POLI SCI

Most Americans of African descent were not officially citizens in the United States until

1868, when the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution conferred citizenship on formerly enslaved people.

In order for the Constitution to be formally adopted, ________ of the ________ states in the Union had to agree to its terms.

9; 13

A case is before the Supreme Court involving internet safety. Suppose two justices with different judicial philosophies—one who believes in judicial activism and one who believes in judicial restraint—are discussing the case. What are their likely arguments about how the Court should decide the case?

A justice who advocates for the philosophy of judicial activism would support decision making based on the current context, while one who adheres to the philosophy of judicial restraint would believe in strict adherence to the Constitution.

Which of the following comes closest to describing the political system favored by the American Founders?

A system of representative democracy in which the ability to vote for elected representatives would be limited to the middle and upper classes.

Which of the following is least likely to be a reason Congress would delegate policymaking authority to the bureaucracy?

Agencies can make policy decisions that are different than what Congress wants.

The Boston Tea Party was largely a response to the

British government's decision to grant the East India Company a monopoly on the export of tea from Britain.

The Department of Defense is headed by the Secretary of Defense. The Department of Defense is best categorized as a(n)

Cabinet-level agency.

Which of the following best describes the welfare reform enacted by Congress in 1996?

It was an attempt to give the states more responsibility for programs that serve the poor by changing welfare from a combined federal-state program into a block grant.

Which of the following statements about Supreme Court law clerks is true?

Law clerks historically have not been representative of the population, with 85 percent of all justices' law clerks being White and 68 percent male.

Which of the following statements about mainstream media organizations is true?

Mainstream media organizations adhere to the principles of journalism by striving for original, factual, and balanced reporting.

Why did the United States encounter difficulties in sanctioning Russia over Russia's annexation of Crimea?

Many American allies depended on Russia for their energy needs so they were unwilling to agree to sanctions.

________ occurs when an agency, rather than acting in the public interest, becomes too favorable toward the organized interests or corporations it is supposed to be regulating.

Regulatory capture

Steve has a negative view of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). He reads a story that discusses how the ACA has improved health outcomes for low-income individuals. According to confirmation bias, how would Steve likely respond to such new information about the ACA?

Steve would likely discount the information because it runs counter to his existing, negative view of the ACA.

Which of the following statements about grand juries is most accurate?

The Fifth Amendment provision for a grand jury has never been incorporated into the Fourteenth Amendment to apply to state criminal prosecutions.

Which of the following is an example of the principle of majority rule with minority rights?

The Founders established popularly elected political institutions like the House of Representatives to ensure majority rule, yet the Constitution contains the Bill of Rights to protect individual liberties and freedoms from government.

What is the main function of the chief justice of the Supreme Court?

The chief justice presides over the Court's public sessions and private conferences.

What advantage does an interest group like the American Beverage Association or the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers have over other types of interest groups?

They're more likely to have more financial resources than other interest groups.

What is required for Congress to override a presidential veto?

a two-thirds vote of both houses of Congress

When a president "recognizes" a country, it means that the United States

acknowledges the legitimacy of that country's government.

In a case challenging a state's voter identification law, several civil rights groups, such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), filed _________ arguing that the law places unfair burdens on people of color.

amicus curiae briefs

A loose, informal relationship of public officials, interest groups, and activists who are all concerned with the same policies is called

an issue network.

Let's say that the federal government has decided to break Meta into separate companies for each of its apps, including Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and more. This is an example of the federal government using

antitrust policy.

Congress has passed legislation that

banned the practice of lobbyists giving members of Congress an honorarium for giving speeches.

Miranda v. Arizona (1966) was important because it produced rules that must be used

by the police before questioning an arrested criminal suspect.

Congressional law and Supreme Court decisions have ruled that undocumented immigrants are

entitled to both education and emergency health care in the United States.

Which of the following are specific powers granted by the Constitution?

expressed powers

A closed or an open rule refers to congressional provisions regarding

floor debate on a bill

What was the key to American security during the nineteenth century?

geographical isolation

Congress has assigned federal court jurisdictions on the basis of

geography.

As a safeguard against political interference, merit-system employees

have legal protection against being fired without show of cause.

After mass shootings, public support for gun control tends to

increase

Though used at times by justices on both sides of the partisan divide, which judicial philosophy posits that the Court should go beyond the words of the Constitution or a statute to consider the broader societal implications of its decisions?

judicial activism

In District of Columbia v. Heller, the United States Supreme Court held that the District of Columbia's handgun ban was an unconstitutional violation of the Second Amendment. In writing the majority opinion, the late Justice Antonin Scalia looked predominantly to the words of the Second Amendment of the Constitution in interpreting its meaning. This judicial philosophy in which judges look strictly to the Constitution and writing of the Founders to interpret what was originally meant at the time the law was written can be described as

judicial restraint.

In Lawrence v. Texas (2003), the Supreme Court ruled that

laws criminalizing sexual behavior are a violation of the right to privacy.

Labor groups represent ________ of the total number of interest groups registered to lobby in Washington.

less than 1 percent

In classical political theory, a liberal was closest to what we would today refer to as a

libertarian.

Historically, the power of the federal courts was subject to a number of limitations. One such limitation is that courts are "passive" institutions in that they

must wait until a case is brought to them before they can make authoritative decisions.

A bill that deals with such a diverse set of unrelated issues as environmental issues, tax issues, and criminal justice issues is likely to be a(n)

omnibus appropriations bill.

Joint committees are

permanent, but do not have the power to present legislation

Prior cases whose principles are used by judges to decide current cases are called

precedents.

Suppose the federal government blocks the states from imposing taxes on high speed internet service. Which of the following would allow it to do so?

preemption

While the Constitution does not specify that presidents have the power to remove those they appointed to office from their positions,

presidents have long claimed that the power is implied by those expressed powers they have in the Constitution.

Which of the following describes a system of government in which the populace selects representatives who play a significant role in governmental decision making?

representative democracy

Conservatives are more likely than liberals to support

school prayer.

In the American version of federalism

state and local governments have far more policymaking responsibility than in most federal systems.

Under the Constitution, ________ the power to control voter registration.

state legislatures have

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

states

Those who believe in the theory of ________ maintain that the government's role in regulating the economy should be focused on lowering taxes and creating incentives for a more productive and efficient use of resources.

supply-side economics

Over what policy areas does the House Ways and Means Committee have jurisdiction?

taxes, trade, and entitlement programs

The three most important federal programs to assist the working poor are

the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

Which of the following would be an example of how federal bureaucrats make rules while engaging in implementation?

the Environmental Protection Agency requiring that, under the Clean Air Act, the average fuel economy for new vehicles must be at least 35.5 miles per gallon

During the 2020 Democratic presidential primary elections, candidate and former vice president Joe Biden received favorable national coverage showing his lead in the South Carolina polls. Despite losses in the previous four states, Biden went on to become the party's presumptive nominee in weeks. The increased public support for Biden is partly explained by

the bandwagon effect