Reference no: EM132328241

 American Govt & Politics Quiz

Answer the following Questions :

Question 1 : All federal judges are nominated by the ___ .

Chief Justice of the Supreme Court
President
House
Senate

Question 2 : Business spends nearly ___ times more in campaign contributions for statewide elections than labor.

Four
Two
 Five
 Three

Question 3 : Only ___ can revoke habeas corpus in times of invasion or insurrection.

The President
Congress
The Supreme Court
The governor

Question 4 : Money shapes the political process because it ___ .

  Gives everyone equal rights to participate
  All of the above
  Give donors more access and influence
  Is tax deductible

Question 5  : The term of office for a federal justice is ____ .

  30 years
  20 years
 A life term
  8 years
 
Question 6 : Incumbents are more likely to win re-election because ___ .

  Challengers are more likely to be involved in scandals
  They lose the primary
  They raise more money and run in gerrymandered “safe” districts
  None of the above

Question 7 :  The 8th amendment is a/an ___ right.

  Negative
  Positive
  Human
  All of these answers

Question 8 : Our two party duopoly is the outcome of ___ .

  Multi-member district elections
  Winner takes all single member district elections
  All of the above
  Proportional representation

Question 9 : On average, the U.S. Supreme Court usually hears about ____ cases per year.
  50
 100
  1,000
  200

Question 10 : ___ is a war power the President has in the constitution.

  To declare war
  To send troops
  National security privilege
  To become Commander in Chief when Congress declares war

Question 11 : Political parties are called a “big tent” because they are ___ of voters.

  An alliance of supportive organizations
  Composed of diverse interest groups
  Coalitions of groups of voters
  All of the above

Question 12 : Voters are allowed to ____ in both the California and federal systems of government.

  None of the above
  Amend the constitution
  Directly elect the chief executive
  Elect judges

Question 13 : Which California elected position is a non-partisan (not associated as a party member) office?

  Attorney General
  State Assembly and Senate
  Supreme Court Justices
  Governor

Question 14 :  When political scientists say that the courts have the power of judicial review, they mainly mean that the courts ___ .

  Have the power to overturn any federal laws but not state laws that conflict with the Constitution
  Have the power to review all elections in the United States to see whether there has been cheating
  Have the power to overturn any federal or state law that conflicts with the Constitution
  Have the power to rule that parts of the Constitution are unconstitutional

Question 15 : Compared to other Western democracies American political campaigns are ___ .

  More regulated
  Shorter in length of time
  Largely publically funded
  Largely privately funded

Question 16 : How are federal judges chosen?

  Nominated by the President and confirmed by the U.S. Senate
  Nominated by state governors and selected by the President
  Nominated by the President and confirmed by the House of Representatives
  Nominated by the President and confirmed by the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives

Question 17 : The California constitution has so many more amendments than the US constitution because ___ .

  The California Supreme Court must approve them
  Both houses of the legislature must pass them
  The voters can put them on the ballot and vote for them
  The Governor can put them on the ballot

Question 18 : ___ is an example of monetary policy.

  Taxes
  Control of the interest rate
  Food stamps
  Corporate subsidies

Question 19 : According to the Katznelson text, which of the following statements is true?

  Proportional representation tends to promote multiparty systems
  Most democracies throughout the world use the single-member district plurality system to elect the legislature
  Proportional representation tends to produce a two-party system
  In a proportional representation system, a vote for a third party is a wasted vote

Question 20 : Discouraging or preventing voters from voting is also known as ___ .

  Voter registration
  Voter suppression
  Absentee voting
  Voter education

Question 21  :  According to Hamilton the federal courts have ___ so they must rely on the other branches and the people to have their rulings followed.

  The power of the pen
  Enforcement agency
  Their own independent budget
  Neither force nor will

Question 22 : ___ was protected in the constitution many times without once being mentioned.

  Slavery
  The right to directly elect the president
  States rights
  Human rights

Question 23 : After several recent Supreme Court cases ruling that money is an expression of free speech the amount of campaign donations and spending has ___ .

  Stayed the same
  Risen slightly
  Gone down
  Increased significantly

Question 24 : Which California courts have judges directly elected in competitive races?

  Superior
  Supreme
  Appellate
  All of the above

Question 25 : The striking down of California’s Proposition 8 is an example of Brennan’s countermajoritarian role of the federal courts because it overturned ___ .

  The will of the majority of Congress
  The will of the majority of the state Supreme Court
  The will of the majority of state legislators
  The will of the majority of California voters

 Question 26 : In California the ___ are also the local trial courts.
  Supreme Court
  None of the above
  Superior courts
  Appellate courts

Question 27 : ___ is a way to get a controversial trade agreement like the TPP or NAFTA passed.

  Fast tracking
  Amending the constitution
  Overriding a veto
  Executive privilege

Question 28 : The case of Marbury v. Madison ___ .

  Established that blacks could not be considered property under the law
  Established the precedent that the Supreme Court could declare laws unconstitutional
  Established that states could not pass laws abridging free speech
  Dealt with the scope of national power as opposed to state power

Question 29 : Judge Thelton Henderson found the ___ to have failed to faithfully execute the law in the tuna-dolphin case.

  The California Governor
  The President
  The US Congress
  The California legislature

Question 30 : In the 2010 Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that  existing laws and regulations setting limiting campaign donations, and prohibiting corporations and labor unions from endorsing and spending funds to promote political candidates, violated the ___ of the Constitution.

  Fifth Amendment (due process clause)
  First Amendment (freedom of speech)
  Necessary and proper clause
  Article I commerce clause

Question 31 : ___ is when interest groups attempt to influence the decisions of government.

  Lobbying
  Majority rule
  Paying taxes
  Running for office

Question 32 : The Supreme Court case Marbury v. Madison established the power of ___ which cannot be found in Article III.

  Judicial review
  Reserve power
  Original jurisdiction
  Supremacy power

Question 33 : The ___ Supreme Court case eliminated limits on election campaign donations.

  McCullough v. Maryland
  Brown v. Board of Education
  McCutcheon v. FEC
  Marbury v. Madison

Question 34 : Which is an example of discretionary spending?

  Social Security
  Medicare
  Military spending
  Unemployment benefits

 Question 35 : The case of Roe v. Wade dealt with ___ .

  The right of a criminal defendant to be represented by an attorney
  School busing to achieve racial desegregation
  A woman’s right to an abortion
  One person, one vote

 Question 36  : ___ has/have power of the pen, sword, purse, and oversight.

  Presidents
  States
  Congress
  Federal courts

 Question 37 : The 1954 Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas decided that ___ is unconstitutional.

  Separate but equal
  Precedent
  One person, one vote
  Slavery

 Question 38 : A 2/3rd vote in the California legislature is needed to ___ .

  All of the above
  Put a constitutional amendment on the ballot
  Raise taxes
  Put a bond measure on the ballot

 Question 39 : The people decide directly without representatives in a ____ .

  Direct democracy
  Representative democracy
  Republic
  Monarchy

 Question 40 : Judicial review gives the federal courts the power to overturn ____ .

  All of the above
  The ruling of a lower federal court or previous Supreme Court precedent
  A federal law, lower court ruling, or executive action
  A state law, court ruling, or executive action

 Question 41 : Our system of single member district elections is also known as ___ .

  Parliamentary
  Winner takes all
  Proportional
  None of the above

Question 42 : The “iron quadrangle” (or more commonly referred to as the “iron triangle”) is/are the ___ .

  Local, county, state, and federal governments
  President, Speaker of the House, Senate Majority Leader, and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court
  Four most powerful members of Congress
  Close relationship between the 3 federal branches of government and business

Question 43 : Submerged state policies ___ .

  Are often made in open public meetings
  Are very well publicized in advance by government
  Are made with little public awareness and disproportionately benefit specific groups
  Are widely reported in the media

Question 44 : Which theory would explain how the recent teachers strikes have forced changes to education policy in their states by going outside the system when the state governments appeared unresponsive?

  Pluralist
  Direct democracy
  Plutocratic
  Majoritarian

Question 45 : Interest groups ___ .

  Work to influence laws and policies
  Are most often set up by or work for elites and corporations
  Work to influence court rulings
  All of the above

Question 46 : California Superior Court Judge Persky was removed from office in the June 2018 election by ___ .

  Initiative
  Referendum
  Recall
  Impeachment

Question 47 : According to the Katznelson book, “rights and liberties developed over time, often as the result of ____ ”.

  Compromise
  Conflict and struggle
  Revolution
  Bipartisanship

Question 48 : According to the Katznelson text, all of the following are reasons why the United States has had a two-, rather than a multi-party system, except ____ .

  The widespread use of proportional representation
  The winner-take-all procedure used to elect the president
  The widespread use of the plurality system of voting
  Republican and Democratic actions that marginalize other parties

Question 49 : One example of majority rule is ___ .

  The candidate with the consensus of the votes wins the election
  The candidate with the most votes wins the election
  The candidate with a plurality of the votes wins the election
  The candidate with 50%+1 or more of the vote wins the election

Question 50 : ___ is/are an example(s) of the continuing lack of full inclusion in our representative democracy.

  The lack of class, gender, and racial diversity among elected representatives
  All of the above
  Laws that suppress voter turnout
  Low voter turnout

Question 51 : Federal courts handle ___ cases than the state courts.

  Far fewer
  Exactly the same number of
  About the same number of
  Far more

Question 52 : The federal courts’ power of judicial review ___ .

  Is enumerated in Article III
  Is established by precedent in 1803 Marbury v. Madison case
  Was established by the 1819 McCulloch v. Maryland case
  Was established in the 1857 Dred Scott case

Question 53 : Justice Brennan argues that the federal courts can overturn the will of the majority when the majority ___ .

  Strips rights from minority groups
  Extends rights to minorities
  Upholds the constitution
  None of the above

Question 54 : ___ engage in unconventional and confrontation forms of political activism.

  Interest groups
  None of the above
  Social movements
  Political parties

Question 55 : Where in the Constitution does the term political party appear?

  In the articles dealing with the Congress and with the presidency, but nowhere else
  Nowhere
  Only in the article dealing with Congress
  Only in the article dealing with the presidency

Question 56 : The 10th amendment ___ .

  Allows the states to secede from the union
  Reserves power to the states
  Gives Congress necessary and proper powers
  Gives supremacy power to the federal government

Question 57 : The Fair Political Practices Commission oversees ___ .

  Campaign spending
  Lobbying expenses
  Violations of state election laws
  All of these answers

Question 58 : In discussing the role of money in elections, the Katznelson text says all of the following except ___ .

  U.S. political campaigns are more regulated than those in any other Western democracy
  Wealthier families are more likely to donate than poor families
  Increases in economic inequality and political spending go hand in hand; the increase in one contributes to the increase in the other
  The high cost of campaigns fuels public cynicism about politics

Question 59 : An electoral system where legislative seats are allotted to parties based on the percentages of the vote they receive in multi-member districts is called ___ .

  First past the post system
  Single-member district plurality system
  Winner-take-all system
  Proportional representation

Question 60 : As a result of our winner takes all single member district system of elections in the 2016 Congressional elections the Republic Party won ___ seats in Congress than their proportion of the popular vote.

  Fewer
  More
  None of the above
  The same number of

Question 61 : If you need a plurality to win an election, that means you need ____ to win.

  A system of proportional representation
  The support of a majority of the party leaders in your district
  More votes than two or more other candidates
  A majority of the votes

Question 62 : The fastest growing demographic group in the United States are/is ___ .

  Non-Latino whites
  Asians
  African Americans
  Latinos

Question 63 : Because about 87% of state judges are elected they are subject to being influenced by ___ .

  Campaign donations
  All of the above
  Political pressure by interest groups
  Voters

Question 64 : When the federal government uses its constitutional power the result of that action becomes the ___ .

  Reserve power of the states
  The supreme law of the land
  Necessary and proper law of the land
  Privilege and immunities clause powers

Question 65 : The constitution attempts to insulate the federal courts by ___ .

  Allowing judges to be removed only by impeachment
  All of the above
  Having them appointed and confirmed rather than elected
  Giving judges lifetime appointments

Question 66 : California state appellate and supreme court judges ___ but federal judges are not.

  Are appointed for life
  Are subject to term limits
  Run in competitive elections
  Are nominated by the governor, approved by the judicial commission, and elected by the voters

Question 67 : ___ could be used to solve the problems caused by the electoral college.

  All of the above
  Awarding a state’s electoral votes to the winner of the national, rather than state, popular vote
  Amending the constitution
  Changing to a parliamentary system

Question 68 : ___ states are those that can go either Democratic or Republican in a presidential election.

  Swing
  Gerrymandered
  Early voting
  Safe

Question 69 : The last appeal from California’s Supreme Court is to which federal court?

  US Supreme Court
  US District Court
  US Circuit Court
  US 9th Circuit

Question 70 : ___ is a legislative power of the President which is not in the constitution.

  Negotiating treaties
  The signing statement
  Appointment power
  The veto

Question 71 : ___ are/is a form(s) of direct democracy used in California.

  The initiative
  The proposition/referendum
  The recall
  All of the above

Question 72 : Which constitutional principles are violated by the use of drones and torture in the War on Terrorism?

  All of the above
  4th amendment
  5th amendment
  8th amendment

Question 73 : Winner takes all single member district elections have the effect of ___ .

Giving representation to those who vote for the losing candidates
None of the above
Denying any representation to those who vote for the losing candidates
Giving proportional representation to all the parties in the race

Question 74 : Following Reconstruction, the Fourteenth Amendment, according to the Katznelson text ___ .

  Did nothing to protect either corporate interests or black civil rights
  Served to protect black civil rights more than corporate interests
  Did an excellent job of protecting both corporate interests and black civil rights
  Served to protect corporate interests more than black civil rights

Question 75 : The Supreme Courts upheld President Trumps’ “Muslim ban” executive orders by using ___ .

  All of the above
  Judicial review
  The 10th amendment
  Article III

Question 76 : All federal judge nominations are confirmed by the ___ .

  Senate
  Chief Justice of the Supreme Court
  President
  House

Question 77 : Which elected California officials do not have term limits?

  Members of the legislature
  Judges
  Statewide officers
  None of these

Question 78 : President Trump could be ___ for violating the emoluments clause (Art. II) and obstruction of justice (18 U.S. Code § 1503).

  Recalled
  Indicted
  Impeached
  Prosecuted

Question 79 : There are ___ federal district courts.

  50
  94
  435
  13

Question 80 : Which is an example of an elite power network?

  All of the above
  Campaign consultants
  Think tank
  Foundation

Question 81 : In 2004, what percent of House and Senate elections were won by the better-financed candidate?

  Between 50 and 60 percent
  Between 60 and 70 percent
  More than 90 percent
  Between 70 and 80 percent

Question 82 : ___ is the domination of Democrats and Republicans in our electoral system.

  The two party duopoly
  Direct democracy
  None of the above
  Checks and balances

Question 83 : What was the Constitutional reasoning that the Supreme Court used to uphold the Affordable Care Act?

  The president’s power to execute the laws of Congress
  Congress’s power to regulate commerce
  The federal government’s responsibility to provide for the general welfare
  Congress’s power to tax

Question 84 : The New Deal coalition ___ .

  Included segregationist white Southerners, African Americans, and northern liberals
  Was the coalition that allowed the Republican Party to dominate national politics
  Received virtually no support from segregationist white Southerners
  Received virtually no support from African Americans

Question 85 : ___ explains the movement of officials from business into government and back again.

  The revolving door
  Winner takes all
  The primary
  Gerrymandering