POS Midterm Quizzes
The text of the Fourteenth Amendment says
"nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."
(Q003) Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison wrote which of the following documents that argued in favor of adopting the Constitution?
The Federalist Papers
(Q008) What power does the Supreme Court possess that is not expressly given to it by the Constitution?
conducting judicial review
(Q006) If you lived in America in 1783, what type of government would you have lived under?
confederation
Restrictive covenants were
contract clauses added by the seller of a home that required the buyer to agree never to sell the home to any non-Caucasian.
(Q003) Of the powers contained within the U.S. Constitution, which are most clearly articulated?
expressed powers
(Q001) Under which of the following types of government is it possible for state and federal laws to contradict each other, such as states legalizing marijuana even though it remains illegal according to national law?
federal
(Q005) Men and women disagreeing on broad political, social, and economic value is an example of the
gender gap.
(Q022) The commerce clause of Article I, Section 8, of the U.S. Constitution affords Congress broad regulatory power over what?
interstate commerce
(Q016) Congress' ability to pass laws needed to carry out its expressed powers is known as the __________ clause.
necessary and proper
(Q023) The size of the overall population is __________ in determining the reliability of a poll.
not important
(Q006) Self-identified partisans tend to rely on __________ and __________ for cues on the appropriate positions to take.
party leaders; the media
(Q008) A possible reason why Donald Trump performed better at the ballot box than in public opinion polls may be
the social desirability effect.
The Bill of Rights was ratified by the states in
1791
The Bill of Rights was adopted because the
Antifederalists demanded it as the price of ratification of the Constitution.
(Q001) A push poll is more likely to include which of the following questions?
Do you think it was appropriate for President Obama to lie about how Benghazi happened?
(Q001) During America's Founding, if you believed in a unified, centralized government powerful enough to defend its interests, you were mostly likely a(n)
Federalist.
The Black Lives Matter protests started in
Ferguson, Missouri.
The first provision of the Bill of Rights to be "incorporated" into the Fourteenth Amendment as a limitation on state power was the
Fifth Amendment's prohibition on states from taking private property for public use without just compensation.
The 1937 case Palko v. Connecticut focused on the
Fifth Amendment's protection against double jeopardy.
(Q005) In what way did the comity clause seek to promote national unity?
It prevented states from discriminating against someone from another state or giving special privileges to their own residents.
(Q024) Which of the following statements about the Declaration of Independence is accurate?
It specifically identified and focused on grievances, aspirations, and principles that might unify the various colonial groups.
(Q004) The inspiration behind the focus of the Declaration of Independence's on "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" was most inspired by which political philosopher?
John Locke
(Q013) Which of the following is the most accurate statement about individual formation of public opinion? -Many individuals are politically informed but lack memory of some of the facts used to form their opinions. -Most political opinion is fickle or unstable. -Most individuals are unable to form a running tally of information to use for making political decisions. -Most voters or decision makers use the oldest information they learned about a topic for making decisions and tend to ignore newer information.
Many individuals are politically informed but lack memory of some of the facts used to form their opinions.
(Q007) The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the right of the national government to create a national bank and reaffirmed the notion of national supremacy in which landmark case?
McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)
(Q024) What is federal preemption?
National standards that require the federal government to take over areas of regulation formerly overseen by the states
(Q013) Which of the following cases expanded civil rights to same-sex couples by preventing state governments from claiming the right to refuse marriage licenses to these couples?
Obergefell v. Hodges (2015)
(Q010) What is a consequence of increasing polarization between the parties in the United States?
Party endorsements have a larger impact on public opinion formation.
(Q024) __________ refers to a set of beliefs and values that, as a whole, form a general philosophy about government.
Political ideology
What was the result of the Compromise of 1877?
Rutherford B. Hayes was elected president.
(Q002) Which of the following demonstrated the weakness of the Articles of Confederation, leading to the Constitutional Convention? -Battle of Gettysburg -Battle of Bunker Hill -Boston Massacre -Shays's Rebellion
Shays's Rebellion
(Q012) Both New England merchants and southern planters were harmed economically by which of the following?
Stamp and Sugar Acts
(Q011) What is the defining characteristic of dual federalism?
State governments have more powers granted to them than the local or federal governments.
(Q015) If you were a member of Congress and wanted to change the structure of the U.S. government, what mechanism would you most likely use?
Suggest an amendment to the Constitution that addresses the structure of government.
(Q025) Which of the following stipulated that powers not specifically granted by the Constitution to the federal government were reserved to the states or to the people?
Tenth Amendment
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. -The Fifth Amendment provision for a grand jury was incorporated into the Fourteenth Amendment in 1802 to apply to state criminal prosecutions. -The Fifth Amendment provision for a grand jury was incorporated into the Fourteenth Amendment in 1902 to apply to state criminal prosecutions. -The Fifth Amendment provision for a grand jury was incorporated into the Fourteenth Amendment in 1962 to apply to state criminal prosecutions.
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 statements about Supreme Court decisions related to executions under the Eighth Amendment is NOT accurate? -The Supreme Court has ruled that death was too harsh a penalty for the crime of rape of a child. -The Supreme Court has prohibited the execution of a defendant with an IQ under 70. -The Supreme Court has outlawed the use of lethal injection as a mode of execution. -The Supreme Court has invalidated a death sentence for a black defendant after the prosecutor improperly excluded African Americans from the jury.
The Supreme Court has outlawed the use of lethal injection as a mode of execution.
(Q017) If a researcher was conducting a survey and noticed the results contained a large sampling error, that would suggest what had occurred?
The sample was too small.
(Q011) Which of the following statements is true about the Three-Fifths Compromise? -It settled the question of how many senators each state would get. -Only three-fifths of all slaves were allowed to vote in national elections. -Under this compromise, five slaves would count as three free persons in apportioning seats in the House of Representatives. -It created a system to elect the president of the United States.
Under this compromise, five slaves would count as three free persons in apportioning seats in the House of Representatives.
Which of the following statements about selective incorporation is MOST accurate? -By 1865, all of the provisions of the Bill of Rights had been clearly incorporated into the Fourteenth Amendment as binding on the states as well as on the national government. -By 1961, all of the provisions of the Bill of Rights had been clearly incorporated into the Fourteenth Amendment as binding on the states as well as on the national government. -Until 1961, only the First Amendment and one clause of the Fifth Amendment had been clearly incorporated into the Fourteenth Amendment as binding on the states as well as on the national government. -Until 1994, only the First Amendment and one clause of the Fifth Amendment had been clearly incorporated into the Fourteenth Amendment as binding on the states as well as on the national government.
Until 1961, only the First Amendment and one clause of the Fifth Amendment had been clearly incorporated into the Fourteenth Amendment as binding on the states as well as on the national government.
Habeas corpus refers to
a court order demanding that an individual in custody be brought into court and shown the cause for detention.
(Q010) What is an unfunded mandate?
a federal law that requires the states to do certain things but does not provide state governments with the funding to implement these policies
(Q018) Cooperative federalism is best defined as
a type of federalism existing since the New Deal era, in which grants-in-aid have been used strategically to encourage states and localities to pursue nationally defined goals.
(Q019) If you form an opinion about a topic that you don't know much about, especially during a crisis and in response to your emotions, you are most likely behaving according to what?
affective intelligence
(Q019) The Bill of Rights eased concerns about
an overly powerful central government.
(Q020) In a federal system, power is distributed
between the state and national governments.
(Q016) Which type of grant provides the most control to state and local governments in the distribution of federal grants-in-aid?
block
(Q018) This clause in the Constitution makes it illegal for the state of Michigan to purposely discriminate against citizens in Michigan from the state of Georgia:
comity clause
(Q017) A power that is held by both the states and the national government (e.g., the power of taxation) best fits which of the following concepts?
concurrent power
(Q005) The method of securing, enacting, or maintaining the Constitution's principle of separation of powers is known as
checks and balances.
(Q012) Compared to federal preemption, which concept suggests that as states become more capable of administering large-scale programs, responsibility for policy should transfer from the federal government to states and localities?
devolution
(Q021) The process of amending the Constitution is __________, leading to a __________ proportion of proposed amendments succeeding.
difficult; very small
(Q007) What is the name of the clause that is understood to give Congress the power to pass any law that is necessary to carry out its expressed powers?
elastic clause
(Q011) What is the most important core value for liberals?
equality
(Q012) When using a simple random sample,
every individual in a population has an equal probability of being selected as a respondent.
Which of the following issues resulting specifically from the passage of the Affordable Care Act has been a hotly contested issue between states and the federal government? -benefits for partners in same-sex marriages -medical marijuana -expanded Medicaid coverage -benefits for undocumented immigrants
expanded Medicaid coverage
Which of the following statements on the average American's political knowledge is accurate? -generally high for local issues, but less so for national ones -higher among Republicans than Democrats -generally high -generally low
generally low
What occurs when electoral districts are drawn so that one group or party is unfairly advantaged?
gerrymandering
(Q002) A unitary system is a
government in which the national government holds the ultimate authority.
(Q013) Federal government shutdowns often occur when the House and Senate cannot agree on the national budget. Although many citizens view this as incompetence, the Founders would likely argue that
government shutdowns are a consequence of the necessary function of the theory of separation of powers and checks and balances that the Founders purposely put into the Constitution.
(Q014) Which of the following has been a key characteristic of federalism in the United States since the year 2000?
greater state initiative in the realm of immigration law and policy due to federal inaction
(Q009) The power delegated by a state to a local unit of government to manage its own affairs is known as
home rule.
(Q023) The power to charter national banks is an example of which type of power?
implied
(Q025) The necessary and proper clause (Article I, Section 8) of the U.S. Constitution is the source of which of the following powers?
implied
DeJonge v. Oregon (1937) and Everson v. Board of Education (1947) were significant Supreme Court cases because they
incorporated provisions of the Bill of Rights through the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
(Q020) The core component of the Virginia Plan was that
it provided for a system of representation in the national legislature based on the population of each state, the proportion of each state's revenue contribution to the national government, or both.
Alexander Hamilton opposed a bill of rights mainly because he believed that
it was unnecessary given that the federal government was given only a small set of explicitly delegated powers.
(Q017) If you were asked to advise on how to create a "living" constitution, which of the following judicial powers would you be most likely to recommend?
judicial review
In terms of combating racism, the NAACP had the MOST success with
lawsuits
(Q022) The religiously unaffiliated tend to be politically
liberal
(Q004) If your professor argues that government interferes with freedom of expression, free markets, and society, and thus should be as limited as possible, she is probably a
libertarian
(Q021) Online social networks such as Facebook and Twitter
likely increase the role of peers in shaping public opinion.
(Q010) Which of the following concepts best explains the underlying reason for the Bill of Rights? -separation of powers -rule by government -limited government -checks and balances
limited government
(Q020) Individuals in the black Americans viewing their individual political opinion and policy preferences through a filter of the larger black community is best exemplified by which concept?
linked fate
Congress strengthened voting rights in 1975 by
making literacy tests illegal and mandating bilingual ballots or other assistance for non-English-speaking Americans.
The Alien and Sedition Acts were laws
passed in the 1790s that made it a crime to say or publish anything that would defame the government of the United States.
(Q007) Political socialization is the process through which
political beliefs and values are formed.
(Q009) People with higher education, income, and occupational status and who are members of social or political organizations are likely to have higher
political knowledge.
The term eminent domain describes the
power of the government to seize private property for public use.
If a bank offers loans at rates well above market averages and does so with complex provisions that borrowers may not fully understand, it is often referred to as
predatory lending.
The Civil Rights Act of 1875 attempted to
protect former slaves from discrimination in public accommodations such as hotels and theaters.
(Q015) The term used to denote the attitudes that people have about political issues, events, institutions, and personalities is
public opinion.
(Q008) The full faith and credit clause
requires that each state's public actions and judicial proceedings be honored by the other states.
(Q019) If you are the governor of a state and you notice a unique situation that requires you to create a law that does not exist in the federal Constitution, the power to do so is allowed by which of the following concepts?
reserved power
Between 1971 and 1974, the Supreme Court
restricted its school desegregation and busing rulings to apply only to cities found guilty of deliberate and de jure racial segregation.
(Q016) In survey instruments, the method most likely to ensure that every individual in a population has an equal probability of being selected as a participant is known as a
simple random sample
(Q018) Which of the following political ideologies would argue that more government is necessary to promote justice and to reduce economic and social inequality, even to the point of collective government ownership?
socialism
(Q003) Families, social networks, education, religion beliefs, and the political environment can all be agents of
socialization
(Q021) Most of the rules and regulations Americans face in their daily lives are set by
state and local governments.
After World War II, which government institution first began drawing attention to the problem of racism in America?
the White House
(Q023) If you were an Antifederalist, which of the following would most concern you about the central government having too much power?
the elastic clause
The Lemon test involves what part of the Constitution?
the establishment clause
(Q006) The Tenth Amendment states that
the powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.
(Q014) The bandwagon effect has been particularly evinced in
the presidential nomination process.
Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) established the right
to legal counsel in felony cases.
(Q004) General revenue-sharing grants are a central component of the process of devolution, which is a policy
to remove a program from one level of government by delegating it or passing it down to a lower form of government.
(Q009) What type of tyranny did the Federalists fear the most?
tyranny of the majority
(Q022) Under the terms of the Great Compromise, the House of Representatives
was based on proportional representation.
(Q014) As a political value, individual liberty
was the most important value for the Constitution's authors.