Deck 4: Civil Liberties

Question 1

The reason that flag burning is permitted and the burning of draft cards is not is because burning draft cards interferes with Congress's authority to create a military.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

The Bill of Rights was created at the Constitutional Convention because the Federalists feared excessive government power.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

The tension between individual civil liberties and the needs of the federal government to provide national security is an example of what?

A) the exclusionary rule as it applies to national security
B) the Second Amendment's role in security policy
C) how important protections of freedom of religion have become in contemporary America
D) the need to balance interests when discussing civil liberties

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Governments cannot regulate fighting words.

Question 5

The due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment is an important extension of civil liberties because it guarantees provisions of the Bill of Rights at the state level.

Question 6

The process of selective incorporation was used widely by the Supreme Court justices in both the 1930s and 1960s.

Question 7

Obscenity is difficult to define since community standards can vary in different parts of the country.

Question 8

How was the Bill of Rights developed?

A) Civil liberties were central to the debate at the Constitutional Convention.
B) A committee was formed during the Constitutional Convention, but its recommendations were ignored.
C) It was drafted after the ratification process had begun.
D) It was drafted at the Constitutional Convention.

Question 9

The National Security Agency was created after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.

Question 10

Civil liberties are guaranteed by which part of the Constitution?

A) Eleventh Amendment
C) Bill of Rights
B) Article I
D) Tenth Amendment

Question 11

Civil liberties are basic protections against government action that may restrict the freedom of individuals.

Question 12

The exclusionary rule is still in effect, but the justices in recent decades have eased the conditions in which prosecutors can use evidence obtained under questionable circumstances.

Question 13

The public outcry against the Alien and Sedition Acts helped Thomas Jefferson become president.

Question 14

Americans' religious freedoms are based on two different clauses in the First Amendment: the free exercise clause and the establishment clause.

Question 15

The Bill of Rights has always been interpreted by the Supreme Court justices to apply to the federal government and the states.

Question 16

Civil liberties are

A) absolute guarantees of political freedom.
B) restrictions on government action that are intended to protect political freedoms.
C) required government actions intended to promote equality.
D) responsibilities for citizens outlined in the Constitution.

Question 17

Prior restraint has taken on new significance in the war on terror.

Question 18

Passage of the Fourteenth Amendment after the Civil War meant that states were immediately held to the same restrictions that applied to the federal government.

Question 19

Voluntary school prayer in the public schools has been unconstitutional since the early 1960s.

Question 20

Gun tragedies in the United States inevitably lead to more stringent gun control legislation.

Question 21

Which one of the following civil liberties is not protected in the First Amendment?

A) speech
C) religion
B) assembly
D) privacy

Question 22

Selective incorporation was created by ________.

A) Supreme Court justices
C) President Ulysses Grant
B) Congress
D) executive bureaucrats

Question 23

________ determined that there was a "wall of eternal separation between church and state."

A) Thomas Jefferson
C) Abraham Lincoln
B) James Madison
D) Woodrow Wilson

Question 24

________ predicted in a letter to James Madison that four states would oppose ratification of the Constitution until a bill of rights was added.

A) George Washington
C) Thomas Jefferson
B) George Mason
D) Benjamin Franklin

Question 25

The clear and present danger test allows government to

A) regulate political speech when it is inconvenient.
B) prevent people from protesting some government actions, such as wars.
C) limit some political speech but only when it may cause significant harm to others.
D) jail dissidents and malcontents in some extreme circumstances.

Question 26

Burning the flag is an example of ________.

A) slander
C) symbolic speech
B) hate speech
D) a clear and present danger

Question 27

Even after the Civil War, former slaves did not enjoy the same protection from state governments as they did from the national government. Why?

A) The Supreme Court justices still embraced the standard of dual citizenship, despite the Fourteenth Amendment.
B) The Supreme Court justices felt the Civil War had effectively ended slavery.
C) The Dred Scott decision had ruled that slaves were property.
D) The Fifth Amendment also applied to the states.

Question 28

Under what circumstances have the courts allowed symbolic speech to be regulated?

A) when the symbolic speech conflicts with another substantial government interest unrelated to ideas
B) when the symbolic speech opposes actions the government has taken
C) when the symbolic speech involves the destruction of things such as the U.S. flag
D) if a member of Congress brings a lawsuit to prevent the symbolic speech

Question 29

The Alien and Sedition Acts

A) were passed in the eighteenth century.
B) were endorsed by the leaders of the Democratic-Republican Party.
C) limited campaign contributions for federal candidates.
D) resulted in thousands of arrests in the United States.

Question 30

The Bill of Rights was added to the Constitution in ________.

A) 1787
C) 1791
B) 1789
D) 1795

Question 31

What is the constitutional basis of selective incorporation?

A) Article I
C) First Amendment
B) Article II
D) Fourteenth Amendment

Question 32

Defenders of free speech

A) believe that there should be no limits on what people say.
B) believe that it is essential to engage in a free exchange of ideas.
C) typically oppose allowing the Ku Klux Klan to rally in a public space.
D) typically oppose the right of members of the Westboro Baptist Church to protest at military funerals.

Question 33

The Supreme Court justices determined that voluntary school prayer was unconstitutional in ________.

A) 1985
C) Zelman v. Simmons-Harris
B) Engel v. Vitale
D) Lemon v. Kurtzman

Question 34

Who opposed ratification of the Constitution until a bill of rights was included?

A) Federalists
C) Antifederalists
B) Democratic-Republicans
D) James Madison

Question 35

Which one of the following statements is accurate with regard to money in federal campaigns?

A) Candidates in federal elections are not subject to limits on contributions they receive directly from citizens.
B) Candidates for the presidency are limited in how much of their own money they can lend to their campaign.
C) Candidates in federal elections only have to report contributions of $5,000 or more to the Federal Election Commission.
D) The justices of the Supreme Court have attempted to balance First Amendment rights of candidates and their supporters with the public interest in honest and ethical elections.

Question 36

Unspoken actions that communicate political ideas

A) receive no protection under federal law.
B) can sometimes fall under the protection of the First Amendment.
C) are regulated primarily by the U.S. Congress.
D) are regulated primarily by the states.

Question 37

Which one of the following cases specifically applied one of the Bill of Rights amendments to state action?

A) Barron v. Baltimore
C) Marbury v. Madison
B) Gitlow v. New York
D) McCulloch v. Maryland

Question 38

The justices of the Supreme Court

A) have recently extended First Amendment rights to corporations and labor unions in federal elections.
B) have recently overturned the ban on "soft money."
C) have determined that money has no place in federal campaigns.
D) have determined that public universities can no longer assess mandatory fees.

Question 39

Which one of the following forbids states from denying "life, liberty, or property" without following rules based on the Bill of Rights?

A) establishment clause
B) necessary and proper clause
C) due process clause
D) privileges and immunities clause

Question 40

Which event prompted the harshest crackdowns on free speech since the Sedition Act of 1798?

A) World War II
C) Civil War
B) World War I
D) War of 1812

Question 41

Which part of the Bill of Rights was the latest to be applied at the state level?

A) Second Amendment
C) Fifth Amendment
B) Fourth Amendment
D) Fourteenth Amendment

Question 42

Which one of the following statements is true about libel?

A) It is more difficult for public officials to prove libel than private citizens.
B) The justices of the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Jerry Falwell in a famous libel case in the 1980s.
C) It is almost impossible for a private citizen to prove libel in the federal courts.
D) All people are perceived by the justices of the Supreme Court as peer equals when it comes to the issue of libel.

Question 43

In 2013 the Supreme Court justices issued a ruling saying that

A) drug-sniffing dogs can be used outside a home without a warrant.
B) drug-sniffing dogs cannot be used outside a home without a warrant.
C) police have wide latitude in the war against drugs.
D) police have to use strict scrutiny when investigating potential crimes.

Question 44

Fighting words, obscenity, and libel receive

A) the same level of protection as political speech.
B) less protection than political speech.
C) more protection than political speech.
D) no attention from the federal government.

Question 45

What aspects of assembly can be regulated by the government without violating the freedom of assembly?

A) only the time and place of the event
B) time, place, and manner of the event without considering the content of the message
C) time, place, and manner of the event as long as the regulation is content neutral
D) the time and place, but not the manner of the event

Question 46

When it comes to the question of prior restraint on the press, the Supreme Court justices

A) have set a high bar for the government to meet if it wants to restrict the press.
B) favor the national government over the press, particularly in times of war and conflict.
C) follow Congress's lead in regulating the press.
D) defer to the Federal Communications Commission.

Question 47

A township passes an ordinance that prevents a Nazi group from marching through town. The Supreme Court justices would likely overturn the ordinance as a violation of the group's freedom of ________.

A) religion
C) assembly
B) petition
D) speech

Question 48

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.

Question 49

Which events preceded the Gun Control Act of 1968?

A) the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy
B) the assassination attempts on Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan
C) numerous school shootings across the country
D) numerous mall shootings across the country

Question 50

Why have lower courts struck down speech codes that ban hate speech?

A) They violate the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
B) They are not considered content neutral.
C) They were not approved by a state legislature.
D) They were unpopular with students.

Question 51

The Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Amendments contain which sets of rights?

A) due process
C) criminal
B) equal protection
D) none of the above

Question 52

Which one of the following is accurate regarding the right to peacefully assemble?

A) The right to peacefully assemble has been consistently upheld by the Supreme Court justices.
B) Members of the Ku Klux Klan and the Nazi Party have generally not been allowed to hold public rallies.
C) Local government officials generally do not have to let unpopular groups assemble in their communities if they do not wish to do so.
D) The right to assemble can be constitutionally restricted by a "heckler's veto."

Question 53

Child pornography is found to be obscene because

A) it meets the standards of the Miller test.
B) it meets the standards of the Lemon test.
C) it presents clear and present danger.
D) it is direct incitement.

Question 54

The Pentagon Papers case balanced what two considerations?

A) freedom of the press and national security
B) content-neutrality standards and national security
C) the public's right to know and content-neutrality standards
D) freedom of the press and the public's right to know

Question 55

The Miller test is a set of rules for determining whether

A) something is obscene.
B) the government can prevent the press from publishing something.
C) Congress can regulate speech about the U.S. government.
D) a public figure has been slandered.

Question 56

Speech that is offensive or abusive, particularly in terms of race, gender, or sexual orientation, is called ________.

A) symbolic speech
C) slanderous speech
B) hate speech
D) expressive speech

Question 57

What types of searches may be permitted based on a weaker "reasonable suspicion"?

A) searches of items "in plain view"
B) searches of cars
C) searches of "armed and dangerous" subjects
D) school searches

Question 58

Current legal standards on libel and slander distinguish between comments made about average, ordinary people and those made about ________.

A) foreigners
C) family
B) anonymous figures
D) public figures

Question 59

The Supreme Court justices have ruled that the government can make laws about commercial speech when

A) someone brings the speech to their attention.
B) the Federal Communications Commission is unanimous in opposition.
C) that speech is misleading.
D) the speech airs on television.

Question 60

Which event preceded the Brady campaign to prevent gun violence?

A) the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963
B) the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968
C) the end of the Vietnam War
D) the assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan in 1981

Question 61

What did the Supreme Court justices rule in Engel v. Vitale (1962) and why is it important?

Question 62

A year after Gideon v. Wainwright, Congress passed a law making the ________ even stronger.

A) right to an attorney
C) self-incrimination
B) exclusionary rule
D) double jeopardy

Question 63

The right against self-incrimination, based in ________, is an example of ________.

A) the Fifth Amendment; due process rights
B) the Fourth Amendment; settled law
C) Miranda v. Arizona; due process rights
D) the Bill of Rights; a free speech protection

Question 64

Under the ________, government officials have increased access to individual library, banking, and medical records.

A) Freedom of Information Act
C) FBI Control Act
B) USA Patriot Act
D) Tenth Amendment

Question 65

Privacy rights

A) were enumerated explicitly in the Constitution.
B) go back to the early nineteenth century.
C) were first developed in Roe v. Wade.
D) were first developed in 1965.

Question 66

The right to counsel is provided in the ________ Amendment. After the decision in ________, this was extended to require that counsel be provided for people who cannot afford an attorney.

A) Sixth; Gitlow v. New York
C) Fourth; Gideon v. Wainwright
B) Sixth; Gideon v. Wainwright
D) Fifth; Gideon v. Wainwright

Question 67

Evidence that the Supreme Court justices are attentive to public opinion is demonstrated by their decisions that

A) allow minutes of silence and prayer in school.
B) limit the process of selective incorporation.
C) limit circumstances in which the death penalty can be applied.
D) make it clear they will not address Second Amendment issues.

Question 68

In 1972, the justices of the Supreme Court

A) determined that the death penalty was unconstitutional because the process of applying it was too inconsistent.
B) determined that all death penalty cases should be consolidated so that one trial existed to determine guilt or innocence as well as sentencing.
C) determined that the death penalty is cruel and unusual punishment under the Constitution.
D) determined that the death penalty was strictly a states' rights issue.

Question 69

What is the difference between strict and intermediate scrutiny?

Question 70

The Supreme Court justices based their decision in Lawrence v. Texas on the ________.

A) First Amendment
C) Fourteenth Amendment
B) Ninth Amendment
D) Nineteenth Amendment

Question 71

Which one of the following statements is accurate concerning abortion rights in the United States?

A) Most states have no parental notification or consent laws for minors.
B) Significant restrictions on abortion rights still exist in the United States today.
C) Mandatory waiting period laws for abortions are no longer constitutional in the United States.
D) There are no restrictions on abortion rights in the United States today.

Question 72

The Supreme Court's decision in Griswold v. Connecticut

A) established the right to privacy as existing in the Bill of Rights.
B) guaranteed a woman's right to an abortion.
C) meant the police had to read a person a list of her or his rights in advance of an arrest.
D) created a standard for determining when political speech could be regulated.

Question 73

Privacy rights are most central to which one of the following controversial issues?

A) abortion
C) legalization of drugs
B) gun control
D) school prayer

Question 74

What is the difference between civil liberties and civil rights?

Question 75

Which one of the following statements most accurately describes the use of the death penalty?

A) There has been a clear trend among the states away from the use of the death penalty.
B) There has been very little change in the frequency with which states use the death penalty.
C) More states choose to use the death penalty every year.
D) No states use the death penalty any more.

Question 76

Griswold v. Connecticut

A) was only about freedom of expression under the First Amendment.
B) established the constitutional basis for a right to privacy.
C) established the clear and present danger test.
D) established voting rights for African Americans.

Question 77

Why was Gitlow v. New York (1925) such an important case?

Question 78

Privacy rights are controversial because

A) they emanate from Congress rather than the Supreme Court.
B) they are not explicitly stated in the Bill of Rights.
C) they were only implemented to provide access to birth control.
D) the Supreme Court has not recognized that they exist.

Question 79

In Bowers v. Hardwick, the justices of the Supreme Court

A) determined that same-sex couples could get legally married in the United States.
B) guaranteed a woman's right to an abortion.
C) determined that there was no privacy protection or fundamental right for consenting adults to engage in homosexual sodomy.
D) upheld the constitutionality of affirmative action.

Question 80

The broad right to pursue abortion services, subject to specific state limitations, was guaranteed in ________.

A) Miranda v. Arizona
C) Roe v. Wade
B) Gideon v. Wainwright
D) Griswold v. Texas