Foundations of American Democracy Exam Preparation Guide
Course Introduction
Foundations of American Democracy explores the origins, development, and core principles that have shaped the United States' political system. The course examines the philosophical underpinnings from Enlightenment thinkers, the drafting and significance of fundamental documents such as the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, and the evolution of key institutions and practices like federalism, separation of powers, and checks and balances. Through analysis of historical events, landmark Supreme Court decisions, and the contributions of influential figures, students gain a comprehensive understanding of how American democracy has evolved and how it continues to function in a contemporary context.
Recommended Textbook
The Enduring Democracy 4th Edition by Kenneth Dautrich
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Chapter 1: The More Things Changethe More They Stay the Same
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Q1) According to Harold Lasswell, the process of determining "who gets what, when and how," is referred to as ______.
A) politics
B) legitimacy
C) efficacy
D) self-determination
E) anarchy
Answer: A
Q2) Which of the following is not true of immigrants coming to America?
A) They were seeking a better life and improved economic conditions.
B) They were fleeing from religious or political persecution.
C) They were almost all forced here against their will.
D) They found the land first occupied by Native Americans.
E) Their arrival had a profound influence on the core values of American political culture.
Answer: C
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Chapter 2: The Founding and the Constitution
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Q1) Which of the following statements best describes the Three-Fifths Compromise?
A) A three-fifths majority would be necessary to amend the constitution.
B) A three-fifths majority would be necessary to appoint members of the Supreme Court.
C) For every five "free states" there would be three "slave states."
D) Five slaves would count as the equivalent of three "free persons" for purposes of taxes and representation.
E) An agreement reached by three-fifths of the states to revoke the Articles of Confederation and install the Constitution.
Answer: D
Q2) Concerning slavery, the new U.S. Constitution _____________________.
A) allowed it in southern states but outlawed it in northern states
B) has an entire article dealing with the maintenance and regulation of the institution
C) upheld it as an important and legitimate institution in the United States
D) said nothing about either preserving or outlawing slavery
E) called for its abolition throughout the United States
Answer: D
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Chapter 3: Federalism
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Q1) What effect did President Reagan have on the U.S. Supreme Court?
A) During the Reagan era, the Supreme Court invalidated many of the president's policies, so Reagan had little effect on the Supreme Court.
B) During his tenure, President Reagan had the opportunity to appoint four justices to the Supreme Court who were generally supportive of state powers, so the trend of devolution was strengthened in the judicial branch.
C) President Reagan appointed only one justice to the Supreme Court, an action that ultimately had little impact on the Court.
D) During his tenure, President Reagan was able to appoint several justices with liberal ideologies to the Supreme Court.
E) President Reagan arbitrated a stronger relationship between the Supreme Court and Congress whereby they worked cooperatively and in unison to implement policies.
Answer: B
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Chapter 4: Civil Liberties
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Q1) The issue of prayers at school graduations and ball games has also been addressed by the Supreme Court as recently as 2000 in Santa Fe v. Doe. What is the stance of the Court in regard to prayers at such events?
A) Prayers at school football games and graduation ceremonies do not violate the Constitution's protections.
B) The prayers are allowed because these events are attended by more adults than minors.
C) The Court failed to rule on the specific issue of prayer but discouraged it because of the public nature of the event.
D) The prayer was ruled unconstitutional because some were required to attend and it appeared to be an endorsement of religion.
E) The prayers are unconstitutional because not all religions have equal time allotted to offer their prayers.
Q2) What was the significance of the Supreme Court's rulings in 2008 and 2010 regarding the Second Amendment? Do you agree with their interpretation? Why or why not?
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Chapter 5: Civil Rights, Equality and Social Movements
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Q1) The 2003 action by women's rights organizations discouraging companies from sponsoring the Master's Golf Tournament is an example of __________________.
A) accommodation
B) agitation
C) litigation
D) legal boycott
E) civil disobedience
Q2) Court-ordered busing to integrate schools was an attempt to remedy
A) forced discrimination
B) civil disobedience
C) de facto discrimination
D) de jure discrimination
E) racial discrimination
Q3) W. E. B. Du Bois helped found the __________.
A) HRC
B) NAACP
C) SCLC
D) KKK
E) ACLU
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Chapter 6: Congress
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Q1) The average Congressional district includes approximately 650,000 people. With a population of roughly 570,000, Wyoming is proportionately __________ in Congress.
A) overrepresented
B) equal to that of California
C) underrepresented
D) reapportioned every five years
E) represented
Q2) Permanent committees existing in both the House and senate that deal with constant, recurring issues are called __________ committees.
A) standing
B) select
C) conference
D) compromise
E) joint
Q3) As an elected member of Congress prepares to vote on a proposed bill, he or she is influenced by a number of factors. List at least five modern factors and describe how they may affect the legislation process.
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Chapter 7: The Presidency
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Q1) In the 1960s, President Lyndon Johnson attempted to resurrect the successes of Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal initiatives by implementing more than 60 social reform measures, including Medicare and Medicaid, federal aid for education, and voting rights for African Americans. Collectively, these reforms came to be known as Johnson's
A) Great Society
B) Second New Deal
C) Square Deal
D) New World
E) Corollary
Q2) Which president is not named on the C-SPAN or the Wall Street Journal poll as one of the "10 Greatest Presidents?"
A) Wilson
B) Polk
C) Pierce
D) Jefferson
E) Jackson
Q3) What are the express powers and responsibilities of the president? How do they differ from implied powers? Provide specific historical examples.
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Chapter 8: The Federal Bureaucracy
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Q1) Beginning in the 1980s, the federal government has used a variety of methods to reduce the size and tax burden of the federal bureaucracy. One such method is privatization. Which of the following does not describe an intended purpose of privatization?
A) to increase the number of employees supported by the federal government
B) to replace government-provided services with services provided by the private sector
C) to keep costs for services lower than those provided by government agencies
D) to allow for less government red tape and fewer civil service restrictions
E) to allow private companies to have more flexibility to compete and adapt to changing circumstances
Q2) Between 1940 and 1975, the federal bureaucracy experienced an unprecedented growth spurt, and the number of federal employees rose to approximately
A) 50
B) 125,000
C) 720,000
D) 1 million
E) 2.2 million
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Chapter 9: The Judiciary
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Q1) Which of the following would not be a circumstance in which a case would originate in the federal courts?
A) The lawsuit requires interpretation of the U.S. Constitution.
B) The lawsuit or action requires application or interpretation of federal law or treaty.
C) The federal government is suing or prosecuting someone or is itself being sued.
D) The lawsuit is between two citizens of different states.
E) The lawsuit or case involves a violation of a state's civil process.
Q2) Which of the following would be a legitimate case under the "case or controversy" requirement?
A) lawsuits in which it is too late to provide any effective remedy
B) lawsuits seeking injunction to prevent immediate irreparable harm
C) lawsuits in which the actual conflict is still sometime in the future
D) lawsuits in which the parties have colluded to contrive a result
E) lawsuits in which jurisdiction has not been properly invoked
Q3) Describe the factors that have been identified as playing a role in explaining why judges vote the way they do. Be sure to include the role of stare decisis, changes in circumstances, the ideologies of the justices, and public opinion.
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Chapter 10: Public Opinion
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Q1) Which of the following is a means in which members of the public can freely express their political opinions?
A) writing an e-mail or letter to an elected official
B) blogging or commenting on another's blog
C) writing letters to the editor of a newspaper
D) calling in to a radio show
E) all are examples of expressing free public opinion.
Q2) The wording of polling questions can mean everything. Which of the following is a key recommendation in constructing good poll questions?
A) Avoid double negatives.
B) The questions should be leading so the interviewee can easily come to an answer.
C) Honesty must always be expected.
D) Double-barreled questions are a good way to get as many answers from one question as possible.
E) Questions can be as simple or as complicated as necessary.
Q3) Define a scientific poll. Explain why a scientific poll is preferable to an unscientific poll. Why are unscientific polls conducted (give examples of at least two different types of unscientific polls)?
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Chapter 11: Interest Groups
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Q1) Which of the following would be part of an "issue network"?
A) congressional staff
B) journalists
C) researchers
D) the media
E) All of these choices are correct.
Q2) What are the three general characteristics of interest groups that may be significant in understanding why some interest groups are more powerful than others? Provide the names of at least two powerful interest groups in America today and, using these characteristics, explain why they are powerful.
Q3) In the United States, which type of workers are the most likely to be unionized?
A) professionals
B) service providers
C) laborers
D) all sectors of the workforce are unionized equally
E) unions have been outlawed nation wide
Q4) Describe the "pros" and "cons" of interest groups. With this understanding, explain the theories of "pluralism" and "majoritarianism," and the role of interest groups in each.
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Chapter 12: The Media and American Politics
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Q1) The youngest generation of news consumers-those in high school-are most likely to be using __________ to get their news and information.
A) newspapers
B) books
C) periodicals
D) digital media
E) radio
Q2) Which statement is false?
A) More than 128 million Americans use Facebook daily.
B) The average American spends more time watching TV than going to work or school.
C) The average person spends 40 percent of their year devoted to some form of media.
D) On average, there are more TV sets per household than toilets.
E) Most news media organizations in the United States are owned by the federal government.
Q3) How has the U.S. Supreme Court interpreted the First Amendment's freedom of the press and applied it to mass media? Give examples of some court cases.
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Chapter 13: Political Parties and Voting
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Q1) The system in the United States whereby a candidate with a plurality of the votes wins the seat, is referred to as ____________________.
A) proportional representation
B) winner-take-all
C) disenfranchisement
D) clean sweep theory
E) constitutional apportionment
Q2) Regional, or sectional, differences have existed in the American political arena since colonial times. These differences are evident in political party affiliations. Historically, where did the strongest support for Thomas Jefferson's Democratic-Republican Party lie?
A) in the larger cities
B) in the more conservative northern states
C) Jefferson was unique in that he enjoyed support nation wide
D) in the southern and mid-Atlantic states
E) west of the Mississippi River
Q3) Describe factors that play a role in voter turnout. Discuss some reasons for low voter turnout in America. How does voter turnout in the United States compare to other democracies?
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Chapter 14: Campaigns and Elections
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Q1) Which of the following is not a major source of campaign funding?
A) individual citizens
B) interest groups
C) PACs
D) foreign investors
E) political parties
Q2) A less common, but still utilized approach for selecting the party's candidate is for voters to show up at the polling place and request either a Republican or Democrat ballot, regardless of how they are registered with the Board of Elections. This approach is called a(n) ________________.
A) open primary
B) closed primary
C) the caucus
D) open referendum
E) cross-party poll
Q3) Discuss the nomination campaign stage of the presidential selection process. How does each state play a role in the process? Be sure to explain the difference between a primary and a caucus, and the effects of frontloading. What is the significance of the nominating conventions?
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Chapter 15: American Domestic Policy
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Q1) The __________ measures the sum of the money gained in a given economy by selling exports minus the cost of buying imports.
A) international confidence rating
B) balance of trade
C) national debt
D) consumer confidence rating
E) federal budget
Q2) A flat tax is one in which ________________________.
A) the tax rate on an individual's income increases as the amount gets larger
B) the tax is imposed on personal income and employers
C) all entities are taxed at the same rate as a proportion of income
D) the tax exacts a larger percentage of income from a lower wage earner than from a higher income earner
E) a fee is levied on imports
Q3) Define the two economic system theories of capitalism and socialism. How do they differ? Using these two theories, describe how the United States has tended to differ with some European nations, such as Sweden, in the role of a central government as a provider of social benefits.
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Chapter 16: American Foreign Policy
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Q1) Which agency plays a critical role in helping formulate and implement U.S. foreign policy by managing the nation's military?
A) Department of Homeland Security
B) Attorney General's Office
C) Department of Defense
D) Department of State
E) United States Embassies
Q2) Even with the collapse of the Soviet Union's status as superpower in the early 1990s, there still existed a communist nation that was a crucial market for U.S. goods and products, given that it contains one-fifth of the world's population. Which nation was this?
A) Canada
B) Mexico
C) Vietnam
D) Taiwan
E) China
Q3) Explain "internationalism" as a theory of foreign relations. How and when did America adopt a theory of internationalism? Include an understanding of the Marshall Plan, NATO, and the Truman Doctrine in your answer.
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