Which of the following weakened the power of the governor by implementing a plural
executive?
A) A constitutional amendment in 1850
B) The state’s 1861 Confederate Constitution
C) The 1886 Constitution of Texas
D) The 1869 Constitution of Texas
E) The 1876 Constitution of Texas
The legislative body of a county in Texas is known as the
A) county court.
B) commissioners court.
C) county commission.
D) county council.
E) county board of governors.
The president’s power to convene Congress
A) allows the president to make recess appointments.
B) is largely symbolic today.
C) is utilized regularly by modern presidents.
D) was justified by Alexander Hamilton in Federalist No. 10.
E) was ruled unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Of the following governors, who was most liberal?
A) George W. Bush
B) Mark White
C) Bill Clements
D) Ann Richards
E) Jimmie Allred
A good example of a president “unsigning” a treaty is
A) President George Bush’s retraction of the Panama Canal Treaty.
B) President Bill Clinton’s rejection of the Kyoto Protocol dealing with environmental
controls.
C) President George W. Bush’s withdrawal of support for the International Criminal
Court.
D) President George W. Bush’s withdrawal of support for stem cell research.
E) President Woodrow Wilson’s withdrawal of support for the Treaty of Versailles.
Public officials cannot sue for libel unless
A) they are wealthy.
B) they can prove that actual malice was involved.
C) they can show that a newspaper disregarded the truth.
D) they have been libeled in connection with their public duties.
E) they first resign from office.
There is only one way to end a filibuster. It is called
A) a hold.
B) cloture.
C) a discharge petition.
D) a veto.
E) a pocket veto.
College graduates are more likely to vote than those with only a high school diploma.
Which of the following gubernatorial roles includes being the primary elected official
representing Texas in its relations with other states, the federal government, and foreign
dignitaries?
A) Chief executive officer
B) Chief of state
C) Commander in chief
D) Chief budget officer
E) Ambassador plenipotentiary
A command for an elected official to carry out their platforms is most accurately called
a/an
A) order.
B) mandate.
C) injunction.
D) prescription.
E) “electoral threat.”
The mass media include
I. print sources.
II. movies and television.
III. radio.
IV. Web-based material.
A) II only
B) I and III
C) II and IV
D) I, II, and III
E) I, II, III, and IV
The governor of Texas may be elected to
A) two four-year terms.
B) one six-year term
C) an unlimited number of two-year terms.
D) three four-year terms.
E) four two-year terms.
Which of the following is accorded the highest social status and is closely tied to Texas
individualism?
A) Being a conquistador
B) Being a migrant worker
C) Land ownership
D) Political expertise
E) Being a farm hand
The procedure by which the state legislature offers proposed legislation for voter
approval is called a/an
A) initiative.
B) referendum.
C) recall.
D) ratification.
E) submission.
The activities of groups and organizations that seek to influence legislation and
persuade political leaders to support a group’s positions are most accurately called
A) political activity.
B) patronage.
C) lobbying.
D) testimony.
E) pork barreling.
Which of the following is a requirement to vote in Texas?
A) Payment of poll tax
B) Ability to read and write
C) Not being declared mentally incompetent by a court of law
D) English language proficiency
E) Possession of a driver’s license
Informal methods of amending the Constitution include
A) social change, judicial interpretation, and acts of Congress.
B) judicial interpretation and cultural and social change.
C) executive orders.
D) acts of state legislatures.
E) a national referendum and/or initiative.
A lobbyist’s effectiveness depends on
A) a reputation for fair play and accurate information.
B) his or her ability to feed legislators’ egos.
C) the resources available for bribing members of Congress.
D) giving legislators false and misleading information.
E) the quantity of campaign donations offered.
What is the origin of the word “lobbying”?
I. People would wait outside the chambers of the House and Senate to speak to
members of Congress.
II. President Grant met with “lobbyists” in the lobby of the Willard Hotel.
III. In England, members of Parliament would congregate in a room near the floor of
the English House of Commons and be approached by their constituents.
IV. Robert Lobby of West Virginia was a legendary lobbyist.
A) IV
B) I and III
C) III and IV
D) I, II, and IV
E) I, II, and III
The Senate Judiciary Committee held its first public hearings regarding a potential
Supreme Court justice while considering the nomination of
A) John Marshall.
B) Roger Taney.
C) Louis Brandeis.
D) Abe Fortas.
E) Earl Warren.
The Cabinet membership is determined by the
A) Constitution.
B) number of departments in the bureaucracy.
C) president.
D) Congress.
E) Supreme Court.
“Uncle Sam’s Next Campaign” was a
A) famous painting depicting the War of 1812.
B) book about the need for a free press.
C) political cartoon decrying yellow journalism.
D) song that celebrated the First Amendment.
E) war strategy that won the Spanish-American War.
Which of the following is NOT a way in which the Texas Constitution of 1876 puts
severe restrictions on local government in Texas?
A) Each county in Texas has the same basic governmental structure no matter its size or
population.
B) Any structural change in a county’s government requires a constitutional amendment
approved by a majority of statewide voters.
C) Counties are limited in their ability to raise revenue and provide needed services.
D) The restrictions on county and city governments have resulted in the creation of
thousands of special district governments across the state.
E) The size and number of counties in the state cannot be changed.
Which of the following countries has a semi-presidential system?
A) Iran
B) Russia
C) United States
D) Canada
E) United Kingdom
President Barack Obama’s appearance on The View in 2010 was a way to bypass the
national news media.
Which of the following is true of the council-manager form of city government?
A) It is the most popular form of city government in Texas for home-rule cities.
B) The individual members of the city council serve as heads of a city department.
C) The city council is simply a rubber stamp.
D) The city manager is elected at-large.
E) The city manager hires and manages all municipal employees.
Of the reforms involving campaigns and elections in Texas over the past few years, the
most successful has been in the area of reforming
A) PACs and corporate contributions.
B) voter registration procedures for former prisoners.
C) voter photo identification.
D) Texas’s primary date.
E) ballot access.
Who attacked the United States on September 11, 2001?
A) Al-Qaeda
B) Abu Mussab al-Zarqawi
C) The Taliban
D) Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades
E) Iraq
Which religious denomination has the highest membership in the Texas legislature?
A) Catholic
B) Baptist
C) Methodist
D) Episcopal
E) Pentecostal
President Barack Obama made remarks about immigration at American University in
July of 2010. This action is an example of which presidential role?
A) Chief law enforcer
B) Commander in chief
C) Chief of state
D) Shaper of public policy
E) Leader of the party