Civics
Pre-Test Questions
Course Introduction
Civics is the study of the rights and responsibilities of citizens within a society, focusing on the structures and functions of government, the rule of law, and the participation of individuals in civic life. This course covers foundational principles such as democracy, citizenship, and the Constitution, as well as the roles of various government branches and agencies. Students will explore how policies are made, the importance of civic engagement, and strategies for contributing positively to their communities. Through case studies, discussions, and practical exercises, learners gain a comprehensive understanding of how civic processes impact daily life and how to actively participate in shaping public policy.
Recommended Textbook
American Politics Today Essentials 5th Edition by William T. Bianco
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11 Chapters
952 Verified Questions
952 Flashcards
Source URL: https://quizplus.com/study-set/2462 Page 2
Chapter 1: Understanding American Politics
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71 Verified Questions
71 Flashcards
Source URL: https://quizplus.com/quiz/48893
Sample Questions
Q1) Collective action problems
A)are very rare in modern society.
B)are very common in modern society.
C)are rare in the field of education.
D)only occur in modern dictatorships.
Answer: B
Q2) Cultural and moral values garner attention because
A)Democrats and Republicans largely agree on economic issues.
B)interest groups and activists attempt to keep cultural and moral issues at the top of the policy agenda.
C)recent presidential election outcomes, such as in 2008, were determined largely by cultural and moral issues.
D)cultural and moral issues are relatively new, only becoming important in the twenty-first century.
Answer: B
Q3) Politics rarely involves overt conflict.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
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Page 3
Chapter 2: The Constitution and the Founding
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88 Verified Questions
88 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The Antifederalists argued that the power of ________ was "a political error of the greatest magnitude."
A)the purse
B)the sword
C)the veto
D)declaring war
Answer: C
Q2) Among the president's powers are the power to pass the federal budget, the ability to recognize representatives from other countries, and the responsibility for executing the law.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
Q3) The framers viewed ________ as the first branch of government.
A)the citizens
B)the Supreme Court
C)the president
D)Congress
Answer: D
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Page 4
Chapter 3: Federalism
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91 Verified Questions
91 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which one of the following is an advantage of giving states flexibility in making policy instead of federal officials imposing policy?
A)State-elected officials are more civil and reasonable toward one another than are members of the U.S.Congress.
B)It allows states to compete for business, meaning they will have stronger regulation.
C)It allows for policy experimentation, providing new ideas about how to solve problems.
D)State officials tend to care more about the average person.
Answer: C
Q2) Which part of the Constitution emphasizes a state-centered perspective?
A)Fifth Amendment
B)commerce clause
C)forging treaties with foreign nations
D)amending the U.S.Constitution
Answer: D
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Chapter 4: Civil Liberties
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82 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The Bill of Rights was created at the Constitutional Convention because the Federalists feared excessive government power.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Which one of the following statements is accurate with regard to money in federal campaigns?
A)Candidates in federal elections are not subject to limits on contributions they receive directly from citizens.
B)Candidates for the presidency are limited in how much of their own money they can lend to their campaign.
C)Candidates in federal elections only have to report contributions $5,000 or higher to the Federal Election Commission.
D)The justices of the Supreme Court have attempted to balance First Amendment rights of candidates and their supporters with the public interest in honest and ethical elections.
Q3) What is the right to privacy? Why are privacy rights typically controversial?
Q4) Define the establishment and free exercise clauses.What did Thomas Jefferson believe in regard to these two clauses?
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6
Chapter 5: Civil Rights
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85 Verified Questions
85 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The Stonewall Inn
A)is associated with the gay rights movement.
B)is associated with the women's movement.
C)is associated with the environmental movement.
D)is associated with the plight of Latinos in the United States.
Q2) Which one of the following is accurate with regard to immigration policy?
A)President George W.Bush did not support any immigration proposals during his time in office.
B)President Barack Obama did not support any immigration proposals during his time in office.
C)Immigration policy has not been controversial in recent decades.
D)Immigration policy has been controversial in recent decades.
Q3) The Civil War amendments banned the most important practices associated with slavery and guaranteed equal protection under the law.
A)True
B)False
Q4) What is affirmative action and when did it begin? Is Regents of the University of California v.Bakke still the law of the land?
Q5) What is the rational basis test and why is it important?
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Chapter 10: Congress
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90 Verified Questions
90 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) How does constituency size differ between the U.S.House and the U.S.Senate?
Q2) Why is the filibuster an important legislative strategy for the minority party?
A)It forces every member of the Senate to speak about the bill.
B)It gives the majority party time to change key provisions in the bill before the vote.
C)It allows the minority party to stop legislation with as few as 50 votes.
D)It allows the minority party to stop legislation with as few as 41 votes.
Q3) Substantive representation
A)focuses on demographics.
B)focuses on appearances.
C)focuses on public policy issues.
D)focuses on political charisma.
Q4) Logrolling
A)never occurs in Congress.
B)occurs when members of Congress support a bill in exchange for another member's vote on a bill that is important to them.
C)is common in the U.S.House but never occurs in the U.S.Senate.
D)was banned in Congress in 2011.
Q5) What is seniority and why is it so important in Congress?
Q6) What are omnibus bills in the legislative process?
Page 8
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Chapter 11: The Presidency
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88 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Executive privilege is an absolute power under the Constitution.
A)True
B)False
Q2) According to the Constitution, what is the vice president's job?
A)to vote on legislation in the Senate throughout the legislative session
B)to ensure the president's policy vision is being implemented
C)to preside over the Senate
D)to attend state functions
Q3) When is a signing statement issued?
A)when a president vetoes a bill
B)when a president signs a pardon
C)when a president signs a bill
D)when a president signs an affidavit for a legal case
Q4) A president can pardon
A)only a person convicted of a nonviolent offense.
B)only a person convicted of a state crime.
C)any person except someone convicted of treason.
D)any person except someone impeached or convicted by Congress.
Q5) What role do presidents play in the legislative process? Explain.
Q6) What role do vice presidents play in American politics?
Page 9
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Chapter 12: The Bureaucracy
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90 Verified Questions
90 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) ________ was NOT part of the bureaucracy in early American history.
A)The Department of the Treasury
B)The Department of War
C)The Department of Education
D)The Department of State
Q2) The ________ occurs when an individual or a group acts on behalf of another.
A)control game
B)discretionary game
C)principal-agent game
D)regulatory capture game
Q3) What accounts for the overwhelming majority of federal spending?
A)education, interest on the debt, and foreign aid
B)defense, health care, and Social Security
C)diplomacy, unemployment, and infrastructure
D)crime prevention, agriculture, and environmental protection
Q4) One of the reasons regulations are controversial is because they require bureaucrats to choose between policy goals that are often incompatible.
A)True
B)False
Q5) Explain how federal employees are limited in their political activities.
Page 10
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Chapter 13: The Courts
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Sample Questions
Q1) At least 95 percent of cases that arrive to the Supreme Court come through A)a writ of certiorari.
B)certification.
C)original jurisdiction.
D)the requirement of mootness.
Q2) Common law is a system by which a court
A)ensures that both parties to a case have lawyers and share evidence.
B)makes legal decisions on the basis of earlier decisions by other courts.
C)provides a detailed codification of the law.
D)hears special cases involving enemy combatants and matters related to national security.
Q3) What is the strategic model to understanding Supreme Court decisions?
Q4) What is the jurisdiction of a court?
Q5) When the Supreme Court justices interpret a law passed by Congress, they are engaged in
A)constitutional review.
B)judicial review.
C)statutory interpretation.
D)congressional oversight.
Q6) Distinguish between judicial activism and judicial restraint.
Page 11
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Chapter 14: Economic and Social Policy
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95 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The ________ was the name given to a group of government-sponsored social and economic programs developed by Franklin Roosevelt to combat the Great Depression.
A)New Deal
B)Great Society
C)1934 Stimulus Package
D)War on Poverty
Q2) State governments
A)have a central role in education and welfare.
B)have a central role in monetary policy.
C)do not administer federal programs.
D)have no role in education since the passage of the No Child Left Behind law.
Q3) Democrats have traditionally sought to change the Social Security system to partial privatization so that the trust fund does not decrease and go bankrupt.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Government regulation has a limited impact on the economy.
A)True
B)False
Q5) What is income support and how can it be operationalized?
Page 12
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Chapter 15: Foreign Policy
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Sample Questions
Q1) Following World War II, some American politicians and scholars argued that the United States would need to be more involved in world affairs specifically because the United States had a moral obligation to preserve world peace.This argument is an example of
A)constructivism.
B)idealism.
C)nation building.
D)containment.
Q2) The U.S.policy of containment during the Cold War represented the United States' attempt to enforce the Monroe Doctrine.
A)True
B)False
Q3) ________ provides financial support for economic development projects in developing countries.
A)The World Trade Organization
B)The World Bank
C)The International Monetary Fund
D)NATO
Q4) What is nation building and why is it so important?
Q5) What is the Bush Doctrine and why is it a stark departure from the past?
Page 13
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