Deck 7: The Presidency

Question 1

Which article and section of the Constitution requires that the U.S. president be at least 35 years old, a natural-born citizen, and a U.S. resident for at least 14 years?

A) Article 1, Section 2
B) Article 2, Section 1
C) Article 3, Section 4
D) Article 4, Section 3

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Which of the following was not a characteristic of all U.S. presidents prior to 2009?

A) White
B) Male
C) Protestant
D) None of the above

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Who was the first African American to seek the presidency on a major party ticket?

A) Frederick Douglass
B) Shirley Chisholm
C) Jesse Jackson
D) Herman Cain

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Who was the first woman to seek the presidency?

A) Victoria Woodhull
B) Geraldine Ferraro
C) Hillary Rodham Clinton
D) Carol Moseley Braun

Question 5

In the 2008 election, although Barack Obama won the majority of racial and ethnic minority votes, he

A) also won the majority of the White vote.
B) lost the White vote, as had all previous Black presidents.
C) lost the White vote, as had many of the recent Democratic candidates.
D) also won the plurality of the White vote.

Question 6

Who was the first woman to run for president on the Republican ticket?

A) Elizabeth Dole
B) Michele Bachmann
C) Sarah Palin
D) Elizabeth Hasselbeck

Question 7

Who was the first Mormon to secure the presidential nomination on a major party ticket?

A) Brigham Young
B) Orrin Hatch
C) Jon Huntsman
D) Mitt Romney

Question 8

How many Democratic presidents have won two elections with more than 50 percent of the popular vote in each election?

A) Zero
B) One
C) Two
D) Three

Question 9

A caucus is

A) a method for political parties to select their candidates for office whereby party members convene at local meetings.
B) a method for political parties to select their candidates for office whereby people vote in an election.
C) an entity that selects the president and vice president, consisting of 538 electors chosen from the states and the District of Columbia based on the election outcome within each state and proportioned according to state population.
D) None of the above

Question 10

A primary is

A) a method for political parties to select their candidates for office whereby party members convene at local meetings.
B) a method for political parties to select their candidates for office whereby people vote in an election.
C) an entity that selects the president and vice president, consisting of 538 electors chosen from the states and the District of Columbia based on the election outcome within each state and proportioned according to state population.
D) None of the above

Question 11

The Electoral College is

A) a method for political parties to select their candidates for office whereby party members convene at local meetings.
B) a method for political parties to select their candidates for office whereby people vote in an election.
C) an entity that selects the president and vice president, consisting of 538 electors chosen from the states and the District of Columbia based on the election outcome within each state and proportioned according to state population.
D) None of the above

Question 12

The first presidential caucus is generally held in

A) New Hampshire.
B) New Jersey.
C) Iowa.
D) Minnesota.

Question 13

The first presidential primary is generally held in

A) New Hampshire.
B) New Jersey.
C) Iowa.
D) Minnesota.

Question 14

Under what circumstance was the Federal Election Commission created by Congress?

A) The controversial 1860 election of Abraham Lincoln leading up to war
B) The controversial 1876 election of Rutherford B. Hayes as a result of Electoral College issues
C) The controversial 1948 election of Harry S Truman as a result of inaccurate headlines
D) The controversial 2000 election of George W. Bush as a result of Electoral College issues

Question 15

Which of the following have contributed to the lack of diversity of presidential candidates?

A) The selection process
B) The campaign finance process
C) Both of the above
D) None of the above

Question 16

Which of the following does not require financing in a presidential campaign?

A) Travel
B) Advisers
C) Polling
D) None of the above

Question 17

Betsy DeVos, President Trump's appointee as Secretary of _______, was the first cabinet nominee whose Senate appointment had to be decided by a tiebreaking vote by the vice president.

A) Health and Human Services
B) Homeland Security
C) State
D) Education

Question 18

When did the Supreme Court officially rule in favor of the existence of Super PACs?

A) 1995
B) 2003
C) 2010
D) 2015

Question 19

A political action committee that is allowed to raise an unlimited amount of money from any source and then is allowed to spend this money in support of or opposition to any political candidate so long as their activities are not directly coordinated with a campaign is called a

A) PAC.
B) Super PAC.
C) Mega PAC.
D) Corporate PAC.

Question 20

In what way are Super PACs singularly able to be extremely influential in presidential campaigns?

A) They are legally able to buy significant numbers of votes for candidates.
B) They are legally able to restrict certain groups from accessing voting precincts.
C) They are legally able to raise and spend unlimited funds, unlike campaigns.
D) They are run by the government, thus giving them significant power, unlike campaigns.

Question 21

Which 2020 presidential candidate received the most financial support from Super PACs?

A) Donald Trump
B) Joe Biden
C) Jo Jorgensen
D) Howie Hawkins

Question 22

Why did the Framers only provide for limited presidential powers as expressed in the U.S. Constitution?

A) They were wary of significant executive power.
B) They were unsure of what they wanted in the government and made a mistake.
C) They were wary of significant legislative power.
D) All of the above

Question 23

The Framers wanted the executive to be mainly concerned with

A) Symbolic gestures
B) Creating policies
C) Administering congressional policies
D) None of the above

Question 24

Nineteenth- and early twentieth-century presidents

A) played a relatively limited role in the political system.
B) enjoyed a great deal of political power.
C) were not very different from current presidents in terms of the amount of power they exerted.
D) had no power in the political system.

Question 25

Which president ushered in the era of the modern presidency?

A) Theodore Roosevelt
B) Woodrow Wilson
C) Franklin Roosevelt
D) Harry Truman

Question 26

The modern presidency is characterized by a powerful president who

A) seeks to lead Congress.
B) connects with the American public.
C) presides over an enormous executive branch.
D) All of the above

Question 27

The administrative power of the president are defined as the president's authority to

A) enforce laws and ensure that policies take effect.
B) receive other nations' ambassadors, negotiate treaties, and serve as commander-in-chief of the armed forces.
C) draft, create, and enforce legislation that benefits both the nation and his or her political party.
D) influence policy concerning matters within the United States.

Question 28

The foreign powers of the president are defined as the president's authority to

A) enforce laws and ensure that policies take effect.
B) receive other nations' ambassadors, negotiate treaties, and serve as commander-in-chief of the armed forces.
C) draft, create, and enforce legislation that benefits both the nation and his or her political party.
D) influence policy concerning matters within the United States.

Question 29

The domestic powers of the president are defined as the president's authority to

A) enforce laws and ensure that policies take effect.
B) receive other nations' ambassadors, negotiate treaties, and serve as commander-in-chief of the armed forces.
C) draft, create, and enforce legislation that benefits both the nation and his or her political party.
D) influence policy concerning matters within the United States.

Question 30

Presidential declarations that are issued along with legislative bill signings that express reservations about parts of a bill or announce an unwillingness to enforce aspects of the bill are known as

A) the veto.
B) executive agreements.
C) executive orders.
D) signing statements.

Question 31

Directives that the president issues to subordinates in the executive branch that have the force of law are known as

A) the veto.
B) executive agreements.
C) executive orders.
D) signing statements.

Question 32

Agreements between the president and foreign nations that, because they are not treaties, do not need the approval of the Senate are known as

A) the veto.
B) executive agreements.
C) executive orders.
D) signing statements.

Question 33

The president's ability to cancel legislation passed by Congress is known as

A) the veto.
B) executive agreements.
C) executive orders.
D) signing statements.

Question 34

In accordance with the Constitution, which of the following are presidents not in charge of nominating?

A) Federal judges
B) Executive branch officials
C) Senators
D) Ambassadors

Question 35

The requirement that the Senate provide its approval for the president's executive branch nominees provides an example of the legislative branch's check on the

A) judicial branch's legislative power.
B) executive branch's legislative power.
C) judicial branch's administrative power.
D) executive branch's administrative power.

Question 36

The president's ability to exercise discretion in terms of enforcing laws is most directly seen in

A) the veto.
B) executive agreements.
C) executive orders.
D) signing statements.

Question 37

The president's ability to exert administrative power in the area of policymaking is most directly seen in

A) the veto.
B) executive agreements.
C) executive orders.
D) signing statements.

Question 38

In terms of foreign powers, the modern presidency has usurped legislative authority in the areas of

A) making treaties and declaring war.
B) nominating ambassadors and making treaties.
C) declaring war and treaty ratification.
D) declaring war and nominating ambassadors.

Question 39

How have modern presidents gotten around the legislative check on foreign powers by way of treaty ratification?

A) The veto
B) Executive agreements
C) Executive orders
D) Signing statements

Question 40

Which president signed Executive Order 9088 to forcibly remove more than 100,000 Japanese Americans from their homes on the West Coast to internment camps?

A) Franklin Roosevelt
B) Harry Truman
C) Dwight Eisenhower
D) John F. Kennedy

Question 41

Which of the following is not one of the three presidential foreign policymaking powers granted by the Constitution?

A) Declare war
B) Receive foreign ambassadors
C) Negotiate treaties
D) Serve as commander-in-chief of the armed forces

Question 42

Congressional War Powers (the power of Congress to declare war) are granted within the Constitution by

A) Article 1, Section 8.
B) Article 1, Section 12.
C) Article 2, Section 2.
D) Article 2, Section 3.

Question 43

How many times have formal Congressional War Powers been used since the 1950s?

A) Zero
B) One
C) Three
D) Five

Question 44

Which was the first major and prolonged conflict in which the president dispatched troops without a subsequent congressional declaration of war?

A) Korean War
B) Vietnam War
C) Persian Gulf War
D) Iraq War

Question 45

What is the status given to individuals captured in battle who do not belong to any national military force?

A) Active combatants
B) Enemy combatants
C) Prisoners of war
D) Evildoers

Question 46

The practice of electronic eavesdropping instituted under the Bush administration and continued under the Obama administration is known as

A) Waterboarding.
B) warrantless wiretapping.
C) enhanced interrogation.
D) None of the above

Question 47

President Trump pardoned Maricopa County, AZ, Sheriff Joe Arpaio after he was convicted of criminal contempt for

A) continuing to racially profile Blacks despite being ordered to cease doing so.
B) requiring law enforcement to ask about immigration status during routine traffic stops, despite being told to end this practice.
C) continuing to racially profile Latinos despite being ordered to cease doing so.
D) prohibiting law enforcement from asking about immigration status during routine traffic stops, despite being told to allow them to do so.

Question 48

What is needed to override a presidential veto?

A) A two-thirds vote in the House of Representatives
B) A three-fourths vote in the Senate
C) A two-thirds vote in both chambers of Congress
D) A three-fourths vote in both chambers of Congress

Question 49

The _______ is a form of presidential legislative power that allows him or her to overturn a bill passed by Congress when the president does not act on a bill within 10 days of passage and Congress has adjourned.

A) veto
B) pocket veto
C) line-item veto
D) lame duck veto

Question 50

If Congress does not adjourn within 10 days of sending a bill to the president to be signed and the president does not sign or veto the bill, it automatically

A) returns to Congress for review.
B) is subject to the pocket veto.
C) dies.
D) becomes law.

Question 51

What is the annual occasion in which the president speaks before Congress to suggest laws that Congress should pass?

A) The State of the Union address
B) The Inauguration
C) The Great Law of Peace ceremony
D) The State of the Nation address

Question 52

Which president delivered the first televised State of the Union address?

A) Franklin Roosevelt
B) Harry Truman
C) Dwight Eisenhower
D) John F. Kennedy

Question 53

Which president was the first to use his State of the Union address, televised in the evening, to push for major civil rights law enforcement?

A) Lyndon Johnson
B) Gerald Ford
C) Jimmy Carter
D) Ronald Reagan

Question 54

Aside from the State of the Union address, what is another way the president attempts to influence legislative policy?

A) Writing and presenting legislation
B) Presentation of the annual budget
C) Both of the above
D) None of the above

Question 55

Who is not in the closest circle to the president within the executive branch?

A) Vice president
B) President's spouse
C) Cabinet
D) None of the above

Question 56

Which amendment changed the Constitution to allow for political party teams for presidential and vice-presidential candidates?

A) Tenth
B) Eleventh
C) Twelfth
D) Thirteenth

Question 57

Which vice president was the first to be made a major policy advisor for his administration?

A) Walter Mondale
B) George H. W. Bush
C) Dan Quayle
D) Al Gore

Question 58

Who was the only non-White vice president?

A) Calvin Coolidge
B) Charles Dawes
C) Charles Curtis
D) John Garner

Question 59

Who was the first female running mate on a major party ticket?

A) Victoria Woodhull
B) Geraldine Ferraro
C) Sarah Palin
D) Carol Moseley Braun

Question 60

Which of the following first greatly expanded the role of the first lady into political, social, and economic issues?

A) Martha Washington
B) Dolly Madison
C) Eleanor Roosevelt
D) Hillary Clinton

Question 61

Which first lady was the first to be qualified to serve in an important formal capacity within the executive branch?

A) Dolly Madison
B) Eleanor Roosevelt
C) Barbara Bush
D) Hillary Clinton

Question 62

The first president to appoint his wife to an official position beyond her role as first lady was

A) Franklin Roosevelt.
B) Ronald Reagan.
C) Bill Clinton.
D) Barack Obama.

Question 63

The key presidential aides, each of whom heads an executive branch department, as well as others that the president designates, are known as

A) the Executive Office of the President (EOP).
B) the cabinet.
C) White House staff.
D) None of the above

Question 64

A part of the executive branch that is divided into specific offices and contains key advisers who assist the president in managing the executive branch and developing policies is known as

A) the Executive Office of the President (EOP).
B) the cabinet.
C) White House staff.
D) None of the above

Question 65

The president's personal advisers, who do not need senatorial approval when appointed and provide critical political and policy advice to the president, are known as

A) the Executive Office of the President (EOP).
B) the cabinet.
C) White House staff.
D) None of the above

Question 66

Which position is not a part of the "inner cabinet"?

A) Secretary of the Interior
B) Secretary of State
C) Attorney

Question 67

Which department was largely responsible for discriminating against American Indians, particularly in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries?

A) State
B) Labor
C) Interior
D) Homeland Security

Question 68

Which of the following is least likely to be involved in deliberative meetings with the president?

A) The Executive Office of the President (EOP)
B) The cabinet
C) White House staff
D) None of the above

Question 69

Which of the following is a major responsibility and purpose of cabinet members?

A) To provide advice for the president on issues specific to their individual departments
B) To build political support for the executive administration's policies
C) To build public support for the executive administration's policies
D) All of the above

Question 70

The individuals selected for the Executive Office of the President (EOP) are chosen for

A) economic purposes.
B) political purposes.
C) expertise.
D) None of the above

Question 71

Why is diversity (e.g., racial, ethnic, and gender) important within the structure of the executive branch?

A) Diversity in positions of power decreases the likelihood of revolution and riots.
B) This branch has the ability to influence and shape public policies concerning groups that have traditionally lacked influence and resources.
C) Diversity in positions of power placates the masses by helping them to feel that they have influence on the political system.
D) None of the above

Question 72

_______ is not one of the positions on the White House staff.

A) Chief of staff
B) Attorney

Question 73

A member of the president's staff who conducts daily briefings with members of the media is known as the

A) chief of staff.
B) press secretary.
C) counselor to the president.
D) senior advisor.

Question 74

A key assistant to the president who coordinates executive branch employees and serves as a link between other presidential advisers and the president is known as the

A) chief of staff.
B) press secretary.
C) counselor to the president.
D) senior advisor.

Question 75

A period in which the president is of one political party and the majority of one or both houses of Congress are of the other party is called

A) patriotic government.
B) unified government.
C) ineffective government.
D) divided government.

Question 76

A period in which both houses of Congress are controlled by the president's party is called

A) patriotic government.
B) unified government.
C) ineffective government.
D) divided government.

Question 77

Despite unified government under the first two years of his administration, President Trump was unable to achieve what policy goal?

A) A ban on immigration from a number of Muslim-majority countries
B) The tax cut bill he had promised
C) Repeal of the Affordable Care Act
D) An increase in deportations by Immigration and Customs Enforcement

Question 78

A president's claim to Congress that his or her election victory signifies the public's support for his or her policies is known as a(n)

A) mandate.
B) directive.
C) obligation.
D) requirement.

Question 79

The process by which the House of Representatives charges a president, vice president, or federal judge with a high crime or misdemeanor, after which the Senate can decide to remove that official from office, is known as

A) impeachment.
B) executive privilege.
C) arraignment.
D) None of the above

Question 80

Presidential authority to keep some of the communication among executive branch personnel private and free from Congress, the courts, and the public is called

A) impeachment.
B) executive privilege.
C) arraignment.
D) None of the above