Deck 4: Civil Liberties: Citizens Rights Versus Security

Question 1

Opposition to the National Security Agency's massive surveillance program, as leaked by Edward Snowden,

A)comes almost exclusively from liberals.
B)comes almost exclusively from conservatives.
C)includes substantial numbers of both liberals and conservatives.
D)has been overall quite small.
E)was high initially, but diminished rapidly once the full nature of the program became known.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Which of the following statements about the Bill of Rights is MOST accurate?

A)America had no tradition of explicitly defined legal rights before the ratification of the first ten amendments to the U.S.Constitution.
B)As originally written, the Constitution offered no protections to citizens' civil liberties.
C)The authors of the Constitution always intended to add a Bill of Rights, but felt that it would be best if the people decided which rights needed to be protected.
D)The authors of the Constitution rejected the inclusion of a Bill of Rights during the deliberation and drafting process.
E)The authors of the Constitution assumed that civil liberties had to be protected from the actions of state governments, not from the national government.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

According to current understandings of the establishment clause, which of the following activities would be legal and constitutional?

A)regular moments of silence, which public school students could use for prayer
B)opening prayers for the health of both teams' players at the beginning of a public school football game
C)recitation of daily Bible verses over the PA system at a public school
D)benedictions from the clergy at a high school graduation
E)providing money to a religious club out of a general student activities fund

Answer 3

E

Question 4

Most of the founders of the American republic probably had accommodationist views regarding the relationship between church and state, meaning that they believed that

A)a strict wall of separation must be maintained between the two institutions.
B)a single national religion should be established.
C)Christianity and the Christian Bible should serve as the basis for American laws.
D)the government should be permitted to support religion generally but not a particular religion specifically.
E)while private citizens could worship or not worship as they chose, federal officials should be required to swear oaths of religious affirmation before taking office.

Question 5

The National Security Agency

A)is under the jurisdiction of the Department of Defense.
B)does not collect data on Americans.
C)reports to the National Security Advisor.
D)was formed during the administration of George W.Bush.
E)was abolished after the Snowden leaks were confirmed.

Question 6

Based on the Lemon test, which of the following laws would likely NOT be considered unconstitutional?

A)one intended to achieve a religious purpose
B)one that had the primary effect of advancing religion
C)one that had the primary effect of hindering religion
D)one that fostered an excessive entanglement between church and state
E)one that helped religious institutions provide secular social services

Question 7

The Supreme Court uses the Lemon test primarily to decide on matters related to

A)racial discrimination.
B)freedom of the press.
C)the relationship between church and state.
D)the rights of the accused.
E)abortion.

Question 8

When it was ratified, which of the following rights did the Constitution explicitly protect?

A)the right to voice one's political opinions without fear of legal retribution
B)the right of citizens to assemble
C)the right to demand a writ of habeas corpus
D)the right to worship the religion of one's own choice
E)freedom from unreasonable search and seizure

Question 9

Congress cannot summarily declare an American citizen guilty of a crime because of the Constitution's ban on

A)bills of attainder.
B)the suspension of habeas corpus.
C)ex post facto laws.
D)judicial review.
E)unreasonable searches and seizures.

Question 10

Most establishment clause controversies in recent times have dealt with the issue of religion in

A)public schools.
B)the military.
C)the government.
D)private businesses.
E)public accommodations.

Question 11

, the Bill of Rights protected citizens' liberties

A)equally from intrusion by either state governments or the national government, though not from infringement by private individuals.
B)only from intrusion by the national government.
C)equally from intrusion by the national government, state governments, or the actions of private individuals.
D)only from intrusion by the state governments.
E)only from intrusion by private individuals.

Question 12

In the 2014 Sebelius v.Hobby Lobby decision, the Supreme Court

A)reached a unanimous verdict.
B)ruled that corporations owned by a single family did not have to comply with the Affordable Care Act's provisions on birth control.
C)held that the Religious Freedom and Restoration Act was unconstitutional and invalidated all its provisions.
D)made significant modifications to the Lemon test by essentially adding a fourth component to it.
E)gave the Obama administration a clear victory.

Question 13

According to a 2007 poll presented in the textbook, which group is overall the MOST religious?

A)liberals
B)moderates
C)conservatives
D)conservatives and moderates about equally
E)conservatives and liberals about equally

Question 14

Which amendment is MOST responsible for protecting citizens' liberties from intrusion by state governments?

A)First
B)Fifth
C)Ninth
D)Tenth
E)Fourteenth

Question 15

Federalist leader _______________ was the person who drafted the amendments that became known as the Bill of Rights.

A)Alexander Hamilton
B)Benjamin Franklin
C)James Madison
D)Samuel Adams
E)John Adams

Question 16

Which of the following statements about religious freedom in the United States today is LEAST accurate?

A)In recent years, Congress has been more willing than the Supreme Court to support individuals' freedom of religious expression.
B)Congress can ban unpopular religious practices as long as it directs that ban against a specific religious group.
C)Congress can prohibit religious practices the general public finds offensive or that threaten public order.
D)Congress can prohibit religious practices that pose a threat to the safety of the general public.
E)The U.S.government has traditionally distinguished between religious beliefs, which are inviolable, and religious actions, which may be circumscribed.

Question 17

The principle of selective incorporation has been used to guarantee all of the following rights from intrusion by state governments, EXCEPT

A)the right to assemble.
B)the right to counsel when charged with a crime.
C)the right to a jury trial in civil cases.
D)the right not to suffer cruel and unusual punishment.
E)the right not to have one's property seized without due compensation.

Question 18

The National Security Agency's campaign of monitoring electronic communications for potential terrorist activities

A)targets foreigners and American citizens about equally.
B)disproportionately targets American citizens.
C)focuses on foreigners, but includes incidental collection of Americans' data.
D)has widespread approval from across the political spectrum.
E)was ended by the Supreme Court in 2013.

Question 19

Based on the Supreme Court's current understanding of the First Amendment, American citizens are free to

A)believe any religious doctrine they choose.
B)use hallucinogenic drugs in controlled religious ceremonies.
C)practice polygamy if their religion endorses it.
D)demonstrate their faith by handling poisonous snakes.
E)require employees to work on those employees' holy days.

Question 20

The actions of the National Security Agency's programs, as detailed in the Edward Snowden leaks, has primarily raised concerns about Americans' right to

A)a fair trial.
B)freedom of association.
C)freedom of assembly.
D)freedom of speech.
E)privacy.

Question 21

Based on the precedent set by the "Pentagon Papers,"

A)the government can prevent the publication of sensitive materials, but it cannot punish a newspaper for such publication after the fact.
B)the federal government has an uncontested right to prior restraint.
C)the interests of national security outweigh the public's interest in critiquing government officials.
D)the federal government has little real power to prevent newspapers from publishing sensitive materials.
E)the public reputations of government officials are more strongly protected against slander than the reputations of private individuals.

Question 22

Which of the following forms of protests receives the MOST protection from the Supreme Court?

A)the right to obstruct entrances to abortion clinics
B)the right to walk within touching distance of a patient at an abortion clinic in order to present the patient with unsolicited and unwanted literature
C)the right to protest in front of a state capitol
D)the right to protest in front of courthouses
E)the right to protest outside of jails

Question 23

As a rule, the government can place the most restrictions over which form of media?

A)newspapers
B)the Internet
C)pamphlets and journals
D)public speech
E)radio

Question 24

Why can the government regulate broadcast television more than most other media?

A)because television stations have open access to all citizens, regardless of age
B)because a scarcity of bandwidth led the government to license stations
C)because television stations have a broad audience
D)because the government owns all broadcast media outlets
E)because television broadcasters have failed to challenge government controls

Question 25

Recent Supreme Court cases have protected freedom of the press in all of the following instances EXCEPT

A)allowing newspapers to publish the names of alleged rape victims.
B)allowing newspapers to publish the names of juvenile offenders.
C)allowing newspapers to preserve the anonymity of their confidential sources if the government can demonstrate a compelling reason to request them.
D)allowing the press to attend trials.
E)allowing newspapers to ignore publication requests by political candidates.

Question 26

In the Supreme Court case involving Charles Schenck, which tested the constitutionality of the Espionage Act, the Supreme Court decided that

A)the right to criticize government was a fundamental civil liberty that could not be infringed upon even in times of war.
B)the Constitution's guarantee of free speech was applicable only to speech that could be conclusively proven to be true.
C)freedom of speech could be curtailed if the words produced a "clear and present danger."
D)freedom of speech could be curtailed if the speech tended to encourage pernicious actions.
E)although the government could issue injunctions to prevent the media from printing materials that threatened national security, it could not punish them after the materials had been published.

Question 27

Based on current understandings of the First Amendment, which of the following displays would the Supreme Court consider unconstitutional?

A)an etching of the Ten Commandments beside etchings of Hammurabi's Code and the Magna Carta in a courthouse
B)a statue of Jesus placed beside statues of Socrates, Confucius, and Abraham Lincoln in a public park
C)a government-sponsored Easter display in a private park that showed Jesus rising from the grave, the Easter Bunny distributing gifts, and banners announcing local sales
D)a painting of Jesus being crucified adorned by a banner reading "He died for your sins" hung in the lobby of a state capitol
E)a monument to the Ten Commandments included in a display that also honored Martin Luther King, Jr., Gandhi, and Henry David Thoreau

Question 28

In the case of New York Times v.Sullivan, the Supreme Court decided that

A)the federal government had to meet a high standard in order to censor a publication in the name of national security.
B)speech that does not present a "clear and present danger" can still be banned if it contributes to a "bad tendency."
C)the press cannot be found guilty of slandering a public official unless it can be proven that the press published falsehoods maliciously.
D)the right of free speech did not give a citizen the right to raise a false alarm about a fire in a crowded theater.
E)in order to be deemed obscene, material must violate the standards of the general audience for whom it was intended, not just the tastes of one individual.

Question 29

Which of the following special rights of the media is currently recognized by the courts?

A)the right to attend trials
B)the right to publish libelous material without punitive consequences
C)the right to accompany police into a private residence in the execution of a warrant
D)the right to meet with county jail inmates, regardless of the jail's standard visitation rules
E)the right to maintain the confidentiality of sources

Question 30

Which of the following is one of the two conditions that satisfy the definition of malice under the Sullivan rule?

A)failure to understand that statements were false
B)failure to direct statements against a specific individual
C)intent to cause emotional harm with the statements
D)knowledge that the statements were false
E)personal knowledge of the object of the statements

Question 31

Which of the following statements about campaign speech is MOST accurate?

A)The Supreme Court has ruled that political contributions and expenditures are in no way protected by First Amendment rights.
B)Considering the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1974, the Supreme Court ruled that Congress could limit how candidates spent money, but not how they acquired it.
C)The Supreme Court has consistently rejected limits on campaign contributions as unconstitutional abridgements on individual citizens' rights of speech and petition.
D)The Supreme Court recently ruled that state laws could restrict any form of paid campaign advertising within one month of an election.
E)In recent years, the Supreme Court has loosening the limits on campaign speech based on interpretations of the First Amendment.

Question 32

In the period following World War I to 1969, the rise of the threat of Russia and international communism resulted in

A)expanded protections for freedom of speech and other civil rights, in an attempt to emphasize the value of American liberties.
B)expanded protections for political speech, though standards for defining material as obscene remained low.
C)a pronouncement by the Supreme Court that freedom of speech was inviolate and could not be curtailed even if it was malicious and false.
D)increased limitations on the freedom of speech, making it possible to ban speech simply for having the tendency to encourage evil deeds.
E)a pronouncement by the Supreme Court that the people, through their representatives in Congress, had the sole power to judge the limits of free speech, and could expand or contract those limits as they saw fit.

Question 33

Which Supreme Court case decided that compulsory prayer in public schools was unconstitutional?

A)Miranda v.Arizona
B)Buckley v.Valeo
C)Engel v.Vitale
D)Powell v.Alabama
E)Gregg v.Georgia

Question 34

What differentiates slander from libel?

A)Private persons are libeled, whereas public figures are slandered.
B)Slander is oral, whereas libel is written.
C)Slander is intentionally malicious, whereas libel is a report of unverified rumor.
D)Slander causes damage to a person's reputation or standing, whereas libel causes only nuisance.
E)Slander is tried through civil courts, whereas libel is tried through criminal courts.

Question 35

Which of the following forms of symbolic act could be banned based on current understandings of free speech?

A)burning a flag
B)burning a copy of a revised tax code
C)burning a draft card
D)burning a public figure in effigy
E)burning a copy of a public figure's memoirs

Question 36

Which of the following statements about freedom of association is LEAST accurate?

A)Associations are not legally obligated to provide government officials with lists of their members.
B)Families are regarded as a protected form of association.
C)Private clubs cannot ban women or minorities if doing so deprives those groups of potential business contacts.
D)Private organizations cannot bar members on the basis of their sexual orientation.
E)Associations with strong ideological views enjoy more latitude in excluding potential members than do general, nonpartisan associations.

Question 37

The Court applies the Miller test to determine if speech is

A)slanderous.
B)obscene.
C)political.
D)inflammatory.
E)a threat to national security.

Question 38

In order for a work to be deemed obscene, an average person must reasonably conclude that the work

A)lacks any redeeming quality.
B)is predominantly prurient.
C)is offensive.
D)lacks any redeeming quality, is predominantly prurient, and is offensive.
E)None of these answers is correct.

Question 39

What decision was made by the Supreme Court in a landmark 2002 case on the issue of school vouchers?

A)Providing government vouchers to attend private schools was ruled constitutional.
B)The use of government vouchers to attend religious schools is unconstitutional.
C)The use of any form of government school vouchers violated the separate but equal clause.
D)Providing government vouchers to attend religious schools was ruled constitutional.
E)Providing government vouchers to attend schools that do not meet state or federal accreditation standards was ruled unconstitutional.

Question 40

In its 2014 McCutcheon v. F.E.C. ruling, the Supreme Court held that the aggregate limits a person could contribute to federal candidates, parties, and political action committees were

A) unconstitutional and must be removed.
B) too high and should be revised downward by Congress.
C) too low and should be revised upward by Congress.
D) applicable to state and local elections also.
E) inadequate and needed to be revised by the Federal Election Commission.

Question 41

Executions in the United States were highest in which of the following years?

A)1983
B)1989
C)1999
D)2008
E)2012

Question 42

Of the following countries, which one has the highest incarceration rate?

A)United States
B)South Africa
C)China
D)Mexico
E)Israel

Question 43

States that prohibit the death penalty are located primarily

A)in the Plains states and the South.
B)in the Midwest and Northeast.
C)on the West Coast.
D)on the West Coast and in the Northeast.
E)in the South and Midwest.

Question 44

Which of the following statements about abortion rights in the United States is LEAST accurate?

A)The Supreme Court has accepted the constitutionality of laws that banned the use of public facilities or Medicaid funds for abortions.
B)When the Court legalized abortion in 1973, the practice was already legal in all but thirteen states.
C)Viability tests have allowed for greater restrictions on abortions that take place during the second trimester.
D)In Roe v.Wade the Supreme Court ruled that the government was entitled to place restrictions on abortions that occur in the third trimester.
E)The Supreme Court's rulings on abortion have been based largely on the implicit constitutional guarantee of privacy.

Question 45

If the police fail to notify a suspect of his or her Miranda rights, the Court will

A)require the release of the suspect.
B)require a re-arrest.
C)exonerate the accused.
D)declare a mistrial.
E)deny the admissibility of a confession.

Question 46

Under what single circumstance or set of circumstances can government officials conduct searches without a warrant?

A)When arresting a suspect, officials may search the immediate area.
B)It is permissible when pursuing a dangerous suspect who is likely to destroy evidence.
C)It is permissible when police officers have reasonable suspicion that an individual has just committed or is about to commit a crime.
D)It is permissible of if the police receive permission from a suspect or a person with the authority to authorize the search.
E)All of these answers are correct.

Question 47

The Powell v.Alabama case involving the Scottsboro boys was a landmark case with regard to

A)prior restraint.
B)right to counsel.
C)prayer in public schools.
D)the constitutionality of wartime dissent.
E)the right of police to conduct "reasonable" searches without a warrant.

Question 48

, the Supreme Court ruled that detainees have a right of habeas corpus in federal courts unless

A)those detainees have refused the right to counsel.
B)those detainees are not U.S.citizens.
C)the president has filed an executive order to prevent said right.
D)Congress explicitly exercises its constitutional authority to suspend the right.
E)those detainees are accused of treason or attempted violence against the state.

Question 49

In a major death penalty case in April of 2008, the U.S.Supreme Court ruled that

A)execution by hanging is unconstitutional.
B)execution by lethal injection is constitutional.
C)execution by firing squad is unconstitutional.
D)execution by electrocution is unconstitutional.
E)execution by gas is unconstitutional.

Question 50

The U.S.Supreme Court ruling on the Second Amendment in 2008 dramatically changed the meaning of the amendment, asserting that the amendment conferred

A)an individual right.
B)only a collective right.
C)no rights whatsoever.
D)rights only for the military.
E)rights only for government officials.

Question 51

Courts use the exclusionary rule to

A)dismiss evidence that has been illegally obtained.
B)toss out cases in which the plaintiff has no standing.
C)determine whether the government has a legitimate interest in restraining the publication of sensitive material.
D)judge whether or not a government-sponsored religious display violates the establishment clause.
E)determine whether or not speech is obscene.

Question 52

Which of the following activities is considered unconstitutional according to current Supreme Court standards?

A)mandatory drug tests of student athletes
B)mandatory drug tests of students engaged in non-athletic extracurricular activities
C)searching an arrestees cell phone without a warrant
D)police searches in fields in spite of posted "no trespassing" signs
E)aerial police searches to investigate suspected drug production

Question 53

The Supreme Court recently ruled that the execution of child rapists is unconstitutional on all of the following grounds EXCEPT that

A)the potential pain suffered by an executed convict in a botched execution amounted to cruel and unusual punishment.
B)only five states had laws that allow for the execution of child rapists.
C)no state had executed a convict for raping a child in over forty years.
D)only one state allowed for the execution of child rapists on their first conviction.
E)crimes other than treason or espionage that do not involve the taking of a life should not be punished with the taking of a life.

Question 54

By informing suspects of their right against self-incrimination, the Miranda warning protects their

A)First Amendment rights.
B)Third Amendment rights.
C)Fifth Amendment rights.
D)Seventh Amendment rights.
E)Ninth Amendment rights.

Question 55

In the case of Washington v.Glucksberg, the Supreme Court ruled that

A)the Constitution does not guarantee citizens the right to die.
B)although the Constitution guarantees citizens the right to die, it does not guarantee the right to assisted suicide.
C)the Constitution guarantees citizens the right to die, and, as such, guarantees them access to assisted suicide.
D)since the sick and the elderly place a burden on society, physicians have wide discretion in euthanizing patients.
E)the Supreme Court has ruled that the patient-doctor confidentiality privilege prevents either the Court or the legislature from deciding on assisted suicides, one way or the other.

Question 56

Which of the following statements about criminal trials in the United States today is MOST accurate?

A)Although some criminal cases never come to trial, plea bargains are an unusual occurrence in the modern justice system.
B)Women and minorities can be excluded from jury pools, since jury duty is a burden, not a right.
C)Attorneys may not dismiss potential jurors solely on the basis of their race or gender.
D)Constitutionally, all criminal trials require a unanimous verdict to find a defendant guilty.
E)Constitutionally, all juries presiding over a criminal trial must number exactly twelve.

Question 57

In a 2013 case about the constitutionality of taking a DNA sample from arrestees, the Supreme Court

A)issued a unanimous decision.
B)held that taking such DNA samples was constitutional.
C)held that taking such DNA samples was acceptable only if the person had been arrested for a violent crime.
D)held that taking such DNA samples was unconstitutional.
E)refused to issue a ruling, instead waiting for similar cases to be decided by lower courts.

Question 58

In 2008, the U.S.Supreme Court dramatically changed the meaning of the Second Amendment with its decision in which of the following cases?

A)District of Columbia v.Heller
B)Roe v.Wade
C)Roth v.U.S.
D)Miller v.California
E)Plessy v.Ferguson

Question 59

What percentage of criminal cases nationwide ends in a plea bargain?

A)95 percent
B)80 percent
C)65 percent
D)50 percent
E)35 percent

Question 60

Which of the following statements about public executions in the United States today is LEAST accurate?

A)DNA tests have led to the exoneration of over a dozen convicts that were sentenced to death.
B)The Supreme Court has ruled that mentally retarded convicts cannot be put to death.
C)The Supreme Court has ruled that convicts cannot be put to death for murders that they committed when they were minors.
D)The United States is the only Western democracy that uses the death penalty.
E)Only one quarter of all the states (plus the federal government) still has the death penalty.

Question 61

Discuss the American heritage of civil liberties.How did Americans' liberties originate? Which rights were explicitly protected by the Constitution in its initial form? Why did the Constitution not initially include a Bill of Rights? Why did the Bill of Rights not initially apply to the states, and how did it come to do so?

Question 62

Many Americans have been very concerned about their privacy after the Edward Snowden leaks showed the nature and extent of the National Security Agency's data collection program.How does this issue illustrate the tension between curtailing some rights in turn for increased security? Is the tradeoff worth it in this case? Why or why not?

Question 63

Are there currently any boundaries on political speech in the United States? Should there be? Defend your answer, whether it was yes or no.

Question 64

What is the Lemon test? How has the Supreme Court used the test to determine boundaries that separate church and state?

Question 65

Evaluate the state of civil liberties in the United States today.What rights are guaranteed by the government and what rights are threatened by it? Has the Supreme Court moved too far in protecting the rights of individuals from the rule of the majority, or does it continue to allow the majority too much power to infringe on unpopular views and actions? Which rights, if any, can be safely curtailed without undermining the republic, and which rights, if any, must be preserved at all costs in order for the republic to survive?

Question 66

Discuss the major issues involving the religious rights guaranteed by the First Amendment.How did most of the Framers of the Constitution seem to regard the separation of church and state? What is the distinction between the First Amendment's free exercise clause and establishment clause? Which clause has aroused the most controversy? How has the Supreme Court ruled on issues of religion in public schools and public spaces? Which decisions have aroused the most controversy?

Question 67

"Amicus curiae" means

A)court defendant.
B)curious friend.
C)test case.
D)friend of the court.
E)probable cause.

Question 68

The right to bear arms has been a controversial subject for decades.What is the current constitutional interpretation of the Second Amendment? What restrictions do you favor on gun ownership, if any? Provide supporting arguments for your answer.

Question 69

Discuss the controversial subjects of abortion and assisted suicide.What is the Supreme Court's current stance on each issue? How has each stance evolved in recent years? What does the Supreme Court's stance on these issues suggest about citizens' implicit right to privacy? Is this right expanding or eroding? How have the Supreme Court's rulings on these issues affected the balance between individual rights and communal needs, and individual rights and majority rule?

Question 70

Which of the following statements about the use of the court system to guarantee civil liberties and civil rights is LEAST accurate?

A)Interest groups frequently submit amicus curiae briefs, detailing their support for a given position in a trial.
B)In the case of NAACP v.Button, the Supreme Court ruled that the First Amendment protects the right of advocacy through the courts.
C)Interest groups frequently get involved in test cases, which are deliberately designed to test the constitutionality of a given law or measure.
D)Although some interest groups bring cases on their own behalf, others lend their resources to third parties with whom they sympathize.
E)Lawsuits are typically only pursued by parties who have already won their case in the court of public opinion and wish to see the law reflect the popular will.

Question 71

Discuss the history of free speech and free press in the United States.How expansive is this freedom? When has the government successfully taken steps to curtail it? When have the courts intervened to prevent government interference? What types of speech can be legally barred or punished, and what types must be tolerated? In the United States today, does the press or the government hold the upper hand?

Question 72

What is selective incorporation and what is its constitutional basis? How has it been used to expand the rights and liberties of Americans?