Government and Democracy Test Questions
Course Introduction
This course explores the fundamental principles of government and the practice of democracy, examining how political systems operate and influence societies. Students will study the evolution of democratic ideals, the structure and function of various forms of government, and the relationship between citizens and the state. Key topics include the rule of law, separation of powers, electoral systems, civil liberties, and the challenges facing democracies in the contemporary world. Through theoretical frameworks and real-world case studies, learners will gain a comprehensive understanding of the dynamics that sustain and challenge democratic governance.
Recommended Textbook
We the People 10th Edition by Benjamin Ginsberg
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18 Chapters
1574 Verified Questions
1574 Flashcards
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Page 2
Chapter 1: American Political Culture
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Sample Questions
Q1) ________ are the three core values in American politics.
A) Liberty, equality, and democracy
B) Democracy, patriotism, and the rule of law
C) Equality, oligarchy, and free enterprise
D) Anarchy, equality, and patriotism
E) Socialism, oligarchy, and liberty
Answer: A
Q2) In ________ the ________ secured the right to vote for African Americans.
A) 1870; Voting Rights Act
B) 1920; Fifteenth Amendment
C) 1920; Voting Rights Act
D) 1965; Fifteenth Amendment
E) 1965; Voting Rights Act
Answer: E
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Chapter 2: The Founding and the Constitution
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Q1) What did the New Jersey Plan propose for Congress?
A) Representation would be equal for each state.
B) Representation would be apportioned according to population.
C) Representation would be proportionate to the share of taxes paid by each state to the federal government.
D) The powers of Congress would check those of state legislatures.
E) Representatives to Congress would be appointed by the state legislatures.
Answer: A
Q2) Under the Articles of Confederation, it was left to the ________ to execute the laws passed by Congress.
A) states
B) council of presidents
C) courts
D) bureaucracy
E) president
Answer: A
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Chapter 3: Federalism
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Sample Questions
Q1) The specific powers granted to Congress in Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution are called the ________ powers.
A) implied
B) expressed
C) sovereign
D) executive
E) absolute
Answer: B
Q2) ________ was the first president to promote New Federalism.
A) Abraham Lincoln
B) Franklin Roosevelt
C) Dwight Eisenhower
D) Lyndon Johnson
E) Richard Nixon
Answer: E
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Chapter 4: Civil Liberties
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Sample Questions
Q1) When New York Times reporter Judith Miller was jailed in 2005, it illustrated that
A) the press has no constitutional right to withhold information in court.
B) prior restraint can still be allowed in cases of national security.
C) journalists are held to a higher standard of libel than average citizens.
D) parodies are not protected speech.
E) journalists can be punished for reporting inaccurate information on political stories.
Q2) The current prohibition on states to criminalize abortion is based on
A) the right to due process of law.
B) equal protection against sexual discrimination.
C) the right to privacy.
D) the right against cruel and unusual punishment.
E) the free exercise clause.
Q3) Gideon v. Wainwright (1963) established the right
A) to counsel in felony cases.
B) against self-incrimination.
C) to be informed of constitutional rights at the time of arrest.
D) against suspicion-less searches and seizures.
E) to an open trial before a judge.
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Chapter 5: Civil Rights
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Sample Questions
Q1) In Lawrence v. Texas (2003), the Supreme Court justices
A) upheld a state law banning private homosexual activity.
B) granted gays and lesbians status under the equal protection clause.
C) struck down a state law criminalizing homosexual conduct.
D) denied that homosexuals were a protected class under the Fourteenth Amendment.
E) ruled that gays and lesbians should be allowed to legally marry.
Q2) In 1870, Congress passed a law forbidding ________ from becoming U.S. citizens.
A) Italians
B) the Chinese
C) Russians
D) Mexicans
E) the Japanese
Q3) ________ began the Montgomery bus boycott of 1955-1956.
A) Martin Luther King, Jr.,
B) Orbal Faubus
C) George Wallace
D) Rosa Parks
E) Jesse Jackson
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Chapter 6: Public Opinion
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Sample Questions
Q1) The fact that Democratic Party leaders have become more liberal and Republican Party leaders more conservative is important because
A) it has made the gender gap much smaller.
B) Republicans have become less hawkish over time.
C) Democrats have become more hawkish over time.
D) partisans in the public tend to rely on party leaders for cues on the appropriate positions to take on major political issues.
E) partisans in the public no longer rely on party leaders for cues on the appropriate positions to take on major political issues.
Q2) Describe how public opinion is measured. What is sampling and what is it meant to accomplish? Describe some of the problems and biases of polling, such as push polling and question wording. How do the social desirability effect and the bandwagon effect each distort the measurement of opinion?
Q3) David Hume said that government rests on public opinion alone. Explain the relationship between government and opinion. How do governmental actors try to shape opinion? What is the proper relationship between public opinion and policy? Explain.
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Chapter 7: The Media
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Sample Questions
Q1) The penny press
A) was created in the nineteenth century.
B) facilitated widespread literacy.
C) both a and b
D) was created in the twentieth century.
E) led to the demise of newspapers.
Q2) Brief quotes and short characterizations of the day's events in news coverage are called ________.
A) précis
B) spin
C) sound bites
D) news nuggets
E) catchphrases
Q3) During the nineteenth century, newspapers were controlled by ________.
A) Wall Street
B) political parties
C) churches and other religious groups
D) state governments
E) the federal government
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Page 9
Chapter 8: Political Participation and Voting
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Sample Questions
Q1) One-third of all Asian Americans live in ________.
A) California
B) New York
C) Florida
D) Texas
E) Washington, D.C.
Q2) What was the main cause for dropping the legal voting age to eighteen?
A) Young American citizens effectively organized and protested for the right to vote.
B) It had been one of the civil rights movement's important goals.
C) The Constitution mandated that the draft age be equivalent to the voting age.
D) Government officials hoped it would lead to a decline in disruptive student protests.
E) A decision by the Supreme Court justices determined that voting requirements based on age were unconstitutional.
Q3) What are some of the ways in which Americans have been mobilized into political participation? What are some of the groups that have been mobilizing? What are some of the conditions under which citizens are more likely to participate in political life?
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10
Chapter 9: Political Parties
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Sample Questions
Q1) Describe third parties in American politics. Why has there never been a party system of three or more parties in the United States? How do third parties arise? Describe some notable third-party candidates for president.
Q2) Strong and often corrupt urban political party organizations during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were called ________.
A) gangs
B) juntas
C) machines
D) corporations
E) 527 committees
Q3) Which of the following tasks does a party's national committee NOT perform?
A) raising funds
B) resolving disputes between factions of the party
C) selecting presidential and vice-presidential candidates
D) enhancing the media image of the party
E) heading the political party during the period between conventions
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Chapter 10: Campaigns and Elections
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Sample Questions
Q1) Political scientists call voters' choices that focus on future behavior ________ voting, while those based on past performances are called ________ voting.
A) prospective; retrospective
B) retrospective; prospective
C) partisan; issue
D) issue; partisan
E) issue; prospective
Q2) ________ occurs when state legislators concentrate the members of one party in as few districts as possible in order to ensure that their opponents will elect as few representatives as possible.
A) A referendum
B) Lobbying
C) Packing
D) Redlining
E) Caucusing
Q3) Describe the steps involved in running a campaign for political office. How is support for a candidate organized? What roles are played by campaign managers, media consultants, and pollsters? How does a candidate win a party's nomination?
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Chapter 11: Groups and Interests
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Sample Questions
Q1) If one enjoys the benefits of a group's collective efforts but did NOT contribute to those efforts, one is called a ________.
A) citizen
B) subject
C) free rider
D) lobbyist
E) political activist
Q2) What distinguishes lobbying from other strategies of influence?
A) Lobbying is the least expensive and the most democratic strategy of influencing government.
B) Lobbyists try to exert pressure directly on government officials themselves.
C) Lobbyists attempt to influence government directly by running for elected office.
D) Lobbying is the only form of influence that has explicit First Amendment protection from regulation.
E) Lobbying involves advertising in order to create a positive image of an organization.
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Chapter 12: Congress
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Sample Questions
Q1) A ________ veto occurs when Congress adjourns during a ten-day period after presenting the president with a bill and he or she takes no action.
A) procrastination
B) pocket
C) line-item
D) silent
E) expiration
Q2) A closed or an open rule refers to congressional provisions regarding
A) whether deliberations are closed or open to the general public.
B) assignment to powerful committees.
C) whether lobbyists are allowed inside Congress.
D) floor debate on a bill.
E) whether all members of the House or just members of a particular committee vote on passing a bill.
Q3) Describe some of the different ways members of Congress can represent the American people. What are the principles behind sociological and agency representation? What are some examples of each type? Describe the difference between a trustee and a delegate. Which type of representation do you believe is the most optimum? Why? Explain.
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Chapter 13: The Presidency
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Q1) In order to get around the need for Senate approval of treaties, many contemporary presidents have made use of ________ in foreign affairs.
A) diplomacy
B) international protocols
C) executive immunity
D) executive agreements
E) bypass agreements
Q2) When are the president's partisan ties most important?
A) in winning support from public opinion
B) in raising campaign funds
C) in dealing with Congress on legislative matters
D) in making executive appointments
E) in negotiating treaties and executive agreements
Q3) The last time Congress exercised its constitutional power to declare war was during
A) World War II
B) the Korean War
C) the Vietnam War
D) the Afghanistan War
E) the Iraq War
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Chapter 14: Bureaucracy in a Democracy
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Q1) Which of the following is the most constitutionally essential way to make the bureaucracy responsible?
A) more efficient executive management
B) further devolution
C) congressional oversight
D) more administrative courts
E) more government regulation
Q2) The Obama administration's campaign to make government more transparent
A) was jeopardized by Edward Snowden's leak of sensitive national security documents in 2013.
B) resulted in the termination of the National Security Agency's global surveillance operations.
C) resulted in the passage of the Freedom of Information Act.
D) resulted in the repeal of the USA Patriot Act.
E) resulted in the closing of the base at Guantanamo Bay.
Q3) Bureaucracies have often been criticized for being inefficient. What are some of the management techniques that have been used to make bureaucracies more efficient and responsive to needs? Why have many of these reforms had limited success?
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Chapter 15: The Federal Courts
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Sample Questions
Q1) Each of the following has been a method by which the federal courts have expanded their power EXCEPT
A) liberalizing the concept of standing.
B) broadening the scope of relief from individuals to entire groups.
C) narrowing the discretionary authority of the president over foreign affairs and diplomacy.
D) holding onto jurisdiction over a case until the court's decision has been carried out.
E) taking a more active role in hearing cases that would generally be considered legislative matters.
Q2) Marbury v. Madison was decided in ________.
A) 1789
B) 1803
C) 1861
D) 1911
E) 1938
Q3) Explain the basic structure of the federal judicial system. Describe the three different levels of federal courts. How are the lower courts created? What was the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court?
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Chapter 16: Government and the Economy
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following is NOT an example of mandatory spending?
A) farm price supports
B) Social Security payments
C) defense spending
D) Medicare
E) interest payments on the national debt
Q2) The ________ insures bank deposits up to $250,000.
A) Federal Reserve Board
B) Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
C) U.S. Department of Treasury
D) Office of Management and Budget
E) Council of Economic Advisors
Q3) The tax reform laws of 1981 and 1986 were significant because they
A) permanently increased the reserve requirement.
B) lowered the federal funds rate.
C) made budget deficits illegal.
D) significantly reduced the progressiveness of the federal income tax.
E) significantly increased the progressiveness of the federal income tax.
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Chapter 17: Social Policy
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following statements about noncontributory programs is FALSE?
A) Eligibility for these programs is determined through means testing.
B) These programs may provide public housing, food stamps, and school lunches.
C) The existence of these programs dates back to the Civil War.
D) These programs underwent drastic reform in the 1990s.
E) These programs are relatively unpopular when compared to contributory programs.
Q2) What important noncontributory program was abolished by Congress in 1996?
A) food stamps
B) Medicaid
C) Aid to Families with Dependent Children
D) Temporary Assistance to Needy Families
E) Social Security
Q3) Between 1959 and 2012, the percentage of elderly Americans living in poverty went from about ________ percent to ________ percent.
A) 50; 35
B) 35; 10
C) 65; 25
D) 30; 45
E) 40; 30
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Page 19
Chapter 18: Foreign Policy and Democracy
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Sample Questions
Q1) ________ warned Americans against too much involvement with foreign nations.
A) George Washington
B) Thomas Jefferson
C) John Adams
D) Aaron Burr
E) James Madison
Q2) The foreign policy ideals that Americans have historically espoused assert that our foreign policies should
A) focus on the interests of the United States at the expense of all other nations.
B) focus on the interests of other nations at the expense of our own personal interests.
C) have a higher purpose than the pursuit of our own interests and use force only as a last resort.
D) promote the use of force to advance democracy around the world.
E) focus on working with the United Nations to promote democracy around the world.
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