POLS 2306 UNIT 2 TEST
In what year was the first African American elected to statewide office in Texas?
1990
What type of primary does Texas use?
A combination of closed primary and open primary
What is a political action committee (PAC)?
A group of persons that has a principle purpose of accepting political contributions or making political contributions
What is needed for a bill to pass the Senate?
A simple majority
Which type of resolution involves action by one legislative chamber only and is NOT sent to the governor?
A simple resolution
When the news media provide meaning or define the central theme of an issue, they are
Framing
Roberto is concerned that the recent redrawing of legislature districts around Houston will diminish the vote of the Mexican-American citizens and were done to favor the Republican party. Roberto is concerned with what practice?
Gerrymandering
Which voting restriction provided that persons who could exercise the right to vote before 1867, or their descendants, would be exempt from educational, property, or tax requirements for voting?
Grandfather clause
Jermaine chooses to directly donate some of his money to the candidate for governor. What form of financing is his contribution considered to be?
Hard money
What is one of the legal restrictions that members of the Texas legislature must meet?
He or she may not hold another government office
Manuel is frustrated that his local newspaper seems to be more concerned with reporting who is currently winning the election than what issues the candidates represent. He is concerned by what issue?
Horserace journalism
Which department is responsible for producing the Daily Floor Report for each day the legislature is in session?
House Research Organization
All bills that produce revenue must originate
In the house
When must the Texas legislature draw new boundaries for the state's U.S. congressional districts?
In the year after a federal census
What is a consequence of the growing concentration of media ownership?
Increase in soft news
The proliferation of channels on television and blogs on the Internet has led to
Increased niche journalism or narrowcasting
What is the status of interest groups and political parties in Texas?
Interest groups are strong and political parties are weak
What media form is outpacing all the others in delivering news?
Internet
While the legislature is in session, what happens to a bill if it remains unsigned by the governor for 10 days?
It becomes law
How does Texas compare to the rest of the nation in terms of civic engagement?
It is lower
What is the purpose of the shield law?
It protects journalists from having to reveal certain confidential sources
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 expanded and encouraged voting and has been renewed and amended by Congress four times. Together with federal court rulings, what does the law now do?
Require states to provide absentee or early voting
According to the decision made by the U.S. Supreme Court in NAACP v. Alabama (1958), which part of the U.S. Constitution supports the formation of interest groups?
Right of association (First Amendment)
What is true regarding the annual salary of Texas legislators?
Senators and representatives receive low pay but a generous retirement pension
Which independent Texas research organization is accused by critics of having a liberal bias?
The Center for Public Policy Priorities
Which religion-based group continues to be one of Texas's most influential political forces?
The Christian Coalition
Texas has a bicameral legislature. What is the larger chamber called?
The House of Representatives
When does legislative redistricting occur for both the Texas House and the Senate?
The first odd-numbered year in a decade
One concern with the concentration of media ownership is homogenization of news. What does this refer to?
The increased chance that the same stories are presented in the same way and not affected by local concerns
What does research say about the effect of the news media on public opinion?
The media are not all-powerful, but are influential in important ways
Which development has increased the news impact of radio?
The rise of talk radio
The influence of interest groups has been driven by
The strength of the party system
What contributed to the success of Texas politicians like W. Lee "Pappy" O'Daniel and Kinky Friedman?
Their fame in the media
According the text, what is the biggest reason why many qualified Texans don't run for public office?
They cannot afford to pay their own campaign expenses
According to the text, which of the following is a primary reason fewer women than men seek elective public office?
They have difficulty raising money to pay campaign expenses
What is true of Latino voters in Texas electoral districts with a majority Latino population?
They tend to vote Democratic
In general, what is the goal of an interest group?
To influence government officials and their policies on behalf of group members
Why were literacy tests implemented in the 1870s?
To prevent minority people from voting
What is the largest Spanish language network in the United States?
Univision
When would the voters in Texas participate in a special election?
When they are asked to vote on a constitutional amendment
The sensational and over-the-top stories associated with nineteenth century newspapers in Texas were an example of what type of reporting?
Yellow journalism
In November 1991, Texas voters passed a constitutional amendment that implemented new legal standards for lobbyist and public officials. Which regulation was part of this amendment?
there is a ban on lobby-paid pleasure trips
The legislative Black Caucus is an example of what category of caucus?
Racial/Ethnic
Which form of primary requires voters to declare a party affiliation when registering to vote?
Closed
Readers have been complaining recently that their local newspaper is trying to influence political issues by failing to report on the flooding plaguing the Houston area. This causes politicians to focus on other issues and nothing is done about the flooding. What are these readers concerned with?
Agenda setting
Any organized group, regardless of size, is usually composed of
An active minority and a passive majority membership
Which grassroots activity used fake social media accounts to provide a false impression of the number of supporters or opponents an issue actually has?
Astrotweeting
In Texas's 2002 gubernatorial election, Republicans ran a series of television ads trying to taint Democratic candidate Tony Sanchez by purporting that drug money had allegedly been laundered through his bank. These ads were examples of
Attack ads
Traditionally, which occupational has been typical of a Texas legislator?
Attorney
Serena is a legislature in Texas and a member of The House Women's Health Caucus, where she supports legislation on issues related to women's health care. This is an example of what type of caucus?
Bipartisan
Within Texas, the two major political parties, most statewide candidates. and a multitude of interest groups all maintain
Blogs
Jackson is a member of an interest group consisting of corporate leaders who advocate for lower taxes and the elimination of government price controls. What type of interest group is Jackson in?
Business organization
In Texas, how do power groups enhance their influence?
By maintaining their headquarters in Austin
U.S. courts have been particularly suspicious of prior restraint before information can be made available to the public. They are concerned with
Censorship
Thomas is a Texas senator. When he supports a bill that is introduced into the Senate, he sometimes debates the bill excessively with his fellow senators for the purpose of using time and preventing floor action on another bill that he opposed. Thomas is using a tactic known as
Chubbing
When it comes to supporting political candidates, Texas's newspapers have generally supported which type of candidate?
Conservative
Which group has long dominated talk radio at both the local and national level?
Conservatives
Why do interest groups make last-minute contributions to political campaigns?
Contributions and expenditures in the last two days of a campaign need not be disclosed until the next semiannual report is due
How did the Sharpstown Bank scandal in the 1970s affect Speaker of the House campaigns today?
Contributions, loans, and expenditures received and made by a House Speaker must be reported to the Texas Ethics Commission
What type of government increases the opportunities for interest groups to form and influence government
Decentralized
Most African Americans in Texas identify themselves with that political party?
Democrats
Which socioeconomic factor most influences voter turnout?
Education
Providing favored candidates with interest group membership information, mailing list, and email lists that help candidates solicit money and votes is an example of
Electioneering
Who is responsible for media regulation at the national level?
Federal Communications Commission
How does a Texas House member introduce a bill?
Filing electronically with the chief clerk
How did the political presence of women change in Texas after 1990?
For the first time in the 20th century, the number of women politicians increased dramatically
Which of the following is a necessary factor for an interest group to exert the maximum amount of political power?
Knowledgeable and dedicated leadership
Who is the most powerful legislative officer in the Texas because of the powers granted to him or her by Senate rules?
Lieutenant governor
The Texas Senate's president pro tempore presides when the
Lieutenant governor is absent or disabled
Which interest group technique is the Texas Motorcycle Rights Association utilizing when its members go to the Capitol and talk with lawmakers about preserving bikers' rights?
Lobbying
In recent years, Texas has ranked second in the country, after California, in interest group money spent on
Lobbying state government
One of the charges against digital media is that use of the Internet and social media contributes to
Lower civic engagement
A study performed by the Pew Research Internet Project found which common pattern related to civic engagement?
Lower education and income tend to decrease civic participation
What is gerrymandering?
Manipulating the boundaries of a district to include or exclude certain groups of voters and thus affect election outcomes
Which group began to have a major political impact at the state level the 1960s and early 1970s?
Mexican Americans
When did universal suffrage become a reality in Texas?
Mid-1960s
Shondra is running for Governor of Texas, and she decides to air a commercial that focuses on portraying her opponent in a negative light, rather than on the issues. Some might call Shondra's decision an example of what type of campaign?
Mudslide
Which controversial regulatory issue requires treating all data on the Internet equally?
Net neutrality
Which media form has declined, despite the largest gatherer of news?
Newspapers
Pedro, 19 years old, was born in Oklahoma to Mexican parents. He and his family moved to Texas two weeks before the upcoming election. Is he eligible to vote in Texas?
No, because he must be a resident of the state for at least 30 days preceding election day
Cable News Network (CNN) has a tradition of what type of reporting?
Objective
In 2010, when Annise Parker was sworn in as major of Houston, she made history as the first
Openly gay mayor of a major U.S. city
During a special session, the legislature may consider only those matters
Placed before it by the governor
How is a primary different than a general election?
Primaries allow party members to select nominees to run in the general election
Interest groups are composed chiefly of persons from
Professional and managerial occupations
The Texas Medical Association (TMA) is an example of what type of interest group?
Professional group
Ed is working with an interest group that monitors members of the Texas legislature for their support of environmentally-friendly "green bills." Ed is most likely working with a(n)
Public interest group
Which statement is true regarding the media in the last half century?
Public trust in the media has declined
The oldest Latino interest group in Texas is the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC). What type of interest group does this organization represent?
Social interest group
What inexpensive medium allows candidates to reach a bigger voter base and keep current with issues?
Social media posts
Who controls all proceedings in the Texas Hous?
Speaker of the House
What are the three categories of bills?
Special, general, and local
A Texas legislator's expense allowance can be used for
Staff salaries
What type of committee considers bills and resolutions relating to the subject identified by a committee's name, such as agriculture or public health?
Substantive committees
Which group can raise unlimited sums of money from corporations, unions, associations, and individuals?
Super PACs
How do most Texas voters learn about political candidates?
Television commercials
Which group is an examaple of an economic interest umbrella organization?
Texas Association of Business
What document outlines all election laws in Texas?
Texas Election Code
Ethics complaints against Texas state officials, candidates for office, and state employees would generally be brought to the
Texas Ethics Commission
Which research group has been accused of acting as the "in-house think tank of the state's current Republican leadership"?
Texas Public Policy Foundation
