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100


Until the Constitution was ratified, the document that established and defined the government of the United States was the

  1. Declaration of Independence

  2. Bill of Rights

  3. Mayflower Compact

  4. Articles of Confederation

  5. Treaty of Friendship and Unity


Articles of Confederation

100


Which statement correctly describes political socialization?

  1. Political socialization motivates citizens to become active in politics.

  2. Political socialization tends to produce citizens more inclined to accept socialistic programs as they get older.

  3. Political socialization is a continuing process in which the adult years are the most important.

  4. Political socialization is the term used to describe the growth of entitlement programs.

  5. Political socialization is the process through which individuals develop their political values and beliefs.


Political socialization is the process through which individuals develop their political values and beliefs.

100


The main function of the president’s cabinet is

  1. to put together the federal budget and submit it to Congress

  2. to write federal regulations

  3. to provide advice to the president

  4. to provide leadership in the event the president is unable to

    perform his duties

  5. to provide information regarding proposed legislation by testi-

    fying before Congress


3. to provide advice to the president

100


Which statement best describes American political culture?

  1. The dominant political culture depends on which political party is in power.

  2. Due to its ethnic diversity, there are different political cultures in the United States.

  3. American political culture is a melting pot of different political ideals from around the world.

  4. Liberals and conservatives in the United States have different political cultures.

  5. The American political culture is comprised of beliefs—such as individual rights, majority rule, and limited government—that are shared by virtually all Americans.


The American political culture is comprised of beliefs—such as individual rights, majority rule, and limited government—that are shared by virtually all Americans.

100


Which one of the following groups is MOST likely to participate in

an election?

  1. African Americans

  2. people with college degrees

  3. Hispanic voters

  4. people under age 35

  5. people in households with below-average income


people with college degrees

200


Which of the following is a clause of the Constitution that gives the federal government broad powers in many policy areas?

  1. Interstate Commerce Clause

  2. Tenth Amendment

  3. Free-Exercise Clause

  4. Establishment Clause

  5. Fiscal Federalism Clause


Interstate Commerce Clause

200


The House of Representatives and the Senate are most similar to each other in

  1. the checks they have on the power of the president

  2. the way they select their presiding officer

  3. the number of members they have

  4. the power standing committees have in the legislative process

  5. the power of the Rules Committee to set the rules for floor

    debate


the checks they have on the power of the president

200


Which of the following actions of the president has no basis in the

Constitution?

  1. issuing executive orders

  2. serving as leader of his political party

  3. stationing U.S. troops at bases abroad

  4. negotiating free trade agreements with other countries

  5. proposing legislation to Congress


issuing executive orders

200


The Supreme Court’s decision in Texas v. Johnson, which overturned

a state law against flag-burning, was based on

  1. the First Amendment right to peacefully assemble to protest

  2. The Free-Exercise Clause of the First Amendment

  3. the First Amendment right of freedom of speech

  4. the restrictions on search and seizure of the Fourth Amendment

  5. the establishment clause of the First Amendment


the First Amendment right of freedom of speech

200


What is an open seat in a congressional election?

  1. a seat in a congressional district that is evenly divided between Republican and Democratic voters, making it likely that either party could win

  2. a seat in which redistricting has redefined the district’s bound- aries in a way to make it unfavorable to the reelection of the incumbent

  3. a seat for which there is no incumbent running

  4. a seat where the incumbent has been accused of a crime and is

    unlikely to win reelection

  5. a seat where the incumbent belongs to a different party than

    the majority of his/her constituents


a seat for which there is no incumbent running

300


The Supreme Court’s power of judicial review was established by

  1. the Bill of Rights

  2. the Constitution

  3. the Court’s decision in Griswold v. Connecticut

  4. the Court’s decision in Marbury v. Madison

  5. the Court’s decision in Gibbons v. Ogden


the Court’s decision in Marbury v. Madison

300


Which of the following give(s) a reason why the power of the federal government has grown relative to state governments?

I. the devolution of power

II. the conditional funding the federal government can provide to state governments

III. the growth of interstate commerce
IV. the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution

  1. statement I only

  2. statements II and IV only

  3. statements III and IV only

  4. statements II, III, and IV only

  5. statements I, II, III, and IV


statements II, III, and IV only

300


Which of the statements below best describes reapportionment?

  1. the redrawing of congressional districts by the House of Rep- resentatives based on a new census

  2. the redrawing of congressional districts by state governments based on a new census

  3. the reallocation of seats in the Senate and House of Represen- tatives based on a new census

  4. the reallocation of seats in the House of Representatives to the states based on a new census

  5. the reallocation of seats on committees in the House of Rep- resentatives and the Senate between the two parties based on the most recent election.


4. the reallocation of seats in the House of Representatives to the states based on a new census

300


Which of the following is an independent federal regulatory agency?

  1. U.S. Postal Service (USPS)

  2. FBI

  3. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

  4. Department of Veterans Affairs

  5. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA)


Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

300


Which of the following outcomes are NOT possible in the Electoral College system?

  1. The Electoral College could choose a president who did not have the most electoral votes.

  2. The House of Representatives could choose the president.

  3. The Electoral College could choose a president who did not get

    the most votes of the people.

  4. The Electoral College could choose a president who did not

    win the most states.

  5. Some electors could vote for a third-party candidate for president.


The Electoral College could choose a president who did not have the most electoral votes.

400


Which of the following is a concurrent power in the American sys-

tem of federalism?

  1. the power to make treaties with foreign governments

  2. the power to levy taxes

  3. the power to make monetary policy

  4. the power to establish local governments (cities, counties,

    school districts, etc.)

  5. the power to regulate interstate commerce


the power to levy taxes

400


A filibuster occurs when

  1. a majority of either the House of Representatives or the Senate support a bill but cannot get the two-thirds majority needed for cloture to end debate and vote

  2. the Senate and House cannot agree on final language for legis- lation both houses have passed in different versions, and debate continues endlessly

  3. the president announces he will veto a bill, but a group of sena- tors keep the bill alive by continuing to debate it

  4. a senator or small group of senators want to draw public atten- tion to bill so it will gain support and pass

  5. a majority the Senate supports a bill, but the majority is not large enough to produce the 60 votes needed to end debate on the bill in the Senate


a majority the Senate supports a bill, but the majority is not large enough to produce the 60 votes needed to end debate on the bill in the Senate

400


What role does Congress play in amending the Constitution?

  1. Congress submits amendments to the states for their approval.

  2. Congress approves or rejects amendments supported by two-

    thirds of the states.

  3. The Senate approves proposed amendments by a two-thirds

    vote, but the House plays little role in the process.

  4. Congress passes amendments by a two-thirds vote, sending

    them to the president for his signature or veto.

  5. Congress plays no formal role; the Constitution is amended by

    the states.


1. Congress submits amendments to the states for their approval.

400


While the practice of separate schools for black and white students was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in Brown v. Board of Education (1954), segregation in restaurants, stores, hotels, and other public accommodations remained legal until

  1. the Supreme Court’s decision in Loving v. Virginia (1967)

  2. the ratification of the Twenty-Fourth Amendment (1964)

  3. the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

  4. state legislatures eventually changed the laws permitting

    segregation

  5. President Lyndon Johnson issued an executive order ending all

    segregation by race


President Lyndon Johnson issued an executive order ending all

segregation by race

400


Which is a reason the power of the two major parties is in decline in the United States?

  1. The number of people voting for third parties has risen sharply.

  2. In most states, parties no longer select the candidates for the

    general election.

  3. Parties no longer have state and local organizations.

  4. Parties no longer conduct get-out-the-vote drives.

  5. Candidates now raise most of their campaign funds themselves

    and do not heavily rely on funds from their party.


Candidates now raise most of their campaign funds themselves

and do not heavily rely on funds from their party.

500


Which of the following statements is NOT true of the Supreme

Court’s decision in McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)?

  1. It held that state governments could pass a law negating a federal law within their boundaries if they believed the federal law was unconstitutional.

  2. It confirmed the supremacy of the federal government over state governments.

  3. It determined that states could not levy taxes on federal gov- ernment operations.

  4. It interpreted the “necessary and proper” powers clause of the Constitution to mean that the federal government has implied powers not specifically stated in the Constitution.

  5. It upheld the constitutionality of the national bank established by the federal government.


It held that state governments could pass a law negating a federal law within their boundaries if they believed the federal law was unconstitutional.

500


Which of the following is NOT a check on the power of the president that the Constitution gives Congress?

  1. Congress can pass a law the president has vetoed.

  2. Congress can reject the president’s selections of people to fill

    key positions in the Executive Office of the President.

  3. Congress can reject a treaty the president has negotiated.

  4. Congress can refuse to fund a program the president supports.

  5. Congress can reject the president’s nominees for federal judges.


2. Congress can reject the president’s selections of people to fill

key positions in the Executive Office of the President.

500


What new interpretation of the Constitution did the Supreme Court

use in District of Columbia v. Heller?

  1. The Second Amendment prohibits state and federal governments from requiring the registration of firearms.

  2. Federal and state laws restricting some people, such as convicted felons from purchasing guns, violate the Second Amendment.

  3. The wording of the Second Amendment means that the consti- tutional right to gun ownership applies only to people serving in a state militia.

  4. The Second Amendment contains a constitutional right to gun ownership irrespective of service in a state militia.

  5. The right of privacy implied in the Bill of Rights extends to carrying of guns in public places.


4. The Second Amendment contains a constitutional right to gun ownership irrespective of service in a state militia.

500


The decision of the Supreme Court in Roe v. Wade was based on

  1. the Free-Exercise Clause of the First Amendment

  2. the right to privacy stated in the Bill of Rights

  3. the right to privacy implied in the Bill of Rights

  4. the right to privacy established in Lawrence v. Texas

  5. the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment


3. the right to privacy implied in the Bill of Rights

500


The main reason why the popular vote and the electoral vote for

president may be very different is

  1. the prevalence of horse-trading and corruption in American politics

  2. the candidates focus their campaigns only on a few swing states

  3. small states have more power in the Electoral College than

    their population would merit

  4. electors often switch votes to vote for the winning candidate to

    gain political influence and advance their careers

  5. the winner-take-all system most states use in selecting electors


the winner-take-all system most states use in selecting electors