Deck 7: Governors

Question 1

The governor's role as chief legislator depends heavily on

A)the development of a positive relationship between the governor and the legislators.
B)attainment by the governor's party of an 80 to 90 percent majority in the legislature.
C)the governor's ability to place bills directly into the "hopper."
D)the understandings generated by the statewide constituency of the individual legislators.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

The formal powers of governors are those derived from

A)the political support the governors can muster.
B)the U.S.Constitution.
C)their personal traits.
D)the state constitutions or statutes.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Today's governors are

A)better educated and better prepared for the job than their predecessors were.
B)largely without previous experience in state government because most are considered "outsiders."
C)back-slapping wheeler-dealers, in the best American tradition.
D)less qualified than their predecessors.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Governors consider appointment power a valuable tool for

A)ensuring success in the highly regarded practice known as nepotism.
B)further fragmenting responsibility within the executive branch.
C)avoiding responsibility for mistakes made in the executive branch.
D)managing state bureaucracy.

Question 5

Package veto power, which all states grant their governors, gives the governor the authority to

A)strike one or more sections of a bill, permitting the remaining "package" to go forward.
B)reject a bill by refusing to sign it after the legislature has adjourned.
C)reject a bill in its entirety.
D)veto a bill, send it back for reconsideration, and, after changes are approved by the legislature, sign the bill.

Question 6

A governor's formal power to veto a bill in its entirety is called a

A)package veto.
B)pocket veto.
C)line-item veto.
D)parcel or box veto.

Question 7

Today's state governors are

A)as a whole, very representative of the population in terms of race and gender.
B)white males, except for several women who succeeded their husbands upon these men's death in office.
C)still predominantly white males, but more representative of population characteristics than former chief executives were.
D)mostly white males, but black and white females have now won 30 percent of the gubernatorial seats.

Question 8

Most governors who are successful in the role of chief legislator rely on

A)pork barrel politics.
B)their party's domination of the legislature.
C)an approach that avoids the appearance of interfering with internal legislative matters.
D)the threat of vetoing legislation.

Question 9

Governors playing the role of economic development promoter find that

A)it is best to rely on Chamber of Commerce officials to represent the state.
B)their personal involvement with industry leaders is helpful in attracting new industry to their state.
C)successful economic development pays no political dividends for them.
D)a public relations campaign offers a greater chance of attracting industry than do infrastructure improvements.

Question 10

A system in which more than one member of the executive branch is popularly elected on a statewide ballot is referred to as

A)a popular executive.
B)an executive slate.
C)Jacksonian democracy.
D)a plural executive.

Question 11

Efforts to impose gubernatorial term limits have

A)typically imposed a two-term limitation, but this has had little effect because that is the formal or informal norm in most states.
B)typically sought to limit governors to three terms.
C)provided a number of safe governorships.
D)had no effect on limiting terms in the fifty states.

Question 12

Which of the following statements regarding the governors' use of the veto is accurate?

A)The vast majority of bills are vetoed by the governor.
B)Divided party control between the executive and legislative branches has no bearing on the use of the veto.
C)The actual use of the veto is typically the same across all states.
D)On average, governors veto only a small percentage of bills.

Question 13

In gubernatorial political races, incumbency

A)apparently provides no significant advantage since most incumbent governors have lost their bids for reelection during the past twenty years.
B)is the deciding factor, far outweighing money and the strength of the candidate's political party in the state electorate.
C)is rarely a factor because so few sitting governors can legally run for a second term.
D)provides an important edge over an opponent, as reflected in the fact that since the 1970s, about three-quarters of incumbents have retained their seats.

Question 14

The governors' role as chief administrators has been

A)increased because they have found it necessary to micromanage the state's day-to-day affairs.
B)undercut by the shift of federal programs and dollars to the states.
C)strengthened by reforms that have concentrated executive powers in the governor's office.
D)welcomed by nearly all governors, who prefer the role of chief administrator to that of policymaker.

Question 15

In their role as intergovernmental coordinator, governors

A)depend wholly on the National Governors' Association to represent their states' interests.
B)coordinate the actions of state agencies.
C)serve as the major points of contact between their states and the president, Congress, and national agencies.
D)delegate their responsibilities to staffers, because the importance of this role has diminished.

Question 16

The line-item veto

A)can only be used in appropriation bills.
B)is available in one form or another in the majority of states.
C)is available only at the federal level, but is currently being considered by a number of states.
D)is available only in eight states, including Nevada and Maine.

Question 17

The governor's role as chief policymaker is enhanced by

A)controlling events in the legislature.
B)being the only political actor to influence policymaking.
C)having larger, competent staffs knowledgeable in important policy fields.
D)being able to directly introduce bills into the house or senate.

Question 18

Historically, all of the following were characteristic of governors except

A)they had little authority.
B)they were elected by the voters.
C)they were restricted to a single one-year term of office.
D)they were elected by the legislature.

Question 19

As party leaders, governors are not as powerful as they once were, but the role is still useful for

A)controlling party nominations for state legislative seats.
B)ceremonial purposes.
C)controlling the legislative agenda and legislative leaders.
D)keeping lines of communication open with Washington officials.

Question 20

When the majority of state jobs are filled through objective merit systems, governors

A)usually work to overturn such systems.
B)benefit from the work of professional state employees and avoid many of the problems that arise over patronage.
C)retain the power to terminate employees whenever they wish.
D)are less powerful because power is usurped by state bureaucrats.

Question 21

In most states, the governor is allowed to introduce bills directly in the state legislature.

Question 22

One of the many roles of the governor is that of the leading formulator and initiator of public policy in his or her state.

Question 23

The cost of gubernatorial campaigns is less today than in the past because of public financing.

Question 24

Most of today's governors paid their political dues in state legislatures, gaining an understanding of important issues confronting the state, a working familiarity with influential figures in government and the private sector, and a practical knowledge of the legislative process and other inner secrets of state government.

Question 25

After the colonial experience with royal governors, the evolution of the governorship can be characterized as a struggle to provide the state executive with the powers necessary for him or her to meet the demands of the office.

Question 26

A governor can be compared to a chief executive officer of a large corporation because they both must manage complex organizational systems.

Question 27

All states provide for impeachment of their governors except

A)Arizona.
B)Alaska.
C)Oregon.
D)Alabama.

Question 28

Despite the prominence of state legislatures and difficulties with executive-legislative relations, governors dominate setting the policy agenda in most states.

Question 29

The early governors of our nation's past had great authority and did not face term restrictions.

Question 30

The term pork barrel politics refers to favoritism by a governor or other elected officials in distributing government monies or other resources to a particular program or jurisdiction.

Question 31

The power to reorganize state government is an important one.Traditionally, that power belongs to

A)the governor in forty-two states (under constitutional authority in thirty states and by statute in twelve more states).
B)the legislature, and few legislatures, if any, have given away that power.
C)the legislature, but today more than twenty states grant their governors this authority.
D)the governor.

Question 32

The process of impeachment to remove a governor

A)is typically initiated in the state house of representatives, and the impeachment trial is held in the state senate.A two-thirds vote is necessary for conviction and removal of the governor in most states.
B)has been used many times.More than thirty governors have been impeached, and seventeen governors have actually been convicted.
C)is universally available in all states as a remedy for "high crimes and misdemeanors."
D)is generally dependent on a simple majority vote of the upper chamber of the legislature for conviction and removal from office.

Question 33

Lieutenant governors serve the purpose of ensuring orderly succession in the event the governor cannot complete a term and

A)are provided for in all but fourteen states.
B)are provided for in all but five states.
C)are always members of the governor's cabinet.
D)must come from the same political party as the governor.

Question 34

Today's governors are better qualified, better educated, and better prepared for the office than governors of the past.

Question 35

During the early days of the nation, Georgia and Pennsylvania established a plural (multimember)executive.

Question 36

The secretary of state in state government

A)has less responsibility now than in past decades.
B)is usually appointed by the governor to oversee agricultural policy.
C)is primarily involved in recordkeeping and election responsibilities, although the duties of the position have been elevated in recent years.
D)is most often responsible for disbursement of state funds.

Question 37

The state attorney general is

A)currently less likely to be involved in regulatory activities than was the case ten years ago.
B)the least likely of all members of the executive branch officials to be elected by the people.
C)the counsel for a plaintiff in all cases against the state.
D)able, in most states, to issue opinions that have the force of law unless successfully challenged in court.

Question 38

During the early days of the nation, the state legislatures, rather than voters, typically elected governors.

Question 39

The state treasurer

A)is the official custodian and manager of state funds.
B)is elected in all fifty states, because it is believed that the treasurer is the guardian of state funds and should not be appointed by the governor.
C)manages state funds but is not responsible for their investment.
D)is found in only a few states, where the management of state pension funds is his or her sole responsibility.

Question 40

Among the governor's informal powers are leadership skills, which include public relations and media skills.The governor's use of these skills

A)has diminished in recent years due to the media's desire to report only sensational news stories concerning politics.
B)are most often used for free reelection campaign visibility.
C)can help create a public forum that gives the governor unchallenged opportunities to polish his or her image.
D)can help to gain public support for the governor's programs, provided the governor can cultivate the media.

Question 41

Five states do not have lieutenant governors: Arizona, Maine, New Hampshire, Oregon, and Wyoming.

Question 42

The attorney general is the state's chief legal counsel.

Question 43

A governor's formal powers are those that are derived from the state constitution or statute.

Question 44

In performing the duties of the office, a governor may engage in various roles.Identify five such roles, and discuss the responsibilities the governor has in each.

Question 45

The states that grant their governors strong formal powers include Vermont and Rhode Island.

Question 46

All governors have some form of the line-item veto.

Question 47

Two recent governors who left office under embarrassing circumstances were Eliot Spitzer of New York (who left after getting snared in a federal prostitution sting operation)and James McGreevey of New Jersey (who stepped down after admitting a homosexual affair with an appointed agency head).

Question 48

The average time actually served by governors has grown steadily as a result of fewer restrictions on tenure.

Question 49

Upon leaving office, the vast majority of governors continue their public service in another public venue.

Question 50

An executive order is a rule, regulation, or policy issued unilaterally by the governor to affect executive branch operations or activities.

Question 51

The majority of gubernatorial elections are held during presidential election years.

Question 52

Of the more than 2,100 governors who have held office, only 23 have been either impeached and removed from office, or resigned under a cloud of legal problems.

Question 53

In all states, the line-item veto is permitted only in appropriation bills.

Question 54

Voting system reforms and the development of e-government have substantially elevated the responsibilities of the secretaries of state.

Question 55

The governor's role as intergovernmental coordinator is becoming less important with each passing year, which reflects the diminishing importance of states in the American system of federalism.

Question 56

In most states, the governor and lieutenant governor are elected on the same ticket.

Question 57

Surveys of past governors indicate that they consider appointment power to be the most important weapon in their arsenal when it comes to managing state agencies.

Question 58

The package veto is a type of veto used to reject a bill and also to recommend changes that would cause the governor to reconsider the bill's approval.

Question 59

After the legislature has enacted a bill and adjourned, the pocket veto allows the governor to reject the bill by refusing to sign it.

Question 60

The only states in which the governor does not have veto power are North Carolina and Hawaii.

Question 61

In their role as chief policymakers, governors have the power to veto bills passed by the legislature.Discuss the different types of vetoes available and reasons why a governor might choose to use the veto.

Question 62

Discuss the synergism between the informal and formal powers available to governors.Explain, also, how a "weak" governor may be successful and a "strong" governor may be a failure.

Question 63

In your view, are governors paid enough? Keep in mind that the typical CEO of a medium-sized to large corporation makes significantly more money than any governor does.Which state pays its governor the most in salary, and which states pay the least?