AP Gov exam review
24th Amendment
Abolishes poll taxes
Which of the following political parties would have agreed with the ideological perspectives in Brutus 1?
Anti-federalists
United States v. Lopez 1995
Congress may not use the commerce clause to make possession of a gun in a school zone a federal crime.
4th Amendment
Freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures
1st Amendment
Freedom of Religion, Speech, Press, Assembly, and Petition
19th Amendment (1920)
Gave women the right to vote
23rd Amendment
Gives Washington DC 3 electoral college votes as if it were a state (DC still has no representation in Congress)
"When the Articles of Confederation were drafted, Americans had little experience of what a national government could do for them and bitter experience of what an arbitrary government could do to them. In creating a central government they were therefore more concerned with keeping it under control than with giving it the means to do its job." -Edmund S. Morgan, The Birth of the Republic, 1763-89, 1956 Which of the following concepts is most consistent with the author's argument?
Limited government
Gideon v. Wainwright 1963
This case guaranteed the right to an attorney for the poor or indigent in a state felony case.
20th Amendment
Congress begins on January 30th; President starts on January 20th "Lame-duck" Amendment
Brutus 1
- Advocates for small republic - Warns that if you give up power, you will never get it back - Elastic clause is fearful because it gives the government absolute power - Power to tax leads to tyrannical government - Federal government would destroy the states
Letter from a Birmingham Jail
- Demand that the ideals of the DoI and Constitution (14th amendment) finally applied to all - List of grievances (similar to DoI) - Freedom has never been given, only get when demanded - Advocates for civil disobedience
Federalist 70
- Hamilton argues for unitary executive - Executive must be strong and energetic - Congress needs to be slow to act while executive needs to act fast and one person can act faster than group
Federalist 78
- Judiciary is the least dangerous branch because they can't make laws, declare war or even enforce their own rulings - Life terms for judges so they are not bound to political/outside pressure - Power of judicial review
Federalist 10
- Madison says factions are the biggest threat facing republic - Factions are groups that don't want what's best for everyone - Factions are inevitable because of liberty - can't get rid of them without taking away liberty - You can control negative effects of factions but not through democracy - that would lead to tyranny of majority - Rather, best solution to control effects is a large republic
Declaration of Independence
- Natural rights - people are born with them; government to protect them - Popular sovereignty - people = source of power; abolish unjust gov't. - Social contract
US Constitution
- Separation of powers - Checks and balances - Federalism - Republican form of government - Limited government - Bill of Rights and Amendments
Federalist 51
- Since men aren't angels, there is a need for government to limit the ambition of men - However, need for limited government because they can become corrupt - Separation of powers - divide power amongst the 3 branches in order to counteract ambition - Checks and balances - each branch will guard its own power and keep the other branches in check - Congress has the most power of the 3 hence it's divided into 2 houses so they can check each other's powers
Articles of Confederation
- States were sovereign - Each state had 1 vote - Congress couldn't collect taxes or regulate interstate commerce - No executive or judicial branches States basically did what they wanted
A senator wants to incentivize higher education for students from low-income families and wants to provide clear guidelines on how states must implement those incentives. Which type of grant should she propose?
A categorical grant
12th Amendment
Both the President and Vice President are elected through the same political party ticket
Federalist 10 - A large republic will control factions by pitting them against each other.
Brutus 1 - A large republic endangers personal liberties.
In 1972, the federal government established the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC). Recipients of aid must be women who are pregnant or breastfeeding or children under the age of 5 whose family income falls below 185% of the federal poverty line. This is an example of which of the following types of federal aid?
Categorical grants
9th Amendment
Citizens entitled to rights not listed in the Constitution
Wisconsin v. Yoder 1972
Compelling Amish students to attend school past the eighth grade violates the free exercise clause.
Why did the Framers decide to include Article V of the Constitution, detailing an amendment process?
Concerns about protecting self-government
During the 1980s, members of the Republican Party advocated for devolution (transferring responsibilities for programs from the federal government to state and local governments). Which of the following describes a difficulty Congress might face in implementing devolution?
Due to the concurrent powers of state and national government, many programs are administered by both state and federal agencies
Which of the following scenarios is an example of a present-day constitutional issue about democracy and governmental power?
FBI agents being able to obtain phone records without a judge's approval
Which of the following constitutional principles best explains why there was variation among states on the legality of same-sex marriage?
Federalism
Roe v. Wade 1973
This case extended the right of privacy to a woman's decision to have an abortion.
22nd Amendment
Limits the president to two terms.
Shaw v. Reno 1993
Majority-minority districts, created under the Voting Rights Act of 1965, may be constitutionally challenged by voters if race is the only factor used in creating the district.
In 2015, the Supreme Court ruled that the Fourteenth Amendment guarantees people of the same sex the right to marry in the same manner as opposite-sex couples. Following this ruling, the National Organization for Marriage appealed to members of Congress encouraging them to pass an amendment to the Constitution defining marriage as a union between a man and a woman. This is an example of which of the following principles of American government? FLIPNEXT
Multiple access points for stakeholders to influence policymaking
8th Amendment
No cruel or unusual punishment
3rd Amendment
No quartering of soldiers
In June 2017, voters in Puerto Rico voted on a referendum to make Puerto Rico the 51st state of the United States. This is an example of which of the following models of democracy?
Participatory democracy
The National Rifle Association (NRA) testifies in front of Congress to advocate for several laws, including one that would protect gun manufacturers from lawsuits concerning violence committed with weapons they made. This is an example of which of the following models of democracy?
Participatory democracy
"In a pure democracy the people are the sovereign, and their will is declared by themselves; for this purpose they must all come together to deliberate, and decide. This kind of government cannot be exercised, therefore, over a country of any considerable extent; it must be confined to a single city, or at least limited to such bounds as that the people can conveniently assemble, be able to debate, understand the subject submitted to them, and declare their opinion concerning it." -Brutus No. 1, 1787 Based on the text, which of the following statements would the author most likely agree with?
Participatory democracy does not work in large countries
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission 2010
Political spending by corporations, associations, and labor unions is a form of protected speech under the First Amendment.
25th Amendment
Presidential succession
Tinker v. Des Moines 1969
Public school students have the right to wear black armbands in school to protest the Vietnam War.
Brown v. Board of Education 1954
Race-based school segregation violates the equal protection clause.
7th Amendment
Right to a trial by jury in civil cases
2nd Amendment
Right to bear arms
Engel v. Vitale 1962
School sponsorship of religious activities violates the establishment clause.
The commerce clause of the Constitution grants Congress the power to regulate interstate commerce. Which of the following might be an implied power that Congress would have to complete this task?
Setting a federal minimum wage
Read the passage and answer the following question. "Thus every man, by agreeing with others to make one body politic under one government, puts himself under an obligation to everyone in that society to submit to the decisions of the majority, and to be bound by it. Otherwise—that is, if he were willing to submit himself only to the majority acts that he approved of—the original compact through which he and the others incorporated into society would be meaningless . . ." -John Locke, Second Treatise of Government, 1690 Which of the following democratic ideals is described in the passage?
Social contract
Schenck v. United States 1919
Speech creating a "clear and present danger" is not protected by the First Amendment.
Which of the following is the most immediate consequence of impeaching a president?
The president is tried in the Senate
14th Amendment
The Bill of Rights applies to the states. Includes the Citizenship Clause, Privileges and Immunities Clause, Due Process Clause (Selective Incorporation), and Equal Protection CLause (Civil RIghts)
5th Amendment
The Right to Remain Silent/Double Jeopardy, right to due process
McDonald v. Chicago 2010
The Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms for self-defense is applicable to the states.
Read the passage and answer the following question. "In revising the federal system we ought to inquire 1. into the properties, which such a government ought to possess, 2. the defects of the confederation, 3. the danger of our situation & 4. the remedy. The Character of such a government ought to secure 1. against foreign invasion, 2. against dissensions between members of the Union, or seditions in particular States, 3. to procure to the several States various blessings, of which an isolated situation was incapable, 4. to be able to defend itself against encroachment, & 5. to be paramount to the state constitutions." -Edmund Randolph, as recorded in James Madison's journal, 1787 Which of the following was a consequence of the ideas described in the passage?
The development of a new national Constitution
"When land-forces are raised by any state for the common defence, all officers of or under the rank of colonel, shall be appointed by the legislature of each state respectively, by whom such forces shall be raised, or in such manner as such state shall direct, and all vacancies shall be filled up by the State which first made the appointment." -Articles of Confederation, Article VII, 1777 Which of the following is a consequence of the policy described in the passage above?
The federal government did not have the power to create a centralized military during peace times
Which of the following aspects of the US Constitution best illustrates the concept of elite democracy?
The original wording of the Constitution regarding the selection of US senators
10th Amendment
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.
6th Amendment
The right to a Speedy Trial by jury, representation by an attorney for an accused person
In 1972, both houses of Congress passed the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), a Constitutional amendment guaranteeing equal rights for all citizens regardless of sex. However, the amendment failed, as three-quarters of the states did not ratify it before the deadline expired. This is an example of which of the following aspects of federalism in the United States?
The sharing of power between states and the federal government constrains national policymaking
Republicanism is best defined as which of the following?
The system by which the interests of the people are represented through elected leaders
In 1993, Congress passed the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act, which required background checks for gun purchases from licensed gun dealers. The bill required local chief law enforcement officers to perform background checks on prospective handgun purchasers until the Attorney General created a federal system to do this task. Two county sheriffs sued the United States, arguing that the law was an unconstitutional use of federal power. The case, Printz v. United States, went to the Supreme Court, which ruled in favor of the county sheriffs. The Court ruled that the necessary and proper clause does not give the federal government the power to require local law enforcement to fulfill the federal task of performing background checks. This is an example of which of the following aspects of federalism in the United States?
The system of checks and balances between the branches of the federal government constrains policymaking
New York Times Co. v. United States 1971
This case bolstered the freedom of the press, establishing a "heavy presumption against prior restraint" even in cases involving national security.
McCulloch v. Maryland 1819
This case established supremacy of the U.S. Constitution and federal laws over state laws.
Marbury v. Madison 1803
This case established the principle of judicial review, empowering the Supreme Court to nullify an act of the legislative or executive branch that violates the Constitution.
Why are the compromises that were necessary to secure ratification of the Constitution still debated today?
They left some matters unresolved
Baker v. Carr 1962
U.S. Supreme Court case that held that federal courts could hear cases alleging that a state's drawing of electoral boundaries, i.e. redistricting, violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution.
McCulloch v Maryland - Ruled that national laws were supreme to state laws.
U.S. v Lopez - Ruled that the Gun-Free School Zones Act was unconstitutional.
In Federalist No. 10, Madison argues that the Constitution disperses power between the federal government and state governments. Which of the following describes a constitutional provision in the newly-ratified Constitution that does that?
US senators were chosen by state legislatures
