Ap Gov Midterm
6. Which of the following represents a reason that a president might use a signing statement to express displeasure with a bill as opposed to issuing a veto? (A) The president may have objections to provisions of a bill but does not want to risk Congress overriding a veto. (B) Congress has severely curtailed the power of the president to withhold funds for bills that have been adopted. (C) The Supreme Court is hesitant to acknowledge the president's power to veto legislation. (D) The president wants to ensure executive agencies do not spend the money appropriated by Congress.
(A) The president may have objections to provisions of a bill but does not want to risk Congress overriding a veto.
Which of the following policies would the states most likely prefer according to the political cartoon? (A) Federal mandates (B) Regulatory preemption (C) Block grants (D) Categorical grants
(C) Block grants
13. Which of the following scenarios illustrates Washington's concerns? (A) An increasing number of voters are not turning out to vote in elections. (B) Federalism can lead to different public policy outcomes between states. (C) Ideological divisions within Congress can lead to partisan gridlock. (D) Members of the press fail to report on the illegal activities of certain members of the bureaucracy.
(C) Ideological divisions within Congress can lead to partisan gridlock
23. Based on your knowledge and the diagram, which of the following is true regarding the leadership structure of Congress? (A) The role of the minority leader in both the House of Representatives and the Senate is to coordinate a strategy for the minority party. (B) The vice president is responsible for creating and setting the legislative agenda for the Senate. (C) The Speaker of the House has very little power to control members of the majority party in the House of Representatives. (D) The majority leaders in both chambers work to ensure that a bipartisan agenda is passed in the Congress.
A) The role of the minority leader in both the House of Representatives and the Senate is to coordinate a strategy for the minority party.
In what respect does the Constitution address Washington's concern regarding the "spirit of encroachment" in the excerpt?
A. The Constitution distributes power across national instition.
By using the phrase "creative federalism", President Johnson is most likely referring to which of the following features of the American system?
A. The relationship between the federal and state governments evolves over time and is flexible enough to permit new forms of interaction.
Which of the following actions did President Johnson suggest he would take to address problems in public schools?
B. Calling on experts to advise the federal government in finding ways to improve public education
Which of the following newspaper headlines best summarizes the excerpt from Washington's Farewell Address?
B. Washington Warns of Dangerous Party Factions
8. Which of the following is most likely responsible for the increase in the number of southern African American state legislators between 1960 and 1992 as shown in the graph? (A) The Civil Rights Act of 1964 (B) Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954) (C) The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (D) The Nineteenth Amendment
C) The Voting Rights Act of 1965
27. Which of the following enumerated powers would permit Congress to stimulate the economy by hiring unemployed citizens? (A) The power to create immigration policies (B) The power to regulate interstate commerce (C) The power to pass a federal budget (D) The power of legislative oversight
C) The power to pass a federal budget
22. Which of the following is true according to the diagram? (A) The Senate minority leader is as powerful as the Senate majority whip. (B) The Speaker of the House, in coordination with the House majority leader, appoints the House minority leader. (C) Unlike the House of Representatives, the Senate does not recognize political parties. (D) Both chambers make use of a system of majority and minority whips.
D) Both chambers make use of a system of majority and minority whips.
26. Which of the following describes an effect of the Twenty-Fourth Amendment? (A) It assured equal access to places of public accommodation regardless of race. (B) It increased the importance of the Speaker of the House of Representatives. (C) It reduced barriers to political participation on the basis of gender. (D) It eliminated poll taxes.
D) It eliminated poll taxes
10. Which of the following correctly identifies an implication of the line graph? (A) Presidents are far more likely to make changes to the bureaucracy at the end of a second term than at the beginning of a first term. (B) Congress is more likely to act on a president's policy proposal at the beginning of a first term than at the end of a second term. (C) The Supreme Court is more likely to rule on an important case at the beginning of a first term than at the end of a second term. (D) Presidents are more likely to send troops into conflict at the end of a second term than at the beginning of a first term.
(B) Congress is more likely to act on a president's policy proposal at the beginning of a first term than at the end of a second term.
2. The data in the graph best illustrate which of the following common criticisms of the electoral college? (A) Small states have fewer electoral votes than large states and therefore have no impact on presidential elections. (B) Individuals in small-population states have a greater impact on the electoral college than individuals in large-population states. (C) Candidates from states with a large number of electoral votes have a major advantage in the electoral college. (D) Smaller states have more electoral votes than larger states, which distorts the popular vote.
(B) Individuals in small-population states have a greater impact on the electoral college than individuals in large-population states.
9. Which of the following statements reflects a pattern in the line graph? (A) Nixon had the highest approval ratings of any president in the graph. (B) Most presidents exit office with lower approval ratings than when they entered office. (C) Most presidents begin their term with approval ratings lower than 50%. (D) Eisenhower had the lowest approval ratings of any president in the graph.
(B) Most presidents exit office with lower
18. Which of the following statements best describes the information in the map? (A) Most states in the Northeast and West do not allow capital punishment. (B) Most states in the South and West allow capital punishment. (C) Capital punishment is not allowed in Oklahoma (OK) and New Mexico (NM). (D) Only three states do not allow capital punishment.
(B) Most states in the South and West allow capital punishment.
25. The majority party in the Senate is concerned that the Supreme Court has made a number of ideologically dangerous and controversial rulings. Which of the following actions would the Senate take in their attempt to limit the Supreme Court's power? (A) Replace the chief justice of the Supreme Court with someone with whom they agree with ideologically (B) Pass legislation that would limit the impact of the Supreme Court's recent rulings (C) Ratify a constitutional amendment limiting the Supreme Court's power (D) Enforce term limits for justices on the Supreme Court
(B) Pass legislation that would limit the impact of the Supreme Court's recent rulings
16. Which of the following explains President Johnson's motivation for the speech in relation to his role as the head of the executive branch? (A) President Johnson believes that Congress will soon pass a bill on education reform, and he would like to be able to claim credit for it. (B) President Johnson is seeking to use the bully pulpit as a means of promoting his agenda on public education. (C) President Johnson is expecting the Supreme Court to soon rule on the constitutionality of a law passed by the previous administration. (D) President Johnson is issuing an executive order calling on local governments to increase training for teachers and address poverty among students.
(B) President Johnson is seeking to use the bully pulpit as a means of promoting his agenda on public education.
7. Which of the following statements presents the most important limitation of the data in the graph? (A) The time frame for the data is misleading. (B) There is no information about the total number of state legislators. (C) There are insufficient data points to detect a trend. (D) The trend over time is potentially misleading and would be easier to read in a pie chart.
(B) There is no information about the total number of state legislators.
3. According to the bar graph, which of the following statements will be true in the year 2060 ? (A) The percentage of those identifying as Asian alone will be less than it was in 2012. (B) Those identifying as White alone will remain a majority. (C) Those identifying as Hispanic White will be 31% of the population. (D) The percentage of those identifying as Black alone will be less than it was in 2012.
(B) Those identifying as White alone will remain a majority.
5. Which of the following statements is most accurately supported by the data in the table? (A) President Clinton greatly reduced the use of presidential signing statements compared with his predecessors. (B) While President George W. Bush issued fewer signing statements than President Clinton, his included more objections than President Clinton's. (C) President Clinton's brief access to the power of the line-item veto allowed him to issue fewer signing statements that raised concerns about legislation. (D) President George W. Bush was forced to issue more signing statements as a direct result of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
(B) While President George W. Bush issued fewer signing statements than President Clinton, his included more objections than President Clinton's.
20. Which of the following is the most accurate interpretation of the political cartoon? (A) State governments have used the Tenth Amendment to override the federal government's mandates. (B) State governments are unwilling to share their budgetary surpluses with other states. (C) State governments prefer federal funding but do not want federal oversight over how the money is spent. (D) The fiscal irresponsibility of state governments has led to increased federal regulation on their budgetary priorities.
(C) State governments prefer federal funding but do not want federal oversight over how the money is spent.
4. Which of the following is a likely effect of the trend depicted in the bar graph on voting and elections? (A) There will be fewer restrictions placed on voting. (B) Voter turnout is likely to increase among non-Whites. (C) The Democratic Party will win more elections, based on current voting trends. (D) There will be more retrospective voting among young voters.
(C) The Democratic Party will win more elections, based on current voting trends.
17. A liberal response to the "strained resources" of local government most likely would include (A) a reduction of federal income taxes so that state and local governments can use those resources (B) less federal regulation and more authority for local school boards to create curricula and standards (C) an increase in federal spending on public education and more programs aimed at helping lower-income communities (D) encouraging state and local governments to offer vouchers so that students can attend private or charter schools
(C) an increase in federal spending on public education and more programs aimed at helping lower-income communities
19. Which of the following constitutional principles best explains why there is variation among states on the use of capital punishment? (A) Separation of powers (B) Judicial review (C) Checks and balances (D) Federalism
(D) Federalism
In the 1780s, proponents of the new Constitution cited Shays' Rebellion as an example in support of which of the following criticisms of the national government under the Articles of Confederation? (A) The national government did not provide sufficient protection of individual rights. (B) The lack of a centralized judiciary made enforcement of national laws difficult. (C) States with larger populations were underrepresented in Congress. (D) There was a lack of a national military power to address security concerns.
(D) There was a lack of a national military power to address security concerns
Given the information in the graph, in which of the following states would an individual's vote likely have more influence? (A) Wyoming (B) West Virginia (C) Alabama (D) California
A. Wyoming
