Combo with "American Government Ch 3" and 4 others

Which of the following were arguments in favor of federalism at the time of the writing of the Constitution?

Federalism will protect liberty., Federalism will force officials to be more responsive to the people., Federalism will provide for a stronger national government than existed under the Articles of Confederation. Federalism will be less likely to produce an all-dominant faction..

Which of the following is true of majoritarianism in the United States?

All these statements are true, except for the statement that the public is interested and well-informed on all policy issues.

Friedrich Engels believed that communism would not take root in the United States because

American workers lacked sufficient class consciousness.

Which of the following is true of the relationship between public opinion and shifts in major government policies?

On high-profile issues particularly, public opinion tends to affect policy to a greater degree than policymakers' agendas affect public opinion.

Which of the following is enhanced by a democratic form of government?

a leader's authority

Explain how party coalitions in the U.S. reflect the nature of party competition. Does coalition formation tend to moderate or radicalize parties? Explain.

The overriding goal of a major American political party is to gain control of government by getting its candidates elected to office, which means that political compromise is essential. The major parties must appeal to different groups that may disagree on some issues; a reasonable amount of compromise is therefore necessary. The parties must also appeal to many of the same groups. The result is, in most circumstances though not all, a moderate form of political conflict in which the parties' coalitions overlap substantially in terms of the groups that comprise them.

Which of the following is a correct statement about commerce power in the U.S.?

The power to regulate commerce is an enumerated power of Congress. The Constitution does not delineate the dividing line between interstate commerce and intrastate commerce. The Supreme Court has ruled that manufacturing is part of intrastate commerce and thus subject to state regulation only. Congress invoked the commerce power in passing a federal law that prohibited the possession of guns within one thousand feet of a school.

Explain the differences between enumerated, implied, and reserved powers.

The powers of the national government are listed (enumerated) in Article I of the Constitution. They are designed primarily to allow the national government to declare war, regulate interstate commerce, issue currency, and establish an army and navy. Implied powers allow the national government a degree of flexibility to enable it to respond to changing circumstances; the necessary and proper clause, also called the elastic clause, gives Congress the power to make all laws that are necessary and proper to the execution of its enumerated powers. All powers not specifically granted to the national government and not specifically denied the states are reserved for the states by the Tenth Amendment, which was meant to guard the states against encroachment by the national government.

A member of Congress who wants to act on what the majority of his or her constituency thinks on a particular issue would be advised to respond to which of the following indicators?

a poll based on a random sample of constituents

Which of the following events/phenomena do some analysts consider to have cost Al Gore the presidential election in 2000?

a poor televised debate performance

Dual federalism held that

a precise separation of national and state authority was both possible and desirable

All of the following are characteristic of a party realignment EXCEPT

a very close electoral result.

Political parties serve to

a. link the public with its elected leaders. b. enable people with different backgrounds and opinions to act together. c. offer the public a choice between policies and leaders. d. narrow voters' electoral options.

During the twentieth century, American parties lost their complete control over

a. nominations. b. financing. c. platforms. d. the staffing of government jobs.

Which of the following are key players in the modern campaign?

a. pollsters b. media producers c. fundraising specialists d. campaign consultants

Sources of polling error can include

a. question order. b. unrepresentative samples. c. respondents' lack of knowledge or interest in the issue. d. poorly worded questions.

A consistent pattern of opinion on particular issues that stems from a coherent set of political beliefs is called

an ideology.

A conservative is opposed to government intervention

in the economic but not the social sphere.

The reality that officials in the United States spend comparatively less money on government programs for the poor than other fully industrialized democracies reflects the American ideal of

individualism.

Which reform occurred during the Progressive Era?

initiative, referendum, recall election, primary election

Which of the following is most closely related to the concept of implied powers?

necessary and proper clause

National party organizations can dictate the day-to-day decisions of

neither local nor state party organizations.

What term do pollsters use to define a purported opinion offered by a respondent who, in truth, has no view on a specific issue?

non-opinion

The process of political socialization in the United States is

normally cumulative; political beliefs attained earlier in life tend to be retained to a substantial degree.

Which of the following could NOT be considered one of the aspects of the American system of government or political culture?

oligarchy

If a minor party gains a large following, it is almost certain that

one or both major parties will absorb its issue, and the minor party will lose support.

More than ________ of Americans have a college degree—the world's highest rate?

one quarter

Roughly how much of campaign spending is devoted to producing and airing televised political advertisements?

one-half

Under communism, the government

owns most or all major industries and also takes responsibility for overall management of the economy.

Selective perception is primarily a result of

partisanship.

A person who favors government intervention in both social and economic affairs is a(n)

populist

The principle of checks and balances is based on the notion that

power must be used to offset power.

State central committees

provide only general policy guidance for the state organizations.

Which of the following is NOT an enumerated power?

public education

Which of the following was the core of Nixon's approach to "new federalism"?

revenue sharing, where the federal government gave money to the states to use as they saw fit

In a 2009 Pew Research Center survey, what percent of Americans expressed "complete agreement" when asked whether government has a responsibility "to take care of people who can't take care of themselves"?

roughly one quarter

Through its Dred Scott decision, the Supreme Court

ruled that Congress could not outlaw slavery anywhere in the United States.

The accuracy of a poll is usually expressed in terms of

sampling error

The two primary sources of political conflict are

scarce resources and competing values

In her book Young v. Old, political scientist Susan MacManus notes that

senior citizens tend to oppose increases in public school funding.

The function that the national party organizations perform in relation to congressional candidates can best be described as a

service role—helping candidates conduct their personal campaigns.

In general, public opinion

sets limits on government action.

The first American political parties emerged from the conflict between

small farmers and states' rights advocates, and those favoring commercial and wealthy interests

In America today, public education is primarily the responsibility of

state and local governments.

More than 90 percent of the funding for U.S. public schools comes from

state and local governments.

Regarding state party organizations, the day-to-day operation is usually the responsibility of the

state chairperson.

Under the original Constitution, U.S. senators were elected by

state legistlatures

In Lochner v. New York (1905), the Supreme Court ruled that

state regulation of labor practices violated firms' property rights.

Which of the following is an indication of strong party loyalty?

straight ticket voting

Which region of the nation receives the highest percentage of its revenues from the federal government?

the South

The "separate but equal" standard was created by

the Supreme Court.

________ does not have a competitive multiparty system.

the U.S.

________ provides no free television time to political parties and allows candidates to purchase air time.

the U.S.

Which of the following defines "political culture"?

the characteristic and deep-seated beliefs of a particular people about government and politics

Which of the following represents the greatest blow to the organizational strength of U.S. parties?

the direct primary

To accurately poll the citizens of the United States as opposed to the citizens of a single state,

the sample requirements will be nearly the same.

The key factors in determining the accuracy of an opinion poll are

the size of the sample and whether the sample was selected from the population by a random method.

The writers of the Constitution established a federal system of government in part because

the states already existed as established entities and had to be preserved.

"The Bradley Effect" describes

the tendency of black candidates to receive fewer votes than the polls predicted.

Which of the following encourages the two major parties to build broad coalitions?

the two-party system and the need to gain a plurality

What did Reagan promote as part of his version of "new federalism"?

the use of block grants over categorical grants

Each of the following statements could be considered true of either economic or social liberals, EXCEPT that

they believe that government should be used to promote traditional values.

A major characteristic of the American political system is its powerful emphasis on individual rights.

true

Americans practice democracy by using the representative model rather than by direct rule.

true

Compared with European democracies, Americans show a much smaller commitment to social welfare programs

true

Federal justices are allowed to hold office for life, unless they commit a crime.

true

Over time, the American national political system has become more responsive to popular majorities.

true

The U.S. Constitution was an attempt to strike a balance between representative government and limited government.

true

The case of Marbury v. Madison established the power of the Supreme Court to decide the constitutionality of an act of

true

The concept of constitutionalism allows for some restrictions to be put on the exercise of majority rule.

true

There is no provision in the U.S. Constitution for any form of direct popular participation in public policymaking, such as a national referendum.

true

Thomas Jefferson's "Revolution of 1800" was based on rejection of the elite-centered politics of President John Adams.

true

All of the following ideological types are prevalent in the United States EXCEPT

communists

If a state accepts a federal grant-in-aid, it must

comply with federal restrictions on its use.

Which choice below describes the American change in governmental structure in 1787?

confederal to federal

A public policy program on which national, state, and local policymakers collaborate is an example of

cooperative federalism.

A blending of state and national authority is associated with ________ federalism, while a separation of national and state authority is associated with ________ federalism.

cooperative; dual

The enumerated powers in Article I of the Constitution were intended to

establish a government strong enough to forge a union that was secure in its defense and stable in its economy

According to the Anti-Federalists, too strong of a national government meant

eventual encroachment upon the sovereignty of the states.

In most democracies of the world,

executive and legislative powers are combined in a single body.

In twentieth-century American history, the most important minor parties were ________ parties.

factional

Which of the following groups in the U.S. shows a higher level of support for collective bargaining?

factory workers

A democratic system both provides opportunity for personal development and bears responsibility for the personal development of its citizens.

false

In American society, political conflict occurs primarily over scarcity of resources and access to a guaranteed minimum standard of living.

false

In a parliamentary democracy, policy is made by direct referendum from the people, since there is no legislature.

false

John Locke maintained that a government, if originally put into place by legitimate means, could never be revoked legitimately.

false

Pluralism is the principle that Americans should be free to act and think as they choose.

false

Since presidential electors have been chosen on the basis of popular vote, there has not been a president elected who lost the popular vote and won the electoral vote.

false

The United States has one of the most costly and elaborate sets of programs for the poor and disadvantaged of any of the industrialized democracies.

false

Which of the following groups is NOT typically a part of the Democratic coalition?

fundamentalist Christians

The Constitution allows states to

govern intrastate commerce.

Of the 2009-2010 health care reform legislation, a Gallup poll found that nearly a third of the public mistakenly believed that the legislation package included

government committees that would decide which elderly patients would receive life-saving treatment and which would not.

The logical counter-force that was potentially strong enough to control the business trusts of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries was

government.

On average, how much money must a U.S. senator raise every week of his or her six-year term in order to acquire enough money to launch a competitive bid for reelection?

$20,000

The election of ________ represented a party realignment.

1932

The only presidential election in which the Gallup poll erred badly was

1948 Truman-Dewey.

Ticket splitting was most prominent during which decade?

1970s

Under the U.S. Constitution, members of the U.S. House of Representatives have a ________ term, members of the U.S. Senate have a(n) ________ term, and the president has a ________ term.

2 year; 6 year; 4 year

A properly drawn sample of one thousand individuals has a sampling error of roughly plus or minus ________ percent.

3

Abraham Lincoln was first elected in 1860 with ________ percent of the popular vote.

40

Roughly one in every ________ dollars spent by local and state governments in recent decades was raised not by them but by the government in Washington.

5

MoveOn and Swift Boat Veterans for Truth are both examples of

527 groups.

Discuss the major characteristics of the political socialization process through which Americans acquire their political opinions.

A first characteristic of political socialization is that most people's political outlook is formed uncritically during childhood. A second characteristic of political socialization is that its effect is cumulative; political orientations usually grow firmer with age. Political socialization takes place through a number of agents of socialization, both primary and secondary. Primary agents include the family, school, and church, with family being the most powerful of all agents of socialization. Secondary agents have a less intimate relationship with the individual, and include peers, the media, and leaders.

What is meant by a party realignment?

A party realignment occurs when many significant social groups alter their voting behavior and switch their allegiance from one political party to another. Party realignments have four basic elements: The existing political order is disrupted; voters shift their support in favor of one party; a major change in public policy occurs as a result of the stronger party; and there is an enduring change in the party coalitions, which works to the lasting advantage of that party.

What are primary elections and what impact have they had on party organizations?

A primary election is a method of nominating party candidates in which the party nominee is chosen by voters rather than by party leaders. Primary elections weaken party organization by depriving the party of control over the candidates who will run under its banner.

Three-fourths of Ivy League students surveyed could not identify ________ as the author of the phrase, "a government of the people, by the people, and for the people."

Abraham Lincoln

Which of the following groups is most closely aligned with the Democratic Party, voting about 85 percent Democratic in presidential elections?

African Americans

The Anti-Federalists opposed ratification of the Constitution because they felt that

All these answers are correct, except the answer suggesting they felt the national government would be too weak and ineffective.

________ persuaded the states to choose their presidential electors on the basis of the popular vote

Andrew Jackson

In the 2008 presidential election, ________ used the Internet most successfully to attract followers and raise donations.

Barack Obama

________ lost the 1964 presidential election in a landslide because his views were seen as too extreme.

Barry Goldwater

In 1912, a candidate for which minor party managed to earn more votes than one of his major party opponents?

Bull Moose

What was the primary cause for an increase in the public's support for a military invasion of Iraq during the six-month period leading to the start of the war?

Bush administration efforts to press the case for war

All the following countries have a unitary or modified unitary form of government EXCEPT

Canda

What is a candidate-centered campaign, and how does it differ from a party-centered one? Identify some advantages and disadvantages of candidate-centered campaigns.

Candidates effectively control the candidate-centered campaign, while a party-centered campaign is dominated by parties. In the former, voters tend to select individuals; in the latter, voters tend to make their choices based on party traditions and party platforms. One advantage of candidate-centered campaigns is that they bring flexibility and new blood to electoral politics. This means the political system can more quickly adapt to new realities. Also, candidate-centered campaigns encourage national officeholders to be more responsive to local interests, because personal support among local constituents is the key to re-election. A disadvantage is that such campaigns are heavily influenced by the contributions of special interests. Another disadvantage is that officeholders' accountability to the public is reduced because an incumbent can always blame other officeholders for policy problems. Party-centered campaigns are characterized by collective accountability.

Which of the following is true of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995?

Congress exempted federal mandates dealing with civil liberties and civil rights from elimination.

Which of the following is NOT true of government under the Articles of Confederation?

Congress was overshadowed by the president.

Which of the following could be considered a belief of sociologist C. Wright Mills?

Corporate elites have more control over economic policy than do the elected politicians

________ was the only Republican elected president from 1932-1964.

Dwight Eisenhower

In a test of "civic literacy" conducted in 2007, the average college senior scored a grade of ________.

F

Americans prefer wealth to be allocated by government direction and control rather than through the marketplace

False

Which of the following is a check on legislative power in the U.S. system?

For legislation to be passed, a majority in each chamber of Congress is required.

Which of the following statements is true?

George W. Bush attempted to privatize aspects of social security, only to back down in the face of determined resistance.

________ warned Americans of the "baneful effects" of factions (political parties) in his 1797 farewell address.

George Washington

A handwritten note by a penniless convict brought about the Gideon v. Wainwright Supreme Court case, in which the Court ruled that

Gideon's Sixth Amendment right to counsel had been violated

Which of the following is NOT an example of an ideological party?

Greenback Party

Political parties in the United States originated partly as a political feud between

Hamilton and Jefferson

Why did President Lyndon Johnson choose not to pursue comprehensive government-based health insurance?

He was convinced that it could not be achieved politically.

How do European parties differ from American parties?

In Europe, where there are no primary elections, parties are stronger and have much tighter control over nominations, campaigns, candidate funding, and elections. American parties, due to federalism and a tradition of individualism, remain loose associations of local, state, and national organizations. European parties tend to divide along class lines, while America's two-party system requires each party to accommodate a wide range of interests in order to gain the voting plurality necessary to win elections. The European proportional representation system also results in the viability of smaller parties than can get representation in legislatures even with a small proportion of the vote.

The vicious character to which current political ads are prone may be gauged by a 2002 ad that associated disabled war veteran ________ with Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden.

Max Cleland

_______ is an illustration of cooperative federalism.

Medicaid

Which of the following is an accurate representation of the public's opinion about leaders and their accountability?

Most citizens have a low opinion of Congress as a whole, but say they have confidence in their local representative in Congress.

Party dealignment is

None of these answers is correct.

_______ opposed the ratification of the U.S. Constitution.

Patrick Henry

Which decision is indicative of how the Supreme Court interpreted the Fourteenth Amendment and state discretion in civil rights matters in the decades after the Civil War?

Plessy v. Ferguson

Define what is meant by a political ideology. Why is ideology important to consider when discussing the political thinking of the American people?

Political ideology is a consistent pattern of opinion on particular issues that stems from a basic underlying belief or beliefs. Most Americans do not meet the test of consistency in their political preference on particular issues, so it has been concluded that no more than a fourth of Americans can be considered to have a true ideology. However, most Americans can be said to have ideological leanings, such as social or economic liberal or conservative, libertarian, or populist. Ideology can be a useful way of looking at how Americans think about government and in describing changes in public attitudes.

The issue of slavery gave birth to the ________ party as a major political party.

Republican

What party has made big gains in recent decades among white fundamentalist Christians, based on its positions on topics like abortion and school prayer?

Republican

In terms of party identification, about two-thirds of adults call themselves

Republicans and Democrats

Which of the following states was steadfastly opposed to the new Union and refused to ratify the Constitution until eleven other states had done so and had begun to form the new government?

Rhode Island

All of the following embraced the "national view" of federalism EXCEPT

Roger B. Taney.

In 1992, ________ won 19 percent of the popular vote in the presidential election.

Ross Perot

After Andrew Jackson's time, which three candidates won the presidency after losing the popular vote?

Rutherford B. Hayes (1876), Benjamin Harrison (1888), and George W. Bush (2000)

What was the public response to the economic stimulus bill that Barack Obama and the Democratic Congress enacted in early 2009?

Some 70 percent of the public believed the bill was essential, though there was worry, as a secondary concern, about the scale of the spending.

How informed is American public opinion? Explain.

The American public has a generally low level of knowledge about politics and public affairs. Even citizens with college educations routinely flunk current affairs tests administered by pollsters. Yet the public's lack of information about specific issues is not as significant a factor as some might perceive. Citizens do not necessarily need to be well informed about a particular issue to have a reasonable opinion about it. The fact that the citizen is unaware of the government's economic policy options would not render his or her opinion irrelevant.

How have changes in modern communication affected political thinking in the United States?

The extreme bias and popularity of new forms of media such as cable news networks and Internet blogs have led to a rise in faulty perceptions and thus a decrease in political thinking.

Which of the following statements is true?

The federal government raises roughly as much revenue from taxation as all state and local governments combined.

Which of the following statements provides the most accurate description of democracy as practiced in the United States?

The people govern through elected representatives

Identify and discuss the frames of reference that Americans rely upon when forming their political opinions.

The text outlines three of the major frames of reference through which Americans form their political opinions. Party identification is the first, referring to a person's ingrained sense of loyalty to a political party. It often remains stable through adulthood, but can be influenced or changed by the issues or candidates of the moment. Political ideology is another major frame of reference, and refers to an individual's coherent set of political beliefs (if they have them). In the United States, this can be broadly broken down into groups such as economic or social liberals or conservatives, libertarians, or populists. A third broad frame of reference is group thinking, in which individuals see politics through the lens of a group affinity. There are many different kinds of groups, including those defined by religion, economic class, region, race and ethnicity, gender, and age.

From President Abraham Lincoln's perspective, the decision to wage a civil war against the southern states is best summarized in what fashion?

The union was older than the states.

Beginning with the Articles of Confederation and continuing through the modern period, explain how the commerce power of the national government has related to the issue of national authority

Under the Articles, the national government had no effective control over commerce, which contributed to the economic problems that resulted in the writing of the Constitution. The Constitution gave the national government the power to regulate interstate commerce, thereby facilitating the development of the United States as a national entity. The Industrial Revolution created an unprecedented degree of national interdependence. Until the 1930s, however, the Supreme Court sharply limited national economic regulatory policies by ruling that commerce among the states included transportation but excluded areas related to production (such as the use of child labor). During the New Deal, however, the Supreme Court ruled that Congress's commerce power was as "broad as the needs of the nation," opening the constitutional path to a national economy regulated by policies made in Washington, D.C.

_______ once said that he spent nearly all his adult life in government and yet had never seen a government.

Woodrow Wilson

McCulloch v. Maryland

affirmed that national law is supreme to conflicting state law.

Party identification refers to

an emotional attachment to a political party.

The Three-Fifths Compromise dealt directly with the issue of

apportionment of taxes and seats in the U.S. House of Representatives

In his definition of public opinion, the author claims that the opinions of private individuals become public opinion when they

are openly expressed

American party organizations

are still important, but their role in campaigns is secondary to that of candidates.

During the Great Depression of the 1930s, the national government

asserted the power to regulate the nation's economy.

The Senate was initially designed to

be less responsive to popular pressure.

Political conservatives who favor more political power devolved back to the states would likely prefer which of the following?

block grants

The period of dual federalism (1865-1937) was marked by

business supremacy in the area of commerce.

Most states conduct ________ primaries.

closed

Viewed in historical terms, federalism has been a

contentious and dynamic system that has adapted to the needs of the time.

Organizationally, U.S. party organizations are

decentralized and fragmented.

Journalist Walter Lippmann suggested that

effective government cannot be run by politicians that base their public opinions on poll results.

The federal government's power to tax, regulate commerce among the states, and declare war are all examples of ________ powers.

enumerated

In Federalist No. 10, James Madison warned against the dangers of

factions

The United States has the world's most elite system of college education.

false

The staggered terms of office for the House, Senate, and president were devised by the writers of the Constitution in order to provide the majority position of the voting public more opportunities to influence the government.

false

Andrew Jackson's contribution to the development of political parties was the

formation of a new type of grassroots party organization.

In Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010), the Supreme Court

found corporations and unions could not be banned from spending money on campaigns.

The elastic clause is related to which of the following concepts?

implied powers

Libertarians are opposed to governmental intervention

in both the economic and social spheres.

In key decisions early in the New Deal era, the Supreme Court

invalidated key pieces of FDR's New Deal legislation.

Marbury v. Madison (1803) became the foundation for

judicial review by the federal courts.

The term "public opinion" is frequently used in reference to all of American society. This perspective is

less accurate than the idea that Americans form many publics, which differ greatly in such things as the level of attention they pay to politics.

Which of the following ideological types favor government activism in the economic realm?

liberals and populists

National authority has greatly expanded in the twentieth century in large part because

local, state, and federal governments have become increasingly interdependen

Candidate-centered politics encourages all of the following EXCEPT

long-term consistency in policymaking.

Which of the following is NOT a primary socializing agent?

peers

As described in the text, the issue of agricultural price-supports suggests that the exercise of government power conforms to which of the following models?

pluralism

The history of democratic government is virtually synonymous with the history of

political parties

The process by which individuals acquire their political opinions is called

political socialization.

Scholars have done the LEAST study into the political influence of which primary socializing agent on American citizens?

religion

The most powerful religious force in contemporary American society is the

religious right

________ is based on judgment about the past performance of an elected official or political party

retrospective voting

Society in Northern Ireland is held up by the authors as a demonstration of what difference with U.S. society?

the lack of crosscutting between groups

Women are less likely than men to favor

the use of force to settle international disputes.

Democrats and Republicans have endured as the two major U.S. parties primarily due to

their ability to adapt to changing circumstances

Which of the following forms of government admits to no limits on its power?

totalitarianism

The TANF aspect of the Welfare Reform Ac

was a block grant that, among other aspects, restricted federal assistance to five years.

The No Child Left Behind Act

was part of the end, and reversal of, the devolution movement.

From 1789 to 1865, the most significant issue of federalism was

whether the states would accept the lawful authority of the national government.

Proportional representation systems encourage the formation of smaller parties by enabling parties to

win legislative seats even though they do not receive a majority of votes in elections.

Most European parties on the political left tend to appeal mainly to

working class voters

The Great Depression brought about a transfer of loyalties by many to the Democratic Party as led by Roosevelt, especially among

young voters

Which of the following would NOT be considered a secondary socializing agent?

church

Why have the Democratic and Republican parties been so durable as to maintain existence since the Civil War? Explain.

Analysts believe that the durability of the Democratic and Republican parties is due to their remarkable ability to adapt during times of crisis. These two major parties have survived many periods of social, economic, and political unrest not by maintaining a consistent ideology, but by adapting to the changing needs of the maintaining and realigning elections (for example, the elections of the Great Depression of the 1930s produced fundamentally new Democratic and Republican parties). Instead of being destroyed by these elections, the parties emerged with new bases of support, new policies, and even new philosophies. Democrats and Republicans remained the dominant parties in America. After the Great Depression, the Democrats became the country's majority party and emphasized a new social and economic role for national government. The party survived—indeed succeeded—only by responding to the crisis and adapting its policies to address the current needs of the people. Such capacity for adaptation has ensured the Democrats' and Republicans' longevity and dominance in America's two-party system.

Explain what is meant by fiscal federalism and describe how it has strengthened the authority of the federal government.

Fiscal federalism refers to the expenditure of federal funds on programs run in part through state and local governments. Fiscal federalism has strengthened federal authority by enabling Washington to use federal funds to influence state and local priorities and place restrictions on how state and local governments conduct programs funded with this money. The federal government provides some or all of the money through grants-in-aid (cash payments) to states and localities, which then administer the programs. Categorical grants, a form of grants-in-aid, allow the federal government a lot of influence because they can only be used for specific activities determined by the federal government. With block grants, the federal government specifies the general area in which the funds must be used, but state and local officials select the specific projects.

Explain why the single-member district system of elections tends to promote a two-party system.

In a single-member district system, each constituency selects only one representative for an office on the basis of which candidate receives a plurality of the vote. This system promotes a two-party system in America. It discourages minor parties because it is, essentially, a winner-take-all contest. For example, if a minor party receives 20 percent of the vote in each congressional district, it would win no seats in Congress. Despite the fact that one in five voters voted for the minor party, the winning candidate in each district would be the major-party candidate with the larger proportion of the remaining 80 percent of the vote. In contrast, a system of proportional representation is not a winner-take-all contest. In European democracies, for example, seats in the legislature are allocated according to a party's share of the popular vote. This system encourages minor parties; if a minor party wins 20 percent of the vote by way of illustration, it receives 20 percent of the legislative seats. America's single-member district system disadvantages minor parties and, therefore, promotes a two-party system.

What was the impact of the Industrial Revolution upon the concept of dual federalism?

It created dominant business interests that raised questions about the suitability of dual federalism as a governing concept.

What was the significance of Shays's Rebellion?

It demonstrated that Congress was weak and unable to respond to crises in an effective manner.

In what way was the government of Pennsylvania an exception among the state governments formed after the Revolutionary War?

It lacked any separation of powers, and had an all-powerful legislature.

Which of the following statements about the patronage system is true?

It was a means of rewarding party workers for their loyalty.

Populist ________ won electoral votes in six states in the presidential election of 1892.

James B. Weaver

According to ________, a large republic is less likely to have an all-powerful faction.

James Madison

________ wrote The Federalist Papers.

James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay

_______ is associated with the Era of Good Feeling.

James Monroe

Which of the following individuals would agree that each state should be allowed to determine for itself the extent to which national authority restricts its actions?

John C. Calhoun

The doctrine of nullification is most closely associated with

John C. Calhoun.

Over the many decades of public debate and conflict over the American health care system, what has been the one constant?

Never has a majority expressed a willingness to entrust health insurance fully to government

Which of the following statements about Americans and ideology and political thinking is true?

Only a minority of Americans can be classified as true ideologues.

What are the two distinguishing characteristics of political socialization?

Political socialization is cumulative, and is most heavily developed during childhood.

________ advocated a "new federalism."

President Richard Nixon

Discuss the general relationship between public opinion and the policy actions of government.

Public opinion has a powerful though inexact influence on government. Although public opinion rarely determines exactly what government will do, public opinion serves to constrain the policy choices of officials. Some policy actions are beyond the range of possibility because the public will not accept change in existing policy or will not support policy that clearly conflicts with basic values. Many policy issues are sufficiently complex to limit public understanding of their intricacies, and thus elected officials may not be able to rely on wider public opinion. In addition, officials must anticipate the public response to policy, since people may react negatively to policies that fail or are followed by unfavorable developments. Evidence indicates officials are reasonably attentive to public opinion, particularly on highly visible issues of public policy.

Pluralists such as ________ argue that it is the preference of the special interest that largely determines what government does.

Robert Dahl

How has the U.S. Supreme Court contributed to devolution in recent years? Explain.

The U.S. Supreme Court has contributed to devolution by restricting congressional power somewhat. More conservative justices appointed by Presidents Reagan and Bush in particular believe that Congress in some instances has encroached on the reserved powers of the state and local governments. For example, in United States v. Lopez (1995), the justices struck down a federal law that prohibited the possession of guns within a thousand feet of a school. In Kimel v. Board of Regents (2000), the justices ruled that Congress did not have the authority to require state governments to comply with the federal law that bars discrimination against older workers, and held that the states have the power to decide for themselves the age-related policies that will apply to their employees. In 2002, the Court extended this ban to include people with disabilities in Board of Trustees of the University of Alabama v. Garrett.

Describe the differences between a federal system of government and a unitary system.

The United States has a federal system of government, in which sovereign authority is divided between a national government and state/regional governments. In other words, federalism is a system where sovereignty, or ultimate governing authority, is divided between national and regional governing levels. In a unitary system, sovereignty is vested solely in the national government, and all subunits of that government have authority only to the degree that the national government grants it, which can also withdraw any such grant

What point is the author trying to make when he makes note of the fact that the White House Press Office was once run by a single individual?

The level to which political leaders spin their messages has increased dramatically

Which of the following is true of letter writers and demonstrators?

Their opinions tend to be atypical of the population as whole.

How does the number of lawyers in the United States compare to those in Britain, Italy, or Germany, on a per capita basis?

There are twice as many lawyers in the United States

Which of the following is true about public opinion polling?

a. Polls are the most relied-upon method of measuring public opinion. b. Polls can be erroneous at times. c. Most large news organizations have their own in-house polls. d. The Gallup pollsters have correctly predicted the winner of presidential elections most of the time since 1936.

Prospective voting is characterized by

choices based on what candidates promise to do if elected.

James Carville, Dick Morris, and Roger Ailes are all examples of

campaign strategists who have earned legendary reputations.

Federal grants-in-aid used only for a designated activity are called

categorical grants.

Dramatic change in party identification is uncommon and is almost always a consequence of

major upheaval.

Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann's "spiral of silence" theory contends that

most individuals are reluctant to speak out against dominant opinion.

Sovereignty refers to

supreme and final governing authority.

What did Newt Gingrich declare about federalism in 1994?

that the 1960s-style federalism was dead

In the American political context, John Locke's conception of inalienable rights and the legitimacy of the social contract found its most explicit statement in

the Declaration of Independence.

The major reason for the persistence of the American two-party system is

the existence of single-member election districts.

Fiscal federalism refers to

the expenditure of federal funds on programs run in part through state and local governments.

The Great Compromise dealt with the issue of

the extent of the powers of the Supreme Court.

Which of the following is a major limit on majoritarianism in the United States?

the fact that most of the public pays attention to only a small number of issues

The Democratic Party's long-time regional stronghold, "the Solid South," stemmed from a realignment during which historical period?

the immediate post Civil War era

About 95 percent of all political activists in the United States work at

the local level.

Devolution is

the passing of authority from the national government to the state and local levels.

The Tenth Amendment addressed the concerns of Anti-Federalists about

the powers of state governments.