US Chapter 2

The First Continental Congress was

A group of colonial delegates assembled in 1774 that called for a total boycott of all British goods

The delegates that attended state conventions for ratification of the Constitution were chosen through elections in which

All White male inhabitants of the state were allowed to vote

A ________ is a system of government in which member states retain almost all of their sovereign authority and delegate limited powers to a weak central body.

Confederation

The Federalists believed that the powers of government could be limited by

Creating an internal system of checks and controls within government

What is the significance of the Bill of Rights?

It ensured certain rights and liberties to the people

Which of the following was the most widely shared principle among the Founders in 1787?

Power must be used to balance power

Which of the following statements best summarizes the Federalists' view on representation?

Representatives need not be a "true picture of the people," and the best system of representation allows citizens to elect individuals possessing ability, experience, and talent superior to their own

Which of the following possesses the sole power to create revenue bills?

The House of Representatives

Which entity is placed in charge of determining whether a state discriminated against goods or people from another state?

The Supreme Court

The Declaration of Independence was a remarkable philosophical statement for its time because it asserted that

There were "unalienable rights" that could not be abridged by governments

Under the Constitution, state governments are prohibited from:

coining money or entering into treaties with other nations

Scholars disagree on the motives of the Founders in writing the U.S. Constitution as they did, but a prominent argument about their primary goal is that they wanted to devise a system

consistent with the dominant philosophical and moral principles of the day, while also promoting commerce and protecting private property from radical state legislatures

The size of the Supreme Court is

determined by congress; 9 justices

Which of the following statements about the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution is incorrect?

greater centralization of power

The decision to give the national government control over interstate commerce and finance

promote economic development and protect property from radical state legislatures

Under the Articles of Confederation, it was left to the ________ to execute laws passed by the Continental Congress.

states

During the ratification debates, the Federalists were those who

supported the Constitution because it contained a strong national government

Judicial review is the power of

the courts to decide on the constitutionality of actions taken by the other branches of government

The separation of powers best describes

the division of governmental power among several institutions that must cooperate in decision making

What was Madison referring to when he wrote that "a double security arises to the rights of the people"?

the fact that the Constitution protects the rights of the people through federalism and the separation of powers

The decision to assign jurisdiction over controversies between citizens of different states to the Supreme Court was significant because it meant that

the federal judiciary, rather than the state courts, would ultimately become the primary venue for resolving disputes

The weakness of the national government under the Articles of Confederation became concerning

"radical" forces representing small farmers artisans, and shopkeeprs began to exert control over a number of state governments

How many amendments to the Constitution have been formally proposed in Congress in U.S. history?

11,000+

The system of shared powers, divided between a central government and the state governments, is called

Federalism

Compared with the Articles of Confederation, federalism under the Constitution has led to

Greater centralization of power

Annapolis Convention (1786)

Held to discuss the barriers that limited trade or commerce between the largely independent states under the Articles of Confederation. *Historical Significance:* Led to the Constitutional (Philadelphia) Convention in 1787. Less than half of the states attended.

Which of the following statements best summarizes John Locke's philosophical arguments in his treatises on government?

Individuals create government to protect their lives, liberties, and possessions, and if a government fails in its duties, the citizenry has the right to alter or abolish it

The Articles of Confederation were concerned primarily with

Limiting the powers of the central government

Why did the British government tell John Adams that they would not negotiate treaties related to Revolutionary War disputes with the national government?

The British claimed that only the United Nations, not the national government, could negotiate treaties between countries at war

Which of the following statements best describes British rule of the American colonies during

The British ruled with a light hand and exerted a strong influence only in the largest colonial cities

What does the supremacy clause assert?

The Constitution and all laws made under it are superior to any state laws

Which of the following statements about the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution is incorrect?

There was a unicameral legislature under the Articles of Confederation but there is a bicameral legislature under the Constitution

Which of the following statements about national defense under the Articles of Confederation is most accurate?

There was no national army and the armed forces were composed entirely of state militia

Why did the Virginia Plan call for ratification of the Constitution by the people rather than by the states?

This form of ratification was intended to make it clear that the new government would be a national government and not a compact between the states

The Great Compromise

agreement providing a dual system of congressional representation; each state was given an equal number of Senators but linking representation in the House of Representatives to population

The Land Ordinance of 1785 was significant because it

established the principles of land surveying and landownership that governed America's westward expansion

States like Delaware, Connecticut, and New York opposed the Virginia Plan because they

feared that large states would dominate the new government if representation were to be determined by population, as stipulated by the Virginia Plan

Shays's Rebellion was an attempt to

force the British government to rescind the Tea Act.

What is the term length of a federal judge?

life unless impeached

The Articles of Confederation were concerned primarily with

limiting the powers of the central government

Articles of Confederation could be amended...

only with a unanimous vote of the Congress

The Federalists believed that the most apparent source of tyranny was the

popular majority

Federal judges are appointed by the ________ and must be approved by the ________.

president; Senate

The framers employed the separation of powers and federalism in order to

prevent the new government from abusing its power

The Constitution expressly grants Congress the power to

regulate interstate commerce

On the subject of representation, Antifederalists wanted

representative bodies that resembled those represented to the highest degree

The delegates at the Philadelphia convention turned down the idea of including a list of citizens' rights in the Constitution because they believed that

since the federal government was already limited to its expressed powers, further protection of citizens was not needed.