Honors Gov Unit 1 Review

What do all countries with federal systems have in common?

All are democracies.

Why would state officials prefer block grants over other types of federal grants?

Block grants give states broad discretion in how to use the funds.

Why did the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) fail?

Due to opposition from Southern states, it failed to get the support of 3/4 of state legislatures.

Which of the following is an example of checks and balances?

The president nominates judges, and the Senate confirms them.

Which of the following is a consequence of the system of checks and balances and the separation of powers?

They favor the status quo.

Compared to other advanced industrialized democracies, voter turnout in the United States is ________

one the lowest in the world

Why did the British Parliament impose new taxes on colonists following the French and Indian War?

to raise revenue for the defense of newly acquired territory

A typical feature of a government program involving cooperative federalism is __________.

shared costs

Which generalization about a government's policy agenda is most likely to be accurate?

It will change regularly.

How did the Framers ease the path to ratification of the Constitution?

by requiring 9 out of 13 states to approve the document

One effect of the federal system is that it __________.

facilitates policy innovation at the state level

Which of the following developments illustrates the gradual democratization of the Constitution?

passage of the Seventeenth Amendment, establishing direct election of senators

According to Gouverneur Morris and many other delegates at the Constitutional Convention, the principal purpose of government was the __________.

preservation of property

Which type of policy is illustrated by American drones bombing wanted terrorists in Afghanistan?

presidential action

As described in Article V of the Constitution, the two stages of the amendment process are __________.

proposal and ratification

The three-fifths compromise dealt with how slaves would be counted for what two purposes?

representation in the House and taxation

Which of the following is a characteristic of a republic?

representatives of the public exercise power

Under the Articles of Confederation, Congress raised revenue to maintain an army and navy by __________.

requesting money from the states

The primary goal of the American Revolution was to __________.

restore rights colonists felt were theirs as British subjects

According to English philosopher John Locke, natural rights are __________.

rights inherent in human beings, not dependent on governments

The delegates at the Constitutional Convention believed the new constitution would constrain government actions by _________.

setting power against power

What was a key difference between Federalists and Anti-Federalists in the type of government they preferred?

Federalists preferred longer terms of office, while Anti-Federalists preferred shorter terms.

What aspect of democratic government did the authors of the Constitution oppose?

majority rule/majoritarian democracy

The system of government used in China and Indonesia is ______________.

unitary government

What did the delegates to the Constitutional Convention have in common?

Most had practical political experience.

Which of the following is a limit on the supremacy of national law over state law?

National law must be consistent with the federal Bill of Rights

How did federalism affect efforts to end racial discrimination in the 1960s?

Resistance by states and local governments complicated and delayed efforts to end racial discrimination.

In the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson primarily emphasized the __________.

ways in which George III had abused the colonies

Political scientist Harold Lasswell defined politics as ___________

"who gets what, when, and how"

The United Nations is an example of what type of governing system?

a confederation

Which of the following is an example of a collective good?

access to clean water

One way that federalism contributes to democracy is by __________.

allowing for a diversity of policy choices among the states

The full faith and credit clause makes it possible for courts to enforce __________.

contracts between business firms across state boundaries

Economists Emanuel Saez and Gabriel Zucman contend that the ability to influence policy decisions in the United States is characterized by __________.

elitism

A free press is essential to which of Robert Dahl's criteria for an ideal democratic process?

enlightened understanding

The Supreme Court case Marbury v. Madison is significant because it __________ ___ ________ ________ ___ _____________ _________.

established the Court's power of judicial review

Which action by the federal government would most likely be unconstitutional?

establishment of a state-supported church

The policymaking system is the process by which _______

government responds to the priorities of its people

State funding for public education is best characterized as __________.

highly variable from state to state

What term used today is closest to the Framers' notion of a faction?

interest group

The Constitution denies states the power to __________.

issue paper money

Which of the following is an example of devolution?

making it more difficult for state prisoners to seek relief in federal courts

The influence of single-issue groups on political participation is best illustrated by the fact that _______.

members of these groups often cast their votes on the basis of that issue only

Government spending at the national, state, and local levels accounts for about __________ of the United States' gross domestic product (GDP).

one-third

In spelling out economic powers, the Constitution prohibited states from __________.

placing duties (tariffs) on imports from other states

Political scientists Marc Hetherington and Thomas Rudolph argue that policy gridlock has become more common due to __________.

rising distrust between Democrats and Republicans

Which of the following policy areas constitutes the largest share of the national budget?

Social Security

How were votes allocated in the national legislature under the Articles of Confederation?

Each state had one vote.

Why did the Constitution drafted at the Constitutional Convention say little about personal freedoms?

The Framers believed the Constitution would protect freedoms through limited government.

How do confederations and federal systems differ in terms of the power held by the central government?

The central government has less power in a confederation than in a federal system.

What happened to the quasi-federal system of the former Soviet Union?

The national government dissolved, and smaller nations formed from the large one.

What major concession did the Federalists make to the Anti-Federalists?

They agreed to add amendments to the Constitution specifically protecting individual liberties.

What was the most significant change in the states under the Articles of Confederation?

the adoption of the bills of rights to protect freedoms

What has been the most important effect of constitutional amendments?

the expansion of liberty, democracy, and equality in the United States

Which of the following best explains the success of federal efforts to get states to raise the drinking age to 21?

the federal government's use of crossover sanctions

What factor is associated with whether a state has the death penalty?

the partisan make-up of its citizenry

What was a major factor leading to passage of the Twenty-sixth Amendment, which lowered the voting age to 18?

the sacrifices of young soldiers in Vietnam

Approximately one out of every ______ dollars earned in america goes to national, state, and local taxes.

three

What was the purpose of the Federalist Papers?

to defend the Constitution detail by detail

Which of the following countries has a federal system of government?

Canada

Of the 190 or so nations in the world, the number with federal systems is between __________.

10 and 20

The number of governments in the United States is approximately __________.

130,000

Which of the following policy areas does it make the most sense to handle at the national level rather than at the state level?

Social Security

Which statement best describes the power of state governments in federal systems?

States share power with the central government.

What has been the major trend with respect to budget deficits since the late 1960s?

The federal government has run a budget deficit in most years.

A conservative would likely focus on which of the following arguments against the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program?

The program encourages dependency that perpetuates worse.

Why was Shays's Rebellion so concerning to economic and political elites?

The rebels took the law into their own hands and violated the property rights of others.

What do the Supreme Court cases United States v. Lopez and United States v. Morrison have in common?

They both ruled that the passage of Acts violated the Tenth Amendment.

According to the theory of pluralism, what role do interest groups play in a democracy?

They compete with one another for control over policy, and no one group or set of groups dominates.

How did the delegates at the Constitutional Convention decide on who should be eligible to vote?

They gave states the authority to determine voter eligibility.

What is the main role of linkage institutions in the policymaking system?

They transmit Americans' preferences to policymakers in the government.

What do child labor laws, minimum-wage legislation, and civil rights protections have in common?

They were pioneered at the state level.

Which common function of government is illustrated by the national guard's response to rioting in some cities during the otherwise peaceful protests following the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police in 2020?

to preserve order and protect public safety

The Pledge of Allegiance in schools is most directly related to what common function of government?

to socialize the young

What purpose is most clearly reflected in the Framers' use of special electors to choose the president?

to thwart tyranny by the majority

Which of the following is a common form of political participation in the United States?

voting