Deck 15: Democratic Government in the United States

Question 1

Although the number of parties is not determined in the Constitution, the United States has generally operated on a:

A) two-party system.
B) three-party system.
C) four-party system.
D) multiparty system.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

The Constitution divided the national government into three branches: the executive, legislative, and:

A) economic.
B) judicial.
C) commercial.
D) records.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Those powers expressly delegated by the Constitution are called:

A) flexible powers.
B) popular powers.
C) enumerated powers.
D) divided powers.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

The United States has a federal government which operates on:

A) two levels.
B) six levels.
C) thirteen levels.
D) three levels.

Question 5

A pure democracy is a political system under which:

A) the people make most governmental decisions through elected representatives.
B) all citizens vote directly on every piece of legislation.
C) one person is able to represent all.
D) no government decisions are ever made.

Question 6

For legal purposes, the Constitution of the United States means whatever the:

A) chief executive says it means.
B) Speaker of the House says it means.
C) president and vice president think it means.
D) Supreme Court says it means.

Question 7

In 1790, only adult white males could vote. Property and other restrictions resulted in only a small number of men who could vote, about:

A) twenty-five percent.
B) fifteen percent.
C) fifty percent.
D) seventy percent.

Question 8

The function of the courts is to:

A) make the law.
B) write laws which are proposed in Congress.
C) act as a presidential advisory board.
D) interpret the law and apply it in individual cases.

Question 9

This is a good example of a parliamentary government.

A) Great Britain
B) Barbados
C) the United States
D) Mexico

Question 10

The United States has a(n):

A) living constitution.
B) fixed constitution.
C) written constitution which cannot be amended.
D) oral constitution.

Question 11

In 2002, euro coins and currency went into circulation; how many members of the EU adopted this currency?

A) 10 members.
B) 12 members.
C) 27 members.
D) 18 members.

Question 12

A presidential veto can be overridden by a:

A) simple majority in each house.
B) three-quarters majority in each house.
C) two-thirds majority in each house.
D) simple majority in the Senate but a five-eighths majority in the House.

Question 13

Which of the following is NOT an inalienable right of citizens in the U.S.?

A) freedom of speech.
B) freedom of assembly.
C) freedom of privacy.
D) right to due process of law.

Question 14

The Constitutional Convention succeeded because the delegates:

A) were always in complete agreement with each other.
B) were unwilling to compromise.
C) agreed that the large states should dominate the government.
D) were willing to compromise.

Question 15

Concurrent powers are those powers belonging:

A) only to the states.
B) only to the national government.
C) to both the national and state governments.
D) to foreign governments.

Question 16

The form of government in which the head of state does not inherit the office but is elected by the citizens is called a:

A) monarchy.
B) republic.
C) quasi-monarchy.
D) partial dictatorship.

Question 17

The European Economic Community became the European Union after the:

A) Maastricht Treaty.
B) Treaty of Rome.
C) Euro Conference.
D) All-Europe Convention.

Question 18

One great protection against an unfair trial is the right to:

A) a trial by jury.
B) a trial by a panel of three judges.
C) a trial without legal advice.
D) an instant trial outside the court system.

Question 19

Supplementing and modifying the principle of separation of powers is:

A) popular rotation.
B) checks and balances.
C) tyranny.
D) emergency powers.

Question 20

The first ten amendments to the Constitution were adopted in 1791 and are called:

A) the Last Amendments.
B) Constitutional Extension.
C) the Modifiers.
D) the Bill of Rights.

Question 21

The federal Constitution is easy to amend.

Question 22

James Madison was an opponent of the principle of the separation of powers.

Question 23

Political Action Committees (PACs) began:

A) as a result of the revised 1974 federal election laws.
B) in the 1830s to stop corruption.
C) in the Civil War period to block foreign intervention.
D) before World War I to help U.S. soldiers.

Question 24

Democratic theory has demanded that the courts be directly subject to popular control.

Question 25

In 2012, defense spending totaled nearly:

A) $100 million.
B) $740 billion.
C) $100 trillion.
D) $500 trillion.

Question 26

The U.S. government is a constitutional government.

Question 27

Since 1985, the Supreme Court has begun to crack down on criminals by giving the police more rights.

Question 28

The Constitution specifically gives both Congress and the president the right to declare war either separately or jointly.

Question 29

The right to freedoms does not include respecting the freedoms of others.

Question 30

Rights are never absolute. Furthermore, rights involve duties.

Question 31

The founding fathers, though desiring a central government strong enough to govern, feared too great a concentration of power and attempted to devise a means for preventing the abuse of power.

Question 32

The military-industrial complex is the nexus between defense industries, the Pentagon, and:

A) Congress.
B) the Government Accounting Office.
C) the armed forces.
D) the State Department.

Question 33

The United States has a parliamentary form of government.

Question 34

The government of the United States is both a democracy and a republic.

Question 35

The journalistic profession or its members is called:

A) the first association.
B) the middle factors.
C) the sixth estate.
D) the fourth estate.

Question 36

A two-party system seldom shows sharp and clear-cut differences in program or principle.

Question 37

The writers of the Constitution clearly intended the three branches of government to be completely independent of each other.

Question 38

The founding fathers feared tyranny by a majority of the electorate as well as by a strong executive.

Question 39

One of the great problems under federalism is how to divide powers between the central government and the states.

Question 40

In the United States, not all voting age citizens actually vote. In presidential elections, perhaps ______percent of those citizens who can vote actually do.

A) 20-30.
B) 10-20.
C) 50-60.
D) 80-90.

Question 41

What are the four major constitutional principles of the U.S. government? Why and how is each principle important?

Question 42

President Gerald Ford originated the term military-industrial complex.

Question 43

What are an individual's inalienable rights? Why are rights never absolute? Why does the right to freedoms involve the duty of respecting the freedoms of others?

Question 44

Pressure groups play an important role in trying to shape public opinion.

Question 45

What is the historical development of the U.S. government? Why was compromise important in the writing of the U.S. Constitution?

Question 46

Under the 1974 federal election laws, individual contributors could only give $1,000 to a candidate's primary general election campaign, whereas a PAC could give $5,000.

Question 47

Evaluate the democratic political process in the United States. What are the major elements and problems in the U.S. political process? Consider parties, elections, elites, pressure groups and the military-industrial complex.

Question 48

In the 2008 election, Senator Barack Obama promised to abide by the limits and accept federal money but then not to accept the money when he discovered he could raise more money through private donations.

Question 49

One of the ways electorates in democracies throughout the world have had their ballot power weakened is the limitation of categories of those who can hold office.

Question 50

Roughly estimated, there are approximately 100,000 people in the U.S. who could be considered the political and economic elite of our society.

Question 51

The press, or fourth estate, has freedom inherent in the constitution and is also free from influence from private pressure groups and businesses.

Question 52

What is the structure of the U.S. government as established by the Constitution? Why is the U.S. government both a democracy and a republic?

Question 53

The direct democracy approach is least used in California as exemplified by the recall of Governor Gray Davis and election of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2003.

Question 54

The potential development of a third party prevents the two major parties from being responsive to the demands of the people.

Question 55

American voters have a much higher percentage of voter participation in elections than voters in Britain.