GOVT 2305 TEST #2 SB

In order to become a member of the Senate, a person must be at least...years of age and have been a citizen for at least years.

30, 9

How many votes does it take to remove the president from office? a) two-thirds of the Senate b) two-thirds of the House c)one-half of the House d) one-half of the Senate

A

T or F: Americans in the lowest 20% of income earners have the highest levels of participation in the U.S.

F

The Speaker of the House has the right to do which of the following? (Choose every correct answer.) a) speak first during House debate on legislation. b) select the chair person of the House Rules Committee. c) choose who may speak on the House floor. d) force members of the party to vote for or against the bill.

A B C

Among presidents remembered for rising to challenges (benefiting from circumstance) while in office are ______. a) Lyndon Johnson b) Ronald Reagan c) Bill Clinton d) Franklin Roosevelt

A B D

The killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis in 2020 led to... a) a decrease in the influence of the BLM movement. b) the largest protests yet of police violence against Black Americans. c) limited, small-scale protests in Minneapolis and other midwest cities. d) a national moratorium on public protests because of the pandemic.

B

Which of the following are true concerning women and minorities who run for congressional office? (choose every correct answer.) a) women and minorities account for approximately half of the membership of Congress. b) women and minorities are more likely to run for congressional office than for local or state legislative positions. c) there are more women than there are minorities in Congress. d) women and minorities are less likely to run for Congress than white males.

C D

Who helps the Speaker set the party's legislative agenda in the House? a) the minority whip b) the president pro tempore c) the minority leader d) the majority leader

D

T or F: When the United States was founded, all white men were given the right to vote.

F

T or F: it is more common for House incumbents than Senate incumbents to face challengers in the form of prominent local politicians.

F

T or F: President Obama issued an executive order on immigration after Congress blocked a number of his legislative initiatives.

T

Both political parties in the House have a ______, who acts as a go-between with the leadership and the party members in the House.

Whip

Generally, protests...have not been popular in the U.S. a) in favor of voting rights b) against U.S. military action c) against segregation. d) for a cleaner environment.

B

Harvard's Robert Putnam refers to the sum of face-to-face civic interactions among citizens in a society as ______. a) virtual participation b) community goals c) social capital d) lobbying

C

Presidents are likely to be successful and powerful if ______. a) they have an outgoing personality b) they avoid military conflict with other countries c) they win a close election d) they face special circumstances that call for their leadership

D

The duties of each vice president are ______. a) determined by the particular president with whom he or she serves b) determined by an act of Congress just before inauguration c) explicitly described in the U.S. Constitution d) decided by the voters on Election Day

A

The power to formally accuse and place on trial the president as well as other high-ranking figures in the federal government for alleged crimes of treason, bribery, or high crimes and misdemeanors is known as ______. a) impeachment b) arraignment c) indictment d) remediation

A

To what does political scientist Hugh Heclo's term the illusion of presidential government refer? a) the public's belief that the president actually runs the entire government in the United States b) the fact that the Constitution does not mention the office of president. c) the belief that the president really has no power in the U.S. government. d) the fact that the president has no real role in making the laws.

A

Which of the following describe the irony of the presidency? a) presidents get to much blame when things go poorly. b) presidents get too much credit when things go right. c) presidents rarely are blamed for the nation's problems. d) presidents have considerably less power than the Congress or Supreme Court.

A B

Select all that apply Over 70 percent of Americans' political participation via community activities takes place in which of the following? a) civic organizations b) school-related groups c) partisan organizations d) church-related groups

A B D

Which of the following descriptions of the U.S. presidency are true? a) It operates in a system of divided powers. b) The formal powers of the presidency are modest. c) The president's powers are firmly set. d) The degree of leadership the president can exert largely depends on circumstances.

A B D

Which of the following statements about the vice president of the United States are true? a) The vice president holds a separate elective office from that of the president. b) The vice president is assigned different roles by the president. c) The vice president was originally an equal partner to the president. d) The vice president typically forms part of the presidential team.

A B D

Which of the following makes a challenger to a Senate incumbent more likely to be successful? a) having access to large sums of money to fund the campaign b) having not held elective office previously c) having an existing campaign organization d) having strong public recognition

A C D

Which of the following tactics were used to disenfranchise Blacks in the post-Civil War South despite the passage of the Fifteenth Amendment? a) literacy tests b) nighttime voting c) proof of citizenship requirements d) publicized lists of voters

A D

A limit of...exists for how long a Republican member can chair a particular committee. a) 4 years b) 6 years c) 2 years d) 2 terms

B

After Vietnam, Congress sought to limit the ability of presidents to commit the United States to war by passing the ______. a) Budget Impoundment and Control Act b) War Powers Act c) Troop Commitment Act d) Pentagon Papers Act

B

How much control does the president actually have in managing the national economy? a) The president and Supreme Court are equal partners in managing the national economy. b) The president has limited control over the national economy but can set some economic priorities. c) The president has absolutely no control over the national economy. d) The president has complete control over the national economy.

B

If the president chooses to veto a bill... a) Congress has to wait until the next session before it can take up the bill again b) Congress can override the veto by a two-thirds vote in each chamber c) Congress can override the veto by a simple majority vote in each chamber d) there is nothing Congress can do to bring the bill back to the table

B

Polls indicate that voters' opinions of Donald Trump's performance had what effect in the 2018 midterms? a) Those who were discontented with Trump helped Democrats retake control of the House. b) Those who supported Trump helped Republicans retake control of the House. c) Trump was not on the ballot in the 2018 midterms; voters' opinions of him were not a factor.

B

Positive aspects of party polarization include the fact that ______. a) lawmaker accountability has increased b) voters can more clearly see and understand party differences c) the president has tended to step away from involvement in the legislative process

B

Through the use of administrative powers, the president can... a) make judicial rulings on the U.S. Constitution. b) decide how laws will be implemented. c) refuse to implement a law passed by Congress. d) make laws for the country.

B

Which of the following correctly describes how committees and subcommittees serve to decentralize power in Congress? a) They serve party leadership goals at the expense of individual members' power needs. b) They allow more members to hold leadership positions. c) They dilute the power of the parties and increase bipartisan negotiations. d) They give the minority party's members the same power as the majority party's members.

B

Who is constitutionally required to see that the laws passed by Congress are faithfully executed? a) the Supreme Court b) the president c) Congress d) the Electoral College

B

Which of the following circumstances help to create a powerful president? a) a Congress that debates the president on legislative matters b) a major national problem c) a decisive election victory d) a changing set of presidential advisers

B C

Which two of the following executive orders exceeded the president's authority? a) President Franklin Roosevelt's order creating the Works Progress Administration to provide jobs to the unemployed during the Great Depression b) President Trump's initial order banning entry of foreign nationals from seven Muslim countries c) President Truman's order desegregating the United States armed forces d) President Obama's order granting temporary deportation relief to 4 million undocumented immigrants

B D

Why is participation in local organizations twice as high in the United States as it is in Europe? a) Americans enjoy arguing with one another about policy, whereas Europeans prefer to avoid such arguments. b) Americans have an incentive to participate because there is more local control over policy in the United States than in Europe. c) Americans care more about what is happening in their towns and communities than Europeans do. d) Americans are more likely to attend church and engage in church-related community work.

B D

Going into the 2018 election, the Democratic Party was able to field an unusually strong set of candidates because ______. a) the president's party did not control the White House. b) the party experienced a landslide of super PAC donations. c) polls showed that voters were trending toward the Democrats. d) polls showed that voters were trending toward the Republicans.

C

In Insecure Majorities, Frances Lee noted that, in the currently closely matched parties, members of Congress are engaged in "______" rather than "governing." a) dog fighting b) debating c) messaging d) rhetoric

C

In general, protest activity is...common in the United States than in many Western democracies. a) more b) equally c) less

C

Internet political participation peaks during which of the following? a) periods of economic prosperity b) the State of the Union address c) presidential elections d) international political strife

C

Partisan divisions have become more...as a result of party polarization. a) blurred b) amicable c) acute

C

Presidents encounter trouble when their executive orders... a) are challenged in the federal courts b) provide too many loopholes for business interests c) go beyond the limits of the law d) are too narrow in scope

C

Presidents might not succeed in achieving certain goals if Congress does not provide the necessary funding for them. This illustrates the government's ______. a) dependence on bureaucracy b) deficit spending c) separation of powers d) imbalance of power

C

The Black Lives Matter movement has sought, primarily, to highlight Blank______. a) the way in which Black voters are more affected by voter ID laws. b) the ways in which Black education is still inferior to white education. c) disparities in local officials' treatment of Black and white citizens. d) the continued poverty of female-headed Black households.

C

The president's executive power can be used to both ______ and ______ the use of federal funds for certain purposes. a) defend; promote b) prohibit; limit c) permit; prohibit d) permit; allow

C

The scenario in which the president belongs to one political party while the opposition party has majority control of at least one chamber of Congress is known as ______. a) a unicameral system b) divided attention c) divided government d) parliamentary government

C

Why are incumbents at risk when elections are being waged in the context of disruptive issues? a) Challengers are more likely to have experience dealing with the issues and are thus a better choice. b) The disruptive issues invariably have to do with a mistake by the incumbent. c) Voters are more likely to believe those in power should be removed from office. d) Disruptive issues mean without a doubt that incumbents are not doing their jobs.

C

Which of the following are duties of the Speaker of the House? a) Ending filibusters in the House b) Making minority party committee assignments c) Choosing leadership of the House Rules Committee d) Recognizing members who will be allowed to speak on the floor

C D

By which name does the text describe past presidencies? a) the imperial presidency b) the imperiled presidency c) the heroic presidency d) all these answers are correct.

D

Disagreement with Congress on Reconstruction policies led to the impeachment of ______ and almost led to his removal from office. a) Bill Clinton b) Warren G. Harding c) Richard Nixon d) Andrew Johnson

D

How has the importance of local issues changed in Congress as party polarization has taken hold? a) Local issues are more important. b) Local issues have been largely immune from the partisan divisions that party polarization has intensified. c) Local issues are less important.

D

In what area has virtual participation between a tangible asset for political campaigns? a) influencing the media b) reliability of polling c) voter registration d) small-donor fundraising

D

Presidents are most able to get Congress to pass policy initiatives when ______. a) their party controls neither house of Congress b) their party controls one house of Congress c) they belong to a third party d) their party controls both houses of Congress

D

The increase in party polarization in Congress has led to increased... a) cooperation between the parties. b) emphasis on oversight. c) emphasis on local issues. d) policy deadlock.

D

To date, what is the most successful of the recent political movements? a) #MeToo movement b) Occupy Wall Street movement c) Black Lives Matter movement d) Tea Party movement

D

Which of the following is true about the trends in congressional discord? a) On small and large issues alike, party ideology has increasingly separated Republicans from Democrats, but only if they come from different states. b) Party polarization has ended the nationalization of congressional politics. c) Constituency influences now have a powerful effect on Congress's members, whereas party ideology has lost importance. d) On small and large issues alike, party ideology has increasingly separated Republicans from Democrats, even those who come from the same state or region.

D

Which of the following statements correctly describes the relationship between income and political participation in the United States? a) Higher-income citizens are less active because they have little need for government assistance. Middle-income citizens are more active because they pay the majority of federal income taxes. Lower-income citizens are the most active politically because they have the most to gain from government programs. Higher-income citizens are the most active because they have the resources to participate effectively.

D

Which statement best describes the prevalent view of the public concerning protest activists in the United States? a) protest activity should be banned. b) protest activity should be universally admired. c) protest activity should be illegal. d) protest activity should be tolerated.

D

A key to understanding the power of the presidency is a recognition that presidential power ______. a) depends on the occupant of the office b) is not a central government office c) does not relate to greater political conditions d) is formally described at length in the Constitution

A

How do American participate virtually in politics? a) by using resources and joining discussions on social media. b) by gathering poll results on political campaigns. c) by handing out campaign literature on a street corner. d) by discussing politics in the office with coworkers.

A

If Congressional representatives find themselves having to choose between angering voters and donors of angering by refusing to go along with a vote, which will they likely choose? a) angering leadership by voting the way their donors and voters want them to. OR b) angering their donors and voters by voting the way leadership wants them to.

A

The president who redefined the role of the vice president was... a) Jimmy Carter b) George H. W. Bush c) Bill Clinton d) Ronald Reagan

A