Exam 2 GOVT

Which of the following is true of appeals to the Supreme Court?

The issue must involve a federal constitutional question or federal law.

Appellate courts

review whether a lower court correctly applied and interpreted applicable law.

Which of the following is NOT considered a Sixth Amendment protection?

right to bear arms

In the 2018 midterm elections, how many House and Senate races received money from super PACs?

several dozens

In a 2010 CNN survey, 2 in 5 Americans stated that individuals arrested by police on suspicion of terrorism

should not be read their Miranda rights.

The right to legal counsel is a ______ Amendment protection.

sixth

The "federal court myth" is the inaccurate belief that

state courts play a role subordinate to federal courts.

Any law that treats individuals differently based on race is subject to the ______ test.

strict scrutiny

Incumbents have ______ over challengers.

substantial advantages

As compared to previous presidents, how does Donald Trump use the bully pulpit?

taken it to unprecedented levels

In recent elections, the Internet has greatly increased the ability of presidential candidates to

"get out the vote" and raise money for their campaigns

Political scientist Richard Neustadt contended that an effective president is successful in using

"the power to persuade"

In relation to congress, the president's power

-Is more effective in setting the national agenda -Is limited by the willingness of Congress to act on the president's agenda

Presidents can influence the courts by

-choosing to enforce court decisions - influencing the cases that come before courts

What was challenged by Lawrence v. Texas (2003)?

Texas's sodomy laws

In which decade did the election of "tough on crime" candidates lead to state legislatures enacting stiffer penalties for crime while also limiting judges' abilities to reduce sentences for nonviolent crimes of first-time offenders?

1990's

How many justices can sit on the Supreme Court?

9

Despite the Court's ruling in Brown v. Board of Education in 1954, by the 1970s ______ percent of black children were still attending schools that were mostly or entirely black.

95

What aspect of the system of presidential selection changed in 1972?

A majority of national convention delegates are chosen through primary elections.

Which of the following was the 1954 landmark case that ended segregation in public schools?

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka

In which 2014 case did the Supreme Court rule that companies that are "closely held" (only a few owners) are not required to provide their employees with birth control if they object on religious grounds?

Burwell v. Hobby Lobby

True or false: The Supreme Court's decision gives the legal basis for the Court's ruling.

False

True or false: The right to appeal after conviction is guaranteed in the Constitution.

False

Based on the exclusionary rule, evidence that is illegally obtained can normally be used in a trial.

False

True or false: According to the Supreme Court, police can search a person's home merely on the basis of a hunch that the owner might be breaking the law.

False

Which amendment to the United States Constitution protects individuals from testifying against themselves in a court of law?

Fifth

Which amendment to the United States Constitution protects citizens from unreasonable searches and seizures?

Fourth

How did Thomas Jefferson define the meaning of "all men are created equal"?

He did not believe there was a precise meaning.

Since the 1950s, how has the federal government responded to demands for equal rights for African Americans?

It passed a series of laws that secured fundamental rights for African Americans.

Within the Senate, what is the key body in scrutinizing a Supreme Court nominee?

Judiciary committee

The Supreme Court upheld the forced relocation of tens of thousands of Japanese Americans during World War II in which of the following cases?

Korematsu v. United States

The Supreme Court determined that privacy rights extend to consensual activity between same-sex partners in

Lawrence v. Texas

Which of the following is a major reason why incumbents are reelected?

Many congressional districts and some states are lopsidedly Democratic or Republican.

Which of the following correctly describes the role of the cabinet in the modern presidency?

Members are selected by president and subject to Senate confirmation, they are important figures in an administration, and the cabinet is made up of the heads of the executive departments

In 2016, the Republican majority in the Senate announced it would not call hearings on Barack Obama's nominee,

Merrick Garland.

The office within the Executive Office of the President that works most closely with the president in developing policy and communicating the president's agenda is known as the

Office of Management and Budget.

Who was the only U.S. president to resign from office?

Richard Nixon

The Supreme Court decision that determined that the right to privacy extended to include abortion is

Roe v. Wade

The Supreme Court ruled that the forced busing of children for the purpose of achieving racially integrated schools was constitutional in

Smith v. University of Virginia.

Which of the following is not part of the Missouri Plan for selecting state-level judges?

The political parties nominate judicial candidates to run for office.

What presidential control problems exist concerning low-level appointees?

The president rarely, if ever, sees them. Many of them are politically inexperienced.

Which of the following constitutional protections were at issue in the Supreme Court decision in Miranda v. Arizona?

The right to remain silent, and to an attorney

Polls indicate that voters' opinions of Donald Trump's performance had what effect in the 2018 midterms?

Those who were discontented with Trump helped Democrats retake control of the House.

The law passed by Congress, soon after the 9/11 attacks, that allows the FBI and other intelligence agencies to access personal information and records without consent from targeted individuals is known as the

USA Patriot Act

Which of the following correctly describes the executive authority that the Constitution assigns the vice president?

no executive authority

The exclusionary rule is based on the Supreme Court decision in

Weeks v. United States (1914).

The Executive Office of the President includes which of the following components?

White House Office, National Security Council, National Economic Council, and Office of Management and Budget

The next step for a federal case on appeal from a U.S. district court is that it travels to

a U.S. court of appeals.

The Constitution specifies that all federal judges, including Supreme Court justices, shall be

appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate.

The U.S. district courts

are the lowest federal courts.

In Lawrence v. Texas (2003), the Supreme Court ruled that states cannot lawfully

ban sexual relations between consenting same-sex adults.

Which of the following strongly and positively affects a congressional candidate's ability to raise money and win an election?

being an incumbent

What are some of the reasons the federal bureaucracy has grown so rapidly since the United States was founded?

bureaucrats who wanted more power the failures of state government bureaucracies increased demands on government

Most members of Congress are

career politicians who want to stay in Congress and put themselves in position for reelection.

Interest groups that rely on a judicial strategy to advance their cause are careful in their choice of

cases that have a chance of success.

Under the Fifth Amendment, suspects

charged with a federal crime cannot be tried unless indicted by a grand jury.

The president shapes and administers the nation's foreign policy while acting in the role of

chief diplomat

Which term refers to the rights and privileges guaranteed to all citizens under the equal protection and due process clauses of the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments?

civil rights

As ______, the president is the supreme military commander of the U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and Coast Guard.

commander in chief

Since the Truman administration, the number of bureaucratic agencies has

doubled

Which of the following is likely to convince a judge that police should be issued a search warrant?

establishing probable cause for believing a crime has been committed

The ______ clause of the First Amendment bans the state from helping religious institutions, whereas the ______ clause bans the state from restricting the free practice of religion by individuals.

establishment; free-exercise

Among the reasons that presidents are less powerful than many Americans assume is that they

face uncontrollable circumstances that can hurt their ability to lead, and ultimately derive their power from the American public itself.

A court's jurisdiction is its authority to

hear cases of a particular type.

The power to formally accuse and place on trial the president as well as other high-ranking figures in the federal government for alleged crimes of treason, bribery, or high crimes and misdemeanors is known as

impeachment

The Supreme Court has ruled that prisoners should generally appeal their cases first

in state courts

In the large majority of cases, the winner of a congressional campaign is the

incumbent.

Congressional elections usually favor

incumbents

Events leading up to the Iowa caucus create a very important time for potential presidential candidates. This period of time is known as the

invisible primary

The Supreme Court tends to hear cases

of substantial legal significance.

The Supreme Court has generally held that those convicted in state courts and who appeal on the grounds that their federal constitutional rights were violated are limited to

one appeal

A Supreme Court ______ explains the justices' legal basis for their decision.

opinion

By tradition, the choice of the vice presidential candidate has mostly been made by the

presidential nominee

The fifth and fourteenth amendments:

provide that no person can be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.

Law enforcement officials sometimes controversially rely on the practice of ______ _______, the assumption that certain groups of people are more likely to commit particular crimes.

racial profiling

Which legal test gives government considerable leeway in treating people differently, such as imposing a higher tax rate on upper-income Americans?

reasonable-basis test

Most units of the U.S. federal bureaucracy fall into which of the following forms?

regulatory agency independent agency presidential commission cabinet department government corporation

In a 1947 case, the Supreme Court ruled that because they had no law school for black students, the University of Oklahoma was ______ to admit Ada Sipuel to its law school.

required

What unique circumstance existed at the time of the Korematsu v. United States decision?

the nation was at war

The number of electoral voters a state has in the Electoral College is determined by what factor?

the number of members it has in the House and the Senate

Presidents have more power in foreign policy making in part because

they have close relationships with the intelligence, diplomatic, and military agencies.

Why have modern presidents increasingly relied on the mass media?

to convey their message to the public in a favorable manner

Which of the following is a right of the accused that is protected by the Fifth Amendment?

to have a grand jury weigh the prosecution's evidence

The 2014 North Carolina Senate race (Hagan vs. Tillis) was one of the most extensive campaigns in Senate history, with more than $75 million spent. What portion of that money came from super PACs?

two-thirds

The Supreme Court consistently ruled that the George W. Bush administration's practice of denying constitutional and legal protections to enemy combatants was

under the jurisdiction of the United States courts.

What legislative powers does the president possess?

veto, power to propose legislation to Congress

Alexander Hamilton said that of all the branches of government, the Supreme Court was the

weakest

In which year did the Supreme Court rule that forced busing violated student's constitutional right to equal protection under the law?

2007

In order to be a member of the House of Representatives, a person must be ______ years of age.

25

What has the Supreme Court ruled concerning police use of modern technology, such as listening or thermal-imaging devices, to investigate a subject?

A search warrant is required, just as it would be for other circumstances.

The Constitution establishes the Supreme Court. Which entity is empowered by the Constitution to establish the lower federal courts?

Congress

Which of the following cases established that law enforcement officers must advise detainees of their rights, including the right to remain silent and the right to an attorney, before beginning questioning in a criminal investigation?

Miranda v. Arizona

Which of the following statements correctly describe U.S. district courts?

They are the only federal courts where cases are decided by a jury, they are the chief trial courts of the federal court system.

The Eighth Amendment protects

against cruel and unusual punishment.

In the case of Korematsu v. United States, the courts

allowed government polices during wartime that would not be allowed in times of peace.

The exclusionary rule restricts the ability of

courts to admit illegally obtained evidence during a trial.

The duties of each vice president are

determined by the particular president with whom he or she serves.

As a result of changes in sentencing policies, the U.S. prison population, per capita,

is the largest in the world

Which of these groups is typically more protective of individual rights?

judges

Alexander Hamilton said that the power of the Supreme Court rested on the power of

judgment—the reasonableness and fairness of its actions.

The framers of the Constitution granted Congress the power to ______, the greatest of all powers of government.

make laws

Elections held in the years between presidential elections are called ______ elections.

midterm

President Ronald Reagan was viewed as

more powerful than President Jimmy Carter.

Studies have shown that many voters decide to vote for a particular presidential candidate during

national party conventions

In Hamden v. Rumsfeld, the Supreme Court ruled that the use of secret military tribunals to try detainees accused of terrorism was ______, as detainees were entitled to a trial affording all the guarantees contained in the Constitution.

unconstitutional

Which of the following acts of legislation gave government increased authority to examine medical, financial, and student records and increased surveillance of communications without a warrant or court order?

The USA Patriot Act

Why was the National Security Agency's wiretapping of phone calls and e-mail messages originating in the United States, first revealed by The New York Times in 2005, controversial?

The wiretapping had been authorized by President George W. Bush without approval from the courts, and the wiretapping was specifically prohibited by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978.

Which of the following are activities that typically take place in a party caucus?

adopting a single policy message, and developing issues

In following the Eighth Amendment, the Supreme Court has used which of the following tests to determine if an action constitutes cruel and unusual punishment?

determining if a punishment violates "fundamental standards of good conscience and fairness", determining if a punishment is "unnecessarily cruel", determining whether a punishment is "disproportionate to the offence"

Which of these presidential appointees are the most difficult for the president to control?

directors of federal departments and agencies

The scenario in which the president belongs to one political party while the opposition party has majority control of at least one chamber of Congress is known as

divided government.

The law refers to the rights of individuals; however,

groups more often fight for civil rights.

When public approval of a presidential administration is at low levels, it is usually

harder for a president to pursue initiatives.

To what does political scientist Hugh Heclo's term the illusion of presidential government refer?

that the public believes the president runs the government

In Hamdan v. Rumsfeld (2006), the Supreme Court ruled that enemy combatant detainees were protected by which of the following?

the U.S. Uniform Code of Military Justice and the Geneva Convention