Introduction to American Government Question Bank
Course Introduction
Introduction to American Government provides an overview of the foundational principles, structures, and functions of the United States government. The course examines the Constitution, federalism, and the roles of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. Students explore how political parties, elections, interest groups, and public opinion shape policy-making and governance. Through analysis of historical and contemporary issues, the course encourages critical thinking about civil liberties, civil rights, and the responsibilities of citizenship in a democratic society.
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Understanding American Government 14th Edition by Susan Welch
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Chapter 1: The American People
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Sample Questions
Q1) The Occupy Wall Street movement highlights the conflict between __________.
A) rich and poor
B) older and newer immigrants
C) urban and suburban dwellers
D) young and old
Answer: A
Q2) Your desire to drive a car drunk is trumped by the interests of public safety. What is this an example of?
A) majority rule trumping individual rights
B) liberty trumping sovereignty
C) individual rights trumping majority rule
D) sovereignty trumping equality
Answer: A
Q3) In a republic, among the obligations of citizens is the requirement that __________.
A) citizens vote directly for the laws
B) citizens contribute to political campaigns
C) citizens vote for representatives to make laws for them
D) all citizens would defend the country
Answer: C
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Chapter 2: The Constitution
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Q1) A parliamentary system is different from the U.S. congressional system mainly due to
A) commonwealths and the monarchy sharing a federal relationship
B) parliamentary government requiring monthly elections
C) parliamentary systems requiring a king
D) executive and judicial officials being responsible to the legislature in parliament
Answer: D
Q2) The case of McCulloch v. Maryland was important because it __________.
A) upheld the power of the states over the power of the national government
B) made it illegal for small banks to operate in the states
C) confirmed that the Supreme Court was the least powerful branch of government
D) established the legal basis for the supremacy of national authority over the states
Answer: D
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Chapter 3: Federalism
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Sample Questions
Q1) Fiscal federalism is the allocation of government funds __________.
A) among federal agencies
B) between national and state governments
C) between state and local governments
D) among national, state, and local governments
Answer: D
Q2) States and some local governments hire lobbyists to represent them in Washington for what principal reason?
A) to ensure the continuation of cooperative federalism
B) to ensure that they receive their fair share, or more, of federal funds
C) to ensure independence from Washington policymakers
D) to avoid the dangers of state-centered federalism
Answer: B
Q3) __________ is a system of governance with an influential national government and subnational governments with residual power.
A) Separation of powers
B) Federalism
C) A unitary system
D) Confederalism
Answer: B
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Chapter 4: Public Opinion
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Sample Questions
Q1) Americans who believe that government can be a positive and constructive force in society are called __________.
A) agnostics
B) socialists
C) conservatives
D) liberals
Q2) The Watergate scandal in 1973 had what effect on public opinion?
A) raised adults' and children's evaluations of the president
B) lowered adults' evaluations of the president
C) raised children's evaluations of the president
D) lowered children's evaluation of the president temporarily
Q3) When it comes to public opinion and family, what usually occurs?
A) Children carry parents' opinions through adulthood.
B) Children reject parents' opinions as adolescents.
C) Young adults follow parents' political party affiliations.
D) New experiences and views decrease agreement.
Q4) Describe how polls measure public opinion.
Q5) How do the schools influence socialization?
Q6) What are two examples of presidents using public opinion?
Q7) Discuss two advantages and disadvantages of straw and scientific polls
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Chapter 5: News Media
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Q1) C-SPAN is an example of a cable television outlet that covers mostly __________.
A) the White House
B) Congress
C) the Supreme Court
D) Hollywood gossip
Q2) The standards of the fringe media are different from those of the mainstream media, because their goal is to __________ their audiences.
A) inform
B) disrupt
C) entertain
D) mentor
Q3) The careful staging of Ronald Reagan's visit to the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea so that viewers would have a clear view of an American president demonstrating "American strength and resolve" on the front line against communism is an example of a(n) __________.
A) photo op
B) sound bite
C) interview
D) press conference
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Page 7
Chapter 6: Interest Groups
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Q1) Social media can foster virtual participation in groups, but the life span of these groups is __________.
A) likely to be short
B) likely to accelerate only after several years
C) entirely based on the life spans of its youngest members
D) entirely based on their initial success
Q2) Some evangelicals have edged to the left ideologically on some issues and, therefore, are more prone to support __________.
A) the Republican Party's politcal agenda
B) environmental protections
C) prohibitions against same-sex marriage
D) higher taxes on the poor
Q3) What are the main ideas drawn out in Putnam's Bowling Alone?
Q4) The decline of labor unions has had a negative impact on __________.
A) Wal-Mart
B) workers' wages
C) single-issue interest groups
D) CEO pensions
Q5) Explain why citizens have stopped joining interest groups.
Q6) What was the impact of civil disobedience in twentieth-century America?
Page 8
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Chapter 7: Political Parties
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Q1) Why do minor parties tend to do well initially but inevitably fade away?
Q2) What are the three components that make up the membership of a political party?
Q3) Church attendance is an indicator of party affiliation in that regular churchgoers identify with the __________ Party and less religious people connect with the __________ Party.
A) Republican, Green
B) Republican, Democratic
C) Democratic, Republican
D) Republican, Independent
Q4) The psychological link that individuals feel toward a party is described as __________.
A) irrational
B) unbreakable
C) party identification
D) natural selection
Q5) The Progressive Movement __________.
A) included middle-class Americans concerned with corruption
B) preferred state-appointed Senators
C) placed Tea Party members into Congress
D) was endorsed by George Washington Plunkitt
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Chapter 8: Elections
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Q1) Explain the history of presidential nominations from party conventions to presidential primaries and caucuses.
Q2) Since the reforms of 1972, convention delegates have become __________.
A) a more diverse group
B) more ideological
C) less ideological
D) less likely to vote
Q3) Women's contribution during __________ helped lead to the ratification of women's suffrage.
A) World War I
B) the Civil War
C) World War II
D) the Russo-Japanese War
Q4) An "understanding" or "good moral character" test was often used in the South to do what?
A) let whites avoid literacy tests
B) ensure that voting citizens were honest
C) ensure that candidates were not corrupt
D) determine who could serve as registrar of elections
Q5) What is the "faithless elector"?
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Chapter 9: Congress
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Sample Questions
Q1) Why are taxation/appropriations bills introduced only in the House?
A) House members are, and have always been, directly elected by the people.
B) The Senate is likely to filibuster appropriations bills.
C) Congressional procedure evolved in this direction over time.
D) Appropriation bills can, in fact, be introduced in the Senate.
Q2) Powers of Congress that are explicitly stated in the Constitution are referred to as what?
A) implied powers
B) informal norms
C) enumerated powers
D) common law
Q3) Though fairly powerless, the position of president of the Senate is held by the
A) vice president
B) senior House representative
C) speaker of the Senate
D) Senate majority leader
Q4) What is the function of the conference committee?
Q5) What are the advantages of incumbency for members of Congress?
Q6) How does Congress implement its oversight duties?
Page 11
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Chapter 10: The Presidency
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Sample Questions
Q1) President George H. W. Bush controversially used his presidential powers to pardon officials involved in the __________.
A) Iran hostage crisis
B) Watergate scandal
C) Iran-Contra scandal
D) Burrell affair
Q2) __________ are a type of presidential authorization not mentioned in the Constitution.
A) legislative vetoes
B) pardon powers
C) appointment powers
D) executive agreements
Q3) A(n) __________ is a unilateral command issued by the president with the full force of law.
A) franking perogative
B) executive privilege
C) executive order
D) presidential prerogative
Q4) How is the pocket veto different from the regular presidential veto?
Q5) What are the formal qualifications to be president?
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Chapter 11: The Bureaucracy
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Q1) Bureaucracies are _____________, stipulating which workers have the power to issue commands, about what, and to whom.
A) fragmented
B) hierarchical
C) independent
D) overarching
Q2) Many blame the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for the federal government's failure to respond adequately to __________.
A) the 9/11 terrorist attacks
B) the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico
C) Hurricane Katrina
D) the housing bubble bust
Q3) The Civil Service Commission _____________.
A) was created by Andrew Jackson to help him fill government jobs with members of his party
B) implements the Ethics in Government Act
C) regulates and presides over the federal government's employment system
D) administers the federal government's merit system without giving anyone, except for the most skilled, an advantage
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Page 13
Chapter 12: The Judiciary
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Sample Questions
Q1) What rule helps to bring stability to the American legal system?
A) amicus curiae
B) stare decisis
C) habeas corpus
D) certiorari
Q2) How are judges, especially Supreme Court justices, selected? How political is the process? What can be done, if anything, to fix the process?
Q3) Restrained judges __________.
A) are concerned with rejecting laws and actions
B) enforce "government by judiciary"
C) are concerned with showing appropriate deference
D) are careless about laws from the statute books
Q4) Because the Supreme Court hears nearly all of its cases on appeal, it is sometimes called the ______________.
A) supreme high judge
B) international criminal court
C) ultimate appellate court
D) last court of resort
Q5) List and describe the three types of written court opinions.
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Chapter 13: Civil Liberties
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Sample Questions
Q1) Who is Joseph McCarthy?
Q2) Which of the following rights does the Sixth Amendment guarantee?
A) the right to plea bargain
B) the right to free religious expression
C) the right to free speech
D) the right to a jury trial
Q3) Which Supreme Court decision mandated that suspects be advised of their rights?
A) Mapp v. Ohio
B) Miranda v. Arizona
C) Gideon v. Wainwright
D) Roe v. Wade
Q4) Which of the following is a limit on demonstrations?
A) Demonstrations cannot be held in public.
B) Demonstrations that offend people are illegal.
C) Demonstrations cannot take place on private property without the owner's permission.
D) Demonstrations by groups of people larger than 100 are prohibited.
Q5) What is seditious speech?
Q6) What is the Supreme Court's position on capital punishment? How have the Court's views changed over time?
Page 15
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Chapter 14: Civil Rights
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Q1) The Burger Court upheld the use of race as a factor in college admissions, but struck down __________.
A) busing
B) desegregated college councils
C) racial quotas
D) equal tuition rates
Q2) In the absence of a draft, the most significant discrimination against men is
A) in marriage law
B) in divorce custody cases
C) employment in certain female-dominated occupations
D) travel restrictions
Q3) Briefly describe the Civil War Amendments.
Q4) Although the Roberts Court made it more difficult for women to bring lawsuits for pay discrimination, Congress overrode the Supreme Court with the passage of the
A) Eli Whitney Act
B) Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act
C) Equal Pay Act
D) Equal Opportunity Act
Page 16
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Chapter 15: Extension 1: Focus On: Economic Policy
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Q1) What is an effect of deflation?
A) rising wages
B) job creation
C) a change in interest rates
D) decreasing prices
Q2) Taxes in the United States claim just over 30 percent of the GDP. Most western industrialized nations have tax revenues that are a(n) __________ share of GDP.
A) higher
B) smaller
C) even
D) great deal lower
Q3) Some Americans favor a tax code that does not favor one kind of economic activity over another. What kind of taxation policy would they support?
A) a regressive tax
B) a progressive tax
C) tax neutrality
D) tax exemption
Q4) How can one tell the difference between a depression and a recession?
Q5) What is the "misery index"?
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Chapter 16: Extension 2: Focus on: Environmental Policy
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Q1) The student-operated interest group to raise awareness for climate change is the
A) Energy Super Fund
B) Energy Action Coalition
C) Combat Climate Initiative
D) Students Against Climate Change
Q2) Regulations are not always effective, but without any regulations, the cost of producing certain chemicals, for example, is borne by the workers who suffer diseases, ailments, or death; these are called __________.
A) "regulation insurance"
B) negative externalities
C) the commons
D) high-cost pollution
Q3) What event spurred the creation of the "Superfund"?
A) Love Canal
B) the Exxon Valdez oil spill
C) the BP oil skill
D) Three Mile Island
Q4) What was the Campus Climate Challenge?
Q5) What is the regeneration?
18
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Chapter 17: Extension 3: Focus On: Foreign Policy
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Q1) While no longer in an economic and military position to "go it alone," the nature of security threats demands __________.
A) presidential approval
B) isolationism
C) multilateral cooperation
D) the Council on Foreign Relations
Q2) How can Congress check the authority of the president's foreign policy ventures, especially in regard to making war?
Q3) The noninvolvement of the Unitied States in the affairs of other nations outside the Americas is also called __________.
A) isolationism
B) soft power
C) hard power
D) physical security
Q4) Of the many U.S. foreign policy goals, which is the most important?
A) economic security
B) security of neighbors and friends
C) physical security
D) extending our sphere of influence
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Chapter 18: Extension 4: Focus On: Health Policy
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Q1) Before the 2010 health care law, people who could afford health care coverage were denied benefits usually because of __________.
A) inadequate income
B) their current employers
C) preexisting conditions
D) they are already on Medicare or Medicaid
Q2) Name two reasons health care costs are so expensive in the United States.
Q3) What are the costs and benefits of Medicare and Medicaid?
Q4) What is the major role of the PHS?
Q5) Many hospitals are operated by corporations, meaning that many hospitals may be owned by __________.
A) the government
B) churches
C) insurance companies
D) charities
Q6) Who was the first modern president to tackle health care coverage?
A) Barack Obama
B) Mitt Romney
C) Lyndon Johnson
D) Harry Truman
Page 20
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