A state law that grants a local government the authority to provide public services, enact
and enforce regulations, and raise revenue to support its operations is called a(n)
A.charter.
B.referendum.
C.local adoption.
D.appropriation.
E.initiative.
Which of the following is NOT a purpose of the federal budget?
A.It creates a comprehensive plan laying out what the government will spend for
various programs.
B.It sets limits on the profitability of key industries and service companies.
C.It sets priorities for the government.
D.It details how the government expects to raise money.
E.It manages and implements the fiscal policy.
The most successful grassroots lobbying organization, with 25 million members, is the
A.American Association of Retired People (AARP).
B.Sierra Club.
C.Academy of Trial Lawyers.
D.Police Benevolent Association.
E.Conference of State Governors.
One theory states that certain elections can be characterized as producing sharp changes
in patterns of party loyalty among voters, such as the election of 1860 in which
Abraham Lincoln won the presidency. This theory is called
A.partisan theory.
B.critical election theory.
C.progressive era theory.
D.democratic theory.
E.socialist theory.
As a direct result of strong and organized public support, the Seventeenth Amendment
was ratified in 1913. What did the new amendment create?
A.the abolition of slavery
B.a national bank to protect against economic depression
C.a requirement that a president seek out public opinion before making major decisions.
D.America’s entry into World War I
E.a direct election of U.S. senators by the voters of the state instead of by the state
legislatures
Enacted in the days following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, the USA Patriot
Act
A.marked the first time that the federal government has ever curtailed individual
liberties in exchange for national security.
B.opened our nation’s borders to a flood of illegal immigration.
C.encouraged and welcomed Arab immigration to the United States.
D.was not the first time in our nation’s history when the government has curtailed
individual rights in the interests of national security.
E.was widely welcomed by all Americans as a necessary and legitimate action of the
federal government.
What was the primary stance of the Anti-Federalists of the late 1700s?
A.a strong central government and less autonomy in the state governments
B.world dominance
C.a weak federal government and strong state sovereignty
D.an alliance with the British government
E.one branch of government, that being the legislature
Franklin Delano Roosevelt, first elected president in 1932, has the distinction of being
the longest serving president in American history. To how many terms was he elected?
A.two
B.three
C.four
D.five
E.six
There are ______________ members of Congress with full voting privileges.
A.100
B.435
C.485
D.515
E.535
A confederation
A.is defined as a single sovereign state.
B.consists of two or more governments that are legally bound to each other by contract.
C.may be defined as a league of independent states that voluntarily unite to achieve
certain goals.
D.is a constitutional arrangement whereby two or more governments are required to
cooperate.
E.is a state of political rebellion.
Today, most Americans get their news from
A.newspapers.
B.television.
C.radio.
D.news magazines.
E.the Internet.
Subjective biases of male bosses against female employees are difficult to prove. These
biases are often considered to be the cause of what is known to women as
A.sexual harassment.
B.intermediate scrutiny.
C.the glass ceiling.
D.gender equality.
E.rational basis scrutiny.
Which of the following is the term used for “friend of the court” briefs, the companion
briefs supporting an argument in an existing court case? Interest groups use these when
the outcome of the case may have an impact on their issues.
A.petition
B.amicus curiae
C.habeas corpus
D.subpoena
E.discovery
An organization of people with shared goals that tries to influence public policy through
a variety of activities is called
A.a religious denomination.
B.an interest group.
C.a political action committee.
D.a government.
E.a corporation.
How does the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act affect political action committees
(PAC)?
A.PACs are prohibited from giving money to incumbents.
B.PACs are prohibited from giving money to challengers.
C.PACs must use corporate or union contributions for electioneering communications
only.
D.PACs must use corporate or union contributions for administrative costs only.
E.PACS are prohibited from giving candidates money within 90 days of an upcoming
election.
What were Black Codes?
A.Laws passed in Northern states to guarantee rights to newly freed blacks.
B.Laws passed in Southern states to deny rights to newly freed slaves.
C.Restrictions placed on the right of newly freed slaves to own property in the North.
D.Supreme Court decisions that mandated separate but equal facilities for newly freed
slaves.
E.Unsuccessful attempts by northern states to recruit newly freed blacks to work in
Northern factories.
Which of the following is most consistent with the principle of isolationism?
A.Truman Doctrine
B.Marshall Plan
C.Bush Doctrine
D.Participation in the United Nations
E.Refusal to join the League of Nations
Which President created his own political party in 1912, effectively splitting his party?
A.Andrew Jackson
B.William McKinley
C.Woodrow Wilson
D.Calvin Coolidge
E.Teddy Roosevelt
What is the presidential advisory group that includes the chief military personnel of all
four branches of the armed forces?
A.Joint Chiefs of Staff
B.President’s Cabinet
C.Homeland Security
D.Joint Executive High Command
E.West Point Advisory Team
The USA Patriot Act was enacted in October 2001. What powers did the law create and
to whom were the powers granted?
A.The Patriot Act was created to control and prosecute anyone who would stir
discontent and disloyalty concerning our military forces.
B.The Patriot Act gave the president broad power to arrest and detain any citizen or
resident whose speech was considered disloyal to the current administration.
C.The Patriot Act gave the federal government broad new powers to detain suspects,
secretly search their homes, and eavesdrop on telephone and email conversations.
D.The Patriot Act gave the FBI authority to search any citizen, at any time, without a
warrant or probable cause.
E.The Patriot Act was the formal declaration of war against Al Qaeda.
The Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) is most closely associated with
A.Barack Obama.
B.Bill Clinton.
C.Ronald Reagan.
D.Jimmy Carter.
E.Dwight Eisenhower.
The image, personal traits, and other characteristics of the particular candidates in a
campaign can have an influence on the way people vote. Which of the following is
NOT commonly one of the perceptions used by voters in forming candidate image?
A.trustworthiness
B.leadership ability
C.concern for the voter
D.integrity
E.wealth or lack of it
In the history of the United States, the number of sitting presidents who have been
impeached by the House of Representatives and subsequently found guilty and removed
by the Senate is
A.zero.
B.one.
C.two.
D.three.
E.five.
Following organized opposition to the Stamp Act of 1765 England’s parliament
repealed the act but immediately enacted the Declaratory Act, which
A.created a democracy in England and abolished the monarchy.
B.recognized the sovereignty and self-government of the American colonies.
C.formed the colonies into a free nation.
D.declared that the Parliament was now fully subordinate to the king.
E.asserted that the king and Parliament had “full power and authority” in the colonies.
A temporary committee within either chamber of Congress that is established to
investigate a particular issue of concern and report back to the full chamber is called a
A.conference committee.
B.standing committee.
C.joint committee.
D.presidential committee.
E.select committee.
As a regulatory tactic, all member banks nationwide are charged an amount to borrow
short-term funds. This amount dictates the interest rate to the customer and the amount
of money flowing into the economy, and is referred to as
A.the discount rate.
B.the monetary average.
C.fiscal reconciliation.
D.federal profiteering.
E.the CD rate.
_________ led the longest filibuster in U.S. history in an effort to block passage of the
Civil Rights Act of 1964.
A.Jesse Helms
B.Robert C. Byrd
C.Lyndon B. Johnson
D.Strom Thurmond
E.Richard B. Russell
The belief that the Supreme Court should have the power of judicial review is included
in
A.the Declaration of Independence.
B.the Bill of Rights.
C.the Fourteenth Amendment.
D.the Federalist Papers.
E.the Constitution.
A circuit court of appeals may meet “en banc,” meaning that
A.the entire court must unanimously agree to convene.
B.it is meeting in secret.
C.the court does not publish its rulings.
D.the litigant appeals from the three-judge panel to the full circuit court, which may
contain twenty or more judges.
E.the case is heard without the justices having actually to be present but the ruling by
the attorneys may be appealed to the full court.
Which of the following is an example of persuasion campaigning by an interest group?
A.targeted mass mailings
B.membership drives
C.fundraising
D.candidate advocacy
E.issuance of policy stance
Another hotly debated topic concerning civil rights is racial profiling. Which of the
following is a definition that is commonly used for racial profiling?
A.legitimate use of race to determine criminal suspects
B.segregation of criminal suspects according to race
C.the practice of taking race into account when investigating crimes
D.disproportionate waivers of juvenile minorities from juvenile courts to adult court
E.disproportionate use of the death penalty for racial minorities
Japanese Americans suffered tremendous discrimination in 1942 when
A.they were forced to serve in the United States military against its enemy of Japan.
B.over 60,000 United States citizens of Japanese ancestry were relocated into
internment camps during WWII and their movements were strictly limited.
C.all Americans of Japanese ancestry lost their citizenship rights.
D.all those who were identified and located were deported to Japan.
E.many of them were forced into labor camps to serve the military in overseas
campaigns.
The first woman elected to Congress was
A.Elizabeth Dole from North Carolina in 2002.
B.Shirley Chisholm from New York in 1970.
C.Hillary Clinton from New York in 1992.
D.Nancy Pelosi from California in 1989.
E.Jeanette Rankin from Montana in 1916.
What was the significant ruling of the Supreme Court in McCulloch v. Maryland in
1819?
A.The Madison administration was held in contempt of court for its disagreement with
the creation of a national bank.
B.Though the national bank was a creation of the federal government, it was
subordinate to the government of the state in which it was located.
C.Based on the necessary and proper clause of the U.S. Constitution, the national bank
had broad powers and was justified in using those powers when exercising the national
government’s expressly delegated powers.
D.The Supreme Court had no power or jurisdiction to consider a case involving a state
government.
E.Maryland’s state supreme court had jurisdiction over the federal court (Supreme
Court).
How did citizens get news prior to the American Revolution?
A.The federal government printed monthly news updates.
B.Most larger cities had daily or weekly newspapers that carried in-depth reporting and
analysis.
C.The British government provided all news sources prior to America’s independence.
D.Only British media outlets were allowed to compete in the American news market
though all news must be sympathetic to the British rule.
E.A handful of small newspapers published by printers were oriented toward paid
advertising, but also produced some political pamphlets.