Civics: American Government Final Exam
Course Introduction
Civics: American Government provides an in-depth exploration of the foundations, structure, and functions of the United States government. The course examines the principles of democracy, the Constitution, federalism, and the roles of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. Students will analyze how laws are made, the rights and responsibilities of citizens, and the importance of civic engagement in shaping national and local policies. Through historical and contemporary case studies, the course encourages critical thinking about the challenges facing American democracy and the role individuals play in supporting its institutions.
Recommended Textbook
American Government 13th Edition by
Walter E. Volkomer
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14 Chapters
841 Verified Questions
841 Flashcards
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Page 2
Chapter 1: Politics, Democracy, and the American People
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58 Verified Questions
58 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) According to German sociologist Max Weber, legitimacy in politics can be derived through the use of force.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
Q2) An example of a civil liberty is the freedom to worship or not worship as one chooses.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q3) Presently, African-Americans are the largest minority group.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
Q4) The United States is primarily a direct democracy.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
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Chapter 2: From Colonialism to Constitutionalism
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Sample Questions
Q1) What is the importance of the fraction three-fifths when discussing the compromises made between states during the Philadelphia Convention?
A)A slave would be worth three-fifths of a full vote for purposes of allocating seats in the House of Representatives.
B)Congress would need a three-fifths majority to overturn a presidential veto.
C)A candidate would need three-fifths of the popular vote to be elected president.
D)A three-fifths majority of the delegates would be needed to approve the Constitution.
E)A president could be impeached with three-fifths majorities in each house of Congress.
Answer: A
Q2) The theory of state sovereignty was the impetus behind the writing of the U.S.Constitution.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
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Chapter 3: The Federal System
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Sample Questions
Q1) Federal aid to the states
A)fluctuated tremendously during the Clinton administration.
B)has decreased dramatically since the Bush administration.
C)has decreased since the Reagan administration.
D)has increased since the Reagan administration.
E)has remained relatively stable throughout much of the nation's history.
Answer: D
Q2) Under the U.S.Constitution, the powers of the states are referred to as delegated powers.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
Q3) The Supreme Court case McCulloch v.Maryland (1819)
A)set a precedent for a broad interpretation of the implied powers of Congress.
B)set a precedent for expanded state powers in the United States.
C)broadly construed the expressed powers interpretation for Congress.
D)limited Congress in the application of implied powers.
E)limited the ability of states to enter into treaties with foreign nations.
Answer: A
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Page 5
Chapter 4: Public Opinion and the Mass Media
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Sample Questions
Q1) As a reflection of the fast pace at which campaigns mirror society, the average length of a political sound bite decreased from 42.3 seconds in 1968 to approximately ________ in today.
A)3 seconds
B)10 seconds
C)20 seconds
D)30 seconds
E)14 seconds
Q2) State the differences between the various roles of the news media.How has the media performed these roles? Explain.
Q3) Television advertising is essential in today's campaigns. In fact, television advertising accounts for how much of the budget in a typical statewide campaign?
A)10 percent
B)two-thirds
C)one-half
D)practically all
E)20 percent
Q4) Discuss how the emergence of blogs and the Internet has affected the idea of "media bias."
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Chapter 5: Political Parties and Interest Groups
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following has NOT been a factor in the growth of interest groups?
A)economic specialization
B)an aging population
C)the success of established interest groups
D)federalism
E)separation of powers
Q2) Which of the following is NOT an organization that primarily serves the interests of farmers?
A)National Grange
B)American Farm Bureau Federation
C)Common Cause
D)National Farmers' Union
E)National Apple Institute
Q3) Interest groups frequently have more success lobbying the president than they do lobbying individual members of Congress.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Summarize the main efforts made to limit the power of interest groups and assess their effectiveness.
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Chapter 6: Nominations and Elections
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Sample Questions
Q1) One analyst of American voting behavior has commented that more than 50 percent of American children grow up in households where neither parent votes.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Most recent proposals for revising the method for electing the president and the vice president call for replacing the Electoral College system with proportional voting.
A)True
B)False
Q3) The Democratic party system of apportioning national convention delegates among state parties favors the A)states with early primaries.
B)states with caucuses.
C)most heavily populated states.
D)least heavily populated states.
E)rural states.
Q4) It is clear that present campaign finance laws are very effective. A)True B)False
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Page 8
Chapter 7: Congress
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Sample Questions
Q1) The first committee to review a tax bill is the
A)House Rules Committee.
B)House Budget Committee.
C)Ways and Means Committee of the House of Representatives.
D)Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives.
E)Select Committee on Taxation and Finance.
Q2) Why did Presidents Bush and Obama increase government spending in the late 2000s?
A)to reduce the budget deficit
B)to reduce taxes
C)because authorizations and appropriations from Congress required them to D)to stimulate the economy and calm the financial and housing industries
E)to because the Supreme Court issued an opinion ordering them to
Q3) Tax bills can originate in either the House or the Senate.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Who would you say has been more successful in exercising power in the areas of budgetary spending and military affairs, Congress or the president? Explain.Make sure you discuss relevant events and laws.
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Chapter 8: The Chief Executive
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Sample Questions
Q1) The president's power to send and receive ambassadors illustrates his role as
A)chief legislator.
B)chief diplomat.
C)chief administrator.
D)commander-in-chief.
E)party leader.
Q2) The Constitution states that a presidential candidate must have lived in this country at least 14 years and must be at least fifty years old.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Which president is said to have invented the White House press conference?
A)Thomas Jefferson
B)Grover Cleveland
C)Warren Harding
D)Theodore Roosevelt
E)Richard Nixon
Q4) The judicial branch of government is one source of control over the president.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 9: The Federal Bureaucracy
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Sample Questions
Q1) Under what circumstances is deregulation most likely to occur? What factors have stopped deregulation, and what trend is likely in the future? Explain.
Q2) Which is the most important source of bureaucratic power: size, expertise, the agency/committee/interest group triangle, or the delegation of power by Congress? Why? Explain and give examples to support your views.
Q3) How many executive or cabinet departments are there in the U.S.government?
A)6
B)15
C)25
D)38
E)104
Q4) The institution charged with managing the nation's monetary policy, usually through setting of interest rates, is the
A)General Accounting Office.
B)Federal Reserve.
C)National Records Service.
D)Department of the Treasury.
E)Council of Economic Advisors.
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Chapter 10: The Judiciary
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Sample Questions
Q1) U.S.District Courts have both original and appellate jurisdiction.
A)True
B)False
Q2) In Federalist Paper No.78, Alexander Hamilton argues that the judiciary is the branch of government least likely to threaten liberty or property.Judge whether Hamilton's argument is still valid today.
Q3) Which one of the following is true of the U.S.Supreme Court's jurisdiction?
A)it is both original and appellate
B)it is appellate only
C)it is original only
D)it is advisory only
E)it is dual and advisory
Q4) Which type of law dates back to medieval England?
A)common law
B)statutory law a
C)constitutional law
D)administrative law
E)regulatory law
Q5) Explain the role of standing within the context of the adversary system.
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Chapter 11: Civil Liberties
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Sample Questions
Q1) The Supreme Court formally recognized the right of association for the first time in the case of
A)Branzburg v.Hayes.
B)Miller v.California.
C)NAACP v.Alabama.
D)The New York Times Co.v.Sullivan.
E) Mapp v.Ohio
Q2) Which of the following protections is NOT afforded by the First Amendment?
A)freedom of speech and press
B)freedom from an establishment of religion
C)freedom of assembly
D)the right to petition the government for a redress of grievance
E)the right to counsel
Q3) What was the first major test of the Smith Act?
A)Engel v.Vitale
B)Miller v.California
C)Brandenburg v.Ohio
D)Dennis v.United States
E)Mapp v.Ohio
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Page 13
Chapter 12: Civil Rights
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Sample Questions
Q1) The level of analysis that falls somewhere between the tests of substantiality and strict scrutiny is referred to as "skeptical scrutiny".
A)True
B)False
Q2) Which one of the following is an example of de facto segregation?
A)Jim Crow laws
B)poll taxes
C)literacy tests
D)Grandfather clause
E)housing patterns and decisions of private citizens
Q3) The Casey decision overruled Roe v.Wade.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Compare and contrast de facto and de jure segregation.Are efforts by the government to eradicate de facto segregation appropriate, in your opinion? Why or why not?
Q5) In your opinion, which has had the greater impact in ending segregation in public schools, the Supreme Court's decision in Brown v.Board of Education (1954) or the Civil Rights Act of 1964? Explain.
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Chapter 13: Public Policy: What Government Does
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Sample Questions
Q1) What are the two broad sets of tools for managing the economy?
A)fiscal policy and monetary policy
B)economic development policy and economic regulatory policy
C)monetary policy and economic development policy
D)fiscal policy and economic regulatory policy
E)foreign policy and domestic policy
Q2) The preventive approach to social welfare is based on the assumption that individuals are poor because of their own moral and character defects.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Within the context of policy making, public opinion is an example of A)past policies
B)environmental factors
C)ideological conflict
D)budgetary conflict
E)foreign policy
Q4) Differentiate between fiscal policy and monetary policy.Which one of the two approaches is more appropriate, in your view? Explain.
Q5) Evaluate the efforts to reform welfare and their effectiveness.
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Chapter 14: Foreign Policy
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which one of the following has social science research found with respect to democracies and war?
A)Democracies do not go to war.
B)Democracies go to war only against other democracies.
C)Democracies are more willing to wage war against nondemocratic states.
D)Democracies go to war only against terrorists.
E)Democracies do not go to war unilaterally.
Q2) Compared to President Wilson's utopian liberalism, contemporary liberals are more A)progressive.
B)pompous.
C)pacifistic.
D)pragmatic.
E)selective.
Q3) Discuss the two competing theories of international relations and explain how each has influenced U.S.foreign policy.
Q4) Describe the governmental sources of American foreign policy.
Q5) Based upon the major theories, recurring themes, and traditional influences on U.S.foreign policy, what approach do you see U.S.policy pursuing in the future, and why? Explain.
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