Deck 4: Constitutional Democracy: Models of Representation

Question 1

Constitutional democracy is a modern form of Athenian style direct democracy.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

Alexander Hamilton's vision of a strong central government is the model for our U.S. Constitution.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

The Founding Fathers were driven by a mix of idealism and realism.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

What term describes the concept of a form of government ruled by active citizens rather than elected/appointed officials?

A)Constitutional democracy
B)Republic
C)Direct democracy
D)Segmented democracy
E)None of the above

Question 5

Cosmopolitan democracy presupposes that the nation-state is less important in an age when we are all citizens of the world.

Question 6

Hudson's four models represent actual democracies.

Question 7

Constitutional democracies stress order and a political economy above all else.

Question 8

Which of the following is an idea inherent in a constitutional democracy?

A)The majority always gets its way.
B)Government should be responsive, limited, and effective.
C)Ineffective government is an unavoidable side-effect.
D)There should be a popularly elected head of state.
E)The majority is never morally correct.

Question 9

Madison's plan to stop partisan factions from selfishness was to arm government with checks and balances, separation of powers, and federalism.

Question 10

In order to be considered a democracy, a government must function openly and according to a clear set of rules.

Question 11

Which of the Founding Fathers was wary of human ambition in a democratic system?

A)Thomas Jefferson
B)James Madison
C)Alexander Hamilton
D)Both B and C
E)All of the above

Question 12

A crosscutting cleavage leaves one entity cut off from all others.

Question 13

Which of the following are the ideas of John Locke?

A)Meaningful freedom could not exist outside the realm of law.
B)The rule of law was unacceptable because it suppressed individual freedoms.
C)"Wherever Law ends, Tyranny begins."
D)The seventeenth century saw limited advances in the rule of law.
E)Both A and C

Question 14

Federalism helps protect civil and political liberties by limiting the scope of national government.

Question 15

Reserved powers are protected by which Amendment?

A)Sixth Amendment
B)Eighth Amendment
C)Tenth Amendment
D)Fourteenth Amendment
E)None of the above

Question 16

John Calhoun favored a system that would allow the federal government to dictate policies to the states.

Question 17

There is no one universally accepted model or theory of liberal democracy.

Question 18

Thomas Jefferson was more worried about the potential for abuse in majority rule than Alexander Hamilton.

Question 19

Federalism is competitive as well as cooperative.

Question 20

The Thirteenth Amendment guarantees equal protection for all.

Question 21

What is a cosmopolitan democracy?

A)It is a viable alternative to outdated notions of citizenship.
B)It depends on a strong nation-state.
C)It is an effective bulwark against terrorism.
D)It would grant people multiple citizenships and allow people to be world citizens.
E)It refers to the bar-room decision making of young, hip Washingtonians.

Question 22

Which of the following best describes the theory of federalism?

A)A division of power between a national government and its regional subdivisions
B)A division of power between a state government and its respective agencies
C)The fundamental structure of constitutional democracy
D)A state that promotes a strong central (federal) government
E)A safeguard against the dangers of decentralization

Question 23

What term is used to define the winner of an election as the candidate with the most votes?

A)Majority
B)Simple majority
C)Virtual majority
D)Plurality
E)Distributive winner

Question 24

Discuss the ideas of John Calhoun. What are his ideas of a brokered democracy, a concurrent majority, and nullification? Have we ever seen these ideas work in American government? If not, why not?

Question 25

What term is used to describe a democratic government using mob rule for guidance?

A)Broken democracy
B)Tyranny of the majority
C)Brevity of justice
D)Unitary system
E)Cosmopolitan democracy

Question 26

Which of the following landmark rules of law were achieved in seventeenth century Britain?

A)English common law and Magna Carta is the standard to which ordinary acts of parliament should conform.
B)Writs of habeas corpus
C)Idea of due process
D)Abolished use of torture
E)All of the above

Question 27

Socrates noted that people want and rely on experts in most aspects of their lives. For instance, most people hire trained plumbers, auto mechanics, financial advisors, and medical doctors. Why should politics, a subject that involves trillions of dollars, the public welfare, and issues of war and peace, be left to a majority of whoever shows up on Election Day? Why not rely on experts in areas of politics and governance?

Question 28

What was the legislative body of the United States was designed to be?

A)Tyranny of the majority
B)Parliamentary
C)Bicameral
D)Cosmopolitan Democracy
E)None of the above

Question 29

Which of the following help to reinforce a sense of continuity to our government?

A)History
B)Ritual
C)Symbolism
D)Tradition
E)All of the above

Question 30

James Madison argued that in the American system, "Ambition must be made to counteract ambition." Does the successful operation of this principle ever conflict with other purposes of democratic government? If so, in what ways?

Question 31

Contemporary political scientists often refer to which of the following as the first prominent exponent of a pluralist model of democracy?

A)John Calhoun
B)Thomas Jefferson
C)Alexander Hamilton
D)John Quincy Adams
E)John Adams

Question 32

Which question(s) does Katz think is crucial in the design of democratic systems?

A)Are there minorities that need to be protected from the majority?
B)Do key groups in society trust and respect one another?
C)Does the threat to democracy come mainly from the rules or the masses?
D)Are voters sufficiently educated and motivated to make political decisions?
E)All of the above

Question 33

Which tool enables branches of government to resist any illegitimate expansion of power by other branches?

A)Dual federalism
B)Checks and balances
C)Supremacy Clause
D)Bicameralism
E)Brokered democracy

Question 34

Which of Hudson's models of democracy may be described as self-contradictory?

A)Protective democracy
B)Developmental democracy
C)Pluralist democracy
D)Participatory democracy
E)Cosmopolitan democracy

Question 35

Which of the following is the closest to a practicable model of direct democracy?

A)Participatory democracy
B)Pluralist democracy
C)Presidential democracy
D)Developmental democracy
E)Protective democracy

Question 36

Which of the following terms best describes the U.S. government today?

A)Participatory democracy
B)Pluralist democracy
C)Presidential democracy
D)Developmental democracy
E)Protective democracy

Question 37

Which country has the modern world's first, and oldest, constitutional democracy?

A)The United States
B)France
C)Russia
D)Israel
E)Britain

Question 38

Choose a recent instance where the political claims of a minority group and the majority came into conflict. Which government institution(s) took on the task of resolving the dispute over competing interests? Do you think a fair resolution was reached?

Question 39

Although Hudson's models of democracy do not represent specific systems, the features of these models do bear similarities to systems around the world. Name one country that goes with each of his models (four total), and explain the similarities and differences.

Question 40

What safeguards did the Founders put in place to guard against the excesses of majority rule?

A)Separation of powers
B)Federalism
C)The independence of the courts
D)Both A and C
E)All of the above

Question 41

How has the system designed by the Founding Fathers changed over time? Is the practice of politics dramatically different today than at the time the Constitution was written? Which of these two is most similar to how other modern democracies function?