United States Government & Politics Practice

Which of the following groups would be most likely to support a constitutional amendment banning all abortions? A. Conservatives B. Libertarians C. Independents D. Liberals E. Moderates

A. Conservatives

Which of the following claues in the constitution justifies the "implied powers doctorine" ? A. The necessary and proper clause B. The privileges and immunities clause C. Asking leading questions D. The debts and engagements clause E. The executive power clause

A. The necessary and proper clause

A writ of habeas corpus refers to A. a person's rights to know the reasons for his or her imprisonment B. a person's right to not be charged for an action committed before that action was a crime C. a person's right to trial by jury D. the protection against cruel and unusual punishment E. a demand from one state ti extradite a suspect from another state

A. a person's rights to know the reasons for his or her imprisonment

The US constitution says that Congress has the power to coin money. This is an example of A. an enumerated power B. an implied power C. an inherent power D. a reserved power E. a concurrent power

A. an enumerated power

Congress has the constitutional power to control the judicial branch by A. determining the size of the Supreme Court B. nominating the chief justice of the Supreme Court C. limiting the length of judicial terms D. reducing the salary of judges while they are sitting E. altering the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court

A. determining the size of the Supreme Court

The term "bicameralism" refers to the A. establishment of two legislative chambers that have different structures and rules B. members of the House of Representatives having two-year terms C. president having veto power over both chambers of Congress D. members of the House and Senate having to appease their mutual constistuencies E. checks that Congress has over the federal bureaucracy

A. establishment of two legislative chambers that have different structures and rules

The supremacy clause in the Constitution states that A. federal law takes precedence over state law when laws conflict B. only Congress may declare war C. the Senate should have a greater role on foreign affairs that does the House of Representatives D. the federal government has the right to regulate interstate commerce E. the Supreme Court has the power to overturn decisions of lower courts

A. federal law takes precedence over state law when laws conflict

Much of the steady increase in federal government expenditures since 1960 has been caused by A. increases in entitlement programs B. higher interest rates caused by an increase in the discount rate C. the provisions of the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act D. increased purchases of US government securities by foreign investors E. the growth of the US trade imbalance

A. increases in entitlement programs

The expansion of the executive branch since 1939 hs affected the separation of powers by A. increasing presidential control over the legislative process B. increasing the power of the media as a result of more frequent presidential press conferences C. reducing the power of the Supreme Cort through the use of executive orders D. giving more power to the interest groups than to parties E. making senatorial approval of presidential appointees ceremonial

A. increasing presidential control over the legislative process

The doctorine of state decisis is significant for which of the following reasons A. it establishes the jurisdiction of federal courts in litigation involving 2 or more states B. it is the principle that affirms that courts are bound by prior decisions C. it is the policy by which the supreme court decides which of the appellate cases it will hear D. it directs states to provide a lawyer for people who cannot pay for their own legal defense E. It holds high courts responsible for determining the constitutionality of proposed legislation before it becomes law

A. it establishes the jurisdiction of federal courts in litigation involving 2 or more states

A difference between the House of Representatives and the Senate is that in the House A. legislative activity on the floor is more constrained by rules B. committees are less important in the decision-making process C. junior members have more influence over legislative decisions D. party leaders are less powerful E. bills are more likely to be amended on the floor

A. legislative activity on the floor is more constrained by rules

Childreb are most likely to adopt the party identification A. of their parents B of the president C. of their friends D. of their teachers E. endorsed by the media

A. of their parents

A policy that sets emission standards for automobiles is an example of A. regulatory policy B. judicial policy C. fiscal policy D. distributive policy E. monetary policy

A. regulatory policy

Interest groups are protected under the Constitution by the A. provisions of Article 1, Section 8 B. 1st amendment C. 9th amendment D. 10th amendment E. 14th amendment

B. 1st amendment

When party members meet to nominate a candidatre for office, they participate in which of the following? A. General election B. Caucus C. Blanket primary D. Open primary E. Closed Primary

B. Caucus

To which level of government did the Bill of Rights originally apply? A. State governments only B. Federal government only C. State and federal governments only D. Local and federal governments only E. Local, state, and federal governments

B. Federal government only

Typically, presidential candidates implement their campaign strategies by A. Applying their resources evenly among the states, because they must win popular votes in a majority of the states to be elected B. Focusing on larger, competitive states, because they might tip the balance of the electoral college C. Focusing on small states, because these states have proportionally more electoral votes than more populous states have D. Ignoring the electoral college, because the popular vote determines the outcome of the election E. Ignoring the electoral college, because more states are moving away from the winner-take-all system

B. Focusing on larger, competitive states, because they might tip the balance of the electoral college

Which of the following best accounts for the lack of success generally encountered by minor political parties in electin members to the House or Senate? A. PAC contributions are restricted by law to the 2 major parties B. General elections in the US are based on the winner-take-all principle C. House and Senate rules exclude members of minor parties from organizing coalitiona with the major parties D. The Public has great faith in the two major political parties E. Some states outlaw minor political parties

B. General elections in the US are based on the winner-take-all principle

Which of the following describes the President's Cabinet? A. It consists of career civil servants with decades of experience in government service. B. It's members have varying levels of influence on presidential decisions. C. It's members hold office for fixed terms that coincide with the president's. D. It's members must be selected from among current or former members of Congress. E. It's members are required to approve presidential policy decisions.

B. It's members have varying levels of influence on presidential decisions.

Which of the following in the most important for getting an accurate measure of public opinion in a survey? A. Surverying only cell phone users B. Selecting a random sample C. Asking leading questions D. Contacting only registered voters E. Conducting the survey online

B. Selecting a random sample

Which of the following best explains why the winner of a presidential election usually claims to have a mandate from voters? A. The president's party often wins a majority of seats in Congress by riding the president's coattails. B. The allocation of electoral votes ub the winner-take-all system exaggerates the margin of victory. C. Presidents are allowed to replace a significant number of court justices on the Supreme Court. D. The new president is allowed to replace a significant number of justices on the Supreme Court. E. The incoming president automatically gains control of Congress.

B. The allocation of electoral votes ub the winner-take-all system exaggerates the margin of victory.

The framers of the Constitution designed which of the following the be LEAST responsive to public opinion? A. The office of the president B. The courts C. Congress D. The electoral college E. Political parties

B. The courts

The idea that judges ought to freely strike down laws that are inconsistent with their understanding of the Constitution is known as A. original intent B. judicial restraint C. judicial activism D. judicial review E. stare decisis

B. judicial restraint

Constitutional checks and balances, especially applied to the president, are designed to A. provide for a balanced budget B. minimize the threat of tyranny from any one branch of government C. ensure that the states do not become too powerful D. ensure efficient government E. ensure that the federal government is militarily strong

B. minimize the threat of tyranny from any one branch of government

The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (McCain-Feingold) was designed to curtail which of the following? A. individual contributions to candidates B. soft money C. hard money D. public disclosure rules E. lobbying

B. soft money

If a college's admission policy to reserve twenty seats in it's incoming class for applicants belonging to racial minority groups is challenged in the courts, a judge is likely to A. uphold the policy because it provides additional oppurtunities for minority applicants B. strike down the policy because reserving seats amounts to a quota system c. strike down the policy because the percentage of seats reserved is less than the percentage of minority citizens in the general population D. uphold the policy because only a small percentage of the total seats for incoming students are affected E. strike down the policy because it did not apply to women as well as racial minorities

B. strike down the policy because reserving seats amounts to a quota system

Which of the following amendments to the Constitution most likely provides the bass for a driver to challenge the constitutionality of police use of sobriety checkpoints in enforcing drunk driving laws? A. the 1st amendment right to petition the government for a redress of grievances B. the 4th amendment protection against unreasonable search and seizure C. the 5th amendment protection against self-incrimination D. the 8th amendment protection against cruel and unusual punishment E. the 10th amendment right of states to powers not given to the national government

B. the 4th amendment protection against unreasonable search and seizure

The concept of realignment refers to changes in A. the US system of international alliances B. the social bases of the parties' voting support C. the media's criticism of the president and Congress D. spending priotities in the federal budget E. the rate of voter participation

B. the social bases of the parties' voting support

Which of the following is true of the relationship between congress and executive agencies? A. The agencies were created by and work under the direction of Congress B. Agencies, once created, work totally independent of Congress C. Because the agencies have bureaucratic expertise, Congress delegates, "rule-maing authority" to them D. Because of differing objectives, their relationships are always adversarial E. Congress creates, staffs, and supervises all executive agencies

C. Because the agencies have bureaucratic expertise, Congress delegates, "rule-maing authority" to them

Policy that describes the impact of the federal budget (including taxes, spending, and borrowing) on the economy is referred to as which of the following? A. Monetary policy B. Trade policy C. Fiscal Policy D. Antitrust Policy E. Capitalist Policy

C. Fiscal Policy

If Congress wanted to effect a change in the Social Security payroll tax, to what congressional committee would the task initiallu be assigned? A. House Appropriations Committee B. Senate Appropriations Committee C. House Ways and Means Committee D. House Rules Committee E. Senate Finance Committee

C. House Ways and Means Committee

Which of the following is NOT a trait of a liberal democracy? A. Holding regular, frequent, and competitive elections B. Protecting minority rights C. Having a lively and free press D. Achieving income quality E. Guaranteeing equality in voting

D. Achieving income quality

Which of the following is an example of presidential use of informal powers? A. President Ronald Reagan nominating Sandra Day O'Connor to the US Supreme Court B. President John F. Kennedy negotiating tje Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty with the Soviet Union C. President Bill Clinton advocating for public policy reform on his Health Security Express bus D. President George W. Bush deploying United States troops to Iraq E. President Barack Obama delivering the State of the Union address to Congress

C. President Bill Clinton advocating for public policy reform on his Health Security Express bus

Which of the following is an example of the constitutional design of checks and balances? A. The federal government requires state governments to provide unemployment insurance B. The Supreme Court overturns a lower court's ruling on the application of the 4th amendment C. The Senate rejects a president's nomination for secretary of state D. The Federal Communications Commission revokes the license of a radio station for hate speech E. The Office of Management and Budget rejects a proposed regulation of air quality standards

C. The Senate rejects a president's nomination for secretary of state

Which of the following is the primary reason for the tensions that exist between the legislative and executive branches of the federal government? A. Each branch sets and approves the other's budget B. The branches are staffed with many of the same people C. The branches have different constituencies with different interests D. The branches are responsible for the selection of Cabinet-level officials E. Each branch has the constitutional power to levy taxes

C. The branches have different constituencies with different interests

The US Fish and Wildlife Service will spend money appropriated by Congress to maintain wildlife regues. This action is an example of A. the power of the filibuster B. congressional oversight of the bureaucracy C. bureaucratic implementation of law D. an unfunded mandate E. an independent expenditure

C. bureaucratic implementation of law

The media's effect on public opinion can best be described as A. influencing older citizens' opinions of incumbents B. affecting the public's views on domestic policy only C. influencing which issues the public sees as important D. changing well-educated people's views on foreign policy E. influencing the public's views on controversial issues only

C. influencing which issues the public sees as important

The practice in Congress whereby Representative A promises to vote for Representative B's legislation, provided that Representative B will support Representative A's legislation, is referred to as A. personal casework and services B. partisan discipline C. logrolling D. pork barrel legislation E. filibustering

C. logrolling

Interest groups use political action committees (PACs) to A. provide expertise to members of Congress when they are writting legislation B. lobby the executive bureaucracy when they are considering new rules and regulations C. raise and spend money on election campaigns D. generate research that can be used ti influence public opinion E. hire policy experts who will promote their views in the media

C. raise and spend money on election campaigns

Civil rights activists, such as those who campaign for gay and lesbian equal rights are those who advocated for racial equality in the 1950's and 1960's, often find most effevtive way to secure those rights is A. through mass demostrations to raise awareness of their cause B. through lobbying of individual members of Congress for support on legislation C. through litigation in the courts to gain legal protections against discrimination D. by launching educational campaigns to increase the level of public support for their cause E. by persuading presidents to issue executive orders that prevent discrimination within the federal workforce

C. through litigation in the courts to gain legal protections against discrimination

Which of the following identifies the formal procedure for ending a filibuster? A. Oversight B. Logrolling C. Pocket Veto D. Cloture E. Discharge petition

D. Cloture

Congress is most likely to exert oversight of the executive bureaucracy in which of the following ways? A. Directly selecting the head of an executive agency B. Impeaching the head of an executive agency C. Using the Court to block implemention of proposed regulations D. Controlling an execitives agency's annual budget E. Changing the term length of heads of independent regulatory commissions

D. Controlling an execitives agency's annual budget

The Connecticut (Great) Compromise drafted at the Constitutional Convention of 1787 is significant for which of the following reasons? A. It established the presidential system and gave the US Supreme Court power to serve as the ultimate arbiter of constitutional disputes B. It allowed southern states to count each slave as 3/5 of a person for determining representation in the House of Representatives C. It provided equality of representation among the states in both the House of Representation and the Senate D. It proposed a Senate with equal representation for each state and the House of Representative with membership established accoring to the population of each state E. It denied Congress the poeer to establish tariffs on exported merchandise

D. It proposed a Senate with equal representation for each state and the House of Representative with membership established accoring to the population of each state

Which of the following types of committee deals with broad areas of public policy and can be found in both houses of Congress? A. Rules B. Select C. Joint D. Standing E. Conference

D. Standing

Which of the following explains why any attempt to reduce Social Security benefits is difficult? A. The Supreme Court has ruled that benefits are constitutionally required. B. Interest groups concerned with Social Security are ineffective. C. The global economy makes government insurance programs necessary. D. There are many voters who support Social Security. E. Government cannot predict the number of new retirees each year.

D. There are many voters who support Social Security.

The 19th amendment to the constitution, the Equal Rights Amendment, and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 were all directed toward the goal of A. protecting the rights of minority children in the schools B. overcoming discrimintation based in sexual orientation C. racial justice D. equality for women E. affirmative action

D. equality for women

Establishing the boundaries of US congressional districts to give one party an advantage over another party is referred to as A. raiding B. apportionment C. reapportionment D. gerrymandering E. filibustering

D. gerrymandering

Which of the following is the main reason interest groups are often sucessful in getting legislation passed to benedit their members? A. it is easy tio garner support from most members of congress on any issue B. all members of society desire the legislation that special interests pursue C. it is very easy to get legislation passed in Congress D. narrow constituency derives the benefits from such legislation but the costs are spread broadly across the population E. interest group activity represents the democratic process at work because individual interest groups often represent more than half of the population

D. narrow constituency derives the benefits from such legislation but the costs are spread broadly across the population

The primary purpose of the North American Free Trade Agreement is to A. strengthen the mutual defense agreements between the countries of western Europe B. set up a mutual defense agreement between the US, Mecxico, and Canada C. encourage trade between the US and the countries of western Europe D. reduce trade barriers between the US, Mexico, and Canada E. Set up a system whereby the countries that were formally part of the Soviet Bloc could be admitted to North Atlantic Treaty Organization

D. reduce trade barriers between the US, Mexico, and Canada

The developement and persistence of the two-party system in the US is best accounted for by A. The 12th Amendment B. proportional representation C. multimember legislative disitricts D. single member legisltive districts E. strong party loyalty of elected representatives

D. single member legisltive districts

When peiple vote for some candidates from one party and other candidates from another party, it is called A. dealignment B. realignment C. republicanism D. ticket splitting E. caucusing

D. ticket splitting

Congress adopted the Wars Powers Resolution A. Give the president additional powers in case of military emergencies B. Delineate a clear chain of command in the event of nuclear war C. Criticize the president for declaring war without authorization from Congress D. Enable the president to commit troops to United Nations peacekeeping forces E. Limit the president's authority to commit troops overseas

E. Limit the president's authority to commit troops overseas

Which of the following concepts refers to the beliefs about government and politics that people in the US hold most deeply? A. Ethnic pride B. Party identification C. Policy attitude D. Group identity E. Political culture

E. Political culture

Which of the following statements about voting behavior in national elections is most accurate? A. Men are more likely to vote than are women B. Blue-collar workers are more likely to vote than are professionals C. Those with less than a high school education are more likely to vote than are college graduates D. Democrats are more likely to vote than are Republicans E. Senior citizens are more likely to vote than are college students

E. Senior citizens are more likely to vote than are college students

If legislation passes in both the House of Representatives and the Senate but each version is slightly differenct, the conflicting bills are sent to A. a standing committee of each house for a vote B. an ad hoc committee for judicial review C. the Rules Committee of each house for reconciliation and compromise D. the majority and minority leaders of both houses for compromise E. a conference committee for reviews and compromise

E. a conference committee for reviews and compromise

Of the following, the most significant difference between the Constitution of 1787 and the Articles of Confederation was that the Constitution A. made states soveregin over the national government, while the Articles were based on national sovereignty B. was difficult to amend, while the Articles included an easier process requiring approval by a simple majority of states C. provided for a presidential system of government, while the articles provided for a parliamentary system of government D. created a dominant national executive, while the Articles established a dominant national legislature E. provided for a strong national government with many powers, while the Articles created a weak central government with few independent powers

E. provided for a strong national government with many powers, while the Articles created a weak central government with few independent powers

The most significant trend in federal-state relations during the 1980's was A. giving the federal government control over social welfare programs B. bringing about greater equality in the provision of social services in different states C. limiting state governments' ability to assess income taxes D. expanding the authority of country and municipal governments at the expense of state governments E. shifting the responsibilities and costs for many programs to state governments

E. shifting the responsibilities and costs for many programs to state governments

Which of the following is true of voter turnout in the US? A. 3/4 of the electorate votes in a presidential election B. the south votes in larger numbers than does any other region of the country C. men vote in larger numbers than do women D. there is no relationship between the age of the voter and participation rates E. the voter-participation rate is one of the lowest of any industrialized nation

E. the voter-participation rate is one of the lowest of any industrialized nation

The Americans with Disabilities Act was widely unpopular with governors and mayors because it A. required that people with disabilities be given equal access to public facilities B. required that buildings be retrofitted or remodeled to give equal access to people with disabilities C. did not go far enough to establish equal access to public facilities D. applied only to federal facilities and did nothing to accommodate people in municiple buildings e. required that states and cities pay for federally mandated construction and remodeling

e. required that states and cities pay for federally mandated construction and remodeling