Deck 1: Introduction to State and Local Politics

Question 1

Which of the following is NOT an example of how a state's geography can affect its politics?

A) Florida's sunshine and beaches allow it to rely heavily on the sales tax.
B) The political landscape of Tennessee is divided according to the eastern mountains, the middle farming belt, and the Mississippi River.
C) The fertile prairies of Illinois created an economy based originally on farming.
D) South Carolina's resentment of federal intervention during the Civil War led to it becoming a leader in high tech industries in the 1990s.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Internal migratory patterns have helped to shape the country's

A) ethnic and racial makeup.
B) political institutions.
C) traditional political culture.
D) individualistic political culture.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Because of race relations in the United States, African Americans in the north and west

A) were elected to political positions much later than in the south.
B) tend to live in urban areas more than those in the south.
C) moved to the south in the twentieth century to work in agriculture.
D) are now moving to states like Vermont and South Dakota.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

The process by which we as a community determine which common goals the government should pursue is known as

A) electioneering.
B) politics.
C) mobilization of bias.
D) nationalization of policies.

Question 5

Which is NOT one of the dominant political cultures of the United States based on the values and attitudes of the original European settlers?

A) Moralistic political culture
B) Traditionalistic political culture
C) Nativistic political culture
D) Individualistic political culture

Question 6

Which of the following is a good example both of the ways government varies among the states and communities and of an institutional reform with significant unintended consequences?

A) Speed limits
B) City limits
C) Credit limits
D) Term limits

Question 7

The rules, laws, and organizations through which and by which government functions is(are)

A) political culture.
B) federal procedures.
C) political institutions.
D) judicial rulings.

Question 8

All of the following are true regarding political ideology and its political impact EXCEPT:

A) Research shows that individuals who tend to be conservative tend to vote Republican.
B) Those states that are more conservative and Republican tend to have policies that we associate with that ideology and party, such as stricter abortion and gambling regulations.
C) There is no correlation between policy, party, and ideology in Democratic-leaning states across the country.
D) In most states, the ideology of citizens is translated pretty accurately through political parties into public policy.

Question 9

The most common way Americans think about general political values is along a one-dimensional continuum, which political scientists call

A) political efficacy.
B) political ideology.
C) political bias.
D) trust in government.

Question 10

Until 2011, the HOPE scholarship program in _______________ provided more than 1 million college high achieving students with free college tuition, fees, and even some help with their books.

A) Florida
B) New York
C) Georgia
D) Tennessee

Question 11

The actions that government undertakes to accomplish common tasks are collectively known as

A) federal actions.
B) public policy.
C) judicial review.
D) legislative statutes.

Question 12

Which of the following is NOT true about the rules and institutions of government?

A) Rules determine things like the power of an official, who can vote in an election, and what a court's jurisdiction is.
B) Rules and institutions in different states are similar to each other.
C) There are institutions, like direct democracy, that are still very important to the system, but do not have any physical representation.
D) Political parties and interest groups are considered institutions.

Question 13

Scholarship programs for university students, such as the HOPE program, are often funded by

A) private foundations.
B) state lotteries.
C) general obligation bonds.
D) sales tax on books.

Question 14

The apparatus by which people organize themselves to achieve the common goals that we all share is

A) government.
B) an interest group.
C) a caucus.
D) an election.

Question 15

Which of the following defines an individualistic political culture?

A) People who view government as something by the elites and for the elites
B) People who seek their fortunes through business and hard work and don't see any problem with government helping people achieve their personal economic goals
C) People who view government as a means to improve social conditions but discourage citizens from participating in the political process
D) It is a nativistic political culture, but without the ethnocentrism.

Question 16

A political culture that views government as something by the elites and for the elites is known as

A) moralistic political culture.
B) traditionalistic political culture.
C) nativistic political culture.
D) individualistic political culture.

Question 17

At root, every government policy is intended to provide some

A) social welfare.
B) public good.
C) discretionary fund.
D) private gain.

Question 18

Which of the following regarding wealthy states and communities is NOT true?

A) They tend to tax their citizens at a lower rate than poorer places.
B) They tend to tax their citizens less overall.
C) They tend to provide more and better social services for their citizens.
D) They tend to have higher property taxes to pay for better social services.

Question 19

Which of the following is NOT true about the social characteristic of America?

A) It refers to the kinds of people that live in a place and the ways in which they are distributed in an area.
B) When immigrants first arrived in America, they tended to cluster together at their ports of origin for at least a generation or two.
C) States with old populations moving in or young populations moving out are less politically active than states with more stable populations.
D) The high population of African Americans in the Southeast is a legacy of slavery in that part of the country.

Question 20

In many mountain and western states, women

A) are more likely to be elected to office than in southern states.
B) were not able to keep up with the hard frontier life, and now make up less than half the population.
C) did not receive the right to vote until the 19th Amendment was passed.
D) pursued political office, but people in these states were not amenable to women's rights early on.

Question 21

The first place to look to understand state and local government institutions is

A) state constitutions.
B) legislative statutes.
C) gubernatorial powers.
D) municipal codes.

Question 22

Which method helps to explain politics and policy differences across the states?

A) Layer-cake method
B) Associative method
C) Federalist method
D) Comparative method

Question 23

Briefly discuss how states' social and ethnic diversity impact public policy choices.

Question 24

The _____________________ has even been used by political scientists to study the impact of political institutions on people's happiness.

A) analytic method
B) empirical design
C) comparative method
D) creative method

Question 25

One significant way state constitutions differ from the U.S. Constitution is how they deal with

A) public policy.
B) legislative powers.
C) executive powers.
D) judicial powers.

Question 26

Describe the many ways state constitutions may differ from the U.S. Constitution.

Question 27

Which state can boast of having the lengthiest constitution?

A) New Hampshire
B) Vermont
C) Alabama
D) California

Question 28

What is the comparative method of political analysis? Provide examples of how this method is useful for explaining patterns in politics and policymaking.

Question 29

Why might you decide to oppose a particular public policy? Give at least two reasons.