do not experience such discrimination. - ANSWER False
The Constitutional Convention resulted in what form of legislature? - ANSWER bicameral
Over the past century, partisan polarization has __________ along with __________. - ANSWER increase; income equality
__________ committees exist in both the House and Senate, may be temporary or permanent, and usually have a focused responsibility. - ANSWER select/special
How have Americans rated members of Congress in recent years? - ANSWER Individual members of Congress rate slightly higher than Congress as a whole, but approval ratings are at an all -time low.
The true leader of the Senate is the __________, elected by the majority party. - ANSWER majority leader
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The Framers made Congress a bicameral body because they were concerned that too strong a legislative branch would lead to tyranny. - ANSWER True
A bill goes through markup in a full committee after a subcommittee votes in favor of it. - ANSWER True
The necessary and proper clause allows Congress to increase the scope of its authority. - ANSWER True
According to Max Weber, bureaucracies are characterized by hierarchical authority structures. - ANSWER True
Federal agencies are prohibited from engaging in adjudication, or quasi -judicial processes. - ANSWER False
The judiciary has the authority to rule on whether the president has acted within the law. - ANSWER False
The president and Congress share oversight of the federal bureaucracy. - ANSWER True
How do departments differ from independent agencies? - ANSWER Department heads are part of the president's cabinet; agency heads are not.
How do government corporations differ from private companies? - ANSWER Government corporations perform activities that private companies cannot.
How are independent regulatory commissions similar to independent executive agencies? - ANSWER Both operate outside of executive department control.
Which one of the powers listed below is a constitutional power that the president shares with the Senate? - ANSWER making treaties
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The district courts are appellate courts. - ANSWER False
Litigants have an automatic right of appeal to the Supreme Court. - ANSWER False
The Supreme Court's annual term begins on the first Thursday in April. - ANSWER False
Marburyv. Madison significantly expanded the power of the federal judiciary. - ANSWER True
Like the Literary Digest, George Gallup incorrectly predicted the results of the 1936 election between Franklin D. Roosevelt and Alf Landon. - ANSWER False
Simple random samples are not very useful for predicting voting outcomes because they may undersample or oversample key populations not likely to vote. - ANSWER True
The most common form of the telephone poll is the random-digit dialing survey. - ANSWER True
Typically, the margin of error in a sample of 1,000 will be about 10 percent. - ANSWER False
The biggest reason cited by Americans for not voting is forgetfulness. - ANSWER False
The Twelfth Amendment lowered the voting age to eighteen. - ANSWER False
Using the caucus system to nominate candidates results in more informed voters. - ANSWER True
Voting is a form of conventional participation. - ANSWER True
One reason behind Romney's loss of Michigan in the 2012 election might have been his opposition to the Obama bailout of the auto industry. - ANSWER True
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If you were to run for president on the Republican ticket and followed the general trend, you would likely accentuate your most conservative ideas in the primary and then appear more moderate during the general election. - ANSWER True
If a small newspaper writes an incendiary exposé about a candidate, the person on staff who most needs to be made aware of it is the communications director. - ANSWER True
Considering the "horse-race" coverage of a campaign by traditional media, a candidate would make every effort to ensure that his or her poll numbers stayed high. - ANSWER True
A gradual shift in party coalitions that is based more on demographic shifts than on shocks to the political system is known as a __________ realignment. - ANSWER secular
What has become the most powerful predictor of congressional voting in recent years? - ANSWER party labels
On Table 11.2, Who Identifies as a Democrat? A Republican?, Hispanics are most likely to identify as __________. - ANSWER Democrats
Which of the following was a prominent feature of the era called the "Golden Age" of political parties? - ANSWER political machines
How do minor parties facilitate democracy in the United States? - ANSWER by bringing more citizens into the political process with issue awareness
What institutional feature of U.S. politics prevents the success of third parties? - ANSWER the electoral college
Who is included in the "party in the electorate"? - ANSWER voters who identify with a party label
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The American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan aimed to do which of the following? - ANSWER supplement education programming at the state level
Medicare is a program in which policy area? - ANSWER health policy
Which of the following is a supplement to Social Security? - ANSWER Medicare
Which of the following is true of Social Security benefits? - ANSWER Benefits under Medicare Part A are automatic when a person qualifies for Social Security.
What is the function of Medicaid? - ANSWER subsidized medical care for the poor
President Lyndon Johnson avoided addressing problems of poverty. - ANSWER False
One reason for the increase in health care costs is the aging population in Ameri ca. - ANSWER True
Nuclear power for electrical production can be easily replaced by renewable energy sources. - ANSWER False
The Affordable Care Act, colloquially known as Obamacare, deals primarily with what policy area? - ANSWER health care
A form of journalism, popular in the late nineteenth century, featuring pictures, comics, color, and sensationalized, oversimplified news coverage was called __________. - ANSWER yellow journalism
Which news medium has had the hardest time keeping up with modern technological developments? - ANSWER newspapers
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The media is also known as the __________. - ANSWER fourth estate
Which political faction demanded that freedom of the press be amended to the U.S. Constitution? - ANSWER Anti-Federalists
Democrats are more likely than Republicans to listen to National Public Radio. - ANSWER True
None of the three traditional news networks is independently owned. - ANSWER False
Today, most news is written by __________. - ANSWER citizen journalists
The president traditionally has more influence over foreign policy than does Congress. - ANSWER True
Since the economic crisis that began in 2008, the national debt has declined. - ANSWER False
Congress has the primary responsibility for setting interest rates in the United States. - ANSWER False
Social Security is available to illegal immigrants. - ANSWER False
Monetary economic policy uses the money supply to affect growth in the U.S. economy. - ANSWER True
The most recent economic crisis was a depression. - ANSWER False
Which Cabinet-level department has primary responsibility for U.S. foreign policy? - ANSWER Department of State
What is the primary responsibility of the Department of Defense? - ANSWER to implement military policy
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The national debt is the yearly difference between government revenues and the deficit. - ANSWER False
The U.S. Constitution prohibits the use of taxing and spending to influence the national economy. - ANSWER False
The war in Iraq began under __________ and ended under __________. - ANSWER George W. Bush, Barack Obama
One of the primary purposes of the war in Afghanistan was to __________. - ANSWER remove the Taliban-led government
Which of the following countries is a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council? - ANSWER the United States
