AP Gov. Final Exam Study
Which of the following policies is most likely to cause tension between the competing values of equality of opportunity and limited government?
Mandating that all public schools have English language programs
In Heart of Atlanta Motel v. United States (1964), the Supreme Court ruled that the federal government has the right to regulate public accommodation under the commerce clause. After this decision, the federal government, under the authority of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, forced public places to desegregate.This scenario is an example of which of the following?
The Supreme Court issuing a ruling that protects minority rights
Which of the following best illustrates the concept of limited government?
The Supreme Court ruled that a law passed by Congress was unconstitutional
"Energy in the Executive is a leading character in the definition of good government. It is essential to the protection of the community against foreign attacks; it is not less essential to the steady administration of the laws; to the protection of property against those irregular and high-handed combinations which sometimes interrupt the ordinary course of justice; to the security of liberty against the enterprises and assaults of ambition, of faction, and of anarchy . . ." -Alexander Hamilton, Federalist No. 70, "The Executive Department Further Considered," 1788" Energy," as used by Hamilton in Federalist No. 70, is best defined as which of the following?
The capacity to act quickly and decisively
"It is clear that the ancient and humane limitation upon the State's ability to execute its sentences has as firm a hold upon the jurisprudence of today as it had centuries ago in England. The various reasons put forth in support of the common-law restriction [on executing the insane] have no less logical, moral, and practical force than they did when first voiced. For today, no less than before, we may seriously question the retributive value of executing a person who has no comprehension of why he has been singled out and stripped of his fundamental right to life."-Associate Justice Thurgood Marshall, majority opinion in Ford v. Wainwright (1986)Which of the following statements is most consistent with the author's argument in this passage?
There are limits on who can be given a death penalty sentence
Why are the compromises that were necessary to secure ratification of the Constitution still debated today?
They left some matters unresolved
According to ABC News, the average chocolate bar contains eight insect parts. Anything less than sixty insect pieces per 100 grams of chocolate (two chocolate bars' worth) is deemed safe for consumption by the Food and Drug Administration. This is an example of bureaucratic:
regulation
Which of the following actions by the federal government would most likely be considered an implied power based on the precedent established by McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)?
Outlawing the recreational use of marijuana
In June 2017, voters in Puerto Rico voted on a referendum to make Puerto Rico the 51st state of the United States. This is an example of which of the following models of democracy?
Participatory democracy
Which of the following types of spending make it difficult for the federal government to control the budget?
Social Security and Medicare
Why have there been relatively few constitutional amendments?
A Constitution Amendment Bill requires more than a simple majority to be ratified
What measure would a president adhearing to supply-side economic principles most likely emplot during an economic recession?
A budget that cuts indivdual and corporate income tax and decreases government regulation of the economy.
Which of the following policies is an example of state action to improve voter turnout?
Motor voter laws
"Winston Churchill is said to have remarked that 'Any man who is not a socialist at the age of 21 has no heart, and any man who is still a socialist at the age of 40 has no head.' The first part of the quote can be taken as saying that it is easy to favor economic equality when one is a young adult in the process of getting educated, finding a job, and beginning a career. But the second part implies that the notion of equality of income for all looks far different once one is middle aged and established in an occupation."Martin P. Wattenberg, Is Voting for Young People? 2012 Which of the following statements is most consistent with the author's argument in this passage?
People's political ideology changes as they get older
The National Rifle Association (NRA) testifies in front of Congress to advocate for several laws, including one that would protect gun manufacturers from lawsuits concerning violence committed with weapons they made. This is an example of which of the following models of democracy?
Pluralist democracy
Which of the following scenarios is an example of how a state can reasonably restrict speech protected under the First Amendment?
A group of protesters is arrested after staging a sit-in on the governor's front lawn to protest a Voter ID law
Which of the following scenarios would most likely be considered a violation of the Fifth Amendment?
A suspect is not informed that anything he says while under arrest can be used in his trial against him
How did Thomas Jefferson and other signers of the Declaration of Independence believe the King of England was violating the colonists' right to liberty?
By imposing unfair and damaging taxes
A president issues an executive order banning newspapers from printing articles critical of the US government. The Supreme Court declares the executive order unconstitutional because it violates the First Amendment right to freedom of the press. This is an example of which of the following principles of US government?
Checks and balances
Which of the following best illustrates the concept of "separation of powers" in the US Constitution?
Congress has authority over the federal budget, while the president appoints Supreme Court justices
Which of the following scenarios would violate the Tenth Amendment?
Congress passing a law raising the minimum driving age to 21
Which of the following poll questions would lead to the most accurate result?
Do you agree or disagree with the way Donald Trump is doing his job as president?
"The effects of a severe recession experienced are large when the individual is between the ages of 18 and 24 - the so-called formative age - during which social psychologists think most of social beliefs are formed; the effects are not so strong when the recession is experienced later in life . . . these effects are permanent because attitudes of recession-stricken individuals remain significantly altered many years after the severe recession ends." Antonio Spilimbergo and Paola Giuliano, "The long-lasting effects of the economic crisis," 2009. Which of the following statements is most consistent with the authors' argument in this passage?
Economic recessions have lasting consequences on the attitudes of individuals who experienced them during their formative years
"Even as they welcome the opportunities opened up by having an ally in the White House, some worry that the continued emphasis on executive actions is just another step in the dilution of legislative power." 'We need to go back to being the legislative branch,' said Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, a Florida Republican opposed to a potential executive order by Mr. Trump that would end a special program allowing younger illegal immigrants to remain in the United States. 'We didn't like this when Obama was doing it, so why should we accept it now?'" -Carl Hulse, "Trump Follows Obama's Lead in Flexing Executive Muscle," The New York Times, January 26, 2017 Based on the text, which of the following statements would Representative Ros-Lehtinen most likely agree with?
Executive orders can create conflict with Congress as they do not require congressional input or approval
On Election Day, radio news network Guam Live is trying to project the result of the presidential election. They send pollsters to 350 voting places throughout the United States to survey people after they have voted. Which type of poll is the news network conducting?
Exit poll
Which of the following policies is likely to create the most tension between the competing values of rule of law and limited government?
Expelling undocumented US residents from the country
Which of the following is an example of a Keynesian economic policy?
Government spending programs to build roads and bridges
Which of the following may Congress do to limit the power of the executive?
Impeach the president
Which statement accurately summarizes the impact of the Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010) decision?
It allows corporations and unions to spend unlimited amounts of money on political activities that are independent of a party or candidate
Which of the following statements best explains why the Voting Rights Act of 1965 was a significant political event?
It removed structural barriers to minority voting
Which of the following statements best explains the compromise behind the creation of the Electoral College?
It was a compromise between big and small states so that states with a larger population cannot control presidential elections
In the 1960s, the federal government passed the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act, which compelled state and local governments to desegregate public schools and public places. This is an example of which of the following aspects of federalism in the United States?
Pressure at the national level can force state and local policy changes
"We used polling not to determine what positions he would take but to figure out which of the positions he had already taken were the most popular. I would always draw the distinction between deciding on policy and identifying certain issues for emphasis by telling Clinton, 'You print the menu of the things you want. Then I'll advise which dish to have for dinner tonight.'"-Dick Morris, polling consultant for Bill Clinton, Behind the Oval , 1997 Based on the text, which of the following statements would the author most likely agree with?
Public opinion poll results can be used to determine how best to present policies to the public
Which of the following policies is likely to create the most tension between free enterprise and rule of law?
Reducing environmental regulations for oil companies
Which of the following scenarios would be considered an unconstitutional use of state power?
Requiring Amish students to attend school until age 16 despite their religious beliefs
The commerce clause of the Constitution grants Congress the power to regulate interstate commerce.Which of the following might be an implied power that Congress would have to complete this task?
Setting a federal minimum wage
What is not an agent of political socialization?
Sports Teams
Before the Nineteenth Amendment to the US Constitution granted women the right to vote nationwide, 13 states allowed women the right to vote in their state elections. This is an example of which of the following aspects of federalism in the United States?
State and local governments can become proving grounds for new ideas
"Who can say that the legislature of Alabama which set up that state's segregation laws was democratically elected? Throughout Alabama all sorts of devious methods are used to prevent Negroes from becoming registered voters, and there are some counties in which, even though Negroes constitute a majority of the population, not a single Negro is registered. Can any law enacted under such circumstances be considered democratically structured?"-Excerpt from King, Martin Luther Jr., "Letter from the Birmingham Jail" in Why We Can't Wait, ed. Martin Luther King, Jr., 77-100, 1963.The "devious methods" mentioned in this passage refer to which of the following?
Structural barriers
Suppose that Congress passed a law stating that children born to undocumented immigrants in the United States would no longer be granted American citizenship. If a group were to challenge the bill in court, on which legal grounds would they most likely base their case?
The Fourteenth Amendment
What strengthens transparency and the rule of law?
The Freedom of Information Act allows citizens to request information kept by the government.
Use the excerpt to answer the question below. "Lifetime appointments and the new, highly ideological stakes provided senators ample incentives to use holds and silent filibusters to prevent a majority of their colleagues from acting on judicial nominations, both to block those with different ideologies and to keep slots vacant until the presidency moves into their party's hands. Along the way, judicial confirmations have become increasingly politicized, and delays in confirming appellate judges have led to increased vacancy rates that have produced longer case-processing times and growing caseloads per judge on federal dockets." -Mann, Thomas E. and Norman J. Ornstein, It's Even Worse than it Looks, 2012 Which of the following statements best summarizes the authors' argument?
The Senate is more likely to place holds on life-tenured judicial appointments because of the lasting influence of those appointments
In 1961, students who attended public schools in Pennsylvania were required to read at least ten verses from the Bible. After students finished reading the readings, school officials required that all students recite the Lord's Prayer. In 1963, the Supreme Court heard the case and ruled that the readings and recitations violated a provision of the First Amendment.Which of the following constitutional clauses does this case have in common with Engel v. Vitale (1962)?
The establishment clause
Which of the following scenarios best illustrates the concept of "separation of powers" in the US Constitution?
The president commands the nation's armed forces, while Congress has the power to ratify treaties
Which of the following is the most immediate consequence of impeaching a president?
The president is tried in the Senate
In 1972, both houses of Congress passed the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), a Constitutional amendment guaranteeing equal rights for all citizens regardless of sex. However, the amendment failed, as three-quarters of the states did not ratify it before the deadline expired. This is an example of which of the following aspects of federalism in the United States?
The sharing of power between states and the federal government constrains national policymaking
In 1993, Congress passed the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act, which required background checks for gun purchases from licensed gun dealers. The bill required local chief law enforcement officers to perform background checks on prospective handgun purchasers until the Attorney General created a federal system to do this task.Two county sheriffs sued the United States, arguing that the law was an unconstitutional use of federal power. The case, Printz v. United States, went to the Supreme Court, which ruled in favor of the county sheriffs. The Court ruled that the necessary and proper clause does not give the federal government the power to require local law enforcement to fulfill the federal task of performing background checks.This is an example of which of the following aspects of federalism in the United States?
The system of checks and balances between the branches of the federal government constrains policymaking
Which of the following best explains how third parties affect the US political system?
They can shift national attention to particular issues and influence the outcome of elections
In Federalist No. 10, Madison argues that the Constitution disperses power between the federal government and state governments. Which of the following describes a constitutional provision in the newly-ratified Constitution that does that?
US senators were chosen by state legislatures
Federal nutrition guidelines require public schools to serve healthy lunches to students and limit the amount of "junk food" available in vending machines. A state seeking to challenge these nutrition rules should cite which of the following cases?
United States v. Lopez
The following question(s) refer to this excerpt of proposed House Resolution 184 introduced by Representative Hakeem Jeffries in the House Judiciary Committee on March 9, 2017.RESOLVED: That the President is requested, and the Attorney General of the United States is directed, to transmit, respectively (in a manner appropriate to classified information, if the President or Attorney General determines appropriate), to the House of Representatives, not later than 14 days after the date of the adoption of this resolution, copies of any document, record, memo, correspondence, or other communication in their possession, or any portion of any such communication, that refers or relates to the following:(1) Any meeting or communication that occurred between Senator Jeff Sessions and any representative of the Russian government, including his meetings with the Russian Ambassador to the United States, Sergey I. Kislyak, on July 18, 2016, and September 8, 2016.(2) Senator Sessions' testimony before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary on January 10, 2017, including but not limited to his statement that he "did not have communications with the Russians." What congressional power was used in passing this resolution?
legislative oversight
Congress is most likely to use a court-curbing measure, like changing the appellate jurisdiction of the Supreme Court, when:
the American public does not support the Supreme Court's decision.