POLS M01 EXAM 1

Approximately how many civilian federal employees does the president oversee as chief executive?

3 million

When Congress was first established, the Constitution apportioned one representative for every ______ residents.

30,000

How many members were there in the first U.S. House of Representatives?

65

Each member of the U.S. House of Representatives now represents approximately how many people?

700,000 people

Conservatism

A political philosophy that tends to support traditional values and advocates change only in moderation

Democracy

A system of government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections.

One of Machiavelli's motivations for writing The Prince was to offer needed advice on power and leadership in order to bring about Italian unification of the five Italian city-states. Which was NOT one of the five Italian city-states?

Alexandria

Machiavelli's theory is considered:

Amoral, because he advocates removing morality from political equations altogether

Which of the following statements about 18-24 year old voting turnout rates in the 2008 presidential election is true?

As a percentage, young African Americans turned out in higher numbers than Caucasians.

According to Machiavelli, why should a prince seek to be feared, but not hated?

Because hatred puts people in an emotional state and it makes it harder for the prince to control them as they are no longer motivated by self-interest

Machiavelli is considered to be an amoral theorist. Why is he characterized this way?

Because he believes morality should be removed from all political decisions

_______________ refer to some of the ways people are categorized (e.g., 18-24 year olds, Catholic, people of color, and so on).

Demographics

The 15th executive department was created after the 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States. It is the...

Department of Homeland Security

These three executive departments were initially responsible for all federal business.

Departments of Treasury, State, and War

Which is NOT one of the fundamental principles of the U.S. Constitution in helping to ensure that the government did not tyrannize over individuals and states?

Direct Democracy

The most dramatic predictor of whether a young person is likely to vote is _______.

Educational attainment

Political theorists who are less interested in the way politics "ought" to be and more interested in studying politics as it is actually practiced follow this approach.

Empirical theory

This social and political movement primarily seeks to prevent the further deterioration of our natural resources.

Environmentalism

Which Federalist Paper addressed the size of the House of Representatives by explaining it would not be an elitist body because the size of the House of Representatives would grow alongside the size of the U.S. population?

Federalist Paper No. 55

Which of the American Federalist papers highlighted the ill treatment of citizens in ancient Sparta while making the case for individual rights?

Federalist Paper No. 6

Alexander Hamilton asserted that presidential pardons can be useful in "seasons of insurrections or rebellions" in this Federalist Paper.

Federalist Paper No. 74

Machiavelli asserted that The Prince can best lead by applying the finest traits associated with these two members of the animal kingdom.

Fox and lion

Which term is used to describe a lack of progress on enacting legislation typically caused by partisan and/or institutional infighting?

Gridlock

What is the only country that has larger legislative districts than the U.S. House of Representatives in their lower legislative chamber?

India

Which political era (1824-1854) was marked with the expansion of democratic rights and started the trend away from political appointments and toward the use of elections to select public officials?

Jacksonian democracy

Which delegate to the American Constitutional Convention had the greatest impact on the design of the individual executive?

James Wilson of Pennsylvania

______________ are considered social contract thinkers.

John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, and Jean Jacques Rousseau

Which of the following best describes Machiavelli's economy of violence theory?

Leaders should only use violence when necessary because violence wrongfully implemented could diminish the prince's power.

This Florentine statesman ruled Florence during the Italian Renaissance. Machiavelli sought to curry favor with his family when writing The Prince.

Lorenzo De'Medici

Which of the following forms of happiness did Socrates consider an inferior form?

Materialism

Which Italian political theorist argued in The Prince that power is the key unit of analysis in politics?

Niccolo Machiavelli

What type of theory examines the way politics "should" be rather than focusing on the way politics "is"?

Normative theory

This modern country's leader named Kim Jong Un is regarded by some as a ruthless leader because reports indicate that he keeps approximately 200,000 political prisoners in gulags where they are forced to work 12-15 hours per day and because many of these prisoners ultimately die of malnutrition.

North Korea

What is the name of the term used to describe the ancient Greek city-state where inhabitants shared common cultural, political, economic and religious customs?

Polis

What is the process by which citizens develop the values, attitudes, beliefs, and opinions that enable them to support the political system?

Political socialization

The ancient political theory of Plato and Aristotle often focused on an understanding of justice to help explain politics, whereas the modern political theory of Machiavelli and Hobbes focuses on the concept of ______.

Power

Charles Beard's famous works portrays the Founding Fathers as interested in something other than an enlightened political system when drafting the Constitution. According to Beard, what were the Founding Fathers primarily motivated by at the Constitutional Convention?

Promoting their own economic wealth and maintaining private property rights

What Greek philosopher asserted that, "Man is the measure of all things, of the reality of those which are, and the reality of those which are not"?

Protagoras

__________________ are surveys taken that provide a useful way of showing how different groups view certain political issues.

Public opinion polls

What Greek philosopher argued that the key to unlocking all of the mysteries of the universe could be found in mathematical formulas?

Pythagoras

This system of government describes a government where power resides in a body of citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by elected officers responsible for making decisions on behalf of the populace.

Representative democracy

Of what event did Thomas Jefferson say, "A little rebellion now and then is a good thing. It is a medicine necessary for the sound health of government."

Shays's Rebellion

Who was the Greek philosopher sentenced to death by the Greek Senate for corrupting the youth and impiety?

Socrates

This teaching method used in law schools fosters critical thinking by probing the minds of students with questions rather than providing them with answers.

Socratic teaching method

Which group of philosophers viewed "justice" or "truth" as social conventions?

Sophists

What widely accepted view was Socrates attempting to debunk?

That might makes right

This interstate convention was called in 1786 to discuss commerce issues. It proved to be a failure because only 5 of the 13 states sent delegates.

The Annapolis Convention

Which of the following documents cited the "repeated injuries and usurpations" of King George III as a reason to found a new nation?

The Declaration of Independence

The American Founders risked their lives by rising up against British rule and signing the Declaration of Independence. Which was NOT one of the British Acts that helped inspire the Framers to declare independence from Britain?

The Judiciary Act

What law capped the number of representatives in the U.S. House at 435?

The Permanent Apportionment Act of 1929

The system of government associated with the Articles of Confederation was widely criticized for being extraordinarily weak. Which of the following was NOT a criticism of the Articles of Confederation?

The government did not give enough power to the states.

Political Socialization

The process by which one's attitudes and values are shaped

Liberalism

The school of thought that is centered on the creation of international institutions designed to enhance the natural tendencies of cooperation found in human nature.

Shays's Rebellion in 1786 was significant in part because it caused a nudge away from the Articles of Confederation and helped to inspire the Constitutional Convention. Why were the Massachusetts residents revolting?

To prevent the state from seizing their farms

Edmund Burke's belief that government should not attempt to change society, but that government should merely reflect changes that have already taken place in society helped shape this theoretical movement.

Traditional conservatism

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that it is unconstitutional for a state to unilaterally place term limits on Members of Congress. What was the name of the 1995 Supreme Court case that made this ruling?

U.S. Term Limits v. Thornton

Which of the following statements about youth voting behavior is true?

Young women vote in higher percentages than young men.

Constitution

a body of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is acknowledged to be governed.

Neo-conservatism (neocons)

a conservative who advocates the assertive promotion of democracy and U.S. national interest in international affairs including through military means

Presidential systems are characterized by

an executive branch that is independent from the legislature.

What alternative to an individual executive did the framers of the American Constitution consider and reject because of the need to act and react quickly in the arena of foreign affairs?

an executive council

Libertarianism

an extreme laissez-faire political philosophy advocating only minimal state intervention in the lives of citizens.

Social Contract

an implicit agreement among the members of a society to cooperate for social benefits, for example by sacrificing some individual freedom for state protection.

How were U.S. Senators originally selected?

appointment by the state's legislature

Which of the following was NOT a qualification for voting when the Constitutional Convention convened in 1787?

being 18 years of age or above

An economic system in which the means of production, such as land and factories, are privately owned and operated for profit is referred to as

capitalism

A political philosophy that tends to support traditional values and advocates change only in moderation is referred to as

conservatism

The roots of all Western political thought are found in which of the following philosophical camps: a. theory of becoming b. theory of being c. theory of forms d. a and b e. b and c

d. a and b

Even though the president is Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces, only Congress can ____________

declare war.

According to Steiner and Crepaz, which of the following is an advantage to having an independent executive (president): a. legislative terms are fixed b. the executive is popularly elected c. presidential government is limited d. a system of separation of powers e. All of the above

e. All of the above

Machiavelli asserts that power can be exercised in which of the following ways?: a. Use of force b. Making threats c. Providing gifts d. Manipulation of subjects e. All of the above

e. All of the above

Machiavelli proposes that the prince who possesses the strength of a lion and the cunning of a fox will be able to control the people through the use of: a. Force b. Gifts c. Threats d. a and c e. All of the above

e. All of the above

The term democracy is not used in the American Constitution, in order to sidestep objections to direct democracy. Why does Plato argue that democracies are inferior systems of government?: a. They are founded on the premise that all opinions are equally valid b. Most citizens lack the necessary training in the virtues of justice c. Most citizens will put their selfish desires over the interests of the nation d. Communities typically include more ordinary than enlightened thinkers e. All of the above

e. All of the above

We feel the impact of Ancient Greece in our lives today through: a. doctors' taking the Hippocratic Oath b. students' continued study of geometry c. Western democratic governments d. the Olympic games e. All of the above

e. All of the above

Which of the following leaders offers an example of Machiavelli's advice to use violence to enhance political power?: a. Cesar Borgia b. General Hannibal c. Saddam Hussein d. Kim Jong Un e. All of the above

e. All of the above

Which of the following was the reason for ratification of the Seventeenth Amendment (1913), which transformed the Senate from an elective to an appointive position? a. state legislatures' gridlock b. corrupting influences in state legislatures c. perception of senators as protective of party bosses and corporate elites d. changes in American political culture in the latter half of the nineteenth century e. All of the above

e. All of the above

Which branch of government is most associated with individuals that serve as the independently elected head of government or those who serve as the leader of their party and overall government in the national legislature?

executive

The theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes is referred to as

feminism

The Framers changed their mind about granting Congress the power to "make war" (instead granting Congress the power to "declare war") for what reason?

in order to enable the executive branch to defend the nation if attacked when Congress was not in session

What food or drink analogy did George Washington use when discussing unicameral versus bicameral legislatures with Thomas Jefferson, to describe the Senate?

it cools the coffee

James Madison's Federalist Paper No. 10 was chiefly concerned about

majority rule and minority rights

Gerrymandering

manipulate the boundaries of (an electoral constituency) so as to favor one party or class.

In _____________ systems the leader of the executive branch is elected by the people in a separate election.

presidential

The President is empowered to negotiate treaties with foreign nations. Treaties, however, do not become officially ratified until

ratified by the Senate with a two-thirds vote.

The most serious disagreement in the debate between large and small states at the Constitutional Convention was the issue of (resolved by the Connecticut Compromise)

representation in Congress

When Alexander Hamilton made a five-hour speech calling for a strong individual executive with imperial powers including a life term and an absolute veto, he may have been doing what?

shifting the debate away from weak presidential models

Ancient political thinkers like Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle believed that political power

should be applied as a means to the ends of social justice.

Greek philosophers who were doubtful that humans can ever truly come to understand our ultimate reality were called

skeptics

Federalist Paper #54 makes an argument for the three-fifths compromise that:

slaves should be viewed by the Constitution as both persons and property

Political theorists who study human nature, problems that naturally arise in nature, and then recommend a political system to best address these problems are referred to as

social contract theorists.

Which of the following was created in part to establish a social contract between the American government and the people?

the House of Representatives

One of the compromises at the Constitutional Convention addressed whether slaves should be counted as part of the population when determining the number of representatives per state. This is referred to as

the Three-Fifths Compromise.

Which of the following is NOT a target of protest by the contemporary Tea Party?

the Townshend Acts

Political power can be broadly defined as

the ability to get others to do what they would not do on their own.

Government

the governing body of a nation, state, or community.

Which of the following is NOT a power granted to Congress by the U.S. Constitution?

the power to make treaties

Which of the following is NOT a potential concern about a presidential system, particularly in a newly emerging democracy?

the president may too easily be impeached

A Member of the House of Representatives serves ___ years in each term, whereas a Senator serves ___ years.

two; six

What mechanism is periodically used in parliamentary systems to remove a prime minister and call for new elections?

vote of no confidence

Harold Lasswell has defined politics as

who gets what, when, and how.