U.S. Government and Politics
Practice Questions
Course Introduction
This course provides a comprehensive overview of the foundations, structure, and functioning of the United States government and its political processes. Students will explore the principles of the U.S. Constitution, the roles and responsibilities of the three branches of government, federalism, civil rights and liberties, political parties, elections, and policy-making processes. Through an analysis of historical and contemporary case studies, the course emphasizes critical thinking about the impact of government decisions on society, the role of citizens in democracy, and ongoing challenges facing American governance.
Recommended Textbook
American Politics Today Essentials 5th Edition by William T. Bianco
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11 Chapters
952 Verified Questions
952 Flashcards
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Page 2
Chapter 1: Understanding American Politics
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Sample Questions
Q1) What is the difference between separation of powers and federalism?
Answer: The focus of separation of powers is strictly on the national government.The framers assigned lawmaking authority to Congress, law-enforcement authority to the president, and interpreting the meaning of the laws to the Supreme Court.Federalism is the constitutional division of power between the national government and the states.Local governments are appendages of the states legally so they are not mentioned specifically in the Constitution, though they obviously existed in 1787.
Q2) ________ are likely to disappear quickly from the political agenda, while ________ often take a long time to resolve.
A)Conflictual issues; valence issues
B)Social issues such as abortion; national issues
C)Consensus issues; conflictual issues
D)Campaign issues; state and local issues
Answer: C
Q3) Libertarians believe in a proactive federal government much like the liberals.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
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Chapter 2: The Constitution and the Founding
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Sample Questions
Q1) What is meant by James Madison's "size principle"?
Answer: In 1787, it was thought by most political theorists that democracy was only possible in small geographical areas.Madison believed the opposite, that a large and diverse country, such as the United States, would be a place where democracy could be sustained, because majority interests would be less likely to organize and therefore less likely to dominate public policy making.
Q2) What are two important negative checks that Congress can exercise over both the executive and the judicial branches?
A)alteration of their jurisdiction and overriding their decisions
B)overriding their decisions and impeachment
C)impeachment and the power of the purse
D)alteration of their jurisdiction and power of the purse
Answer: C
Q3) How did the framers design the Constitution to protect minority rights?
A)separation of powers and checks and balances
B)allowing majority tyranny to occur to protect the rights of the many
C)through the creation of political parties
D)through the creation of interest groups
Answer: A
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Page 4
Chapter 3: Federalism
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Sample Questions
Q1) Why do liberals generally favor strong national power while conservatives generally favor devolving power back to the states?
Answer: Liberals tend to prioritize social equality and favor strong national power to combat discrimination against women, people of color, the disabled, gays and lesbians, and the elderly.In addition, they tend to embrace progressive national policies to protect the environment, to provide national health care, and to assist the poor.Conservatives tend to prioritize individual freedom and tend to oppose intrusion from the federal government in economic and social policy.In addition, they tend to favor allowing the states to create their own mix of social welfare and regulatory policies.
Q2) The Violence Against Women Act
A)was passed during the George W.Bush administration.
B)had strong Democratic support but no Republican support in Congress.
C)was struck down, in part, by the Supreme Court justices.
D)was based on the necessary and proper clause of the Constitution.
Answer: C
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Chapter 4: Civil Liberties
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Sample Questions
Q1) The Fourth Amendment
A)provides the right to legal counsel and a jury trial in front of peers.
B)prohibits cruel and unusual punishment.
C)protects against unreasonable searches by the police.
D)protects people from having to testify against themselves in a court of law.
Q2) Burning the flag is an example of
A)slander.
B)hate speech.
C)symbolic speech.
D)a clear and present danger.
Q3) Selective incorporation was created by
A)Supreme Court justices.
B)Congress.
C)President Ulysses Grant.
D)executive bureaucrats.
Q4) Civil liberties are guaranteed by which part of the Constitution?
A)Eleventh Amendment
B)Article I
C)Bill of Rights
D)Tenth Amendment
Page 6
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Chapter 5: Civil Rights
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Q1) What is the primary constitutional issue involving affirmative action cases in college admissions?
A)free speech
B)due process
C)supremacy clause
D)equal protection
Q2) What is the difference between de jure and de facto segregation and which type was banned by Brown v.Board of Education?
Q3) Slavery began in the United States in 1619.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Legal segregation of the races was justified by
A)the "separate but equal" doctrine.
B)the equality of opportunity doctrine.
C)Jim Crow laws.
D)the doctrine of selective incorporation.
Q5) What was Reconstruction and what happened when it finished?
Q6) Why are English as the country's official language and immigration reform important multicultural issues today? Explain.
Page 7
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Chapter 10: Congress
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Q1) An example of the ________ model of representation is a situation in which a legislator acts as a delegate on issues that constituents care about and as a trustee on more complex issues.
A)descriptive
B)politico
C)balanced
D)substantive
Q2) What is the difference between fire alarm and police patrol oversight?
Q3) What is descriptive representation?
A)legislators acting as though they have a simple mandate to carry out voter desires
B)shared demographic traits between legislators and constituents
C)legislators acting on behalf of collective, national interests
D)legislators responding differently to constituents on the basis of how salient an issue is to the public
Q4) The manner in which members of the House relate to their districts is called
A)the incumbency advantage.
B)descriptive representation.
C)casework.
D)their home style.
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Chapter 11: The Presidency
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Q1) A signing statement clarifies the president's interpretation of the law as a precaution in the event that the law is challenged in the courts.
A)True
B)False
Q2) The vesting clause is important to understand because
A)it prevents the president from abusing power.
B)it gives the president the right to challenge the Supreme Court's interpretation of events.
C)it is a major reason that presidential power is vague and often subject to interpretation.
D)it is a major reason that the parameters of presidential power are widely agreed upon and accepted.
Q3) In November 2013, President Obama granted quasi-legal status and work permits to nearly 1 million illegal immigrants who entered the country as children.This policy change
A)can be overturned by Congress.
B)cannot be overturned by Congress.
C)never went into effect because it was not first approved by Congress.
D)was later ruled an unconstitutional action by the Supreme Court.
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9
Chapter 12: The Bureaucracy
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Sample Questions
Q1) Regulations are developed according to the A)search and seizure procedure.
B)notice and comment procedure.
C)guidelines established by the Supreme Court.
D)guidelines established by the White House chief of staff.
Q2) In most cases, bureaucrats have discretion in how they implement policies due to the lack of specific guidelines from Congress.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Does ideology matter when it comes to selecting agency heads and other federal positions?
Q4) The Office of Management and Budget is primarily responsible for A)overseeing procurement of services for the federal government.
B)monitoring the flow of money throughout the economy.
C)helping the president monitor federal budget expenditures and proposals.
D)investigating the bureaucracy on behalf of Congress.
Q5) All federal employees are members of the civil service.
A)True
B)False
Q6) Trace the evolution of the bureaucracy in American history.
Page 10
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Chapter 13: The Courts
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Q1) Why does a president typically use partisanship as a criterion in selecting nominees to the Supreme Court?
A)Moderate judges tend to be less decisive.
B)The norm of senatorial courtesy requires the president to do so.
C)The leaders in the president's party put tremendous pressure on the president to choose a loyal party member.
D)The president wants to choose a nominee with similar political views to advance the president's legacy.
Q2) By embracing the concept of dual federalism throughout the nineteenth century, the Supreme Court justices
A)demonstrated their willingness to use their power of judicial review to rule on the constitutionality of state laws.
B)showed that they were unwilling to use judicial review to overrule states.
C)failed to fulfill a key component of the Judiciary Act of 1789.
D)extended the power of the federal government by embracing an activist role for the Court in American politics.
Q3) Describe how the process of assigning opinion writing works in the Supreme Court.
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Page 11
Chapter 14: Economic and Social Policy
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Q1) Which one of the following describes the top policy priorities among a political party, politicians, or a coalition of politicians?
A)social policy efforts
B)legislative leviathan
C)key-issue agenda
D)a policy agenda
Q2) Which one of the following is NOT a recommendation made by public policy experts to keep the Social Security system working effectively?
A)eliminate Social Security benefits for those over 90 years old
B)raise the age requirement to qualify for Social Security
C)lower benefits for nonworking spouses and wealthier individuals
D)raise payroll taxes
Q3) The assassination of President John F.Kennedy led to the passage of gun control legislation.
A)True
B)False
Q4) What are some ideas to reform Social Security and keep it financially solvent over time? Be sure to be entirely specific.
Q5) Why was the Fed created in 1913 and why is it so important in economic policy?
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Chapter 15: Foreign Policy
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Q1) The U.S.policy of containment during the Cold War represented the United States' attempt to enforce the Monroe Doctrine.
A)True
B)False
Q2) What do the Committee on Foreign Affairs in the House and the Foreign Relations Committee in the Senate do?
A)oversee the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the National Security Agency (NSA) B)write legislation that deals with foreign policy
C)direct and advise on military actions against terrorist targets
D)provide the president with top secret intelligence information
Q3) ________ is an idea that the United States should refrain from getting involved with other countries.
A)Internationalism
B)Realism
C)Isolationism
D)Nationalism
Q4) What is the difference between Gross Domestic Product and Gross National Income? Explain.
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Page 13