The Constitution and the Founding
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Which of the following was NOT a part of the lead-up to the Revolutionary War?
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Shays's Rebellion
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Which of the following methods of political compromise were used at the Constitutional Convention?
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splitting the difference and logrolling (vote trading)
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Despite significant agreement on the need for a ________ national government at the Constitutional Convention, there was serious division about ________.
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stronger; how much stronger the federal government should be
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The main reaction to the failure of the Articles of Confederation was to:
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make the national government stronger.
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The separation of powers in U.S. government refers to:
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the division of governing authority among the presidency, the Congress, and the Supreme Court.
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Which of the following was NOT a principal concern the Antifederalists had about the Constitution prior to ratification?
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the bicameral legislature
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Which of the following was NOT an idea discussed by John Locke?
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the need for rule by a strong monarch
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Modern-day interest groups such as the National Rifle Association and Emily's List are examples of what concept?
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factions
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What are the three branches of the federal government?
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executive, judicial, and legislative
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Slave states wanted slaves counted for the purposes of ________ but did not want slaves counted when it came to the issue of ________.
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representation; determining taxes
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The Antifederalists argued that the power of ________ was \"a political error of the greatest magnitude.\"
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the veto
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The idea of reserved powers is found in which amendment?
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Tenth
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The concept of shared powers means that:
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in some areas of governmental action no branch has exclusive control.
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Who had executive power under the Articles of Confederation?
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the legislature
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Which key part of the government was formed under the Articles of Confederation?
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a weak national government
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While ________ powers are not held exclusively by any branch of government, ________ powers are those that one branch can exercise over the other.
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shared; negative
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According to the text, what has allowed the Constitution to remain so relevant today?
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its ability to change with the times and reflect its citizens' values
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Which of the following is an exclusive power of the legislative branch?
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the power to declare war
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Which three principles stated in the Declaration of Independence were generally agreed upon by the Constitution's framers?
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equality under the law, self-rule, and natural rights
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Which of the following concepts applies most directly to the balance of power between state and national governments?
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supremacy clause
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How did the framers design the Constitution to protect minority rights?
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separation of powers and checks and balances
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The Federalists generally:
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supported increasing the authority of the national government.
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Which of the following is NOT a reason that the framers of the Constitution chose the electoral college as the method for selecting the president?
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It was a system that had worked well in other democracies.
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Which article of the Constitution describes the procedures for ratification?
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Article VII
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When the interests of the people are represented through their elected leaders, it is an example of what kind of government?
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republic
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Which of the following was NOT a tactic used by the Federalists to refute Antifederalist claims during the ratification debate?
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They agreed to public debates with the Antifederalists.
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The Three-Fifths Compromise referred to:
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counting slaves as three-fifths of a person when determining state population.
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Who authored the influential pamphlet Common Sense in 1776?
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Thomas Paine
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The elastic clause refers to:
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the power of Congress to make laws necessary for executing its members' enumerated powers.
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What is a serious technical error of the Constitution, according to the authors?
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It accords electors two votes each.
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Which of the following is NOT a reason that the Constitution continues to be a \"living document\"?
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There is a consensus among Americans that the Constitution should be strictly followed.
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The balanced perspective of the Constitution reflects all BUT:
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the political ideas and economic interests of average citizens.
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What modern political philosophy is based in part on James Madison's \"size principle\"?
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pluralism
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Which of the following concepts best describes the problems associated with the Articles of Confederation?
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tyranny of the minority
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The ability to remove someone because of corruption or abuse of power is called:
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impeachment
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The war powers held by the president and Congress are best an example of:
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shared powers.
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The most significant economic differences among the framers of the Constitution were:
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grounded in regional differences, with the South favoring free trade and the North preferring tariffs on foreign goods to protect domestic industries.
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Which of the following was true about the Antifederalists?
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They generally favored relatively strong state governments.
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According to some legal scholars, why is the living document argument problematic for interpreting the Constitution today?
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Ignoring the framers' intent can allow for arbitrary law based on the individual preferences and biases of judges.
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The executive power of the United States is given by the Constitution to:
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the president.
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What were the two parts of the \"double protection\" that James Madison believed would protect against minority and majority tyranny?
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federalism and separation of powers
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Which of the following events exposed discontent with the new government and led to the Annapolis Convention?
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Shays's Rebellion
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Which group pushed for the concept of reserved powers?
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Antifederalists
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Which of the following is a check that the president holds over the judicial branch?
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the ability to nominate judges for the federal courts
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Which of the following concepts reflects the need to balance the principle of self-government against the rights of specific groups?
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providing for majority rule while protecting minority rights
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How many states were needed to ratify the Constitution?
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nine out of thirteen
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How did the Articles of Confederation limit government?
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Federal power was given to the legislative branch, where each state had one vote.
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The authors of the Federalist Papers included:
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James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay.
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People who share a common political interest are best known as:
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faction
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What does the \"size principle\" refer to?
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a natural limit on majority tyranny where a large, diverse public would be more divided than unified
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Which of the following was NOT a source of significant conflict at the Constitutional Convention?
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whether to throw out or amend the Declaration of Independence
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Why did the New Jersey Plan contain a proposal for a legislature with equal representation per state?
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New Jersey had relatively little population and would therefore gain more representation under an equal system.
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Those colonists who remained supportive of the British monarchy during the Revolutionary War were called:
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Tories
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To deal with the problem of factions, James Madison proposed:
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controlling them through checks and balances.
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Which of the following is a power the president can use to check the legislative branch?
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veto
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Which part of the national government was formed under the Articles of Confederation?
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special panels of judges to resolve disputes between states
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Which influential thinker's writings led many of the Constitution's framers to reject monarchy as a method of self-rule?
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Thomas Paine
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Which agreement gave the legislature two houses?
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Great Compromise
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Which branch of government has the longest and most specific list of powers?
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legislative
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What are two important negative checks that Congress can exercise over both the executive and the judicial branches?
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impeachment and the power of the purse
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Which of the following was NOT a contentious issue in the debate over the executive branch?
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whether or not the president should be allowed to serve more than two terms
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When Congress authorizes an agency to spend money it is using its:
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power of the purse.
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How can Congress use its power of the purse as a check over the other two branches?
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By freezing judges' salaries or cutting funding for federal agencies, Congress can then give the money directly to the states.
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For James Madison, the problem associated with a tyranny of the majority was that:
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large factions might capture control of the government and ignore the rights of those in the minority.
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Which political thinker argued that in order to preserve liberty, one branch of government should be able to check the excesses of the other branches?
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Baron de Montesquieu
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A faction is a group of ________ that seek to control government power to ________.
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minority or majority interests; pursue their own interests
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Which of the following is NOT part of an acceptable process for amending the Constitution?
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proposal; approval by three-fourths of Congress
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Which of the following addressed Antifederalist concerns about the absence of limits on national governing power?
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Tenth Amendment
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Which part of government was considered the weakest because it did not have \"power of the purse or sword\"?
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judicial branch
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Why did the Articles of Confederation fail?
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The document placed too many limits on governmental power.
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A form of government in which the leader is chosen by the legislature is called:
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a parliamentary system.
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Which of the following is the main argument behind the Tea Party movement?
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The expansion of the federal government has grown beyond what the founding fathers intended.
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Which of the following best describes the context in which the Constitution was created?
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quarrels among the states and the growing perception of the collapse of the rule of law
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Which of the following was implemented in order to protect minorities from majority tyranny?
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separation of powers between three branches of government
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