POL 241W Ongoing Study Guide
(Q001) __________ is the term for the amount of money approved by Congress in statutes that each unit or agency can spend.
Appropriations
(Q002) In Grutter v. Bollinger (2003), the Supreme Court ruled that Michigan Law School's affirmative action policy was
constitutional, since race was used in a holistic and individualized way and not as a quota.
(Q007) In what kind of case does the plaintiff charge that it has suffered because of another's violation of a specific agreement between the two?
contract
(Q005) In __________ cases, the government is always the plaintiff.
criminal
(Q010) Justices who disagree with the majority decision of the Court may choose to publicize the character of their disagreement in the form of a __________ opinion.
dissenting
(Q009) When one party controls the presidency, and another party controls either one or both houses of Congress, the United States has a __________ government.
divided
(Q015) Which of the following liberties protect every individual against arbitrary action by national or state governments?
due process of law
(Q003) The right of every citizen against arbitrary action by national or state governments is known as
due process of law.
(Q017) False stories meant to generate ad revenue or to benefit one candidate over another are better known as
fake news.
(Q018) Which group is the most influential agent of socialization in early childhood?
family
Protest, that is, participation that involves assembling crowds to confront a government or other official organization, is protected by the
first amendment
(Q011) The power of the media to influence the context in which people interpret political events and results is called
framing
(Q010) Which clause protects a citizen's right to believe and practice any religion?
free exercise clause
(Q014) The __________ is a candidate running for re-election to a position that he or she already holds.
incumbent
(Q006) In addition to expressed and delegated powers, presidents have claimed a third source of powers that are not expressed or implied in the Constitution and are known as
inherent powers.
(Q006) In a public opinion poll, larger samples sizes are meant to lower the
margin of error
(Q018) A criterion used by courts to screen cases that no longer require resolution is known as
mootness.
(Q016) Which of the following has risen over the last decade as traditional print media has declined?
niche journalism
(Q005) Parties use this process to select a single candidate to run for each elective office.
nomination
(Q020) What are 527 committees?
nonprofit independent groups that receive and disburse funds to influence elections
(Q008) The New England-based merchants and southern planters
organized together in opposition to taxes imposed by the Stamp Act and the Sugar Act.
(Q015) The Constitution gives the Supreme Court __________ jurisdiction in cases involving foreign ambassadors and issues in which a state is a party.
original
(Q022) An individual voter's psychological ties to one party or another is known as
party identification.
(Q024) Which of the following was not explicitly granted in the Bill of Rights?
the right to privacy
(Q021) Which of the following would be the most important factor in determining the reliability of a poll?
the size of the sample
(Q016) The phenomenon in which respondents report what they think the interviewer wants to hear or whatever they think is acceptable, rather than what they actually believe, is known as
the social desirability effect.
(Q003) Laws and cases involving the right to privacy are often difficult to decide because
they are not directly mentioned in the Bill of Rights but rather inferred from them.
(Q018) Block grants consist of federal aid to state or local governments that is
to be spent within a specified policy area, though without the narrow regulations of categorical grants.
(Q004) Normally, samples of how many people are considered sufficient for accurately measuring public opinion through the use of surveys?
1,000
Women won the right to vote in
1920
(Q003) The year the most people identified as liberal was _____.
2016
During early national periods of American history, suffrage was generally restricted to White males over the age of
21
In 2016 about _____ of Americans identified themselves as conservative.
40%
(Q007) In 2018, approximately __________ percent of Americans were digital citizens.
73
Which of the following statements about women's suffrage is most accurate?
A number of state and territorial governments adopted women's suffrage before the federal government granted women the vote.
(Q002) __________ is a type of reporting in which the media adopts a skeptical or even antagonistic posture toward the government and public officials.
Adversarial Journalism
(Q001) __________ refers to the power of the media to bring public attention to particular issues and problems.
Agenda-setting
Which of the following statements about socioeconomic status and political participation is accurate?
Americans of higher socioeconomic status participate more in politics, including voting.
(Q010) Congress is a __________ legislature with __________ members.
Bicameral; 535
When comparing the voting rates of Black and White Americans of similar socioeconomic status,
Black voters vote at somewhat higher rates than White voters.
(Q016) Which type of grant provides the most control to state and local governments in the distribution of federal grants-in-aid?
Block grants
(Q020) A president who enacts a veto over legislation proposed by Congress is using which of the following constitutional principles?
Checks and balances
(Q003) __________journalism is the type of journalism that includes news reporting and political commentary by ordinary citizens and even crisis coverage from eyewitnesses on the scene.
Citizen
(Q003) __________ primaries only allow registered members of a political party to vote to select that party's candidates, whereas __________ primaries allow all registered voters to choose which party's primary they will participate in.
Closed; open
(Q012) In which of the following ways does Congress exercise the power of oversight?
Committees or subcommittees of the Senate or the House conduct hearings and investigations.
(Q009) In 1997 the Supreme Court ruled that the __________ was an unconstitutional infringement of the right to freedom of speech as guaranteed by the First Amendment.
Communications Decency Act
(Q019) A power that is held by both the states and the national government (for example the power of taxation) best fits which of the following concepts?
Concurrent power
(Q003) A pocket veto occurs when
Congress adjourns during the 10-day period during which a president has the bill and the president has taken no action.
(Q003) Of the powers contained within the U.S. Constitution, which are most clearly articulated?
Expressed powers
(Q007) In keeping with the changes of the digital age, Presidents Obama and Trump have used which platforms for public communications?
Facebook and Twitter
(Q001) Some states have legalized certain drugs even though those same drugs are illegal according to national law. This contrast occurs because the United States has which type of government?
Federal
(Q015) If you supported ratification of the Constitution and preferred a stronger national government than the Articles of Confederation provided, you would most likely belong to which group?
Federalist
(Q002) In the debate between Federalists and Antifederalists over limited government,
Federalists favored a national government with broad powers.
(Q018) Which of the following statements about the use of the internet for obtaining news and political information is accurate?
Formats for obtaining news on the internet are becoming more diverse and interactive.
What was the main cause for reducing the legal voting age to 18?
Government officials hoped it would lead to a decline in disruptive student protests against the Vietnam War.
(Q008) If your city or town's government had certain powers delegated to it by your state government in order for it to manage some of its own affairs, your local government would have been granted
Home rule
(Q007) The necessary and proper clause (Article I, Section 8) of the U.S. Constitution is the source of which of the following powers?
Implied powers
(Q013) Who are "hidden partisans" ?
Independents who lean toward one of the major parties
(Q016) Citizens and the media today often frown on congressional deliberations and government's slow pace. What might the Founders argue about the slow pace of government?
It may be a benefit because it compels government to take many interests and viewpoints into account when making policies.
(Q005) In what way does the comity clause promote national unity?
It prevents states from discriminating against someone from another state or giving special privileges to their own residents.
(Q019) The focus of the Declaration of Independence on "life liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" was most inspired by which political philosopher?
John Locke
(Q001) __________ is the judicial philosophy that argues the Court should go beyond the words of the Constitution or a statue to consider the broader societal implications of its decisions.
Judicial activism
More than three-fourths of daily print newspapers are owned by...
Large media conglomerates
The Latino voter is often referred to as "the sleeping giant" because
Latinos and Latinas vote at low rates relative to the group's size in the population.
(Q007) The __________ became the first bill that President Obama signed into law, giving workers expanded rights to sue when an employee learns of discriminatory treatment well after it has started.
Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act
(Q010) The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the right of the national government to create a national bank and reaffirmed the notion of national supremacy in which landmark case?
McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)
(Q002) Since 2008, how have the ideological groups changed?
More people have become liberal
Which statement about White Americans' participation in the 2016 presidential election is accurate?
Most White Americans supported Republican candidates.
(Q010) The __________ is composed of designated Cabinet officials and others spanning the military, diplomatic, and intelligence areas who meet regularly with the president to give advice on national security matters.
National Security Council (NSC)
(Q015) Which of the following is the most important and largest agency of the Executive Office of the President (EOP)?
Office of Management and Budget
(Q017) Why is post-New Deal federalism sometimes referred to as "marble cake" or cooperative federalism?
Post-New Deal federalism created a system in which national grants encouraged states to implement national policies, somewhat blurring the lines between national and state governments.
(Q001) A recent example of the use of executive orders by President Trump was seen in which of the following scenarios?
President Trump issuing an executive order seeking to prevent travelers from several majority-Muslim countries from entering the United States
Which of the following statements about presidential declarations of national emergency is not accurate ?
Presidents can only declare a state of national emergency in response to foreign threats after receiving the approval of Congress
(Q025) Which two entities have responsibility for overseeing the appointment and approval of federal judges?
Senate and President
(Q003) Which of the following most demonstrated the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation, leading to the Constitutional Convention?
Shay's Rebellion
(Q016) The leader of the majority party in the House of Representatives is the
Speaker of the House.
(Q012) What is the defining characteristic of dual federalism?
State governments have more powers granted to them than the local or federal governments.
(Q024) Generally speaking, if a state or local law contradicts federal law, it is more likely to be ruled unconstitutional if challenged in courts because of the __________ clause.
Supremacy
(Q022) If you were living in colonial America, what issue more than any other would most likely motivate you to rebel against Great Britain?
Taxes
(Q013) States are granted the right to powers not given to the national government by the Constitution through which of the following?
Tenth Amendment
(Q014) Which of the following structural aspects was established for the legislature by the Constitution?
The Senate was given the power to approve presidential appointments
(Q002) Which of the following best describes what happens during an electoral realignment?
The coalitions of voters that support the parties change significantly.
(Q014) Which of the following is established by the Fifth Amendment?
The courts cannot hold trials for serious offenses without provision for a grand jury.
(Q008) The Bill of Rights consists of
The first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution
(Q004) Which statement characterizes the trend in the number of conservatives from 1992-2016?
The number of conservatives was about the same in 1992 as it was in 2016
(Q015) The issue with the following poll question, "Do you think it was appropriate for President Bush to lie so that he could start a war with Iraq?" involve which of the following?
The poll question is an example of push polling.
(Q024) Which of the following best describes recent trends in the use of the congressional oversight power?
The power has been used as a tool of partisan politics.
(Q016) Which of the following is true of the president's domestic military powers?
The president may deploy troops in a state or city without a specific request from the state legislature or governor if the president deems it necessary to maintain an essential national service during an emergency.
(Q014) What is one of the reasons why many news sources today tend to be more partisan than they used to be?
There are so many news sources that not many can aim for a broad-based national audience.
(Q023) Which of the following statements is true about the Three-Fifths Compromise?
Under this compromise, five slaves would count as three free persons in apportioning seats in the House of Representatives
(Q007) Members of the __________ tend to be very close personal and political associates of the president.
White House staff
(Q012) One of the most famous news leaks of the twenty-first century was the release of confidential government documents on the Iraq War; it was first revealed by which online source?
WikiLeaks
Which of the following statements about age and political participation is true?
Young people are far less likely to participate in politics than older people.
(Q020) Jurisdiction refers to
a court's area of authority.
(Q011) What is an unfunded mandate?
a federal law that requires the states to do certain things but does not provide state governments with the funding to implement these policies
(Q008) In order to win the presidency, a candidate must receive __________ of electoral college votes.
a majority (270)
(Q006) In criminal matters most cases are settled before trial through negotiated agreements between the parties. This is known as
a plea bargain.
(Q019) To override a presidential veto, which of the following is required?
a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate
(Q020) Cooperative federalism is best defined as
a type of federalism existing since the New Deal era in which grants-in-aid have been used strategically to encourage states and localities to pursue nationally defined goals.
(Q004) If the Supreme Court grants a case a writ of certiorari, it has
accepted and will hear the case.
The Jim Crow era refers to the period
after Reconstruction and before the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act.
(Q017) Individuals or groups who are not parties to a lawsuit but who seek to influence the Supreme Court's decision can submit which of the following briefs?
amicus curiae
(Q009) Taken together, the three tactics of enhancing the reach and power of the Executive Office of the President (EOP), increasing White House control over the federal bureaucracy, and expanding the role of executive orders are known as
an administrative strategy.
(Q016) A loose network of like-minded politicians, consultants, activists, and interest groups drawn together by a public policy issue is referred to as ?
an issue network.
(Q005) The Bill of Rights mollified concerns about
an overly powerful central government
(Q021) The doctrine of stare decisis would be used to
apply the ruling from a precedent to a current case.
(Q006) The process of allocating congressional seats among the 50 states is called
apportionment
(Q017) The Republican Party was originally formed
as a coalition of antislavery forces.
(Q011) In general, the chief justice of the Supreme Court
assigns opinions when voting with the majority.
Digital forms of participation that require little effort and may not actually translate into offline acts of political engagement are often referred to as
clicktivism
(Q017) The rule that allows a three-fifths majority of the Senate to set a time limit on debate on a given bill is called
cloture
(Q021) In a federal system, power is distributed
between the state and national governments.
(Q011) Political action committees (PACs) are organizations established
by corporations, labor unions, or interest groups to channel the contributions of their members into political campaigns.
(Q025) Individual rights and personal freedoms with which governments may not interfere and freedoms from government are known as
civil liberties
(Q006) Funding from politically active nonprofits whose donors and amounts contributed do not have to be made public is best known as
dark money.
(Q004) Segregation or discriminatory practices that occur even when there is no explicit legal enforcement, such as school segregation in much of the United States today, is called __________ segregation.
de facto
(Q002) An act of Congress bestowing a specific power to the president or executive bureaucracy to carry out on behalf of Congress is an example of __________ powers.
delegated
(Q007) The executive leader or presiding officer specified by the Articles of Confederation
did not exist; the Articles specified no executive leader.
(Q008) Which of the following best describes a daily high-speed internet user who goes online for daily activities?
digital citizen
Activities designed to influence politics using the internet are best described as
digital political participation.
What is the most important factor in predicting whether an individual votes?
education level
(Q001) Congress's ability to pass laws necessary to carry out its expressed powers is known as the __________ clause.
elastic
(Q001) A key difference between political parties and interest groups is that although both are organized groups that seek to influence the government, unlike interest groups, political parties seek to influence government by
electing its members to office
(Q013) Traditionally, it was held that political attitudes were based in rational factors; recently, however, which of the following has demonstrated significant influence in determining one's political attitudes?
emotional responses
(Q020) Which of the following is not a core U.S. value?
equality of outcome
(Q017) When using a simple random sample,
every individual in a population has an equal probability of being selected as a respondent.
(Q011) The most dramatic restraint imposed on police by the Bill of Rights, which can free people who are known to have committed the crime of which they have been accused, is the
exclusionary rule
(Q008) Presidents have a vast array of informal powers, for instance, using popular appeals to create a mass base of support that allow them to dominate their political foes, a tactic called
going public.
(Q002) A unitary system is a
government in which the national government holds most authority.
(Q001) Civil rights are
government protections of citizen equality.
(Q020) Which body determines whether sufficient evidence is available to justify a trial and is provided by the Fifth Amendment?
grand jury
(Q013) Sometimes referred to as "the Great Writ," __________ is guaranteed by the Constitution and can be suspended only in cases of rebellion or invasion.
habeas corpus
(Q023) The use of the filibuster and cloture in the U.S. Senate
has increased to record highs.
(Q004) As the leading actor in U.S. foreign policy, the president is known as
head of state.
(Q017) Which of the following was the biggest reason why Mike Pence was chosen to be the vice presidential nominee on the Republican ticket under Donald Trump in 2016?
his Christian values, which made him well respected by social conservatives
(Q006) The core component of the Virginia Plan was that
it provided for a system of representation in the national legislature based on the population of each state, the proportion of each state's revenue contribution to the national government, or both.
(Q003) The presidential powers to grant reprieves, pardons, and amnesty are examples of the __________ powers of the executive.
judicial
(Q009) Marbury v. Madison (1803) established which power that was not expressly written in the Constitution?
judicial review
(Q008) Marbury v. Madison is most famous for establishing
judicial review.
(Q005) A __________ is the disclosure of confidential information by a government official to the news media.
leak
(Q014) The implied power a president possesses to bring an agenda before Congress is called
legislative initiative.
(Q013) A written statement made in reckless disregard of the truth that is considered damaging to a victim because it is malicious, scandalous, and defamatory is known as
libel
(Q005) Political and social reform, government intervention in the economy, expansion of government social services and health care, and greater concern for the environment are views that are generally identified as belonging to which political ideology?
liberal
(Q003) People who argue that government interferes with freedom of expression, free markets, and society, and thus should be limited to as few spheres of activity as possible, are best classified as
libertarians
(Q008) An agreement between two or more members of Congress who may have nothing in common except the need for support is best described as
logrolling
(Q004) The Articles of Confederation ... - promoted a strong executive government. - created a strong central government. - maintained state independence, freedom, and sovereignty. - created a nationwide judiciary.
maintained state independence, freedom, and sovereignty.
(Q013) Real day-to-day power in the Senate is in the hands of the
majority and minority leaders.
(Q019) The term __________ refers to the number of parties competing for power, the organization of the parties, the dominant form of campaigning, the main division between the parties, the balance of power between and within party coalitions, social and institutional bases, and the issues and policies around which party competition is organized.
party system
(Q011) The set of underlying orientations, ideas, and beliefs through which individuals come to understand and interpret politics is called
political ideology.
(Q010) The processes through which underlying political beliefs and values are formed are collectively called
political socialization
(Q008) The bandwagon effect occurs when
polling results themselves influence people to support the probable victor.
(Q021) Which type of legislation specifies a project to be funded within a particular district to help a legislator with re-election, even though that project is likely not essential?
pork-barrel
(Q012) Which of the following are expressed powers in the Constitution?
powers that are granted in the Constitution to Congress and to the president
(Q011) The vice presidency formally exists for two purposes only: to succeed the president in case of death, resignation, or incapacity, and to
preside over the Senate, casting a tie-breaking vote when necessary.
(Q005) In order to negate congressional actions to which they object or disagree, presidents have in recent years made more frequent and calculated uses of
presidential signing statements.
An election held to select the party's candidate for the general election is called a
primary election.
(Q010) Which type of media influence involves calling attention to some details of an issue or news story while ignoring others?
priming
(Q015) What media in the United States are essentially free from government interference?
print media
(Q005) A type of patronage that proposes some kind of relief, special privilege, or exemption to the specific person named in the bill is called a
private bill.
(Q022) Which of the following places restraints on how the government is supposed to act?
procedural liberties
(Q010) In a __________ electoral system, political parties are awarded legislative seats based on their share of the total vote cast in the election.
proportional representation
A crowd is peaceably assembled in front of a courthouse to confront the government about police brutality. What is this form of participation called?
protest
(Q009) The Civil Rights Act of 1964 addressed discrimination in, among other areas,
public accommodations and employment.
(Q012) The term used to denote the attitudes that people have about political issues, events, institutions, and personalities is
public opinion
(Q021) Which of the following is an example of direct democracy in practice in the United States today?
referendum
(Q006) The full faith and credit clause
requires that each state's public actions and judicial proceedings be honored by the other states.
(Q019) The regulation by the Federal Communications Commission that gives individuals the right to respond to personal attacks made on a radio or television broadcast is known as the
right of rebuttal.
(Q007) In 2010 the U.S. Supreme Court, in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission,
ruled that the government cannot restrict independent expenditures by corporations or unions to political campaigns.
(Q015) In 2015, this type of committee held hearings to investigate Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server during her tenure as secretary of state.
select
(Q013) The tendency to focus news coverage on only one aspect of an event or issue, avoiding coverage of other aspects, is known as
selection bias
(Q019) A polling error that happens when a sample is not representative of a population being studied is known as
selection bias.
(Q002) In the years following state governments and courts legalizing same-sex marriage, fewer Americans stated their opposition to it. This is an example of government policy that
shapes public opinion.
(Q002) Because the Supreme Court has so much influence over American law and politics, virtually all presidents have made an effort to select justices who
share their political philosophies.
(Q009) If you were to mostly get your news by reading headlines on Twitter, it would be described as which form of consuming information?
skim and scan
(Q004) Which type of technology is web- and mobile-based and is used to turn communication into interactive dialogue between organizations, communities, and individuals.
social media
(Q006) Almost 80 percent of people under the age of 50 get their news from which of the following?
social media
(Q014) The Constitution gives the power of advice and consent
solely to the Senate.
(Q016) The top government lawyer in all cases before the Supreme Court where the government is a party is the
solicitor general.
(Q006) Speech that is accompanied by conduct and that can be regulated by the government to preserve public order is called
speech plus
In the American federal system, the responsibility for running elections rests largely with
state and local governments
(Q022) Most of the rules and regulations Americans face in their daily lives, especially domestic concerns such as enforcing criminal codes, administering health and safety rules, and regulating the family via marriage and divorce laws, are set by
state and local governments.
(Q017) The Miranda rule
states that people who are under arrest must be informed prior to police interrogation of their rights to remain silent and to have the benefit of legal counsel
(Q018) The doctrine of __________ scrutiny places a heavy burden of proof on the government if it seeks to regulate or restrict speech.
strict
The right to vote is also called
suffrage
(Q009) The idea that the Supreme Court may review the constitutionality of state laws, because the national law is the highest law in the land, comes from the __________ clause.
supremacy
(Q023) If members of a state legislature want to establish new powers that are not expressed in the U.S. Constitution, what allows them to so do?
the Tenth Amendment
(Q019) Appellate jurisdiction is
the authority to hear appeals from a lower court's decision
(Q012) The congressional election system in the United States is called "first past the post" because ?
the candidate with the most votes wins even if she/he did not win a majority of the total.
(Q019) Unlike in the House, Senators have used the right to talk without interruption for as long as they want to prevent action on legislation they oppose, which is known as
the filibuster.
(Q014) In 2017, 33 percent of women approved of the job Donald Trump was doing as president, and 46 percent of men approved. This is an example of
the gender gap
The distinctive pattern of voting behavior reflecting the differences in views between women and men is known as
the gender gap
(Q018) The Cabinet is made up of
the heads of major federal government departments.
(Q018) The Speaker of the House is actually selected by
the party that holds the majority of seats in the House.
(Q009) The Tenth Amendment states that
the powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.
(Q013) What is a signing statement?
the president signing legislation while also noting how the new law will be interpreted; the president may also express concerns over particular provisions
(Q014) The "strict constructionists" on the Supreme Court are generally committed to
the principle of judicial restraint.
(Q004) General revenue-sharing grants are a central component of the process of devolution, which is a policy
to remove a program from one level of government by delegating it or passing it down to a lower form of government.
(Q004) A presidential veto can be overridden by a
two-thirds vote in both houses of Congress
(Q001) The basic principles that shape a person's opinions about political issues and events are known as
values
(Q016) Republicans and Democrats disagree over this type of voter law; Republicans say it protects the sanctity of the ballot, while Democrats fear it suppresses turnout.
voter ID laws
________is the single-most important political act for most Americans.
voting
(Q010) Under the Great Compromise, the Senate
was an arena wherein large and small states would compete on equal footing.
(Q007) Among other things, the House Rules Committee determines
what opportunity there is for amendments to be proposed to a bill on the floor.
(Q002) A party __________ is elected for each party in each chamber and is responsible for coordinating the party's legislative strategy, building support for key issues, and counting votes.
whip
(Q009) Conference committees serve to
work out a compromise on House and Senate versions of a piece of legislation.