Deck 2: The Elite Consensus of the Founding Fathers: Us Political Principles

Question 1

The Articles of Confederation was adopted in ______________.

A) 1789
B) 1785
C) 1777
D)1787

Answer 1

C

Question 2

The idea of government as a social contract between people and the government suggests that people give their allegiance or obedience to government in exchange for________________.

A) democratic freedoms
B) protection of persons and property
C) the right to vote
D) common public goods

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Which of the Founding Fathers was against any property qualification for voting or holding office?

A) George Washington
B) James Madison
C) Alexander Hamilton
D) Thomas Jefferson

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Slavery was protected in the Constitution by the

A) Three-fifths Compromise.
B) agreement to not end the slave trade until after 1808.
C) requirement of returning of runaway slaves.
D) All of the above are true.

Question 5

Which power was reserved for the states in the Articles of Confederation?

A) Regulation of commerce
B) Providing for the common defense
C) Promoting the general welfare
D) Making treaties with other countries

Question 6

Which of the following best describes the men who wrote the Constitution?

A) All were educated at elite institutions.
B) Each of them was experienced at government.
C) All maintained a national point of view.
D) All of the above are true.

Question 7

The Constitution sets up a system where the role of the masses is

A) the basis of government.
B) to participate in decision-making.
C) limited and indirect.
D) repressed by the elite.

Question 8

Which of the following ideas made the elite principles of the United States' government different from most other countries in 1787?

A) The consent of the governed
B) Equal rights
C) Human rights
D) All of the above

Question 9

Delegates to the Constitutional Convention were selected

A) through an election by the people.
B) by property ownership.
C) through appointment by state legislatures.
D) None of the above is true.

Question 10

The powers granted the federal government under the Constitution that had been lacking under the Articles of Confederation were

A) the regulation of commerce.
B) the ability to levy taxes.
C) the power to create a navy.
D) all of the above.

Question 11

Which Founding Father believed that it was reasonable for the government to control and regulate the economic system?

A) Benjamin Franklin
B) Thomas Jefferson
C) Alexander Hamilton
D) James Madison

Question 12

Attempting to create a society with no inequalities in wealth was seen by the Founders as _____________________.

A) a dangerous violation of property rights
B) an important step toward equality in society
C) a basic human right
D) a matter to be left for the states

Question 13

The preeminent elite in the early United States is best described by which of the following? A.

A) Farmers
B) Merchants
C) Rich and Well-born
D) Attorneys

Question 14

Under the Constitution, taxation of the states by the national government was based on

A) property.
B) wealth.
C) population.
D) exports.

Question 15

Most of the Founding Fathers were educated at which Ivy League institution?

A) Yale
B) Harvard
C) William and Mary
D) Princeton

Question 16

The Constitution limits the power of government because the Founders viewed government as

A) a threat to freedom and liberty
B) a tool of the elite.
C) an archaic English concept.
D) not very important.

Question 17

Although the Founding Fathers were considered "elites," there was a basic belief in which of the following?

A) protection of individual liberty
B) equal levels of wealth among all citizens
C) the need to maintain slavery
D) government was a necessary part of human life

Question 18

The Constitutional proposal that each state should have one vote and therefore, equal representation in the legislature was presented by delegates from

A) Virginia.
B) New Jersey.
C) Connecticut.
D) California.

Question 19

The majority of the Founders at the Constitutional Convention had training in which professional field?

A) Medicine
B) Accounting
C) Law
D) Business

Question 20

The Founders believed popular sovereignty which means that political authority rested with

A) the king.
B) God.
C) the ruling elite.
D) the people.

Question 21

Military power before the Constitution was ineffective largely because it was

A) made up of paid mercenaries.
B) dependent on using state militias.
C) made up of immigrants who did not believe in America.
D) low on ammunition.

Question 22

As originally mandated by the Constitution, which of the following parts of the federal government is elected directly by the people?

A) The members of the Senate
B) The justices of the Supreme Court
C) The members of the House of Representatives
D) The President

Question 23

Due to his numerous contributions, ______________ is considered the "Father" of the Constitution.

A) James Madison
B) Thomas Jefferson
C) George Washington
D) Benjamin Franklin

Question 24

Republican government is based on the delegation of powers by the people to a small number who

A) work for the best interest of the masses.
B) are smarter than the masses
C) have all the money and power.
D) have advanced degrees and training

Question 25

The Constitution became law when it was approved by

A) the voters.
B) all of the state governors.
C) Congress.
D) None of the above is true.

Question 26

A ____________________ was a small-scale farmer working his own land.

Question 27

The Bill of Rights was ratified in 1791 by _________________.

A) the states.
B) Continental Congress
C) the first US Congress
D) Governors

Question 28

Classical liberal theory holds that society is created by a __________________.

Question 29

The federal government could NOT tax _____________.

A) states
B) foreign goods
C) imports
D) individuals

Question 30

The checks and balances system is designed to make majority rule across all branches of government______________.

A) nearly impossible
B) necessary for the democratic process
C) a protection from unjust and self-seeking minorities
D) probable through divided government

Question 31

The economic interests of the Founders ensured that economic_____________ and _______________ were major goals of the new Constitution.

Question 32

During the Constitutional Convention, one of the reasons for why there was no need for a federal Bill of Rights was that

A) all of the states already had Bills of Rights.
B) the national government was a benign entity.
C) the federal government did not have the power to interfere with freedom, making it unnecessary.
D) None of the above is true.

Question 33

Before the Constitution, the document through which the states worked together was called the ____________________.

Question 34

Which type of democracy is exhibited by the current United States government?

A) direct
B) participatory
C) representative
D) mandatory

Question 35

The Supremacy clause is found in __________________________.

A) Article 4
B) 8ᵗʰ Amendment
C) 13ᵗʰ Amendment
D) Article 6

Question 36

____________________was chosen to preside over the Philadelphia Convention.

Question 37

The Anti-Federalists were Elites who believed that

A) the national government was likely to infringe upon individual liberties.
B) Congress would abuse their monetary power.
C) Government would continue to expand its power.
D) All of the Above

Question 38

The debtors' rebellion in Massachusetts in 1786 was known as

A) Shays' Rebellion.
B) Boxer Rebellion.
C) Whiskey Rebellion.
D) War of Independence.

Question 39

______________ is the court case that validated the Judicial Review.

A) Marbury v. Madison
B) McCullough v. Maryland
C) Mack v. U.S.
D) Printz v. U.S.

Question 40

The President can check the power of the Congress through which of the following Constitutional powers?

A) Declaring Congressional acts unconstitutional
B) Refusing to appear before the Congress
C) Vetoing bills passed by Congress
D) Signing statements challenging Congress

Question 41

The theory that the courts can invalidate laws by states or the Congress is known as ____________________.

Question 42

Southern elites might have desired a central military to protect them from ____________________.

Question 43

The federalist papers were written by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and ____________________.

Question 44

Farmers, shopkeepers, and artisans formed the middle class in 1787.

Question 45

The Founding Fathers accepted inequalities in wealth and social standing because they believed in _____________________

Question 46

Which Founding Father proposed the Articles of Confederation?

Question 47

_________________ is a legal system built up over generations and even centuries of precedents.

Question 48

Few delegates at the Convention had any legal training or service as a lawyer or a judge.

Question 49

The notion that slaves should count as only a fraction of a human being for Congressional representation is known as the ____________________.

Question 50

The first ten amendments to the Constitution are collectively known as ____________________.

Question 51

The negotiation that resulted in a proposed two house legislature, with one based on population and the other equal by state was called the ____________________.

Question 52

Import taxes, known as _______________, were used to protect manufacturers in the North.

Question 53

Shay's Rebellion is the event that brought about the Constitutional Convention.

Question 54

The theory of checks and balances was created by ______________.

Question 55

The ____________________ was created to protect shipping from piracy on the high seas.

Question 56

The Articles of Confederation allowed only the National Government to regulate trade and tariffs.

Question 57

Regulating commerce was a power given to Congress in order to protect both _____________ and ____________________.

Question 58

Western land speculation was made possible because the ____________________ protected settlers.

Question 59

The power to appoint members of the Supreme Court is shared by the President and the _____________________.

Question 60

The Founders were distinguished by their vast experience in government.

Question 61

Describe the Articles of Confederation and the major weaknesses in the federal government created in relation to the federal and state level powers.

Question 62

Madison believed tyranny by the majority could be prevented by having so many factions nobody could get a majority.

Question 63

The system of checks and balances was put in place to help masses hold government responsible for their policy decisions. .

Question 64

Discuss the elements of American social class structure at the time of the Constitution.

Question 65

The Courts can check the power of Congress by declaring laws to be unconstitutional.

Question 66

State-issued paper money helped debtors by becoming worth less over time.

Question 67

Congress can check the power of the President by overruling the results of the Electoral College.

Question 68

The original U.S. Constitution includes a property qualification for the right to vote.

Question 69

Runaway slaves that made it to non-slave states were declared free by the Constitution.

Question 70

Identify and then explain how the background, education, training, and social standing of the Founding Fathers made them Elites? Would they be considered Elites in Modern America?

Question 71

Explain the system of Checks and Balances created in the Constitution by James Madison and provide examples.

Question 72

Most delegates to the Constitutional Convention were slave owners.

Question 73

A republican form of government believes in mass democracy.

Question 74

At the time of the Convention George Washington was one of the richest men in the country.

Question 75

The Founders believed that inequality of wealth and property was a natural result of diversity.

Question 76

The Constitution limits the corrupting influence of power by balancing representation in the national government.

Question 77

Discuss the different needs for a federal government between debtors and creditors in 1787 in relation to bonds and debt. How does this relate to the absence of delegates from Rhode Island? How might this relate to present-day concerns about student loans?

Question 78

The New Jersey Plan wanted a unicameral legislature.

Question 79

The Bill of Rights was a concession made by the Federalists in order to secure the ratification of the Constitution.

Question 80

The Virginia Plan called for the United States to have a parliamentary system similar to Britain.