The presidential power known as diplomatic recognition
a. is a relatively meaningless tradition.
b. has seldom been used by any president.
c. is the power of the president to recognize, or not recognize, foreign governments.
d. is a simple and uncontroversial part of the president’s duties.
e. has been used more by Congress than by the president.
If a case is affirmed, it
a. means the case cannot be appealed to a higher court.
b. is sent back to the court that originally heard the case.
c. means a court ruling is valid and must stand.
d. will result in a new trial for the defendant.
e. is accepted as a case that the U.S. Supreme Court will hear.
A veto is
a. usually employed to punish members of the president’s party who disagree with him.
b. more likely when the president’s party controls Congress.
c. a clearcut indication of the president’s dissatisfaction with legislation.
d. likely to be overridden about half the time.
e. required to be used at least once during each president’s term.
A model of federalism that looks on national and state governments as co-equal
sovereign powers, neither of which should interfere in the other’s sphere is called
a. confederalism.
b. cooperative federalism.
c. dual federalism.
d. separate-but-equal federalism.
e. post-war federalism.
Expanded authority of the national government has traditionally been preferred by
a. liberals.
b. conservatives.
c. libertarians.
d. social conservatives.
e. southern conservatives.
In 2003, the United States Supreme Court considered two different admissions polices
adopted at the University of Michigan and
a. for the first time, ruled that affirmative action was unconstitutional.
b. ruled that “diversity” could not be a compelling government interest.
c. approved affirmative action plans that took race into consideration as part of a
complete examination of the applicant’s background.
d. approved a plan that automatically awarded a substantial number of points to
applicants based on minority status.
e. ruled that the time had come for all affirmative action programs to end, since
government could do nothing more to alleviate the effects of past discrimination.
When a person has either knowledge of a defamatory statement’s falsity or a reckless
disregard for the truth, he or she is said to have
a. actual malice.
b. malignant intent.
c. creative license.
d. unauthorized information.
e. criminal intent.
Examples of enumerated powers belonging exclusively to the national government
include
a. declaring war and coining money.
b. taxation and establishment of courts.
c. regulating commerce and crime within states.
d. regulating public schools and divorces.
e. taxing exports and holding elections.
Rights held to be inherent in natural law, not dependent on governments, are called
a. constitutional rights.
b. social benefits.
c. implied rights.
d. natural rights.
e. enumerated rights.
In the pluralist view, politics is
a. only useful for the wealthy in society.
b. the struggle among groups to gain benefits for their members.
c. insignificant at the lower levels of government.
d. marked by the division of society into two great classes.
e. the major problem in modern society.
Which of the following best describes why interest groups try to generate public
pressure?
a. To convince policymakers that public opinion supports the group’s position
b. To get the public to support only environmental initiatives
c. To avoid the legislative process
d. To make bureaucrats testify before Congress
e. To directly lobby lawmakers
The Supreme Court’s ruling in the Civil Rights Cases of 1883 meant that
a. discriminatory official actions taken by the states were not illegal.
b. discriminatory acts of private citizens were not illegal.
c. interfering with a citizen’s right to vote was now a federal offense.
d. interfering with a citizen’s right to vote was still illegal, but could only be punished
with a small fine.
e. it was only illegal to discriminate against minors.
When the Electoral College fails to elect a president, what happens?
a. The current president serves two more years and another general election is held.
b. The candidate who receives a plurality of the popular vote is elected.
c. The electors cast a second ballot to determine who will be elected.
d. The election is decided in the House of Representatives.
e. The election is decided in the Senate.
Determining which public policy questions will be debated or considered is the process
of _____.
a. oversight
b. filibustering
c. casework
d. agenda setting
e. logrolling
Which of the following best defines a social movement?
a. A group of people on the fringes of U.S. society
b. A group bent on subverting the government
c. A movement of people
d. A demand by a vast majority of the population to do something
e. A movement that represents the demands of a large segment of the population for
political, economic, or social change
The Equal Rights Amendment was
a. ratified by the final state and became part of the Constitution on July 13, 1981.
b. not ratified by the necessary thirty-eight states.
c. vetoed by President Ronald Reagan.
d. not approved by the Senate.
e. first introduced in Congress in 1972.
Which of the following is NOT a function of Congress?
a. Determining if laws are constitutional
b. Educating the public through hearings and debates
c. Carrying out and executing the laws it has passed
d. Representing constituents
e. Resolving conflicts between different groups
In recent years, Protestants and Catholics have
a. both become more likely to abstain from voting.
b. both become more likely to vote Democratic.
c. moved toward Jewish voters politically.
d. moved farther apart from each other politically.
e. grown closer to each other politically.
Advertising paid for by interest groups that support or oppose a candidate (or a
candidate’s position on an issue) without mentioning voting or elections is called
a. a PAC advertisement.
b. a soft-money contribution.
c. issue advocacy advertising.
d. a hard-money expenditure.
e. payola profiteering and pilfering.
Regarding direct democracy, James Madison and other politicians of his time
a. believed it would lead to a more educated population.
b. believed it was the safest and most stable system of government.
c. feared it would lead to a tyranny of the minority.
d. championed it as the only acceptable form of government.
e. feared it would deteriorate into mob rule.
All are true of federal grants EXCEPT
a. that they increased significantly during the twentieth century.
b. that they have been used for education, pollution control, recreation, and highway
construction.
c. that they quadrupled in dollar amount in the 1960s.
d. that they are given by the states for national projects.
e. that they have been accompanied by a multitude of restrictions and regulations.
Today, in national elections, most campaign tasks are handled by
a. former successful politicians.
b. professionals who donate their time for free.
c. amateur politicians.
d. paid professionals.
e. volunteers.
Which of the following best describes sampling error?
a. Any given poll will result in as certain percentage point variation from the true
answer as pollsters could not really interview everyone.
b. Researchers take a random number of people and survey them.
c. Pollsters get a sample of people using demographic or geographical software to yield
a high level of accuracy.
d. Researchers take a sample of voters and slant the results in order to influence future
polls.
e. Pollsters make up the survey results.
After World War I, the United States returned to a state of “normalcy” in foreign policy,
which meant
a. a continued commitment to international peacekeeping.
b. reassuring the public that the United States would act in the role of world policeman.
c. a sharp increase in military spending in order to honor commitments made to the
allied powers.
d. a reduction in military forces and defense spending and a return to isolationism.
e. the annexation of additional territory in the Western Hemisphere.
In terms of judicial implementation or enforcement of Supreme Court rulings, the Court
a. has now acquired it own police force.
b. has no enforcement powers and depends on the cooperation of the other two branches
of government to carry out its decisions.
c. does not make decisions that have to be enforced.
d. allows Congress to set up legislative review.
e. originally had enforcement powers, but those powers have since been eroded by
federal legislation.
Which of the following methods is most likely to control sampling error?
a. Surveying the least educated
b. Processing survey results quickly
c. Conducting a telephone poll
d. Taking a large random sample
e. Taking a large quota sample
Recently, having more than a bachelor’s degree
a. is associated with a greater tendency to vote for Republicans.
b. is associated with a greater tendency to vote for Democrats.
c. is associated with a greater tendency to vote for Independents.
d. has no influence on voting behavior.
e. is associated with a greater tendency to abstain from voting.
China’s position is that sooner or later, Taiwan
a. must rejoin the rest of China.
b. will be granted permanent independence.
c. must join with Hong Kong as a single independent territory.
d. will be returned to the United Kingdom.
e. will be divided into several smaller territories and distributed among the region’s
major powers.
The Bill of Rights was important for ratification of the Constitution because
a. state constitutions already had such rights.
b. such rights were stipulated in the Articles of Confederation.
c. some states would not have voted to ratify the Constitution without the promise of
amendments to protect individual liberties.
d. the colonists wanted to conform to international standards.
e. the Federalists were wary of a strong central government.
How best to protect our environment and what the speed limit should be on interstate
highways are both
a. foreign policy questions.
b. domestic policy questions.
c. insoluble questions.
d. local questions.
e. questions for the courts.