Deck 12: Brazil

Question 1

Brazil's Second Republic was:

A)polarized between supporters and opponents of Vargas.
B)a stable democracy that continues to the present.
C)buoyed by a very strong economy.
D)a successful laboratory for consolidating democratic elements.
E)a dictatorship run by the military.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

What has been the most controversial aspect of affirmative action in Brazil?

A)cash payments for indigenous workers that have lost jobs
B)racial quotas in the state bureaucracy
C)racial quotas at public universities
D)affirmative action in the diplomatic corps
E)the appointment of cabinet ministers of indigenous racial backgrounds

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Which of the following has been a result of the persistent lack of legislative majorities in Brazil?

A)fewer uses of line-item vetoes
B)presidential legislating by emergency decree
C)more overrides of presidential vetoes
D)an increase in the formal powers of presidents
E)reduced use of congressional hearings

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Democratization in Brazil during the 1980s resulted from:

A)a civil war.
B)a popular uprising.
C)the rapid collapse of the military.
D)a gradual, controlled process.
E)foreign intervention.

Question 5

Brazil's military regime after 1964 was:

A)a Communist regime.
B)a bureaucratic authoritarian regime.
C)an illiberal democracy.
D)a populist dictatorship.
E)a socialist experiment.

Question 6

What has been a major problem for the Federal Supreme Court since the return of democracy?

A)declining independence
B)a crushing caseload
C)an inability to overturn legislation
D)an overzealous prosecution of human rights abuses
E)extreme partisanship

Question 7

Which of the following accurately describes Brazilian political culture?

A)Just barely over half of Brazilians express satisfaction with democracy in their country.
B)Most Brazilians view democracy as preferable to any other system of government.
C)Brazilians have very low levels of confidence in political parties but are not ideologically polarized.
D)Brazilians have the highest turnout rates among Latin American countries, at an average of 55 percent for recent elections.
E)Most Brazilians identify strongly with an individual party and as a whole have grown very politically polarized in the last two decades.

Question 8

Brazil's electoral system uses:

A)single-member districts with plurality.
B)closed-list proportional representation.
C)open-list proportional representation.
D)a mixed electoral system.
E)a single-transferable vote.

Question 9

Brazil's political party system:

A)is dominated by a single party.
B)is a two-party system like that of the United States.
C)lacks any clearly defined political parties.
D)is badly fragmented, with numerous undisciplined parties.
E)is a three-party system similar to that of the United Kingdom.

Question 10

The first working-class president of Brazil was:

A)Fernando Henrique Cardoso.
B)João Figueiredo.
C)Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
D)Getúlio Vargas.
E)Dilma Rousseff.

Question 11

Brazil's independence:

A)was achieved after a bloody war.
B)occurred due to widespread dissatisfaction with Portugal.
C)was achieved without bloodshed.
D)abolished the monarchy.
E)lasted only two decades before Portugal reasserted control.

Question 12

Compared with Spanish America, Brazil's relatively peaceful history can be attributed to:

A)very low levels of inequality.
B)the absence of a military in Brazil.
C)a reasonably progressive monarchy.
D)the absence of immigration to Brazil.
E)Brazil's immense wealth.

Question 13

The Estado Nôvo was:

A)Brazil's first democratic republic.
B)a Communist dictatorship.
C)the creation of a capital city in the interior.
D)a dictatorial regime led by Vargas.
E)a breakaway coastal state.

Question 14

How do both the Party of the Brazilian Democratic Movement (PMDB) and the Brazilian Social Democracy Party (PSDB) differ from the Democrats (DEM)?

A)Both hold much smaller, weaker positions in the national legislature.
B)Both lack a strong ideological orientation.
C)Both lack a regional focus.
D)Both are more committed to free-market principles.
E)Both oppose coalition governing at the national level.

Question 15

In which of the following ways does the Brazilian Federal Senate's power differ from that of the Chamber of Deputies?

A)The Senate can override presidential vetoes with a majority vote.
B)The Senate has the power to approve top presidential appointments.
C)The Senate plays a key role in executive policymaking.
D)The Senate's members lack term limits.
E)The Senate can amend the constitution.

Question 16

Latin American populists like Getúlio Vargas:

A)allied with agrarian elites.
B)mobilized urban workers.
C)were supportive of Communists.
D)weakened the central state.
E)supported civil liberties above all else.

Question 17

Which of the following statements about the da Silva administration's foreign policy is accurate?

A)Its strongly leftist policies angered U.S. administrations.
B)It successfully prosecuted a case against the United States in the World Trade Organization.
C)It regularly defaulted on international debt commitments.
D)International pressure forced it to institute radical protections for the Brazilian rain forest.
E)It supported the U.S.-backed plan for a Free Trade Area of the Americas.

Question 18

Brazil's monarchy ended:

A)after a bloody civil war deposed the monarch.
B)when the king went into exile rather than face a coup d'état.
C)when a referendum voted against the monarchy.
D)when the king died without an heir.
E)after the United States cut off aid to Brazil.

Question 19

Slavery ended in Brazil:

A)after a civil war similar to that of the United States.
B)only in the early twentieth century.
C)because of a slave rebellion against whites.
D)only after the United States cut off aid to Brazil.
E)peacefully, by royal decree.

Question 20

The rapid settlement and development of Brazil's interior in the eighteenth century occurred due to:

A)overpopulation on the coast.
B)a desire to enslave indigenous Brazilians.
C)the discovery of oil.
D)the discovery of gold and diamonds.
E)the depletion of the rain forest.

Question 21

Why has Brazil been plagued by some of the worst poverty and inequality on the planet? How have more recent governments sought to alleviate these problems?

Question 22

Describe the Brazilian political party system, and note some of its distinctive features. Why do many scholars blame the structure of the electoral system on Brazil's persistent government corruption?

Question 23

Which of the following statements regarding the Brazilian military is accurate?

A)Da Silva's Truth Commission resulted in the first imprisonment of Brazil's military leaders since the end of their formal rule.
B)The military's national security doctrine continues to focus too heavily on domestic stability and domestic threats.
C)President da Silva tested the military's loyalty by presiding over a broad decrease in military spending.
D)The military officers most closely connected to the military's authoritarian regime continue to hold top posts in the armed forces.
E)The military successfully engineered a full amnesty for itself concerning human rights abuses during military rule.

Question 24

How has the issue of race evolved in the political discourse in Brazil? What has been the effect of affirmative action programs introduced in the 1990s?

Question 25

What has been the relationship between the Bolsa Familia and the governmental politics of Brazil?

A)The Bolsa Familia has encouraged the growth of the "catchall" parties of the political center.
B)Current president Rousseff has benefitted from major support from the poor in Brazil's north, which likely would not have happened without the Bolsa Familia.
C)State finances have been drained to pay for the Bolsa Familia, which has reduced political support for the ruling Worker's Party.
D)The success of the Bolsa Familia has allowed its backers to push through electoral reforms and reduce political party fragmentation in Brazil.
E)The industrial southeast has consolidated its support against the center-right parties in government in hopes of killing the Bolsa Familia.

Question 26

Which of the following statements about government corruption in Brazil is accurate?

A)The electoral system forces high accountability for individual legislators, which pushes corruption into the executive.
B)President da Silva's administration has been the only one in recent decades to escape corruption allegations.
C)President Rousseff's hard stance against corruption has been undermined by numerous corruption allegations against members of her cabinet.
D)President Fernando Collor de Mello was ultimately impeached due to corruption charges.
E)Most scholars blame Brazil's high levels of natural resources for the presence of persistent government corruption.

Question 27

Which of the following is true of Brazil's participation in the regional trade agreement MERCOSUR?

A)The formation of MERCOSUR required member countries to raise tariffs on imports from other members.
B)Brazil opposes the acceptance of new countries into MERCOSUR for fear of having its own exports undercut.
C)Brazil's trade with MERCOSUR members now accounts for nearly half of its total exports.
D)Disputes over currency valuation between Brazil and Argentina have been the chief dispute within MERCOSUR.
E)Brazil withdrew from MERCOSUR after allegations of currency fixing were leveled at the da Silva administration.

Question 28

How did the two Cardoso administrations seek to assert state control over the military?

A)slashing the military budget
B)establishing a Truth Commission
C)having the Federal Supreme Court investigate human rights abuses
D)creating a single civilian Ministry of Defense
E)placing the selection of military commanders under the control of the legislature

Question 29

Describe the effects of Brazil's public debt and high inflation on its economy, particularly with respect to poverty. Has democratization had a positive effect on these problems?

Question 30

Describe the main features of bureaucratic authoritarianism under military rule in Brazil. What legacy of that rule still affects Brazil today?