The phrase “don”t ask, don”t tell” refers to a policy toward gay men and lesbians
a. governing their employment by the CIA and the FBI.
b. allowing them to serve in the military so long as they did not declare that they were
gay or commit homosexual acts.
c. regulating when they are allowed to adopt.
d. allowing them to serve in Congress so long as they did not declare that they were gay
or commit homosexual acts.
e. adopted by the Hollywood movie industry.
Superdelegates are
a. party leaders or elected officials who are given the right to vote at the party’s national
convention.
b. the five delegates who raise the most money for the party.
c. no longer permitted at national conventions.
d. elected at the state level.
e. appointed by the president.
Which government system is the most popular, both historically and today?
a. A unitary system
b. A confederal system
c. A federal system
d. A bicameral system
e. A grassroots system
Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution gives Congress the power to
a. override presidential vetoes.
b. establish a system of courts below the Supreme Court.
c. limit the power of local governments.
d. regulate the media.
e. levy income taxes.
Enumerated powers are
a. powers that the executive branch has.
b. powers that allow the president to do whatever he likes, as long as it carries out the
Constitution.
c. powers that are specifically granted to the national government by the Constitution.
d. Supreme Court decisions.
e. spelled out in the Necessary and Proper Clause of the Constitution.
Regulatory agencies and commissions perform
a. only executive functions.
b. only legislative functions.
c. only judicial functions.
d. some functions of all branches of governmentlegislative, executive, and judicial.
e. private corporate functions.
In 1903, the Supreme Court ruled that the government could not deport someone
without
a. giving them ninety days notice.
b. a special type of hearing with less strict due process standards than those set forth in
the Constitution.
c. a hearing that meets constitutional due process standards.
d. informing their family.
e. ensuring they will be safe in their home country.
Most of the actual work of legislating is
a. performed by interest groups and then acted on by Congress.
b. done in the Rules Committee of the Senate.
c. performed on the floor of the House of Representatives.
d. performed by the committees and subcommittees within Congress.
e. done when the president signs it.
The Tenth Amendment states that the powers not delegated to the United States by the
Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are
a. the sole authority of Congress.
b. reserved to the central government.
c. reserved to the states, or to the people.
d. the sole authority of the executive branch.
e. subject to judicial review.
In recent years, polls show that ______ of respondents have favorable opinions about
Congress as a whole.
a. fewer than 5 percent
b. as few as 9 percent
c. about 50 percent
d. about 75 percent
e. more than 90 percent
Congress’s main function is to
a. enforce the laws.
b. make laws.
c. impeach high government officials.
d. use its oversight power.
e. decide whether or not laws are constitutional.
In terms of management, the cabinet departments are considered
a. line organizations.
b. lacking personnel.
c. the watchdogs for independent agencies.
d. part of the judicial branch.
e. accountable directly to Congress.
Which of the following is true regarding Barack Obama’s appointments to the Supreme
Court?
a. The appointments did not change the ideological balance of the Court.
b. The appointments strengthened the rightward movement of the Supreme Court.
c. The appointments were two women.
d. The appointments were Harriet Miers and Samuel Alito.
e. The appointments were made possible by the death of two justices.
The term confederation refers to
a. a system in which most power is with the central government.
b. a voluntary association of independent states.
c. a system in which state and local governments have equal power with the central
government.
d. a national legislature.
e. the southern states where slavery was legal.
Which of the following statements about the Buckley v. Valeo case is true?
a. The Supreme Court ruled that issue advocacy advertising was unconstitutional.
b. The Supreme Court ruled that the use of focus groups in political campaigns was
unconstitutional.
c. The Supreme Court got rid of the Federal Election Commission.
d. The Supreme Court ruled that the amount candidates could spend on their own
campaigns cannot be limited.
e. The Supreme Court ruled that it was unconstitutional to restrict in any way the
amount congressional candidates could spend on their own behalf.
Which of the following taxes did the British NOT impose on the colonists?
a. The Sugar Act
b. The Stamp Act, which taxed, among other things, legal documents and newspapers
c. Duties on glass, lead, and paint
d. A tax on tea
e. An income tax
Out of more than 11,000 amendments to the Constitution that have been considered by
Congress, only ______ have been ratified.
a. 10
b. 12
c. 18
d. 27
e. 33
An individual’s trial rights include all of the following EXCEPT
a. the right to an impartial jury selected from a cross-section of the community.
b. the right to a speedy and public trial before a jury.
c. the right not to be subject to lengthy questioning.
d. no compulsory self-incrimination.
e. a trial atmosphere free of prejudice.
A written opinion of the Supreme Court is best described as
a. a press release.
b. a recommendation to Congress.
c. advice to the President.
d. the Court’s ruling on the issue presented, its reasoning, and applicable law.
e. a ruling when it hears oral arguments.
An independent is a
a. contrarian voter.
b. voter or a candidate who does not identify with a political party.
c. voter or a candidate who votes Democratic.
d. voter or a candidate who votes Republican.
e. voter or a candidate who votes Libertarian.
Which of the following statements concerning the Civil Rights Act of 1866 is FALSE?
a. It implemented the extension of citizenship to anyone born in the United States.
b. It gave African Americans full equality before the law.
c. It authorized the President to enforce the law with the national armed forces.
d. It was quickly vetoed by President Andrew Johnson.
e. It was passed to attempt to enforce the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth
Amendments.
In Thomas Paine’s Common Sense, he argued that
a. human affairs are naturally stable and self-correcting.
b. immigration to the colonies should be outlawed.
c. it is unwise and unsafe to rebel against the king.
d. an independent colonial government of their own is a natural right.
e. taxation is both important and necessary.
One of the main ways third parties have influenced American politics is by
a. refusing to allow their policies to be adopted by a major party.
b. sometimes determining the outcome of an election by pulling votes from one of the
major-party candidates.
c. focusing their efforts on getting judges appointed to the bench rather than winning
elections for the executive or legislative branches.
d. winning elections to state legislative bodies.
e. gaining control of several municipal governments.
Which of the following best describes what Common Cause does?
a. It helped establish, then repeal, Prohibition.
b. It has led to an overhaul of the Internal Revenue Service.
c. It works to make governmental institutions more responsive to the needs of the
public.
d. It is the smallest interest group in the country in terms of numbers.
e. It strives to ignore national priorities of the public.
In 2008, the United States faced the worst _______ crisis in 80 years.
a. environmental
b. national defense
c. economic
d. international relations
e. elections fraud
Transmitting political values
a. is more likely to happen from parents to children.
b. is less likely to happen from educators to students.
c. is equally likely to happen from educators as from parents.
d. most likely happens when children, influenced by educators, influence parents in
turn.
e. never happens from children to parents.
Standing committees are
a. permanent bodies that are established by the rules of each chamber and that continue
from session to session.
b. committees that handle issues that the most important committees in Congress do not
consider.
c. committees that work with counterparts in the other house of Congress.
d. committees that reconcile differences in an action.
e. committees inside committees, which handle tasks that the main committee has no
time for.
The following statement was probably made by a ______: “The government should
have no role in providing health care for the country. It would be best to provide a tax
rate cut to stimulate businesses to provide more people with health care insurance.”
a. liberal
b. conservative
c. communist
d. socialist
e. populist
Which of the following is TRUE regarding presidential fundraising?
a. The president of the United States is prohibited from engaging in fund-raising
activities by Article II of the Constitution.
b. By the 1990s and early twenty-first century, presidents were no longer willing to
lower themselves to “begging for money” and limited their fund raising.
c. Most presidents rely on others to raise money for them because it is not part of the
role of the president to raise money.
d. Barack Obama had spectacular success in raising funds as a candidate.
e. Congress has enacted legislation prohibiting a sitting president from engaging in
fund-raising activities.
State and national candidates are typically nominated through a
a. general election.
b. primary election.
c. judicial appointment.
d. runoff election.
e. party leader appointment.
The United States was the only major country to emerge from World War II with
a. an addition to its territory.
b. operational nuclear weapons.
c. less than 2,000 casualties.
d. a weakened economy.
e. an intention to expand its role in the world.
Aristocracy means rule by
a. the majority.
b. the “best.”
c. the “few.”
d. those who can read and write.
e. religious leaders.
The American Bar Association and the American Medical Association are examples of
a. interest groups that do not engage in lobbying.
b. interest groups with small memberships (less than 1,000 members).
c. interest groups with relatively little influence.
d. interest groups of professionals.
e. public-interest groups.
In the 1944 case of Smith v. Allwright, the United States Supreme Court ruled the
______ to be a violation of the Fifteenth Amendment.
a. literacy test
b. poll tax
c. grandfather clause
d. white primary
e. black primary