Texas Chapter 2
Federal judges are ---- for life with approval of the ---- ,whereas the Texas Constitution provides that judges be ---- in order to allow public control.
appointed, U.S. Senate, elected
Because the framers believed that education was so important, they included Article 7 in the state constitution. Select the portion of text from Article 7 that best expresses what the framers thought was the most important element that would protect our system of government.
A general diffusion of knowledge
Which of the following is the most accurate characterization of the current Texas Constitution?
A long and complex collection of specifically written policy.
In 1824, settlers coming to Texas from the United States stopped being under the authority of the U.S. Constitution and instead were governed by the Mexican national constitution. Which aspects of the Mexican national constitution of 1824 differed from the U.S. Constitution? Which aspects were the same?
Aspects That Were Different: - the selection of the president - the role of religion Aspects That Were Similar: - the separation of powers - protection of state powers - a bicameral legislature
The data in the following table best support which of the following conclusions?
Balancing the exercise of civil liberties against the protection of civil rights can lead to fractures in the public on how to proceed.
Which guarantees are made by the Texas Constitution but not by the U.S. Constitution?
Correct Answers: - victims' rights - free and efficient public schools Incorrect Answers: - freedom of religion - limited government
What is the meaning of the term impeachment?
A charge of wrongdoing
Which of the following characteristics have been central in all of Texas's constitutions since Texas joined the United States?
Central in All of Texas's Constitutions: - individual rights - federalism - division of power - strong popular control Not Central in All of Texas's Constitutions: - flexibility - strong government
Which of these have served as sources of frustration for states in their relationship with the federal government
Correct Answers: - Fourteenth Amendment - supremacy clause - necessary and proper clause Incorrect Answers: - Tenth Amendment
How does the plural executive, as specified in Article 4 of the Texas Constitution, influence Texas government?
Correct Answers: - It diffuses the functions of the executive among multiple offices. - It ensures that each member of the plural executive has an independent base of power. - It protects against concentration of power. Incorrect Answers: - It ensures that policies are implemented more efficiently. - It makes the governor more powerful.
What effect did the creation of decentralized boards and other districts outside the authority of the governor have on the Texas government?
Correct Answers: - It made it more difficult to revise and reform policies affecting government power. - It created a system more susceptible to special interests. Incorrect Answers: - It further enhanced the one-party dominance of the state. - It made the people's voice in government stronger.
Since 1983, Texans have voted to amend the state's constitution dozens of times. Turnout in these elections is always low, even when well-publicized amendments are on the ballot. For example, in 1991 and 2005, amendments were proposed to create the Texas lottery and ban same-sex marriages in the state, respectively—issues with significant public interest. The graph shows that while turnout in presidential elections since 1992 has hovered between 50 and 70 percent, turnout in constitutional amendment elections is rarely above 20 percent (and most often, less than 10 percent).
Correct Answers: - Presidential elections consistently attract more than triple the turnout of amendment elections. - Amendments dealing with social issues drive greater voter participation. Incorrect Answers: - There is a consistent increase in voter turnout over time. - People do not rely on the political parties to influence their voter behavior.
In which of the following ways are the legislative institutions of Texas and the United States similar?
Correct Answers: - Senators serve longer terms than representatives. - The Speaker of the House is selected by members of the House. - The House of Representatives can impeach officials from other branches. Incorrect Answers: - Senators are elected statewide. - The legislature is required to create balanced budgets.
What were some of the primary complaints by Texans about the Mexican government prior to declaring independence from Mexico?
Correct Answers: - Texans felt they weren't given enough representation. - Education was often offered only in the Spanish language. - Mexican policies limited immigration from the United States to Texas. Incorrect Answers: - The Mexican government had abolished the republican form of government. - Texans were being taxed to pay for the war with France.
What were some of the causes of Texas's efforts to break away from Mexico?
Correct Answers: - Texans resented Mexico's restrictions on civil liberties. - Anglo settlers saw themselves as part of American westward expansion rather than as Mexican citizens. - Texans desired bilingual education. Incorrect Answers: - Mexico was taxing Texas too much. - Mexico was weakened by a war with France.
Which of the following concepts in the Texas Constitution of 1836 were adapted from Spanish-Mexican law?
Correct Answers: - homestead protections - government retention of mineral rights - community property Incorrect Answers: - criminal prosecution - protection of slavery
How do both the U.S. and Texas constitutions seek to prevent tyranny?
Correct Answers: - separation of powers - checks and balances - natural self-interests Incorrect Answers:
What important functions are performed by state constitutions?
Correct Answers: - specify the limits and uses of power by state institutions and individuals - clarify the source of a state's political power - divide authority within the political institutions of the state Incorrect Answers: - empower the Republican and Democratic parties within the state - establish limits on the influence of the federal government over states
Local governments in Texas, such as cities and counties, derive their authority from which sources?
Correct Answers: - the Texas Constitution - the citizens of Texas Incorrect Answers: - the U.S. Constitution - American citizens - the residents of the city - the county commissioners' court
Which factors gave the Tea Party high rates of success in influencing the outcomes of recent amendment elections in Texas?
Correct Answers: - unity behind an issue - low voter turnout Incorrect Answers: - strong party affiliation - effective education of registered voters on the issues
Which constitutional provisions were included in the Constitution of 1866 to bring it into compliance with Presidential Reconstruction?
Correct Answers: -allowing formerly enslaved males to enter into contracts - repudiating the state's war debt - granting property rights to formerly enslaved males Incorrect Answers: - allowing formerly enslaved people to hold office - extending suffrage to formerly enslaved people
Voter participation in statewide constitutional amendment elections is most likely to see big increases under what circumstances?
Divisive social issues are on the ballot.
The U.S. Constitution specifies how powers are allocated within state-level institutions.
False
How do the Texas and U.S. constitutions compare on the issue of impeachment?
It is easier to impeach and individual in Texas than in the national government.
Relative to the U.S. Constitution, the Texas Constitution is ---- and adopts a tone of ----governance.
Longer, limited
The government of Texas is separated into many parts. In addition to having three branches of government, one branch—the executive—is divided into a plural executive with different constituencies. Which of the following has been a difficult outcome of this fractured structure?
Outsized influence of energized factions of the public and interest groups.
Which statement best explains the state constitution's guarantee of a republican form of government?
People elect representatives to make decisions on their behalf.
What is the most consequential way in which Presidential Reconstruction differed from Congressional Reconstruction?
Presidential Reconstruction focused on returning the status quo of the past.
The authors of the Constitution of 1876 gave local schools control of education and allowed parents to choose whether or not to send their children to school. What goal did this accomplish?
Prevent the use of tax dollars for racially integrated schools
Why is voter participation in Texas constitutional amendment elections so low?
Reason Turnout Is Low: - The elections are held on off years from major general elections. - There are no candidates on the ballot. - Many amendments are insignificant to voters. Not A Reason Turnout Is Low: - Few voters can pass the poll test. - Voters must separately register to vote in constitutional amendment elections.
Which office is missing from the diagram of the Texas plural executive structure within Article 4?
Secretary of State
Which statement accurately portrays the tax burden in Texas?
Texans still contribute about a twelfth of their income to state taxes.
Identify which of the following characteristics are unique to the Texas Bill of Rights, and which apply to both the U.S. and Texas Bills of Rights.
Texas Bill of Rights: - specifies the right to a republican government - appears as the first article of the Constitution - specifies provisions of public policy Both U.S. and Texas Bill of Rights: - guarantees freedom of religion - includes liberties of speech and press
Drag the following provisions of the Texas Constitution of 1876, the U.S. Constitution, or both to their proper place on the Venn diagram.
Texas Constitution of 1876: - Victim's rights - free and equitable public schools - complex, specific, and long document Both: - bicameral legislature - popular sovereignty U.S. Constitution: - short document with flexible language - supreme law - single executive
Place the following events in the history of Texas in order from oldest to most recent.
Texas's independence from Mexico, state of Texas joins the United States, Civil War, Fourteenth Amendment ratified, Grange movement influences new Texas Constitution, Texas Equal Rights Amendment added to the state constitution.
Place the steps required to amend the Texas Constitution in the correct order.
The amendment is proposed in a regular or special session of the state legislature. The amendment is approved by two-thirds of both chambers of the state legislatures. The wording of the proposed amendment is published twice in the recognized newspaper. The amendment is approved by a simple majority of voters statewide.
As one of only a handful of states without a form of an income tax, what is the only way that Texas could institute an income tax statewide?
The legislature and voters would have to amend the constitution.
Before voters participate in a constitutional amendment election, what step must happen first?
The legislature votes to put the amendment on the ballot.
How do the lieutenant governor, who leads the Texas Senate, and the Speaker of the House, who leads the Texas House of Representatives, receive their positions of leadership?
The lieutenant governor is elected statewide, and the Speaker of the House is chosen by members of the Texas House of Representatives.
Match the clause characteristic to the amendment in which it is found.
Thirteenth Amendment: - ends slavery Fourteenth Amendment: - forces states to follow due process to remove rights - defines who is a citizen - guarantees equal rights for people in all states Fifteenth Amendement: - bans race discrimination in voting
The authors of the Texas Constitution were influenced by the U.S. governing documents and the writers of The Federalist Papers, such as James Madison. Select the passages of Madison's text from Federalist 51 that reflect how government is structured to protect people from government becoming too powerful.
usurpations are guarded against by a division of the government into distinct and separate departments
