WE THE PEOPLE InQuizitive Chpt 3

Which amendment to the Constitution is most frequently cited to bolster arguments in favor of states' rights?

10th amendment

During which period of time has the United States had a system of dual federalism?

1789-1937

Study the information presented in the Who Participates? infographic and answer the question that follows about turnout. By how many percentage points are Americans 65 and older more likely to vote than Americans ages 18 to 29?

30%

A strong federal government, and its influence over policy, offers some advantages that devolution and greater state control over more policies might not. Identify the potential advantages and disadvantages of having a strong national government with a strong influence over policy.

Advantage of strong federal government: The national interest sometimes overrides the local needs of the states. Competition between different state and local governments to attract businesses to their communities can undermine other policy goals. Disadvantage of federal government: State and local governments understand the needs of their citizens better than does the federal government. Federally administered programs are not always fully funded by the federal government.

Which of the following statements on the balance between state and federal power today are accurate?

Correct: Conservatives are willing to increase federal power, just as liberals are willing to expand state autonomy. The Supreme Court often must intervene to resolve balance-of-power issues between the states and the federal government. Incorrect: The federal government is now free to impose "all-or-nothing" conditions on the states. Fearing preemption, state and local governments tend to adopt a "wait and see" attitude before the federal government acts.

Which of the following statements about devolution are accurate?

Correct: Devolution is a policy to move enactment of a program from a higher level of government to a lower level of government. Devolution tends to be favored by political conservatives. Incorrect: Devolution is the process by which policy decisions in one political jurisdiction are influenced by choices made in others. Devolution is a redistributive program.

Study the information presented in the Who Participates? infographic and answer the question that follows about turnout. Which of the following statements about turnout in major American cities are accurate?

Correct: In none of these cities does a majority of the voting-age population turn out for municipal elections. Incorrect: Washington, D.C., has the highest turnout in municipal elections. The bigger the city, the higher the turnout.

In the early 1800s, during the era of dual federalism, which statements accurately describe the relationship between the powers of federal and state governments?

Correct: State and local governments made most of the laws that impacted daily life. Very little overlap existed between the powers of the federal and state governments. Incorrect: The federal government's policies were mostly aimed at coercing citizens' behavior. States were allowed to negotiate treaties with other nations to secure favorable trade conditions.

How does the Constitution promote the idea that the states are part of a larger nation and not independent entities?

Correct: The Constitution prohibits states from passing laws that favor their citizens over citizens of other states. The Constitution requires states to honor the public acts and judicial proceedings of each other. States need congressional approval to enter into agreements with one another.

How did the Great Depression influence the power of the federal government?

Correct: The federal government took a more active role than before in providing economic security for Americans. Federal grants-in-aid became a powerful tool to redirect state governments' policy. Incorrect: Congress reacted to a weak economy by limiting the power of the federal government, turning over responsibilities to combat the Great Depression to the states. President Roosevelt limited the power of the states based on the rationale that they were no longer politically stable.

Study the information presented in the Who Participates? infographic and answer the question that follows about turnout. Which of the following statements about turnout are accurate?

Correct: The older the American citizen, the more likely they are to vote. Americans are much more likely to vote than participate in politics in other ways. Incorrect: Younger Americans are more likely than older Americans to attend local government meetings. Within the last five years, most Americans have attended some sort of local government meeting.

Study the graph on federal grants-in-aid, and determine which of the following statements are accurate.

Federal grants-in-aid had their sharpest increase in the period 1990-2005. Federal grants-in-aid have doubled since about 1995.

Match each type of governmental system to its correct description.

Federal system: A central government shares power with lower levels of government. This system tends to occur in states with diverse ethnic or language groupings. Incorrect: A central government makes the most important decisions. Lower levels primarily implement central government decisions.

How is power distributed in the U.S. federal system?

Power is divided between the national and state governments.

Study the information presented in the Who Participates? infographic and answer the question that follows about turnout. Suppose you were a member of a San Antonio group that wanted to promote voter registration and increase turnout in local elections. Based on the data presented in this chart, which city would you most likely study first if boosting turnout was your biggest concern?

Seattle

One benefit of the federal structure is that by allowing the ---------------- national governments to do most of the governing, the Constitution saved the ---------------- governments from many policy decisions that might have proved too divisive for a large and young country.

State government national government

In the 1960s, state governments began to lose power relative to the federal government. What was the primary cause of this change?

The federal government did not trust states to implement new federal policies in areas such as civil rights and the War on Poverty.

Contrast the differences between block grants and categorical grants by matching each characteristic to the correct term.

block grants offer more flexibility offer more power to states federal funds to states for a general policy purpose Categorical grants: offer more power to the federal government federal funds to states for a specific purpose

In 1991, Minnesota was the first state to create charter schools. Since then, 44 states and Washington, D.C., have adopted or permit charter schools in their jurisdictions, partially as a result of Minnesota's decision to do so. This is an example of which concept?

diffusion

Order these eras of federalism by when they first started, from earliest to most recent.

dual, cooperative, new

Match each term to its correct definition.

powers, derived from the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution, that are not specifically delegated to the national government or denied to the states: Reserved powers specific powers granted by the Constitution to Congress and to the president: expressed powers authority possessed by both state and national governments: concurrent powers power reserved to the state government to regulate the health, safety, and morals of its citizens: police powers powers derived from the necessary and proper clause of the Constitution: implied powers

Match the type of power to the correct level of government.

state: reserved federal: expressed, implied federal and state: concurrent