American Government - Graded Exam #3

The air we breathe is an example of a Select one: a. private good. b. negative externality. c. material good. d. mass-produced good. e. collective good.

e. collective good.

Under federal law, PA~can contribute no more than ________ per candidate for federal office in a primary election. Select one: a. $1,000 b. $5,000 c. $25,000 d. $50,000 e. $100,000

b. $5,000

PACs tend to contribute the most money to Select one: a. incumbents. b. challengers. c. Independents. d. liberal Democrats. e. liberal Republicans.

a. incumbents.

Which of the following is one of the three major functions of Congress's policymaking role? Select one: a. lawmaking b. check the president c. appease special interests d. inform the people e. check the Supreme Court

a. lawmaking

Bills are formally introduced in Congress by Select one: a. members of Congress only. b. executive agencies. c. interest groups. d. the Supreme Court. e. All these answers are correct.

a. members of Congress only.

A flaw in pluralism theory is the fact that Select one: a. the interest group system is unrepresentative because some interests are far better organized and more powerful than others. b. the public interest is never served by policies that promote special interests. c. larger groups always prevail politically over smaller groups. d. political parties better represent different interests than do interest groups. e. All of these answers are correct.

a. the interest group system is unrepresentative because some interests are far better organized and more powerful than others.

By and large, partisanship is Select one: a. irrelevant to the work of Congress. b. a huge source of both cohesion and division within Congress. c. relevant only in the context of local representation. d. important in lawmaking and representation but not in oversight. e. more important in foreign policy than in domestic policy.

b. a huge source of both cohesion and division within Congress.

An informal grouping of officials, lobbyists, and policy specialists who come together temporarily around a policy problem is Select one: a. an iron triangle. b. an issue network. c. a caucus. d. a policy system. e. an ideological network.

b. an issue network.

The most numerous economic groups are Select one: a. labor groups. b. business groups. c. professional groups. d. occupational groups. e. farm groups.

b. business groups

Senators are generally less likely to take directions from their leaders than House members because Select one: a. senators are prohibited by their state legislatures from taking orders from others. b. senators think of themselves as being equals and are only willing to be led by persuasion. c. senators are more highly paid than House members and are thus immune from financial threats. d. House rules mandate that all party members on major bills must vote according to the directions of their leaders. e. All these answers are correct.

b. senators think of themselves as being equals and are only willing to be led by persuasion.

In initiating broad legislative proposals, the president enjoys all the following advantages over Congress EXCEPT Select one: a. the president being more likely to take a national perspective on policy issues. b. the president being granted more authority by the Constitution in the area of lawmaking. c. the president's actions receiving more attention from the national media. d. the president having the authority to make policy decisions even when there are conflicting views within the executive branch, while congressional leaders cannot impose their views on other members who disagree with them. e. a lack of fragmentation. Feedback

b. the president being granted more authority by the Constitution in the area of lawmaking.

Which of the following is true of employment in lobbying firms by members of Congress? Select one: a. It is very rare for a member of Congress to become a lobbyist because of the negative stigma involved. b. Most members of Congress join lobbying firms immediately after leaving Congress. c. They are prohibited by law from lobbying Congress for a set period of time after leaving office. d. Members of Congress are prohibited by law from joining the lobbying profession. e. Many members of Congress were lobbyists prior to becoming elected representatives.

c. They are prohibited by law from lobbying Congress for a set period of time after leaving office.

Compared to House incumbents, Senate incumbents are more likely to face the problem of Select one: a. raising enough money to run a strong campaign. b. an electorate that is inclined to judge their fitness for reelection in the context of pork-barrel legislation and other favors for the local community. c. a strong challenger. d. name recognition. e. All these answers are correct.

c. a strong challenger.

In contrast with the Speaker of the House, the Senate majority leader Select one: a. plays a key role in formulating the majority party's legislative positions. b. seeks to develop influential relationships with his/her colleagues. c. is not the presiding officer of his/her chamber. d. holds a position that is defined in the Constitution. e. None of these answers is correct.

c. is not the presiding officer of his/her chamber.

The trading of votes between members of Congress so that each gets the legislation he or she wants is called Select one: a. gerrymandering. b. pandering. c. logrolling. d. pork-barreling. e. cloturing.

c. logrolling.

The dominant labor interest group is Select one: a. the Teamsters Union. b. United Auto Workers. c. the AFL-CIO. d. the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. e. the Communication Workers of America.

c. the AFL-CIO.

Which nation does NOT have a one-house dominant legislature? Select one: a. Canada b. Germany c. the United States d. Great Britain e. None of these answers is correct, as all these nations have one-house dominant legislatures.

c. the United States

About ________ percent of people who regularly listen to National Public Radio do not donate money to their local station. Select one: a. 10 b. 30 c. 50 d. 70 e. 90

e. 90

A pocket veto differs from a regular presidential veto in that the pocket veto Select one: a. applies only to a section of the legislation in question. b. applies only to expenditure legislation. c. occurs when the president decides to veto a bill he had previously signed. d. can take effect only when the Congress is not in session. e. occurs when the president goes before Congress to announce a veto.

d. can take effect only when the Congress is not in session.

Super PACs have been criticized primarily for Select one: a. being a tool that provides unfair advantages to liberal Democrats. b. leveling the playing field for monetary influence in federal elections. c. making it more likely that minor parties will gain control of government. d. giving too much influence to the wealthy. e. refusing to abide by FEC regulations.

d. giving too much influence to the wealthy.

In an effort to overcome the free-rider problem, noneconomic groups have Select one: a. deliberately restricted the size of their membership. b. joined up with economic groups. c. convinced government to limit the distribution of public goods to those who have contributed to the group's efforts. d. used Internet resources and computer-assisted mailing lists to target potential donors. e. adopted taxes for nonmembers.

d. used Internet resources and computer-assisted mailing lists to target potential donors.

Compared with the Senate majority leader, the Speaker of the House has more power because Select one: a. the House places more limits on debate. b. the House is the larger chamber in terms of membership. c. the House has less of a tradition as a chamber of equals. d. the Speaker is that chamber's presiding officer. e. All these answers are correct.

e. All these answers are correct.

The oversight responsibility of Congress is Select one: a. relatively easy to carry out. b. becoming less and less important to the nation. c. more interesting to most legislators than policy making responsibilities. d. the most time consuming task for most legislators. e. None of these answers is correct.

e. None of these answers is correct.

In the dynamics of an iron triangle, what benefit do interest groups provide to friendly bureaucratic agencies? Select one: a. services for constituents b. travel funds c. campaign contributions d. administration of mutually beneficial policies e. lobbying support for agency programs

e. lobbying support for agency programs

Why have issue networks become more prevalent? Select one: a. the increasing power of corporate lobbying b. the increasing diversity of interest groups c. the increasing influence of PACs d. the instability of candidates' positions e. the increasing complexity of policy problems

e. the increasing complexity of policy problems