The necessary and proper clause is the root of Congress’s implied powers.
The Supreme Court evaded questions of gerrymandering, deeming them too political,
until recently.
Socialization and life-skills are critical components of the No Child Left Behind Act.
Today, most federal bureaucrats are hired based on patronage.
Thurgood Marshall, a lawyer for the NAACP, was later appointed as the first African
American justice on the U.S. Supreme Court.
Local and national news stations alike have begun to use citizen journalists to enhance
their news coverage.
According to the Center for Responsive Politics, a total of approximately $450 million
was spent to lobby members of Congress in 2009.
The Twenty-Second Amendment prevents presidents from serving more than eight
years.
Over time, the Texas Constitution has typically grown longer, more detailed, and more
confusing.
The United States and France have very different models of bureaucracy.
Canada has a unitary form of government.
Alaska Governor Sarah Palin was the first woman to ever be on a major party ticket.
The rise of the interest group state began just before the Civil War.
Suppose a tabloid newspaper published a sensationalized story claiming that President
Barack Obama had fathered an illegitimate child. This story is an example of red
journalism.
Ralph Nader’s run for the presidency occurred in large part due to his work at Public
Citizen.
Screening procedures allow surveyors to exclude questions from surveys if the
respondent has not thought about a particular issue.
Members of Congress have two constituencies: those with whom they work in
Washington, and their constituencies at home.
The president appoints ambassadors with the advice and consent of the Senate.
An earmark can be used to inconspicuously tack on appropriations to somewhat
controversial measures.
Majority rule is a core American political value.
If you wanted to work for a political party with hands-on activities from the grassroots
level, you would MOST likely want to work as a precinct committee member.
There are 535 voting members of Congress, plus seven non-voting members.
Social regulation occurs when government regulates the quality and safety products as
well as the conditions under which goods and services are produced.
Article II of the Constitution vests the executive power in a president.
Article V of the Constitution specifies how amendments can be added.
Participation in primary elections in Texas is usually very high, especially in runoff
primaries.
Special districts are the most numerous form of government in the United States.
Single-member city council districts are generally better than at-large-by-place systems
for boosting minority representation on the city council.
Senator John McCain was not born in the United States.
In Barron v. Baltimore, the Supreme Court ruled that the Bill of Rights was intended to
limit the powers of the national government, not the state governments.
The North American Free Trade Agreement was passed into law under President
George W. Bush.
All of the courts in Washington, D.C. are federal courts.
Under the 1836 Texas Constitution, Texas was separated from Coahuila and each
became states under Mexican control.
The belief that each person should act according to his or her own conscience is known
as
A) equality.
B) freedom of conscience.
C) individualism.
D) liberty.
E) constitutionalism.
All of the following are examples of entitlement programs EXCEPT
A) Supplemental Security Income.
B) public housing.
C) Social Security.
D) the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
E) Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.
The percentage of households in the United States consisting of a single person is
nearly ____ percent.
A) 10
B) 20
C) 30
D) 40
E) 50
A type of government in which the national government is weaker than the sum of its
parts is called a
A) confederation.
B) federal system.
C) unitary system.
D) democracy.
E) republic.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that provisions of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act
A) were superfluous.
B) infringed on the First Amendment’s guarantee of freedom of assembly.
C) were necessary to reduce corruption in government.
D) prevented the president from exercising veto authority.
E) limited candidates’ access to the ballot.
The ________ was established to advise the president on military affairs and foreign
policy.
A) National Security Council
B) Office of the U.S. Trade Representative
C) Council on Foreign Relations
D) Executive Office of the President
E) Defense Intelligence Agency
The _________________ Act of 2009 was designed to create jobs and cut taxes through
deficit spending.
A) American Recovery and Reinvestment
B) Glass-Steagall
C) Economic and Financial Investment
D) Interstate Commerce
E) McCain-Feingold
If a Texas gubernatorial candidate campaigned on the platform of implementing a
personal income tax, what would have to happen to successfully achieve this campaign
promise?
A) Texas voters would need to approve the income tax measure.
B) The Texas Supreme Court would need to re-interpret the Texas Constitution.
C) The U.S. Supreme Court would need to re-interpret the U.S. Constitution.
D) The governor would need to repeal local property taxes.
E) The legislature would need to repeal certain provisions of the Texas Constitution.
Which of the following third-party candidates has qualified for public funding for the
general election campaign?
A) Ralph Nader
B) Jesse Jackson
C) George Wallace
D) Michael Badnarick
E) John Anderson
According to the text, why is the future of Social Security in jeopardy?
I. People are living longer.
II. Americans are having more children than they once did.
III. Baby boomers are retiring en masse.
IV. The cost of living is increasing, and the Social Security Trust Fund is not growing at
the same rate.
A) II only
B) I and III
C) I, II, and III
D) I, III, and IV
E) I, II, III, and IV
Religious rights, including the right to free exercise and the protection against
establishment of an official religion, are protected by the ________ Amendment.
A) First
B) Second
C) Third
D) Fifth
E) Eighth
Those between 18 and 29 years of age are most likely to consider themselves
A) Republicans.
B) Democrats.
C) independents.
D) Libertarians.
E) Socialists.
The U.S. Supreme Court finally ruled that Congress could regulate internet
pornography with the
A) Protect Act.
B) Communications Decency Act.
C) Child Online Protection Act.
D) Children’s’ Internet Protection Act.
E) Protecting Teens Against Online Predators Act.
________ make up a majority of the members of the U.S. Supreme Court in 2010.
A) Protestants
B) Fundamentalist Christians
C) Roman Catholics
D) Jews
E) Episcopalians
New Federalism was the guiding doctrine of the
A) Carter administration.
B) Ford administration.
C) Reagan administration.
D) Clinton administration.
E) George W. Bush administration.
How are interest groups different from political parties?
A) They are not recognized by the federal government.
B) They rarely participate in the political process.
C) There are very few differences.
D) They do not nominate candidates for public office.
E) They are not concerned with collective goods.
According to the data presented in the tracking poll in the text, a growing gap in support
for John McCain and Barack Obama occurred in ________ of 2008.
A) August
B) September
C) October
D) November
E) December
Business groups and trade associations are NOT generally interested in achieving which
of the following?
A) Low taxes for business
B) Restricted union influence
C) Favorable regulatory climate
D) Establishing the right to collective bargaining
E) Maintaining a favorable climate for business in Texas
Which of the following does NOT apply to the “governor’s messages?”
A) They are delivered to the legislature
B) They pronounce policy goals
C) They set budget priorities
D) They recommend legislative authorizations
E) They have the force and effect of law
A strong __________ is one in which all public officials who are appointed or elected
under the same party label work to implement party policies.
A) party in the electorate
B) party organization
C) party in government
D) party executive
E) party caucus
Because of the nature of the Texas budget cycle, state agencies must anticipate spending
needs up to _____ in advance.
A) six months
B) a year
C) two years
D) three years
E) ten years
Assume you are a prominent businessperson in Texas dealing in international trade and
commerce. Asked to point to one of the major factors that has contributed to the
globalization of Texas’s economy, you point to
A) the North American Free Trade Agreement.
B) the importance of Texas petroleum exports to Mexico.
C) the role of many international trade treaties entered into exclusively by Texas and
Mexico.
D) the importance of tourism along the Mexican border for economic growth of both
economies.
E) All of the above
EMILY’s List
A) supports pro-choice Democratic women candidates.
B) promotes similar candidates to those supported by Concerned Women for America.
C) provided just over $1 million to candidates in 2008.
D) promotes socially conservative values.
E) only advocates for candidates for state and local office.
In his Farewell Address, ________ warned the nation against political parties.
A) John Adams
B) Thomas Jefferson
C) John Quincy Adams
D) George Washington
E) James Madison
During the New Deal, Congress established or enacted all of the following EXCEPT the
A) Civil Aeronautics Board.
B) Federal Communications Commission.
C) Motor Carrier Act.
D) National Labor Relations Board.
E) Shipping Standards Act.
The earned income tax credit program does all of the following EXCEPT
A) increase employment among low-income Americans.
B) refund part or all of the Social Security wages paid by the poor.
C) provide an incentive to work.
D) help the unemployed.
E) increase consumer spending.
Congressional elections differ from those for the presidency because
A) most candidates are celebrities.
B) most candidates are not well known.
C) congressional races attract more media attention.
D) incumbency is relatively unimportant in Congress.
E) fewer people vote in presidential elections.
Jennifer Granholm cannot become president because she was born in Canada.
Among the most prominent people in the abolition movement was
A) Martin Luther King, Jr.
B) Thurgood Marshall.
C) Thomas Jefferson.
D) Rosa Parks.
E) William Lloyd Garrison.
_____ was considered the most reliably conservative option of the Republican
candidates in 2008.
A) Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee
B) Senator Fred Thompson
C) Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney
D) Senator John McCain
E) Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani
In recent years, states have chosen early dates for their presidential primaries in order to
gain influence in the process. This is called
A) influence peddling.
B) gerrymandering.
C) logrolling.
D) staging.
E) front-loading.