The right to privacy is
a. an unimportant liberty.
b. an agreed-upon part of American political culture.
c. a particularly controversial liberty.
d. explicitly stated in the Bill of Rights.
e. a central concept of democracy.
Some claim that the United States did not achieve true freedom of ______ until 1969,
when the Supreme Court overturned the conviction of a Ku Klux Klan leader in
Brandenburg v. Ohio.
a. symbolic speech
b. commercial speech
c. hate speech
d. political speech
e. the press
U. S. foreign policy may be carried out through all of the following techniques
EXCEPT
a. diplomatic relations.
b. foreign aid.
c. technical assistance.
d. military invasions.
e. by municipal taxation.
The Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 requires
a. each member of Congress to inform constituents of their votes on appropriations
measures.
b. the president to spend the funds that Congress has appropriated.
c. a balanced budget by the 2030 fiscal year.
d. the president to present an executive budget.
e. budgets to receive the approval of the American people before they go into effect.
Judicial review is
a. a method by which the president can check the judiciary.
b. the process of confirmation of federal judges by Congress.
c. the power of the courts to declare federal or state laws and other acts of government
unconstitutional.
d. not applicable to actions by state governments.
e. restricted to the Supreme Court in overturning decisions by lower courts.
Which of the following statements is true regarding government corporations?
a. Profits from government corporations are distributed as dividends.
b. Government corporations must pay taxes on profits.
c. Government corporations do not employee many people.
d. You can buy shares of stock in both a private corporation and a government
corporation.
e. Government corporations do not have any stockholders.
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 concept of universal suffrage refers to
a. the right of all adults to vote for their representatives in government.
b. the problems people face in countries that do not have democracy.
c. the idea that political power should be used to eliminate food shortages throughout
the world.
d. the belief that the whole world will suffer if certain political and economic ideas are
allowed to spread.
e. a state of nature before governments existed.
A political culture is a
a. written set of codes that dictate political action.
b. club that attempts to influence governmental decisions.
c. major problem for rulers of stable forms of government.
d. patterned set of ideas, values, and ways of thinking about government and politics.
e. manifestation of pluralism.
Once appointed to a judgeship, federal judges
a. cannot be removed from their position for any reason.
b. must face annual performance reviews.
c. must face recall elections every 4 years.
d. must face recall elections every 10 years.
e. hold that job for life.
Liberals typically endorse all of the following EXCEPT
a. civil rights.
b. improving the welfare of individuals.
c. a limited role for the government in helping individuals.
d. government regulation of the economy.
e. greater tolerance for social change.
Which of the following best describes de jure segregation?
a. Segregation that occurs because of patterns of racial residence and similar social
conditions
b. Segregation based on laws
c. Segregation that occurs because of laws or administrative decisions by public
agencies
d. Segregation based on physical characteristics
e. Complete segregation
The unalienable rights stipulated in the Declaration of Independence included the right
a. of free speech and a free press.
b. to freely associate and assemble.
c. to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
d. to life, liberty, and property.
e. to freedom of religion.
The National Security Council is a link between
a. Congress and the president.
b. leaders of foreign governments and the president.
c. the Securities and Exchange Commission and the president.
d. the president’s key foreign and military advisers and the president.
e. state governments and the president.
U.S. laws that required separate drinking fountains, separate seats in theaters, and
separate waiting rooms for the two races were known as
a. personal liberty laws.
b. illegal laws.
c. anti-civil-rights laws.
d. civil rights laws.
e. “Jim Crow” laws.
The necessary and proper clause
a. has provided the basis for an expanded role of the national government.
b. has greatly expanded the presidential powers.
c. was in the original Constitution, but was eliminated as a consequence of the
Twenty-Seventh Amendment.
d. has served to limit the expansion of national authority.
e. is located in the Constitution in the text of the Tenth Amendment.
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 twentyfirst 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.
_____ and _____ are the only presidents in American history to have been impeached
and acquitted.
a. Andrew Johnson; Bill Clinton
b. Richard Nixon; Franklin Roosevelt
c. Andrew Jackson; Herbert Hoover
d. Thomas Jefferson; Martin Van Buren
e. Andrew Jackson; Jimmy Carter
Regarding the chief executive, the writers of the Constitution
a. were all in agreement about the necessity of a powerful executive for the new
republic.
b. modeled the presidency of the United States after the Prime Minister of France.
c. had no models to follow when they created the presidency of the United States.
d. originally wanted a king.
e. created a leader with unchecked powers.
In Osborne v. Ohio, the Supreme Court ruled that states can outlaw the possession of
child pornography in the home
a. because owning the material perpetuates commercial demand for it and for the
exploitation of children involved.
b. to protect children who may be living in the home.
c. because it universally violates community standards.
d. because it encourages deviant and exploitive behavior.
e. because it employs graphics, as opposed to mere text.
Which of the following statements best describes the role of the National Security
Council?
a. It is an advisory body to the president on foreign policy matters.
b. It works for the State Department.
c. It serves as a Congressional standing committee.
d. It is a military advisory body.
e. It is a private research council that provides analysis of world events to businesses
and individuals.
Which of the following best describes prior restraint?
a. Refusing to read a suspect’s Miranda rights.
b. Restraining activities in the process of occurring.
c. Restraining an activity after that activity has actually occurred.
d. Restraining an activity before that activity has actually occurred.
e. Detaining people before they appear before a judge.
A rule or regulation issued by the president that has the effect of law is a(n)
a. legislative declaration.
b. presidential statute.
c. Congressional override.
d. emergency provision.
e. executive order.
The people who wanted to be the Republican candidate in the 2012 presidential
campaign first needed to raise enough funds to
a. win the title of highest-funded candidate.
b. put up billboards in urban areas.
c. run for local office.
d. tour the nation to see if they had enough local supporters.
e. air attack ads on television.
Which of the following best describes the realignment of 1968?
a. After 1968, the country was much less divided than before.
b. After 1968, the country shifted to a majority of independents.
c. After 1968, the country shifted to a Democratic majority.
d. After 1968, the country shifted to a Republican majority.
e. After 1968, there was a slow-motion realignment that left the nation almost evenly
divided in politics.
The Monroe Doctrine stated that
a. European nations should not establish new colonies in the Western Hemisphere or
intervene in the affairs of independent nations of the Western Hemisphere.
b. the United States had the authority to intervene in the affairs of European nations if
American interests were at stake.
c. the United States would take action against the Barbary pirates in order to protect
American lives and commerce.
d. the United States would not wait to be attacked, but rather would take preemptive
action against clear and present dangers.
e. the United States would only conduct business with other nations by employing
treaties.
When or why were primary elections were first mandated?
a. Primary elections were mandated by President Andrew Jackson.
b. Primary elections were conducted to eliminate the practice of “beauty contests.”
c. Primary elections strengthen the influence of party bosses.
d. Primary elections started in 1968 in Chicago.
e. Primary elections started in 1904 in Wisconsin.
In Engel v. Vitale (1962), the Supreme Court ruled that
a. established guidelines for school prayers is ok.
b. the Regents’ Prayer used in New York public schools was constitutional.
c. if school prayer did not refer to God, then it’s constitutional.
d. government is not constitutionally allowed to compose official prayers.
e. parents must be involved in the composition of any school prayers.
A constitutional amendment can be ratified by
a. a majority of the popular vote.
b. a positive vote in three-fourths of the legislatures of the various states.
c. a two-thirds vote in both houses of Congress.
d. approval of the legislatures in two-thirds of the states.
e. presidential approval.
Which of the following statements about the line-item veto is true?
a. It was used only in treaty ratification.
b. It was found to be unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1998.
c. It was given to the president of the United States, but prohibited to state governors.
d. It was denied to the president by an act of Congress.
e. It was frequently used on specific spending provisions by President George W. Bush.
The document drawn up at each national convention outlining the policies, positions,
and principles of the party is called the
a. rulebook.
b. statement of intent.
c. party platform.
d. national promise.
e. political covenant.
Informal advisers to the president are referred to as
a. FOP, or friends of the President.
b. the kitchen cabinet.
c. the Executive Counsel.
d. the cabinet.
e. the brain trust.
Once a bill gets referred to a committee,
a. a vote is held immediately in both houses of Congress on whether the bill should
become law.
b. it cannot make changes in the wording of the bill.
c. it usually goes to a specialized subcommittee for hearings, revisions, and approval.
d. it immediately goes to the other house of Congress.
e. the committee must work with the President to report or table the legislation.
Which of the following best defines symbolic speech?
a. Vaguely worded speech
b. Unprotected speech
c. Nonverbal expression
d. Obscenity
e. Hate speech
The dominant culture in the United States has its roots in
a. American Indian civilization.
b. Babylonian civilization.
c. Norse civilization.
d. Eastern European civilization.
e. Western European civilization.
How have presidents exercised their role as commander in chief? How did Congress
attempt to limit this power in the War Powers Resolution?
Answer:Students’ answers may vary.
Explain the important issues in McCulloch v. Maryland and Gibbons v. Ogden. What
has been the impact of these decisions on the relationship between the federal and state
governments?
Answer:Student’s answers may vary.
Using the important American values of liberty, security, equality, and property, discuss
the ways in which these values can be in conflict with each other. What role should
government play in providing these things for all Americans?
Answer:Students’ answers may vary.
Describe the different kinds of primaries. How does the type of primary, and the timing
of primaries, impact election results?
Answer:Students’ answers may vary.
Discuss the establishment clause and give examples of Supreme Court rulings based on
this clause.
Answer:Students’ answers may vary.
Describe the factors that influence political preferences. Which appear to be the most
important? Why might this be?
Answer:Students’ answers may vary.
Describe the two formal methods of proposing an amendment to the Constitution.
Answer:Students’ answers may vary.
Describe the concepts of separation of powers and checks and balances, and explain
why the Founding Fathers included these concepts in the framework of the
Constitution.
Answer:Students’ answers may vary.
Does the way Presidents use their cabinets indicate that the cabinet has more power
than the President, or vice versa? Explain your answer.
Answer:Students’ answers may vary.
Some suggest that American adolescence is now widening into the early twenties.
Should the voting age, therefore, be raised to 21 years of age? Why or why not?
Answer:Students’ answers may vary.
Identify and describe the three most important powers Congress has, and explain why
you think they rank as such.
Answer:Students’ answers may vary.
Identify which groups are most likely to be left out of the system of interest group
politics. What significance does this have for society?
Answer:Students’ answers may vary.
Describe the effects of the Civil War on states’ rights and the size of the national
government.
Answer:Student’s answers may vary.
Explain how a bill becomes a law.
Answer:Students’ answers may vary.
Since the ratification of the Constitution, there has been controversy between the
federal government and state governments about the appropriate division of power.
Explain how the federal government has gained power at the expense of state
governments. Indicate what state governments could do to regain power from the
federal government.
Answer:Student’s answers may vary.
Explain the goals of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and
the Civil Rights Act of 1968. Have these goals been realized?
Answer:Students’ answers may vary.