Comparative Government Semester 1 Final
someone interested in comparing how well different countries meet certain pollution control benchmarks might consult the
Environmental performance index
all of the following are ways to measure a country's economic development EXCEPT
the Environmental Performance Index
The federal bureaucracy is comprised of about________ civil servants
2 million
The U.S. Constitution has been amended ____ times since 1787
27
Since 1968, one party has controlled the presidency, the House of Representatives, and the Senate only _____ times.
5
Which of the following is NOT an example of how the founders intended to make Congress the central branch of government in the U.S. Constitution?
By establishing the requirement that the President present a yearly state of the union address to Congress
Which statement about the U.S. legislative process is NOT correct?
Debate of a bill can be limited on the floor of the Senate by the Rules Committee
Following September 11, 2001, the U.S. government agencies concerned with domestic security became concentrated in the
Department of Homeland Secruity
Which of the following about the New Deal is INCORRECT?
During the New Deal period, the U.S. Congress asserted its dominance over the presidency in the policy-making process
The term United Kingdom refers to
England, Scotland, Wales, and North Ireland
Which of the following statements about the Tea Party is CORRECT?
Had the candidates endorsed by Tea Party groups not defeated their opponents in the 2010 and 2012 primaries, it is highly likely that the Republican Party would have gained control of the Senate
which of the following statements about GDP per capita is CORRECT?
It is a good measure for determining which countries are rich (developed) and which are poor (developing)
Which of the following statements about collective identities is INCORRECT?
It is nonexistent as a factor in homogeneous societies like Britain, France, and Germany
Which statement about the United States' geographical setting is INCORRECT?
Occupying nearly a fourth of North America, it is larger than any other country in the world
Which of the following statements about environmental regulations in the United States is NOT true?
President Obama proposed a system of "cap and trade" energy regulations, which were subsequently adopted by congress
2014 can be considered a critical juncture becasue
Russia annexed Crimea and threatened Ukrainian soverignty
Which of the following about immigration to the United States is INCORRECT?
The U.S. immigration policy is an example of a redistributive policy
Which statement about the distribution of income in the United States is CORRECT?
The distribution of income is much more unequal in the United States than in other advances democracies and has been steadily rising over the past 30 years
Which of the following about U.S. voters is NOT true?
The electorate is evenly divided between the two parties, especially when one accounts for independents who lean towards one party or another
Which of the following statements about the U.S. trade deficit is TRUE?
The fact that the U.S. dollar is a main international reserve currency helps to offset the negative economic impact of the trade deficit
Which of the following has NOT been a factor in presidents increasing their power relative to Congress?
The president has increasingly been able to demand party loyalty among members of congress
Which of the following is NOT illustrative of the structural weakness of the presidency?
The president's role as the commander-in-chief of the U.S. military
Which of the following statements about the role of the United States in the global economy is NOT true?
There have been increased calls domestically for the United States to isolate itself from the regulation of the world economy in part because of the impacts of globalization on the United States' economy
In the twentieth century, the government expanded its role in protecting workers. Which of the following statements is NOT true about this expansion?
These protections receive less public support than do programs to assist the poor
Which of the following is NOT true about the U.S. economic policy?
With the formation of the Federal Reserve Board in 1913, the national government increased its ability to regulate the U.S. economy
Federalism results in all of the following except
a balanced relationship between the legislature, judiciary, and executive
the social progress index is
a composite index that takes into account measures for meeting basic needs, environmental sustainability, freedom, and tolerance
Factors in the success of the U.S. economy include all of the following EXCEPT
a more than century old large-standing military to defend its trade routes
The term divided government refers to
a period in which one party controls the presidency and another controls at lease one chamber of the congress
classifying states according to their level of democracy is an example of
a typology
Which of the following statements about the membership of the U.S. Congress is NOT true?
about 35%of both the House of Representatives and the Senate are women
the spread of democracy has
achieved the status of being taken as generally right
when we say "if X happens, then Y will result," we are
all of these (engaging in scientific analysis, utilizing casual theory, stating a hypothesis, stating a relationship between a dependent variable and an independent variable)
a country's executive may include
all of these (the president, the prime minister, the cabinet, a religious supreme leader)
for a country to be considered to be democratic,
all of these must be present (its leaders must be elected in free and fair elections, there must be a respect for the rule of law, there must be a degree of gender equality, there must e some leveling of the economic playing field)
Every two years, ________ of the House of Representatives and ________ of the Senate are up for reelection.
all; one-third
The moniker of New Labour refers to
an attempt by the Labour party to rebrand itself as a "third-way" alternative to the collectivism of traditional Labour Party politics and Thatcherism
institutional design refers to
arrangements that define relationships between the various parts of government and between different levels of government
Democratic transitions describe a process in which
authoritarian governments develop into more participatory and democratic regimes
Globalization
blurs the line between comparative politics and international relations
The U.S. single-member-plurality (SMP) is an electoral system in which
candidates run for a single seat from a specific geographic district. The winner is the person who receives the most votes cast.
Great Britain's position as an island has made it less subject to invasion and conquest. It has also had the added effect of
complication matters with the European Union, due to a feeling of separation from mainland Europe
the cabinet is
comprised of the chief officers of the major executive departments
Collectivism is the term to be applied to the
consensus that drove politics in the postwar period and presupposed that the state should take on more responsibility for economic governance and social welfare provisions
One thing highlighted in relation to the countries studied in this text is __________, which are important historical moments when political actors make decisions that shape institutions and future outcomes.
critical junctures
Comparative politics as a type of methodology
dates to the time of Aristotle
All of the following are TRUE of the Industrial Revolution EXCEPT that it
decreased the standard of living throughout the United Kingdom
regulations
determine how a law is actually implemented
Keynesianism
emphasizes government regulation of the economy
Coming after the Civil War, the Fourteenth Amendment
extended citizenship to all persons born in the United States
Amendments to the Constitution, passed since the Bill of Rights, have generally focused upon
extending democratic election procedures and changing procedural deficiencies in the original constitution
A state that controls the patterns of alliances and shapes the political developments in countries around the world is called a(n)
hegemonic power
the term political economy refers to
how states and political processes affect the economy and how the economy in turn affects a country's political processes
The term hung government refers to
instances where no party can claim by itself the control of a majority of the seats in Parliament
The term the iron triangle refers to the relationship between
interest groups, congressional committees, and government agencies
In political economy, the term laissez-faire means that the federal government's involvement in the economy
is limited to regulating interstate commerce and commerce with foreign nations
The Constitution gives the president all of the following powers EXCEPT the ability to
issue decrees
when we say that a political system is a mixed system, we are saying that
it exhibits some democratic and some authoritarian features
All of the following are TRUE about the Bill of Rights EXCEPT
it has helped to limit the power of the federal courts
All of the following are true about the separation of powers except
it is seen in the ability of the federal government and states to limit each other
which of the following statements about the Human Development Index is CORRECT?
it is used to measure and compare levels of achievement in health, knowledge, and the standard of living
the bowling alone phenomenon refers to
less people being part of networks where they can discuss politics and potentially organize for political action
The Articles of Confederation
made the national government dependent upon voluntary contributions from the states
The Affordable Care Act is
mainly distributive but has some redistributive elements
there is a general consensus among comparativists about the values of __________, which focuses on specific features of the political world.
middle-level theory
The Republican coalition in the electorate includes all of the following EXCEPT
minority voters
The U.S. dollar has historically served as the major international reserve currency. This means that
other countries and investors keep their savings in U.S. dollars
The congressional system of committees and subcommittees
permits members of Congress to more easily address issues of particular concern to their constituencies
The Magna Carta was a document that
placed the first formal restrictions on the power of the monarch
A(n)________ is a narrow form of interest group that seeks to influence policy by making financial contributions to candidates and parties in U.S. politics
political action committee
Police powers refer to the
powers held by U.S. states to regulate public safety, health, and welfare
The United States has promoted economic growth by all of the following EXCEPT?
regulating the production of particular goods
Margaret Thatcher's leadership as PM marked a critical dividing line in postwar British politics in all of the following ways EXCEPT
she served the longest continuous stretch as prime minister in the 20th century
The Democratic Coalition in the electorate includes all of the following EXCEPT
social conservations
the process of _______ refers to the historical development of a state
state formation
The U.S. government subsidizes agriculture in all of the following EXCEPT?
strictly regulating the flow of immigration to the United States
distributive policies
tend to receive more public support than do redistributive policies
removing trade barriers is a key goal of
the World Trade Organization
the term hegemony refers to
the ability of a particular state to dominate world affairs
Which of the following about the U.S. military is NOT true?
the costs of maintaining the U.S. military has significantly decreased due to the increased use of private contractors and reserve units, and the closure of military bases
Which of the following is NOT true about the U.S. judiciary?
the courts must rely on Congress to enforce their decisions
Electoral participation is low among all of the following EXCEPT
the elderly
according to your text, globalization includes all of the following EXCEPT
the global spread of the economy
in comparative politics, the term state refers to
the key political institutions in a country
The Founders designed the House of Representatives to be more responsive to popular will. This is evidence by all of the following EXCEPT
the longer terms of office of its members
Class-based political movements and tensions have not arisen in the United States because of all of the following EXCEPT
the minimal gap between rich and poor in the country
Marbury v. Madison established
the principle of judicial review
the courts have become more powerful because of all of the following EXCEPT
the rise of the security state following the September 11, 2001, attacks
The 2008 election was unusual becasue
the same party won not only the presidency but also majority control in both the House of Representatives and the Senate
The difference between comparative politics and international relations can BEST be described as
the study of comparative politics involves comparing domestic political institutions, processes, and politics in different countries; whereas the study of international relations involves examining the foreign policy of and interactions among different countries
All of the following about the U.S. deficit is true EXCEPT
the term national debt refers to the gap between income and expenditures run by the federal government
to say that we live in a globalized world of states is to say that
there is an interaction between the national and international levels in shaping the politics of states
Authoritarian regimes are characterized by all of the following EXCEPT
they do not include any democratic values and practices within their governing systems.
The primary religious divide in contemporary America is between
those who feel religion provides guidance for political action and those who do not
Progressive income taxation means that
those with higher incomes pay a higher percentage of tax
Congress can override a presidential veto by a
two-thirds majority vote in both the house of representatives and the Senate
All 27 amendments to the U.S. Constitution have resulted from a process of ratification by
two-thirds of each chamber of Congress as well as passage by three-quarters if the states
The Federal Reserve Board
was the central policy-making agency in the wake of the 2008 economic downturn seeking to avert a recession in the United States
The extension of the right to vote
was done so mainly on the basis of property qualifications
political legitimacy exists
when the broad citizenry believes that the state exercises rightful authority
