American Government: Texas Emphasis Exam Review
Course Introduction
This course offers a comprehensive exploration of the fundamental principles, structures, and functions of American government with a specialized focus on Texas. Students examine the U.S. Constitution, federalism, civil rights, and political participation, while also analyzing the unique features of Texas government, including its constitution, legislative process, executive branch, judiciary, and local government structure. The course emphasizes historical context, the evolution of Texass political culture, and current public policy issues affecting the state, enabling students to understand how national and state governments interact and impact citizens daily lives in Texas.
Recommended Textbook
Texas Politics 2015 2016 13th Edition by Charldean Newell
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Chapter 1: The Context of Texas Politics
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Q1) Which ideological philosophy has dominated Texas politics since the end of the Civil War?
A)conservatism
B)liberalism
C)socialism
D)communism
E)totalitarianism
Answer: A
Q2) In which political culture are citizens more likelytobelieve that the state and the nation are designed to further the shared interests of everyone?
A)moralistic
B)traditionalistic
C)individualistic
D)idealistic
E)fatalistic
Answer: A
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Page 3
Chapter 2: The Constitutional Setting
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Q1) Carpetbaggers would have hadthe most influence in the drafting of which state constitution?
A)Radical Reconstruction Constitution
B)Reconstruction Constitution
C)Civil War Constitution
D)Republic Constitution
E)Current Constitution
Answer: A
Q2) Which of these is not an issue generally focused on by those who advocate reform of the Texas Constitution?
A)biennial legislative sessions
B)excessive detail in the constitution
C)the plural executive branch
D)weak county governments
E)reducing the flexibility in how one interprets the constitution
Answer: E
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Chapter 3: Interest Groups
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Q1) Which of these is not a way that interest groups can enhance democratic governance?
A)pursue a public policy outcome that benefits private interests
B)supply information to citizens
C)contribute to debates about issues
D)encourage people to get more involved in politics
E)change the established order by influencing institutions
Answer: A
Q2) This group's success in passing 90 percent of the legislative agenda it has sponsored indicates it is now arguably the most effective interest group in Texas.
A)Texas AFL-CIO
B)Texas Trial Lawyers Association
C)Texas Medical Association
D)Texas State Teachers Association
E)Christian Coalition
Answer: C
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Chapter 4: Political Parties
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Q1) Which statement about White Protestants is true?
A)They are more likely to stressindividual responsibilitythangovernment responsibility for people.
B)They are more likely to support for increased communitarian responsibility for people instead of individual responsibility.
C)They are less likelythan Roman Catholics to stress individual responsibility.
D)They are more likely to support increased government responsibility for people over individual responsibility.
E)They are more likely than Hispanics to stress government responsibility.
Q2) Which of these was a consequence of the one-party system that existed in Texas until the 1970s?
A)Voter turnout was very low.
B)Elections were decided in the Democratic primary.
C)Party labels told voters little about the ideology of candidates.
D)Parties were unable to overcome the constitutional fragmentation of power.
E)Lyndon Baines Johnson
Q3) Cross-Chapter Questions (Chapters 4 and 13): What role do partisanship and ideology play in Texas's taxing and spending decisions?
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Chapter 5: Voting,campaigns,and Elections
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Q1) Which statement about the present system of voter registration in Texas is not correct?
A)The voter must register in person unless ill or disabled.
B)A parent, child, or spouse who is registered may register for the voter.
C)The voter remains registered as long as he or she remains qualified.
D)The voter may register at any time.
E)The voter is eligible to vote if registered thirty days prior to the election.
Q2) The Federal Election Campaign Act of 1972 limited contributions by individuals to no more than _____ in each primary or general election campaign for federal office.
A)$1,000
B)$2,000
C)$5,000
D)$7,500
E)$10,000
Q3) How might a Texas primary election trigger a runoff election?
Q4) Cross-Chapter Essay Question (Chapters 4 and 5): Explain what we mean when we say that Texas has tough ballot access laws for third parties.How might these laws affect or complicate voter turnout in Texas?
Q5) How did the enforcement of poll taxes lower voter registration?
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Chapter 6: The Texas Legislature
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Q1) Historically,the Texas legislature has been dominated by which of these?
A)rural, conservative Democrats
B)urban, liberal Democrats
C)rural, conservative Republicans
D)urban, liberal Republicans
E)none of these; there has been no obvious dominance
Q2) Regular legislative sessions in Texas,which take place every other year,last for how many days?
A)70
B)140
C)210
D)280
E)350
Q3) Which body was created in 1949 to provide research and technical services to Texas legislators?
A)Legislative Budget Board
B)Legislative Budget Office
C)Legislative Audit Committee
D)Texas Legislative Council
E)Texas Education Board
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Chapter 7: The Governor
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Questions
Q1) The Texas Constitution provides that its governoris the chief intergovernmental diplomat,which means that the governor is the state's representative in all dealings with_____.
A)the national government
B)other states
C)all cities and counties in Texas
D)the national government, other states, and all cities and counties in Texas
E)the national government and other states
Q2) As of 2009,the annual salary of the Texas governor was set at _____.
A)$91,000
B)$150,000
C)$292,225
D)$334,456
E)$410,700
Q3) Discuss the nature of the plural executive in Texas.How does the plural executive affect and/or limit the governor's ability to govern? Explain your answer.
Q4) Discuss the major factors that limit the Texas governor's ability to function effectively as chief executive.Despite these limits,governors can be effective in supervising the executive branch.Explain how.
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Chapter 8: The Administrative State
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Q1) Which of these might tempt some administrators toward inappropriate bureaucratic behavior?
A)extremely strongly interest groups,the handicapped legislature, and the lack of a whistle-blowing law in Texas
B)weaknesses in the governor's office, lack of hierarchical control within the agency, and the lack of a whistle-blowing law in Texas
C)extremely strongly interest groups, weaknesses in the governor's office, and the handicapped legislature
D)the handicapped legislature, lack of hierarchical control within the agency, and the lack of a whistle-blowing law in Texas
E)extremely strongly interest groups, weaknesses in the governor's office, and lack of hierarchical control within the agency
Q2) Sources of bureaucratic power include all of these except _____.
A)gubernatorial support
B)technical expertise
C)agency leadership
D)sunset laws
E)merit-based personnel systems
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Chapter 9: The Judiciary
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Q1) In what wayare social and fiscal conservatives in Texasat odds over how to deal with crime?
A)Social conservatives want to punish criminals harshly, but fiscal conservatives object to the expense oflong prison sentences.
B)Fiscal conservatives prefer alternative sentencing to avoid the high cost of building and maintaining prisons.
C)Both social and fiscal conservatives believe that more money should be spent on punishing criminals, but they disagree on how to spend the money.
D)Social conservatives want to punish criminals harshly, but fiscal conservatives object to the expense of long prison sentences and prefer alternative sentencing to avoid the high cost of building and maintaining prisons.
E)All of these are ways in which social and fiscal conservatives are at odds.
Q2) Probate courts,whichhandle wills and estates,are foundat which level?
A)appellate
B)district
C)county
D)justice of the peace
E)municipal
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Chapter 10: The Substance of Justice
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Q1) In the case of _____,the Texas Department of Corrections (TDC)was found to be guilty of cruel and unusual punishment in the administration of the state's prison system.
A)Ruiz v. Estelle
B)Edgewood v. Kirby
C)Engel v. Vitale
D)Smith v. Allwright
E)Roe v. Wade
Q2) "Hate crimes" legislation _____.
A)was not passed in Texas due to substantial opposition
B)applies to first-degree and capital murder cases
C)increased penalties for crimes motivated by hostility to race, religion, gender, and sexual orientation
D)was rejected because the law would be punishing the thought behind the crime rather than the crime itself
E)none of these
Q3) Discuss the impact the tort reform movement has had on Texas consumers,businesses,and courts.Describe one scenario where citizens might be affected adversely by tort reform and another where they might benefit from tort reform.
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Chapter 11: Local Government
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Q1) Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the council-manager and the mayor-council forms of city government.What form of city government is preferable?Explain.
Q2) Councils of government (COGs)function as _____.
A)planning and coordinating bodies for local governments
B)state "watchdogs" to monitor local governments
C)federal "watchdogs" to monitor local governments
D)policymaking boards for special districts
E)councils of county judges that make decisions formetropolitan statistical areas
Q3) What is the result of county governments' lack of ordinance power?
A)the inability to regulate land use
B)the difficulty of guarding against developers who pollute
C)thedifficulty of regulating developers' use of roads
D)the difficulties of guarding against developers who pollute and of regulating developers' use of roads
E)the inability to regulate land use and the difficulties of guarding against developers who pollute and of regulating developers' use of roads
Q4) What is the ETJ?Why is annexationimportant for city governments?
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Page 13
Chapter 12: The State Economy and the Financing of State Government
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Q1) In 1991,in order to increase state revenue,voters in Texas approved _____.
A)a state general sales tax
B)charging tuition for the first time for students to attend state universities
C)the Texas income tax
D)the Texas lottery
E)high cigarette and alcohol taxes
Q2) Describe the process of budgeting and appropriating funds for government programs in Texas.Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the dual-budgeting system as it operates in Texas.
Q3) Since 1977,the percentage of money spent by the state on highway expenditures has _____.
A)increased dramatically, as aging highways have needed to be replaced
B)increased, but only narrowly
C)remained almost exactly the same
D)declined, but only narrowly
E)declined dramatically, resulting in the state having many poorly maintained roads
Q4) Discuss the likelihood that Texas will adopt a personal income tax in the near future.What are the arguments for and against the state's adoption of a personal income tax?
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Chapter 13: Public Policy: People
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Q1) Which of these isnot a problem facing the education system in Texas?
A)The number of economically disadvantaged students, whichcontinues to grow within every ethnic group, has risen to 60 percent of all students.
B)Texas ranks dead last among the states, with about 80 percent of its population holding high school degrees, comparedto 85 percentnationally.
C)In Texas, the public school system continues to grow, averaging 1.9 percent growth each year, a rate nearly four times the growth of public schools nationwide.
D)More than 800,000 Texas students have limited proficiency in the English language.
E)Texas needs alarge numbers of teachers, and their high salaries and benefits drain the funding for education.
Q2) In Texas,programs to help needy citizens are funded _____.
A)primarily with federal dollars supplemented by state funds
B)primarily with state dollars supplemented by federal funds
C)with state money only
D)with federal money only
E)very generously
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Chapter 14: Public Policy: Resources
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Q1) What is meant by the term renewables?
A)the contracts that consumers have with energy companies to deliver the consumers' electricity
B)sources of energy that come directly from nature, such as power from wind and the sun
C)a renewed debate between citizens as to the environmental impact of oil and natural gas
D)nuclear power
E)the continuing damage done to land and water from fracking
Q2) Cross-Chapter Essay Question (Chapters 1 and 14): Explain how Texas's political culture influences Texas's choices regarding fossil fuels and renewable energy.
Q3) What term is used for the concept that underground water is more or less completely controlled by the person who owns the land above the water?
A)rule of capture
B)principle of private authority
C)right of eminent domain
D)Ogallala Aquifer rule
E)right of habeas corpus
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