Applying the principles of Thomas Jefferson to current political issues would probably
dispose one to
a. favor the decentralization of government power.
b. oppose the decentralization of government power.
c. favor seven-year terms for presidents.
d. oppose seven-year terms for presidents.
e. favor a more powerful bureaucracy.
The dominant religious tradition in the early United States was
a. Catholicism.
b. Protestantism, especially Presbyterianism.
c. Protestantism, especially Puritanism.
d. Protestantism, especially Lutheranism.
e. nonexistent; the United States had no dominant religious tradition.
All of the following are requirements for representative democracy except
a. there must be opportunity for genuine leadership competition.
b. individuals and parties must be able to run for office.
c. voters must perceive that a meaningful choice exists.
d. political resources must be distributed in a roughly equal manner.
e. communication through the press, meetings, and the internet or speech must be free.
Which statement best summarizes the pertinent question of civil rights?
a. Laws cannot make distinctions among people.
b. Laws cannot discriminate.
c. Laws must treat everyone equally.
d. Laws can treat different people differently, but such differences must be reasonable.
e. Laws can discriminate as long as they do not make distinctions.
The House of Representatives has selected the president
a. in 2000 and 1888.
b. in 1800 and 1824.
c. in 1860 and 1888.
d. in 1800 and 1860.
e. in 2000 and 1824.
The Declaration of Independence explicitly stated that governments were instituted
among mento
a. improve human nature.
b. create equality.
c. protect borders.
d. secure rights.
e. punish criminals.
If a tax is progressive,
a. the wealthiest individuals pay the lowest rate.
b. the wealthiest individuals pay the highest rate.
c. every taxpayer pays the same rate.
d. rates are lower at the lowest and highest income brackets.
e. rates are the highest for the middle class.
The National Security Act of 1947 created the
a. Department of Defense.
b. Department of War.
c. State Department.
d. Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines.
e. Navy Seals.
The text cites the 1948 Marshall Plan and the Tax Reform Act of 1986 to illustrate that
a. unified governments rarely accomplish anything of note.
b. a divided government never could have produced them.
c. both were produced by a unified government.
d. one was produced by a unified government, and one was produced by a
dividedgovernment.
e. both were produced by divided governments.
Which elastic phrase has become a significant source of presidential power?
a. “With the advice and consent of the Senate”
b. “With all deliberate speed”
c. The “full faith and credit” clause
d. The “necessary and proper” clause
e. “Take care that the laws be faithfully executed”
Republicans tend to support free trade, but George W. Bush imposed sharp increases in
the taxes that must be paid on imported steel because
a. Congress pressured him to do so.
b. the CEA recommended that he do so.
c. other nations had done the same thing.
d. he wanted political support in states such as Ohio and Pennsylvania.
e. of a bargain with Democratic senators.
Interest groups are an important way for people to have their voices heard because
a. the size and diversity of our country.
b. the decentralizing effects of our Constitution.
c. the vast number of nonprofit organizations.
d. the weaknesses of our political parties.
e. All of the above are true.
Which is NOT an example of an interest group?
a. Chamber of Commerce
b. National Association of Manufacturers
c. American Medical Association
d. Green Party
e. Urban League
Voters tend to prefer a presidential candidate that has served in this type of elected
office.
a. Governor
b. Member of the House of Representatives
c. Ambassador
d. Member of the Senate
e. Supreme Court justice
In the 1830s, de Tocqueville was amazed how _________ Americans were in
comparison to his fellow Europeans.
a. religious
b. tolerant
c. educated
d. None of the above is true.
e. All of the above are true.
The Supreme Court entered its most active period with the arrival of Chief Justice
__________.
a. Warren
b. Rehnquist
c. Burger
d. Taft
e. White
Of the following, which one is not an example of a bureaucracy?
a. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
b. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
c. A large university
d. A large corporation
e. None of the above is true.
The Whistle Blower Protection Act of 1989 is designed to protect
a. agencies that are being undermined by their employees.
b. agencies that are being undermined by Congress.
c. agency heads who fire employees for misconduct.
d. bureaucrats who tell on their bosses.
e. bureaucrats who are not career employees.
Under the old system, the __________ restricted the regulation of business and
prevented the government from levying an income tax.
a. Supreme Court
b. Senate
c. House of Representatives
d. President
e. None of the above is true.
From the time of winning office to the time of leaving it, the popularity of most recent
presidents
a. decreased steadily.
b. decreased except at election time.
c. increased steadily.
d. increased except at election time.
e. revealed no systematic trends and was impervious to elections and campaigns.
Under the Supreme Court’s decision in Roe, states may ban abortions
a. in the first trimester.
b. in the first and second trimesters.
c. in the second trimester.
d. in the second and third trimesters.
e. in the third trimester.
The discretionary authority of appointed officials is their authority to
a. shift federal dollars without clear authorization.
b. not implement legislation.
c. make policies that are not spelled out in advance by laws.
d. spend federal monies, even though they are not officially part of the federal
bureaucracy.
e. act on behalf of government officials and represent the government in courts of law.
The most common background or professional experience among members of the
current Supreme Court is experience as a(n) __________.
a. attorney general
b. state judge
c. prosecutor
d. defense attorney
e. federal judge
The media typically report presidential elections as horse races because of the media’s
role as__________.
a. arbiter
b. watchdog
c. scorekeeper
d. mirror of reality
e. mediator
Pollsters have to be concerned about ideological self-identification in polls because
a. many Americans do not know what liberalism and conservatism mean.
b. many Americans do not feel the need to be ideologically consistent.
c. some respondents will hide what they think to be socially unacceptable
self-identifications.
d. the desire to hide self-identifications might inflate responses of “don”t know” or
“moderate.”
e. All of the above are true.
This president signed a law creating the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
a. Richard Nixon
b. Jimmy Carter
c. Barack Obama
d. Bill Clinton
e. George W. Bush
The exclusionary rule holds that
a. double jeopardy cannot occur.
b. defendents who have had their rights violated can plea bargain.
c. police officers must be disciplined.
d. evidence gathered in violation of the Constitution cannot be used in a trial.
e. states must prohibit religious displays in court.
During the 2010 midterm elections, more than half of all Americans used __________
to get political news about the elections.
a. the Internet
b. newspapers
c. radio
d. NPR
e. the BBC
Consumer and environmental protection laws are considered
a. majoritarian politics.
b. client politics.
c. interest-group politics.
d. entrepreneurial politics.
e. None of the above is true.
Under the Old System, the press understands that they should
a. never ask the president follow-up questions.
b. never quote the president directly.
c. always submit press conference questions in writing in advance.
d. quote the president in matters related to domestic affairs but not foreign affairs.
e. have most printed material reviewed by the White House before publication.
The FCC rarely enforces the rule that
a. certain words cannot be used on air.
b. each hour on TV can only contain 16 minutes of commercials.
c. nudity cannot be on TV.
d. cable companies cannot have graphic violence.
e. None of the above is true.
Under current law, an individual must register as a lobbyist if they spend at least
__________ of their time lobbying.
a. 90 percent
b. 70 percent
c. 50 percent
d. 20 percent
e. 5 percent
According to the results from a “U.S. Citizenship Test” administered by Newsweek
magazine, only __________ of the test takers knew that the U.S. House of
Representatives had 435 members.
a. 75 percent
b. 25 percent
c. 14 percent
d. 4 percent
e. 48 percent
Which of the following statements about the two-party system is correct?
a. Most European countries have such a system.
b. The United States is one of the few countries with such a system.
c. It exists in the United States because of the absence of local party organizations.
d. It has existed in the United States only since the early 1900s.
e. It has always been on the verge of collapse.
Compare American political culture to the political culture of other democracies
discussed in the text.
Today, powerful bosses are the main people determining the party nominees for
elections.
Discuss the restraints on the growth of government that existed until the mid-1930s.
Medicaid was created during Franklin Roosevelt’s administration.
Since 1860, many of the great party realignments have been based on differing position
issues.
How did the Court rule in two recent cases involving the Ten Commandments in
Kentucky andTexas?
Summarize the constitutional qualifications for members of the House and Senate.
Summarize the major provisions of the War Powers Act.
Ironically, the slave trade was mentioned four times in the Declaration of Independence.
Discuss Max Weber’s “Protestant ethic” and its influence on American political culture.
Sociotropic voting would involve decision making based on personal experiences rather
than on perceptions of the economic health of the nation as a whole.
Explain what a Democracy is and note some prominent examples of this form of
government throughout history.
There are 535 members in Congress.
Identify the four things that affect what is on the political agenda, according to the text.
In United States v. Lopez, the Supreme Court said that Congress had exceeded its
commerce clause power by creating gun-free zones around schools.
The NAACP was formed by a group consisting of both whites and blacks.
Identify the requirements for representative democracy to work.
Automobile safety and water pollution were not major political issues until the national
press began giving substantial attention to these matters.