Deck 8: Governors and the State Bureaucracy

Question 1

What is the name of the 100-year-old non-partisan institution that provides a vehicle for governors to consult one another about their common problems?

A) American Association of Governors
B) National Governors Association
C) American Society of Governors
D) National Organization of Governors

Answer 1

B

Question 2

As with congressional races, a trend in gubernatorial elections has developed, with an increasing number of

A) poorly qualified candidates.
B) minority candidates.
C) Good-time Charlies.
D) self-financing candidates.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Which of the following is NOT true regarding today's governors?

A) As a group, they have come a long way from the political hacks that often occupied governor mansions before the 1960s.
B) They are younger and more educated than in previous years.
C) Once in office, they tend to push aside their vision of state government.
D) Most have been highly successful in their chosen fields before becoming governor.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Unlike with state legislative races, in gubernatorial races, the opposing major party will almost always

A) find someone to run, even against a popular incumbent.
B) concede defeat if the incumbent is running for reelection.
C) outspend the incumbent.
D) form a coalition with the other minor parties.

Question 5

Which of the following is NOT true regarding the governorship?

A) Being the governor of a state is quite similar to being the CEO of a Fortune 500 company.
B) A governor is the state's chief executive and chief policy maker.
C) In tough times a state's residents, businesses, and public officials look increasingly to the governor to solve their problems.
D) After being the governor of a state, many go on to becoming a CEO of a Fortune 500 company.

Question 6

A recent factor that has inflated gubernatorial campaign spending is the

A) uncontrollable cost of TV ads.
B) lack of competitive elections.
C) self-financing candidate.
D) monopoly incumbents have on running.

Question 7

Scholars have found that voters tend to hold a governor accountable for the state's economy only if

A) the governor is an outsider.
B) his party controls the legislature.
C) he is an independent.
D) the governor is a self-financed candidate.

Question 8

Which of the following is a factor that will increase the level of competition in a gubernatorial race?

A) A strong incumbent governor is running for reelection.
B) There is an uneven distribution of party voters in a state.
C) There is an open seat.
D) There is a clear front-runner who has enormous fundraising potential.

Question 9

Compared to state legislative elections, when voting for governor, voters

A) are less interested in statewide office.
B) base their vote entirely on the issues.
C) are more likely to re-elect an incumbent .
D) have much more specific information about the candidate

Question 10

Typically, the most important elections on a state's political calendar are

A) gubernatorial races.
B) U. S. Senate races.
C) state legislative races.
D) state Supreme Court races.

Question 11

Every state except ___________________________ holds its gubernatorial election every four years?

A) New Hampshire and Vermont
B) Alaska and New Mexico
C) Hawaii and Wisconsin
D) Texas and Florida

Question 12

Gubernatorial elections are most commonly held every

A) six years.
B) four years.
C) three years.
D) two years.

Question 13

Which of the following is NOT one of the three primary jobs a governor has?

A) Acting as the point person for relations with people and government outside of the state
B) Setting policy goals for the state
C) Directing the state bureaucracy
D) Drafting legislation

Question 14

Which of the following is NOT true regarding women governors?

A) Twenty-six women have been elected governor since 1974.
B) The pace of women being elected as governor remains unabated in the twenty-first century.
C) More women were elected governor in the past two decades than during any previous time period.
D) Most women governors have been Republicans.

Question 15

Even controlling for inflation, the average cost of running a gubernatorial campaign

A) has remained relatively level throughout the office's history.
B) has almost tripled each election cycle.
C) nearly doubled between the 1977-1980 and 2005-2008 election cycles.
D) has decreased, despite the level of competition for the office.

Question 16

Which of the following aptly describes New Jersey's Governor, Chris Christie?

A) At the time he was elected, he was the nation's youngest governor.
B) He successfully used public opinion and political finesse to push through his political agenda.
C) He campaigned on cleaning up political corruption, and succeeded in reducing the number of administrative agencies in the state.
D) Although he never changed his very blunt public manner, he seemed to moderate some of his positions, compromising when needed.

Question 17

Which of the following is the most common post-governorship career?

A) Presidential cabinet member
B) Private business
C) University president
D) President of the United States

Question 18

Which of the following career paths of governors has become less common than it used to be?

A) Member of the state legislature
B) Secretary of State
C) Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
D) Lieutenant Governor

Question 19

Which of the following governors was impeached in 2009 on charges of committing a series of corrupt acts?

A) Elliot Spitzer
B) Rick Scott
C) Ted Stevens
D) Rod Blagojevich

Question 20

Which governor won his first gubernatorial race in 1974, and then won a new term in 2010?

A) Jerry Brown
B) Bobby Jindal
C) Scott Walker
D) Rick Scott

Question 21

Which of the following allows the governor to reduce the amount that is authorized to be spent on a budget item on appropriation bills?

A) Reduction veto
B) Appropriations veto
C) Amendatory veto
D) Authorization veto

Question 22

The most important appointment powers given to the governor tend to be

A) judicial appointments.
B) boards and commissions appointments.
C) executive branch appointments.
D) public-private sector  appointments.

Question 23

Which of the following is NOT true regarding the gubernatorial veto?

A) Legislatures have an opportunity to override a veto.
B) Governors in different states have different levels of veto power.
C) In most states, a governor's veto power is even stronger than the president's power, especially on appropriations bills.
D) Gubernatorial vetoes are typically easy for legislatures to override.

Question 24

What is the main reason why governors have special veto powers?

A) To monitor and allow the addition of pork barrel projects in legislation
B) To reduce state spending
C) To make the governor more powerful than any state legislature
D) To allow the governor to control the political ideology of state legislation

Question 25

Which of the following is NOT true regarding the power of calling special sessions?

A) Special sessions are typically secretive and the results are not shared with the public until after the legislature has adjourned.
B) The threat of a special session can be a potent tactic in part-time legislatures due to the extra time required.
C) Most governors are empowered to set a limited agenda for the special session.
D) Despite a special session being called, the legislature cannot be forced to pass the desired legislation.

Question 26

A governor's only formal institutional role in the state legislative process occurs

A) after both chambers have passed a bill in identical form.
B) during in the middle of the legislative session.
C) at the beginning of the legislative session.
D) with the signing of the state budget.

Question 27

Which of the following is NOT one of the institutional powers of governors?

A) Veto
B) Mass media attention
C) Term length and limits
D) Appointment powers

Question 28

A personnel system in which certain employees are hired, fired, and promoted on the basis of merit testing and performance review is called

A) political patronage.
B) new federalism.
C) civil service.
D) Jacksonian democracy.

Question 29

Which of the following is NOT true regarding the State of the State address given by governors?

A) This major address has evolved into an opportunity for the governor to identify what he or she thinks are the most important problems for the legislature to tackle.
B) It binds the legislature to the governor's agenda.
C) The address sets the agenda for the legislature's most important work of the session.
D) Legislators are likely to complain of a lack of leadership if the governor is not clear about what he or she wants.

Question 30

The mere threat of a ________________, either explicit or implied, gives lawmakers strong incentive to craft bills with the governor's wishes in mind.

A) filibuster
B) quorum call
C) veto
D) veto override

Question 31

As ________________________, the governor represents the state to people, organizations, and other governments, both within and outside of its borders.

A) Head of Government
B) Head of State
C) Imperial Ruler
D) Commander in Chief

Question 32

As with presidential power, gubernatorial power is largely the power to

A) draft legislation.
B) persuade.
C) control the media.
D) veto legislation.

Question 33

The ability of a governor to veto a single expenditure item while allowing the remainder of a spending bill to pass into law is called the

A) full veto.
B) amendatory veto.
C) line-item veto.
D) reduction veto.

Question 34

Which of the following is true of the governor's staff?

A) They have shifted away from budgetary issues.
B) They are solely responsible to the governor.
C) They are much smaller than in the 1960s.
D) They have little control over the bureaucracy.

Question 35

The governor of which state has the strongest veto power in the country?

A) California
B) Nevada
C) Massachusetts
D) Wisconsin

Question 36

Which of the following vetoes do all governors, as well as the President share?

A) Amendatory veto
B) Reduction veto
C) Line-item veto
D) Full veto

Question 37

In _________________________, governors have special institutional powers in the budget process that they do not have in regular lawmaking.

A) all states
B) all but a few states
C) roughly half of the states
D) few states

Question 38

Which of the following is NOT one of the areas that governors are typically authorized to issue an executive order?

A) Issuing a dissent against a federal rule or regulation
B) Setting up a commission to study a policy problem
C) Responding to an emergency or crisis
D) Reorganizing the bureaucracy

Question 39

The power of some governors to send a passed bill back to the legislature asking for specific changes before he or she will sign it is called the

A) amendatory veto.
B) discretionary veto.
C) full veto.
D) override veto.

Question 40

Why is budgetmaking an important political power for governors across the country?

A) The legislature must follow the provisions in the governor's budget.
B) The governor's budget is extensive and the legislature has a limited time to review it.
C) The governor has fewer institutional powers over the budget than any other area of state governance.
D) The amount of state revenue is designated by numerous gubernatorial earmarks throughout the budget.

Question 41

Which of the following informal gubernatorial powers allows a governor to be well positioned to gain political capital?

A) Head of State
B) Public opinion
C) Mass media attention
D) Partisan balance in the legislature

Question 42

In 2009, certain political appointees in Illinois tried to influence admissions decisions at the University of Illinois, a good example of the failure of

A) neutral competence.
B) political patronage.
C) the spoils system.
D) street-level bureacrats.

Question 43

Thinking about your own state, how important is a governor's veto power? How do these powers vary across the states?

Question 44

What political philosophy led to the unrepentant use of political appointees at all levels, with the justification being that more representative government would result?

A) The Bush Doctrine
B) Obamanomics
C) Jacksonian Democracy
D) The Truman Doctrine

Question 45

What factors are responsible for the dramatic rise in the cost of gubernatorial campaigns? Which do you think are the most important, and why?

Question 46

A police officer deciding whether to give you a warning or a ticket for speeding is an example of

A) precedent-based executive decisions.
B) bureaucrats following administrative rules.
C) specific state legislation passed down to county officials.
D) street-level bureaucracy.

Question 47

How do high-level administrators formally implement state law?

A) They make decisions every day that have the power of the state behind them.
B) They write administrative rules.
C) They follow very specific and detailed legislation.
D) They follow executive orders issued by the governor.

Question 48

A strong ethic among government workers affirming that they are experts in their fields and should be allowed to execute their jobs without undue political influence from above is known as

A) political accountability.
B) neutral competence.
C) administrative bureaucracy.
D) managerial noninterference.

Question 49

Is there a typical profile of a governor? What special challenges exist for outsider candidates, and what special attributes do they often possess?

Question 50

What effect does the partisan balance in a state's legislature have on gubernatorial power? Be specific, drawing examples from your own state.

Question 51

Have gubernatorial powers changed over time? If so, what state characteristics influence the relative strength and weaknesses of gubernatorial powers?