Ch. 2 "Constitutional Democracy: Promoting Liberty and Self-Government" Study Questions

Which of the following statements describe the terms democracy and republic as understood by the framers of the Constitution?

-In a democracy the power of the majority is unlimited. -The separation of powers is a characteristic of republican government. -The government of a republic responds to the needs of the majority while protecting the minority.

What was the lesson of the Articles of Confederation?

Government must be granted the amount of power that is necessary for it to carry out its responsibilities.

Who argued that "A bill of rights is what the people are entitled to against every government on earth, general or particular, and what no just government should refuse or rest on inference"?

Thomas Jefferson

What provision had been removed from Jefferson's initial draft of the Declaration of Independence at the insistence of southern states?

a statement critical of slavery

Despite the original purpose of the Philadelphia convention, which was to revise the Articles of Confederation, from its beginning prominent delegates were determined to

create a stronger central government.

The U.S. system of government is said to be ______ in providing for majority influence through elections.

democratic

Powers specifically prohibited from belonging to the state and national governments in the Constitution are known as ______.

denials of power

In the Electoral College, each state has electors equal to ______.

its representation in Congress

One key risk of ________ government is the potential for tyranny of the majority.

popular, democratic, majoritarian, or representative

According to Andrew Jackson, what requirement should not be used to determine who has the right to vote?

property

Concerning banks, Andrew Jackson sought to ______.

reduce their power

A government in which people govern by voting for officials to act for them is called a ______.

representative government

The challenge facing the framers was how to reconcile ______.

representative government and limited government

The belief that the power of government can be controlled by dividing it into several branches instead of concentrating it in one area is known as ______.

separation of powers

Which British policy was the main source of dispute for the American colonists?

taxation without representation

The Bill of Rights limited the power of ______.

the national government

The American Revolution was partly a rebellion against Britain's failure to ______.

uphold colonial traditions of self-government

Which of the following were features of the Virginia Plan for national government?

-It would include a bicameral legislature. -States with the largest populations would have the most representatives.

Identify the events that led to creation of the U.S. Constitution.

-Madison and Hamilton encouraged delegates at the Annapolis Convention to meet again to revise the Articles of Confederation. -The Annapolis Convention did not have enough participants to revise the Articles of Confederation. -Shays' rebellion had shown the weakness of the national government under the Articles of Confederation.

What were some of the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation?

-The national government depended on the states for its funding, and they often didn't pay their full share. -The national government did not have the power to regulate commerce between the states.

The U.S. system of government created by the founders in 1787 can be described as which of the following?

-constitutional -republican

Goals of the framers of the Constitution included ______.

-creating a national government that could meet the nation's defense needs -dividing power between the national government and the states -preserving the states as governing entities

Which of the following methods of electing the president were considered by the delegates to the constitutional convention?

-direct election by the people -vote of Congress -vote by state legislatures

The U.S. Constitution placed limitations on popular rule in which of the following ways?

-having the president elected by the Electoral College -having the president nominate federal judges -having U.S. senators elected by state legislatures

What tax policies did the South fear as the negotiations began that eventually resulted in the Three-Fifths Compromise? (Choose every correct answer.)

-heavy taxes on agricultural goods exported from the United States -heavy taxes on manufactured goods imported from Europe -a tax of any kind on the importation of slaves

Which of the following are constitutional grants of power to the national government?

-raising an army -declaring war against another nation -taxation

1. legislative 2. executive 3. judicial

1. the Congress 2. the president 3. the Supreme Court

The system chose by the framers to select the president is the ______.

Electoral College

True or false: The Virginia Plan favored the states with smaller populations.

False

In the framers' view, a republican government does which of the following? (Choose every correct answer.)

-reduces the risk of tyranny of the majority -adds constraints that protect the rights of individuals -reduces the likelihood of reckless, hasty actions

The branches of the federal government that check one another's power and balance the other branches' powers include ______.

-the legislative -the executive -the judicial

What happened as a result of Shays' Rebellion?

A convention was called for, to meet in Annapolis.

The concept of separation of powers was proposed by ______.

Montesquieu

Why didn't Congress respond with troops when the governor of Massachusetts asked for assistance during Shays' Rebellion?

There were no troops to send.

True or false: Natural rights are defined as those possessed by all people.

True

What was the central question that led to establishing judicial review?

Who was to decide whether officials were operating within the limits of their constitutional powers?

A dilemma that confronted the framers is that a threat to liberty is inherent in government because of its ______ power.

coercive

The notion of checks and balances is meant to ______.

complement the concept of separation of powers

Why was there strong support for a bill of rights during the debate over ratification of the Constitution?

fear that the national government would not respect people's rights

The principle that individuals should be free to act and think as they choose, provided they do not infringe unreasonably on the freedom and well-being of others, is known as ______.

liberty

Another term for "inalienable rights" is ______ rights.

natural

One goal of the framers of the Constitution was to ______.

preserve the states as governing entities

In a majority of the state conventions to ratify the Constitution (8 of 13), it was claimed that ______ would have the power to nullify actions that violated the Constitution.

the judiciary

During the drafting of the U.S. Constitution, Anti-Federalists believed that ______.

the national government was going to have excessive power under the Constitution

The framers tried to balance the need to give people a voice in their government against the need to prevent ______.

the tyranny of the majority

Amending the Articles of Confederation required ______ states to approve of the amendment.

thirteen