APGOV - Congress

Which of the following statements accurately describes a legislator exhibiting the trustee model of representation?

A legislator casts his or her vote against the wishes of his or her constituency but to satisfy the national interest.

Which of the following statements accurately describes a legislator exhibiting the delegate model of representation?

A legislator sends his or her constituency a questionnaire about their views on important issues so as to guide his or her vote.

Shaw v. Reno (1993) has the most in common with which of the following Supreme Court cases?

Baker v. Carr

Which of the following is an accurate conclusion based on a comparison of the trends in the graph and your knowledge of Senatorial cloture?

Changing the cloture requirement to a majority for appointments has dramatically increased the likelihood of cloture votes.

Which of the following statements accurately describes a facet of the policy-making process in the U.S. House of Representatives?

Committee action in the House of Representatives is more influential than floor action in rendering a final decision on legislation.

Which of the following statements is an accurate description of Congress carrying out one of its enumerated powers as expressed in the U.S. Constitution?

Congress authorizes an increase of the federal gasoline tax.

Minnesota Democrats in the state legislature want to secure as many congressional seats of the eight seats available to them so that Democrats can take control in the US House of Representatives. With control of the state legislature and governorship and redistricting up for discussion, which of the following strategies would secure them the most seats in Congress?

Districts in Minnesota can be redrawn to put as many Republicans together as possible to give the remaining districts to Democrats.

Which of the following statements describes a positive outcome to the practice of logrolling?

Encouraging voters to monitor the voting behavior of their legislators.

Which of the following statements accurately describes why the policy-making process in the U.S. Senate is more deliberative than that of the House of Representatives?

Flexible floor debate rules allow the minority party ample opportunity to throw up impediments to legislation it opposes.

Meeting with leaders from every country, the President signed off on a treaty created to reduce carbon emissions throughout each country of the planet. The regulations created after this treaty would go on to restrict heavily the businesses of the United States on how much they are able to emit from factories, cars, and industry. The President, upon returning home, is faced with conservative backlash that hopes to stop the President by having what happen?

Having the Senate reject the ratification of the treaty.

In 1985, President Ronald Reagan signed into law the Graham-Rudman-Hollings Act that created a framework to systematically reduce the federal debt. Which of the following statements explains why it received bi-partisan support?

High federal budget deficits were believed to be unsustainable and a danger to the nation.

Which of the following best summarizes the debate reflected in Baker v. Carr (1962)?

Is the redistricting of state legislative districts a justiciable question?

Which of the following is an accurate statement regarding mandatory and discretionary spending by Congress?

Mandatory: Expenditures include interest payments on national debt. Discretionary: Expenditures are divided into two categories—defense and non-defense.

The concurring opinion in Baker v. Carr (1962) is most closely associated with which judicial principle?

One person, one vote

Which of the following statements accurately describes why the Senate has continued to respect the practice of Senate "holds"?

Placing limits on Senate "holds" may increase the likelihood of filibusters taking place.

Shaw v. Reno (1993) reflects what shift in American political beliefs?

Redistricting based on racial considerations should come under closer scrutiny.

Which of the following most clearly states the outcome of Shaw v. Reno (1993)?

Redistricting plans based on race must be held to a high standard of scrutiny under the Fourteenth Amendment and ensure compliance with the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Which of the following is an accurate statement regarding floor debate in the Senate and House of Representatives?

Senate: Debate rules favor deliberation House: Debate rules favor speed of action

Which of the following is an accurate comparison of floor debate in the Senate and House of Representatives?

Senate: debate usually turns to minority party HoR: debate usually turns to majority party

Which of the following is a consequence of the House of Representatives having 435 members and the Senate having 100 members?

Senators tend to have more influence over legislation and get more media attention individually because there are less of them.

Baker v. Carr (1962) has the most in common with which of the following cases?

Shaw v. Reno

The main argument of the concurring opinion in Baker v. Carr (1962) rested upon which of the following constitutional guarantees?

The Equal Protection Clause

The outcome of Shaw v. Reno (1993) rests most heavily on which of the following clauses manifested in the U.S. Constitution?

The Equal Protection Clause

Which of the following organizations would most likely advocate for the concurring opinion of Shaw v. Reno (1993)?

The Heritage Foundation

Citing an increasing cost of entitlement programs, Congress cuts spending on scientific research. In this scenario, discretionary spending of this type will continue to decrease unless which of the following occurs?

The Medicare budget is reduced.

Building a coalition within which of the following committees would be most affected by the congressional election cycle?

The Select Joint Budget and Appropriations Reform Committee

Which of the following statements accurately describes how the selection of chairpersons to both standing committees and select special committees empowers the Speaker of the House in the policy-making process?

The Speaker of the House can satisfy the majority party by making sure that the bills they submit are passed in a timely fashion.

The dissenting opinion of Shaw v. Reno (1993) is most closely associated with which constitutional interpretation?

The original intent of the Fourteenth Amendment was to provide equal protection for blacks following emancipation and the abolition of slavery.

Which of the following accurately summarizes the entities involved in Baker v. Carr (1962)?

The plaintiff was the former mayor of a small town near Memphis, and the defendant was the Tennessee Secretary of State

Which of the following statements accurately describes why many are in favor of divided government?

The proliferation of undesirable legislation and excessive spending can be kept to a minimum.

Which of the following most clearly states the outcome of Baker v. Carr (1962)?

The redistricting of state legislative districts is justiciable by the Federal Courts.

A member of House of Representatives has introduced a bill to protect undocumented immigrants who were brought to the United States with their parents, but it has been killed in the House Rules Committee. Which of the following is the best course of action to get the bill a vote on the floor of the House?

The representative should rally support behind a discharge petition to pull it out of the House Rules Committee.

The application of majority-minority districts has been limited in recent decades and cannot be applied in states using race to redistrict. Which of the following is the reason for this?

The ruling of Shaw v. Reno

Which of the following best explains the reason for less cloture votes on cabinet secretaries and federal reserve board members than judicial appointments?

There are less cabinet secretaries and members of the Federal Reserve board, which equates to less appointments needing cloture votes to move the approval forward.

Which of the following is a consequence of the ruling established in Baker v. Carr?

When redistricting, states must create relatively similarly sized districts to ensure voter equality.

Shaw v. Reno (1993) most likely resulted in a plurality decision because

conservative and liberal justices interpret the Fourteenth Amendment differently.

Baker v. Carr (1962) was remanded back to the lower court because the Supreme Court

desired that the District Court grant relief for the plaintiff.

With a short, two-year term of office, members of the House of Representatives should be more responsive to the will of the American people in order to carry out their constitutional duty of

initiating all revenue and appropriation bills.

The dissenting opinion in Baker v. Carr (1962) is most closely associate with which judicial interpretation?

judicial restraint

In Shaw v. Reno the Supreme Court reversed a lower court's decision because it concluded that

the plaintiffs had grounds for relief due to the Fourteenth Amendment.