Deck 4: The American Government

Question 1

What is one way in which the executive branch can check the power of the legislative branch?

A)The president nominates judges to the federal bench.
B)The president can veto a bill passed by Congress.
C)Cabinet officers can refuse to be overseen by congressional committees.
D)The president commands the military.
E)The executive branch can declare that a law passed by Congress is unconstitutional.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

What principle did the Founding Fathers learn from Aristotle?

A)That control of the economy was central to founding a just government
B)To merge the best attributes of different forms of government into one system
C)The ability of direct democracy in making government run efficiently
D)That monarchy was always going to be a threat to liberty
E)That powerful interests require protection from powerful governments

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Who gave the Constitutional Convention of 1787 a greater air of importance just by attending?

A)George Washington
B)Alexander Hamilton
C)Samuel Adams
D)John Adams
E)Aaron Burr

Answer 3

A

Question 4

What profession did most of the delegates of the Constitutional Convention practice?

A)Trade
B)Ship building
C)Farming
D)Law
E)Medicine

Question 5

What was the chief failure of the Constitutional Convention?

A)Preserving aristocracy
B)Establishing an excessively large standing army
C)Failing to establish a national court system
D)Failing to pay off Revolutionary War debt
E)Preserving slavery

Question 6

What was the underlying cause of Shay's Rebellion?

A)Basic dissatisfaction with the Articles of Confederation
B)General economic depression among craftsmen and small business owners
C)Widespread debt among farmers after the Revolutionary War
D)Inability of the central government to pay Revolutionary War pensions
E)Essential corruption among state judges

Question 7

Why did the Founding Fathers choose a federal form of government?

A)They wanted to prevent the national government from dominating the states.
B)They were afraid that the people would be too loyal to a central government.
C)They admired the centralism of the French monarchy.
D)They admired the unitary nature of the British parliamentary system.
E)The states were newly created and not yet capable of earning loyalty.

Question 8

How did the other states respond to Shay's Rebellion?

A)They lowered their own taxes to forestall rebellion.
B)They called out their militia to protect themselves against rebellion.
C)They lent Massachusetts money to raise its own troops.
D)They called out the militia and sent them to Massachusetts.
E)They refused to help Massachusetts.

Question 9

How did Montesquieu agree with Aristotle on the formation of a government?

A)Government needs to protect the rich and powerful to avert revolution.
B)Government requires strong legalist values to prevent tyranny.
C)Government needs an overwhelming authority to keep the peace.
D)Government should blend aristocratic and democratic values.
E)Government requires a standing army to ensure stability.

Question 10

What did John Locke believe was the probable result of tyranny?

A)Efficiency and strength
B)Liberty without safety
C)A war of all against all
D)A state of violence and oppression
E)Safety without liberty

Question 11

What principle of the Baron de Montesquieu did the Founding Fathers embrace in the Constitution?

A)Government should exclude all aristocratic elements and tendencies.
B)Tyranny is more likely to occur if law-making and enforcement are placed in the same branch.
C)Checks and balances are unlikely to prevent tyranny on their own.
D)Government should exclude all popular elements and tendencies.
E)Tyranny is the result of having an inadequate court system.

Question 12

What is a key element of Thomas Hobbes's influence on the formation of the federal government?

A)That control of the economy was central to founding a just government.
B)The states had to be extinguished as power centers lest they threaten the power of the central government.
C)The federal government took on all the powers of his ideal sovereign surrendering liberty to safety.
D)Hobbes lauded the nature of the noble savage leading to more humane treatment of Native Americans.
E)Hobbes's pessimistic view of human nature gave birth to checks and balances as a tool to counteract ambition.

Question 13

What was the chief significance of the Connecticut Compromise?

A)Preserving the Articles of Confederation
B)Reconciling the interests of the larger and smaller states
C)Restricting the growth of slavery
D)Enacting an income tax
E)Establishing an army

Question 14

What did James Madison assert were the core purposes the Constitution?

A)To enable the government to control the governed and control itself
B)To enable the government to control the governed only
C)To enable the government to restrain the aspirations of the poor
D)To enable the government to control itself only
E)To enable the government to protect the interests of the powerful

Question 15

What is the unique feature of the federal form of government?

A)The states and central government have equal power.
B)The central government is purposely kept weak.
C)Most meaningful power is dispersed to the states.
D)It unifies all power under the central government.
E)Power is shared between the national and state governments.

Question 16

Under the Articles of Confederation, where did most political power lie?

A)With the president's cabinet
B)With Congress
C)With the thirteen states
D)With a strong president
E)With the judicial branch

Question 17

What is one way in which the judicial branch can check the power of the legislative branch?

A)The Supreme Court can remove immunity from prosecution from members of Congress.
B)Federal judges can overturn a law as immoral.
C)The federal courts can declare a law unconstitutional.
D)A federal judge can order Congress to adjourn.
E)All laws passed by Congress are subject to judicial review.

Question 18

The Virginia Plan favored what kinds of states?

A)Large, heavily populated ones
B)Smaller, densely populated ones
C)Large, rural slave states
D)Smaller rural states with numerous slaves
E)Smaller, urban slave states

Question 19

How did the "three-fifths rule" benefit southern states?

A)By ensuring that slaves would be educated
B)By allowing slaves to join the army and have their pay sent to their owners
C)By allowing slaves to be counted partially as population for congressional apportionment
D)By allowing slaves to be counted fully as population for congressional apportionment
E)By constitutionally protecting slavery throughout all of the states

Question 20

Which of the following best describes the delegates to the Constitutional Convention?

A)Middle class, male, white elites
B)Poor and middle class, male, elites and non-elites
C)Rich, male, white property owners
D)Middle class, male and female, black and white elites
E)Rich and poor, male, white, elites and non-elites

Question 21

What Supreme Court decision first established that the federal government had implied as well as enumerated powers?

A)McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)
B)Marbury v. Madison (1803)
C)Charles River Bridge v. Warren Bridge (1837)
D)Scott v. Sandford (1957)
E)Dartmouth College v. Woodward (1819)

Question 22

Which was the first state to ratify the U.S. Constitution?

A)Delaware
B)Pennsylvania
C)New York
D)Virginia
E)Maryland

Question 23

What was the main handicap of the Anti-Federalists in their efforts to prevent the adoption of the US Constitution?

A)They were isolated in just a few southern states.
B)Ratification of the Constitution was nearly certain over their objections.
C)They were perceived as too pro-French.
D)They had no alternative plan.
E)Their leaders were less articulate than those of the Federalists.

Question 24

Explain how James Madison proposes to counteract the effects of faction through Federalism and a separation of powers.

Question 25

In the Federalist Number 17, according to Alexander Hamilton, what would keep the federal government from infringing on the prerogatives of the states?

A)No patriot in federal service would consider such a patently offensive move.
B)The federal government lacked the ability to infringe upon the responsibilities of the states.
C)Human nature lacked the hunger for power necessary for a federal move against the states.
D)The states had the ability to resist federal power by raising their militias and fighting.
E)The federal government would be more concerned with bigger issues of war and peace than states' business.

Question 26

What was the alias used by the three authors of the Federalist Papers?

A)Caesar
B)Publius
C)Maximus
D)Minimus
E)Augustus

Question 27

In the wake of McCulloch v. Maryland , can states tax federal government entities?

A)Yes, because they have concurrent powers.
B)No, they have no power to do so.
C)Yes, if the federal government allows.
D)No, because the US Constitution explicitly says so.
E)Yes, because the federal government is not immune to taxation.

Question 28

What did the Federalists and Anti-Federalists agree was appropriate to protect the natural rights of the people from government encroachment?

A)An established national church
B)The final draft of the US Constitution
C)A Bill of Rights
D)A second Constitutional Convention
E)A standing army

Question 29

How many amendments to the US Constitution have been passed and ratified to date?

A)Twenty-seven
B)Twenty-five
C)Seventeen
D)Twelve
E)Five

Question 30

What is a means of amending the US Constitution that has not been used since 1787?

A)Approval through a national referendum
B)Passage through a convention of the states
C)Passage by a unanimous vote in both houses of Congress
D)Approval by the president and two-thirds of the states' governors
E)Passage by Congress and approval by the Supreme Court

Question 31

Analyze the different approaches to government taken by the most important delegates to the Constitutional Convention. How did their philosophies and favored political theories influence the final draft of the US Constitution?

Question 32

How have all constitutional amendments been adopted to date?

A)Approval of two-thirds of the states in a convention
B)A super majority vote of two-thirds of the House and Senate, followed by ratification by two-thirds of the states
C)A simple majority vote of the House and Senate, followed by ratification by a majority of the states
D)A majority vote of the House and Senate, followed by a presidential signature
E)A majority vote of the House and Senate, followed by approval by a majority of the Supreme Court

Question 33

What is the only amendment to be ratified entirely by state conventions rather than by state legislatures?

A)Thirteenth Amendment, ending slavery
B)Sixteenth Amendment, legalizing federal income tax
C)Nineteenth Amendment, granting women the right to vote
D)Twenty-First Amendment, ending Prohibition
E)Twenty-Fourth Amendment, outlawing poll taxes

Question 34

What does the full faith and credit clause call for among the states?

A)Agreement on all matters of national import
B)That they will recognize and implement federal laws and legal actions
C)That they will recognize each other's laws and legal decisions
D)Support of the federal government in wartime
E)The rights of citizenship for everyone in every state

Question 35

Examine the three branches of the federal government as established through the Constitution. How do they reflect Aristotle's perception of monarchy, aristocracy, and democracy?   In your response, consider how they can overlap.

Question 36

What amendment was passed by Congress but never ratified, despite being generally popular among the voters?

A)Religious Freedom Amendment
B)Anti-Flag Burning Amendment
C)Equal Rights Amendment
D)Civil Rights Amendment
E)LGBT Rights Amendment

Question 37

Which of the following was a leader of the Federalists during the debate over ratifying the Constitution?

A)Thomas Jefferson
B)Aaron Burr
C)Alexander Hamilton
D)James Monroe
E)Patrick Henry

Question 38

Explain how federalism allows states and the national government to check each other and allow different parts of the country to adopt different approaches to policy.

Question 39

What does the Federalist Number 10 identify as the chief danger to the new political system?

A)Minority elements will grow resentful of rule by the majority.
B)The country will fall apart as restive minority groups secede.
C)Checks and balances will fail to contain the aspirations of the rich and powerful.
D)The lack of an established church will lead to moral degeneration.
E)Anti-Federalists will fatally undermine the new Constitution.

Question 40

What is the chief reason why the Federalist Number 10 is generally viewed as the greatest American contribution to political theory?

A)John Jay reconciles the competing theories of Plato and Aristotle in a practical manner.
B)James Madison shows that a country can have majority rule while respecting the interests of the minority.
C)Alexander Hamilton demonstrates that minority interests in the new republic can be disregarded.
D)James Madison argues that human nature can be changed for the better through education.
E)Alexander Hamilton argues for the inherent goodness of human nature.