question

political efficacy

answer

belief that citizens can affect what government does

question

citizenship

answer

informed and active membership in a political community

question

government

answer

formal institutions through which a land and its people are ruled

question

politics

answer

the conflicts and struggles over the leadership, structure, and policies of governments

question

Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882

answer

outlawed the entry of Chinese laborers to the United States, a restriction that was not reversed until 1943

question

three important political values in American politics

answer

liberty, equality, and democracy

question

Liberty

answer

personal and economic freedom (linked to limited government)

question

Equality

answer

equality of opportunity, the notion that each person should be given a fair chance to use his or her talents to reach their fullest potential

question

Democracy

answer

power ultimately comes from the people (popular sovereignty)

question

power

answer

having influence over the leadership, structure, and policies of government

question

pluralism

answer

theory that all interests should be free to compete for influence in the government; the outcome of this competition is compromise and moderation

question

majority rule, minority rights

answer

the democratic principle that a government follows the preferences of the majority of voters but protects the interests of the minority

question

Which of the followings statements about trust in government is accurate?

answer

Public trust in government in the United States dipped to historically low levels during the fight over the Affordable Care Act.

question

Political equality means that each citizen

answer

has one, and only one, vote.

question

Which of the following wanted to promote political participation for the middle classes?

answer

bourgeoisie

question

Political efficacy is the

answer

belief that citizens can affect government.

question

A belief in equality of results is

answer

not a part of the U.S. political culture.

question

Compared to Europeans, Americans are ____ supportive of government actions to ensure economic equality.

answer

less

question

Because they understand how politics affects their lives, knowledgeable citizens tend to

answer

be more engaged in politics.

question

The 1896 Supreme Court ruling in Plessy v. Ferguson was most directly related to the debate over equality of

answer

access to public institutions.

question

Personal and economic freedom are both definitions of

answer

liberty

question

Totalitarianism entails government having unlimited political

answer

power.

question

A government is made up of the

answer

formal institutions that rule a people.

question

Who gets what, when, and how is a definition of

answer

politics

question

The practice of direct democracy includes which of the following?

answer

ballot referenda

question

What was revealed in the documents leaked by Edward Snowden?

answer

The National Security Agency had been secretly collecting information on Americans for years.

question

Liberty, democracy, and ____ are the United States' core political values.

answer

equality

question

Over the last century, America's population has become ____ elderly and ____ young since the Founding.

answer

more; less

question

Which of the following can be said to have characterized American politics for much of the past half-century?

answer

a pervasive sense of apathy and cynicism

question

Which of the following was an effect of the National Origins quota system?

answer

The foreign-born population of the United States reached an all-time low by 1970.

question

Representatives make decisions about public policy in a(n) ____ democracy.

answer

representative

question

The people are sovereign in a(n)

answer

democracy

question

The Articles of Confederation

answer

America's first written constitution; served as the basis for America's national government until 1789

question

Shays's Rebellion

answer

to prevent the court from repossessing debt-ridden lands held by poor farmers

question

Constitutional Convention of 1787

answer

he new Constitution embodied leading political theories of the time regarding liberty, equality, and democracy.

question

Virginia Plan

answer

states would have delegates proportionate to population or wealt

question

New Jersey Plan

answer

each state would have equal representation

question

Connecticut Compromise

answer

equal representation in the Senate, proportional in the House of Representatives

question

Three-Fifths Compromise

answer

seats in the House of Representatives would be apportioned according to a "population" in which five slaves would count as three free persons

question

checks and balances

answer

mechanisms through which each branch of government is able to participate in and influence the activities of the other branches; major examples include the presidential veto power over congressional legislation, the power of the Senate to approve presidential appointments, and judicial review of congressional enactments

question

electoral college

answer

the electors from each state who meet after the popular election to cast ballots for president and vice president

question

Bill of Rights

answer

the first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1791; they ensure certain rights and liberties to the people

question

expressed powers

answer

specific powers granted by the Constitution to Congress (Article I, Section 8) and to the president (Article II)

question

elastic clause

answer

Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution (also known as the necessary and proper clause), which enumerates the powers of Congress and provides Congress with the authority to make all laws "necessary and proper" to carry them out

question

supremacy clause

answer

Article VI of the Constitution, which states that laws passed by the national government and all treaties are the supreme law of the land and superior to all laws adopted by any state or any subdivision

question

Which of the following statements about the Declaration of Independence is accurate?

answer

It specifically identified and focused on grievances, aspirations, and principles that might unify the various colonial groups.

question

Proponents of the idea of the "living" Constitution would likely support the concept of

answer

judicial review.

question

The executive leader or presiding officer specified by the Articles of Confederation

answer

did not exist; the Articles specified no executive leader.

question

The concept of the "mixed regime," so called by theorists such as Montesquieu and incorporated into the Constitution, meant that each branch of government

answer

had a distinct constituency.

question

Income taxes

answer

were not in existence in the mid-eighteenth century.

question

Antifederalists' concerns about the Constitution

answer

included a concern that the Constitution did not specifically enumerate protected civil liberties.

question

The Bill of Rights mollified concerns about

answer

an overly powerful central government.

question

Articles of Confederation

answer

preceded the U.S. Constitution.

question

The elastic clause (supremacy clause)

answer

gives Congress the ability to pass laws necessary to carry out its expressed powers.

question

The total boycott of all British goods in the colonies came immediately after which event?

answer

creation of the First Continental Congress

question

Counting slaves as ____ for the purposes of census did not allow slaves to ____.

answer

three-fifths of a person; vote

question

In general, the Federalists' future vision of the United States

answer

triumphed over the Antifederalist vision.

question

As a political value, individual liberty

answer

was preeminent for the Constitution's authors.

question

The process of amending the Constitution is ____, leading to a ____ proportion of proposed amendments succeeding.

answer

difficult; very small

question

The core component of the New Jersey Plan was that

answer

each state would be equally represented in the new regime regardless of that state's population.

question

Which of the following structural aspects was established for the legislature by the Constitution?

answer

The Senate was given the power to approve presidential appointments.

question

Under the Great Compromise, the Senate

answer

was an arena where large and small states would compete on equal footing.

question

The New England-based merchants and southern planters

answer

organized together in opposition to taxes imposed by the Stamp and Sugar Acts.

question

One key demonstration of the weakness of the Articles of Confederation was

answer

the size and duration of Shays's Rebellion.

question

Which of the following was established in the Tenth Amendment?

answer

Powers not specifically granted by the Constitution to the federal government were reserved to the states or to the people.

question

Tenth Amendment (reserved powers)

answer

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people

question

Full Faith and Credit Clause

answer

(comity clause) provision from Article IV, Section 1 of the Constitution requiring that the states normally honor the public acts and judicial decisions that take place in another state

question

Dual federalism (layer-cake federalism)

answer

constitutional interpretation that gave the federal government exclusive control over some issues and states exclusive control over others.

question

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

answer

The Supreme Court ruled that the U.S. Congress had, through its implied powers, the legal right to charter a national bank. && in this case, the U.S. Supreme Court interpreted the delegated powers of Congress broadly, creating the potential for increased national powers.

question

Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)

answer

The Supreme Court established the supremacy of the national government in all matters affecting interstate commerce. && gave the national government significant new authority to regulate interstate commerce.

question

Grants-in-aid

answer

funds provided by the federal government to a state or local government for a specific purpose. Formula Grants && Categorical Grants > Project Grants

question

Cooperative federalism (marble cake federalism)

answer

model in which the various levels of government work together to solve policy problems, often with the federal government providing some portion of the funding, which is spent by the states or localities

question

unfunded mandates

answer

rules forcing states to spend their own money to comply with federal law.

question

devolution

answer

transferring responsibility from the federal government to state or local governments.

question

Block grants

answer

federal grants-in-aid that allow states considerable discretion in how the funds are spent

question

privileges and immunities clause

answer

provision, from Article IV, Section 2, of the Constitution, that a state cannot discriminate against someone from another state or give its own residents special privileges

question

commerce clause

answer

Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution, which delegates to Congress the power "to regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several States and with the Indian tribes"; this clause was interpreted by the Supreme Court in favor of national power over the economy

question

New Federalism

answer

attempts by presidents Nixon and Reagan to return power to the states through block grants

question

Most of the rules and regulations Americans face in their daily lives are set by

answer

state and local governments.

question

The implied powers of the necessary and proper clause allow

answer

the national government to interpret its delegated powers expansively.

question

"Regulations or new conditions for receiving grants that impose costs on state and local governments for which they are not reimbursed by the national government" is the definition of

answer

unfunded mandates

question

In what way did the federal government attempt to combat state opposition to national policies for a time in the 1960s?

answer

bypassing states altogether by making federal grants directly to local governments

question

What is the purpose of the Tenth Amendment?

answer

to limit the powers of the central government by establishing reserved powers for states and individuals

question

Under the traditional system of dual federalism, the national government's primary functional role was

answer

the assistance of the nation's commerce.

question

The commerce clause of Article I, Section 8, of the U.S. Constitution affords Congress broad regulatory power over what?

answer

interstate commerce

question

The Supreme Court ruling in United States v. Lopez is important because

answer

it was the first time since the New Deal that the Supreme Court limited the power of Congress under the commerce clause.

question

New Federalism was generally characterized by

answer

granting state and local governments greater control of nationally funded programs.

question

In a federal system, power is distributed

answer

between the state and national governments.

question

Which of the following statements about the evolution of federalism under the George W. Bush administration is accurate?

answer

The Bush administration oversaw a massive increase in federal authority over public education.

question

Which of the following is an example of a concurrent power?

answer

the power of both the national and state governments to charter banks and corporations

question

Which of the following would best exemplify a characteristic of a unitary system of government?

answer

The national government selects the textbooks and curriculum for all schools.

question

The power to declare war is an example of which type of power?

answer

expressed

question

Specific powers provided to the national government in the U.S. Constitution are called __________ powers.

answer

expressed

question

What type of situation in American federalism has often resulted in the act of preemption?

answer

A state action is found to be inconsistent with a federal requirement.

question

Why has the controversy over same-sex marriage been so closely linked to the full faith and credit clause?

answer

It raises the issue of whether one state will recognize legal same-sex unions made in another state.

question

Block grants consist of federal aid to state or local governments that is

answer

to be spent within a specified policy area, though without the narrow regulations of categorical grants.

question

Civil liberties

answer

protections from improper government action

question

The Bill of Rights

answer

made up of provisions that protect citizens from improper government action.

question

Lemon v. Kurtzmann

answer

determined that government aid to religious schools would be accepted as constitutional if (1) it had a secular purpose, (2) its effect was neither to advance nor to inhibit religion, and (3) it did not entangle government and religious institutions in each other's affairs.

question

free exercise clause

answer

protects the right to believe and to practice whatever religion one chooses

question

McDonald v. Chicago

answer

The Court declared that the right to keep and bear arms was protected from state as well as federal action.

question

due process of law

answer

The Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth amendments, taken together

question

protects against unreasonable searches and seizures

answer

Fourth Amendment

question

requires a grand jury for most crimes, protects against double jeopardy, and provides that you cannot be forced to testify against yourself. && the takings clause, which extends to each citizen a protection against the "taking" of private property "without just compensation."

answer

Fifth Amendment

question

Miranda v. Arizona

answer

advanced the civil liberties of accused persons not only by expanding the scope of the Fifth Amendment clause covering coerced confessions and self-incrimination but also by confirming the right to counsel, a provision of the Sixth Amendment.

question

requires a speedy trial and the right to witnesses and counsel. Prohibits excessive fines/bails

answer

Sixth Amendment.

question

prohibits cruel and unusual punishment

answer

Eighth Amendment

question

Griswold v. Connecticut

answer

the Supreme Court found a right of privacy in a combination of the Third, Fourth, and Fifth amendments to the Constitution && right was confirmed and extended in 1973 in the case of Roe v. Wade.

question

Establishment clause

answer

Freedom from the state imposing any particular religion

question

Free exercise clause

answer

Freedom to practice religion of choice without state interference

question

Free exercise clause & Establishment clause

answer

First Ammendment

question

Right to Bear Arms

answer

Second Ammendment

question

Right to Privacy

answer

interpreted in the Fourth Amendment, facilitated by the Ninth Amendment

question

exclusionary rule

answer

the ability of courts to exclude evidence obtained in violation of the Fourth Amendment

question

Which of the following is established by the Fifth Amendment?

answer

The courts cannot hold trials for serious offenses without provision for a grand jury.

question

The Supreme Court ruled in Lawrence v. Texas that the right to privacy

answer

extends to gay and lesbian citizens.

question

Which of the following statements about the death penalty is accurate?

answer

The United States is the only Western nation that still executes criminals.

question

Due process of law is

answer

the right of every citizen against arbitrary government action.

question

The Fifth Amendment protects against

answer

double jeopardy.

question

Which of the following is true of the Supreme Court's treatment of student speech?

answer

It has allowed conditional restrictions on student free speech depending on the content of the speech.

question

Which of the following is a component of the Lemon test?

answer

determining whether government involvement advances a particular religion

question

Speech that is accompanied by conduct and that can be regulated by the government to preserve public order is called

answer

speech plus.

question

The idea of the separation of church and state is most closely associated with the

answer

establishment clause.

question

Fighting words fall outside constitutional protection because they

answer

directly incite violence.

question

The Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade was based on the

answer

right to privacy.

question

The exclusionary rule is illustrated by which Supreme Court case?

answer

Mapp v. Ohio

question

The most dramatic restraint imposed on police by the Bill of Rights, which can free those people who are known to have committed the crime of which they have been accused, is the

answer

exclusionary rule.

question

The free exercise clause protects

answer

the right to believe in and practice one's religion of choice.

question

Civil liberties are

answer

limitations on government action.

question

In the important 1945 case concerning eminent domain, the Supreme Court essentially ruled that

answer

the "public interest" used to justify eminent domain can mean anything a legislature wants it to mean.

question

____ liberties place restraints on how government is supposed to act, while ____ liberties limit what the government has the power to do.

answer

Procedural; substantive

question

Eminent domain is the power of government to

answer

take private property for public use.

question

The right of the people "to keep and bear Arms" is based on

answer

participation in state militias.

question

In the 2006 case of United States v. Grubbs, the Supreme Court ruled that

answer

police could conduct searches using such "anticipatory warrants."

question

abolished slavery

answer

Thirteenth Amendment

question

it guaranteed equal protection and due process

answer

Fourteenth Amendment

question

it guaranteed voting rights for African American men

answer

Fifteenth Amendment

question

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

answer

Determined separate but equal in schooling inherently unequal because predicated on the idea of racial superiority (over turns Plessy)

question

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

answer

outlawed job discrimination by all private and public employers—including governmental agencies—employing more than fifteen workers.

question

Plessy v. Ferguson (1896

answer

upheld the concept of separate but equal.

question

Civil Rights Act of 1964

answer

Public accommodations could no longer be inferior or segregated. Title VI of the act strengthened the hand of the executive branch in dealing with segregated schools. Title VII of the act created the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and allowed for the Justice Department to enforce fair-employment practices.

question

Voting Rights Act of 1965

answer

Bans literacy tests

question

civil rights

answer

obligation imposed on government to take positive action to protect citizens from any illegal action of government agencies and of other private citizens

question

affirmative action

answer

government policies or programs that seek to redress past injustices against specified groups by making special efforts to provide members of those groups with access to educational and employment opportunities

question

Mendez v. Westminster (1947) was significant because

answer

the decision to overturn school segregation of Mexican American students in California served as a precursor to Brown v. Board of Education.

question

The Supreme Court's decisions on school desegregation policies since 1991 generally suggest that the Court will

answer

be willing to end desegregation plans even when predominantly minority schools continue to lag significantly behind white suburban schools.

question

________ began the Montgomery bus boycott of 1955-1956.

answer

Rosa Parks

question

What does the term Jim Crow mean?

answer

the system of racial segregation in the South after Reconstruction

question

Which amendments to the U.S. Constitution seemed to offer African Americans the most hope for achieving full citizenship rights in the United States?

answer

the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth amendments

question

What was the purpose of California's Proposition 187?

answer

It barred unauthorized immigrants from receiving most public services.

question

What was the Supreme Court's response to the Civil Rights Act of 1875?

answer

The justices declared the act unconstitutional because it protected against acts of private discrimination, not state discrimination.

question

Which area was NOT covered by the Civil Rights Act of 1964?

answer

military service

question

In 1870, Congress passed a law forbidding ________ from becoming U.S. citizens.

answer

the Chinese

question

The constitutional authority of Congress to forbid discrimination in employment is based on the

answer

power of Congress to regulate interstate commerce.

question

The right to vote was strengthened in 1975 when members of Congress

answer

made literacy tests illegal and mandated bilingual ballots or other assistance for non-English-speaking Americans

question

The Civil Rights Act of 1875 attempted to

answer

protect African Americans from discrimination in public accommodations such as hotels and theaters.

question

The rights of disabled individuals to both access public businesses and not be discriminated against in employment are guaranteed by

answer

the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

question

United States v. Wong Kim Ark (1898) is an important case because the justices declared that

answer

anyone born in the United States was entitled to be a citizen.

question

The Compromise of 1877

answer

resulted in the presidency of Rutherford B. Hayes. & resulted in the Jim Crow system.

question

The Supreme Court justices began to change their position on racial discrimination in the ________.

answer

1930s

question

After World War II, which government institution first began drawing attention to the problem of racism in America?

answer

the White House

question

What best explains the increased attention the federal government paid to the problem of racial discrimination during the 1940s?

answer

Northern migration of African Americans increased their voting strength.

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