Shared Flashcard Set

Details

Government Final Exam
Kavanaugh's Dual Government Final Exam
70
History
12th Grade
05/22/2012

Additional History Flashcards

 


 

Cards

Term
In the last thirty years, the single most important variable in determining the outcome election for a member of the House of Representatives has been
Definition
incumbency
Term
Which of the following statements most accurately compares elections in the United States with those in most other Western democracies?
Definition
the voter turnout in the US is usually lower
Term
Which of the following would result from the direct election of presidential candidates?
Definition
each vote would couunt equally in determining which candidate won the election
Term
Which of the following factors best accounts for the rise of interest groups and the decline of political parties in recent years?
Definition
Interest groups are better able to articulate specific policy positions than are political parties
Term
To enforce the Fourteenth Amendment more clearly, Congress passed the
Definition
Civic Rights Act of 1964
Term
Which of the following is true of the electoral college system?
Definition
it encourages candidates to concentrate their campaigns in competitive, populous states
Term
The primary function of political action committees (PACs) is to
Definition
raise campaign funds to support favored candidates
Term
Which of the following is a significant trend in the presidential nominating process over the past three decades?
Definition
Increasing importance of presidential primaries rather than state conventions
Term
Which of the following is the most important influence on the choice made by voters in presidential elections?
Definition
partisan identification
Term
The advantages of incumbency in congressional elections include which of the following?
Definition
I and II only
Term
Interest groups and political parties both promote United States democracy by
Definition
linking citizens to the political process
Term
A state has 11 electoral votes. In a presidential election, the Democratic candidate receives 48 percent of that state's popular vote, the Republican candidate receives 40 percent of the vote, and an independent candidate receives 12 percent of the vote.

If the state is similar to most other states, how will the electoral votes most likely be allocated?
Definition
the democratic candidate will receive all 11 electoral votes
Term
Which of the following form an "iron triangle"?
Definition
executive department, congressional committee, interest group
Term
The large number of cleavages in American society contributes to the large number of
Definition
interest groups
Term
Most interest groups in Washington are believed to reflect a lower-class bias.
Definition
false
Term
The least important tactic of interest groups is supplying credible information.
Definition
false
Term
The "____" refers to the movement of politicians and governmental officials to employment by lobbyists.
Definition
revolving door
Term
The power of the Rules Committee in the House of Representatives rests in its authority to
Definition
place a bill on the legislative calendar, limit time for debate, and determine the type of amendments proposed
Term
The federal Constitution guarantees all of the following rights to a person arrested and charged with a serious crime EXCEPT the right to
Definition
negotiate a plea agreement
Term
Which of the following is responsible for the preparation of executive spending proposals submitted to Congress?
Definition
Office of Management and Budget
Term
"Pork barrel" legislation helps the reelection chances of a member of Congress because such legislation
Definition
helps earn the member of Congress a reputation for service to his or her district
Term
All of the following are formal or informal sources of presidential power EXCEPT
Definition
presidential authority to raise revenue
Term
An advantage that bureaucrats in federal government have over the President in the policymaking process is that bureaucrats
Definition
usually have a continuity of service in the executive branch that the President lacks
Term
Most of the bills introduced in the House and the Senate are then
Definition
voted down during the amendment stage of the floor debate
Term
Cabinet departments differ from independent regulatory agencies in which of the following ways?
Definition
The President can dismiss cabinet officeers, but not commissioners of independent regulatory agencies
Term
Which of the following best describes the relationship between the Supreme Court and public opinion?
Definition
the existence of a public consensus on an issue limits the extent to which the court will render decisions contrary to that consensus
Term
Which of the following Supreme Court cases involved the principle of "one man, one vote"?
Definition
Baker v. Carr
Term
Debate of a bill in the House of Representatives under a "closed rule" means that
Definition
amendments to the bill cannot be offered
Term
Agreement among four justices on the Supreme Court is always sufficient to
Definition
accept a case for consideratoin
Term
In selecting members of the White House staff, Presidents primarily seek people who
Definition
are personally loyal to the President
Term
A "cloture motion" passed in the Senate does which of the following?
Definition
Cuts off debate on a bill
Term
Those who believe that the Supreme Court in its rulings should defer to the elective institutions of government are advocating
Definition
judicial restraint
Term
The boundary lines of congressional districts are drawn by
Definition
state legislatures
Term
The congressional system of standing committees is significant because it
Definition
fosters the development of expertise by members
Term
Which of the following is empowered to create new federal courts and specify the number of judges who will sit on them?
Definition
Congress
Term
Communication between congressional representatives and constituents occurs mainly through
Definition
the personal staffs of representatives
Term
The role of a conference committee in Congress is to
Definition
reconcile differences in bills passed by the House and Senate
Term
Supreme Court justices are given tenure subject to good behavior by the framers of the Constitution in order to ensure that
Definition
justices are free from direct political pressure
Term
Which of the following is true about the right of free speech, as currently interpreted by the Supreme Court?
Definition
It protects the right to express opinions even without the actal use of words
Term
All of the following powers are granted to the President by the Constitution EXCEPT
Definition
forming new cabinet-level departments
Term
Which of the following actions can Congress take if the Supreme Court finds a federal law unconstitutional?
Definition
try to ammend the Constitution
Term
Most of the individual protections of the Bill of Rights now apply to the states because of the Supreme Court's interpretation of the Constitution's
Definition
Fourteenth Amendment
Term
Which of the following procedures results in the removal of the President from office?
Definition
The House votes for impeachment, and the Senate conducts a trial and reaches a guilty verdict
Term
One of the formal tools used by Congress for oversight of the bureaucracy is
Definition
authorization of spending
Term
The "Miranda warning" represents an attempt to protect criminal suspects against
Definition
unfair police interrogation
Term
The establishment clause of the First Amendment does which of the following?
Definition
Prohibits the setting up of a state church
Term
Griswold v. Connecticut and Roe v. Wade are similar Supreme Court cases in that both cases are based on the
Definition
right of privacy
Term
When the media influences which subjects become national political issues, it is playing the role of
Definition
gatekeeper
Term
Research indicates that negative advertising has no effect on either voter preference or voter turnout.
Definition
false
Term
A journalist who searches through the activities of public officials and organizations, especially business firms, seeking to expose conduct contrary to the public interest is a
Definition
muckraker
Term
Generally, the Supreme Court has upheld the confidentiality of sources.
Definition
false
Term
"Floating a trial balloon" refers to testing public reaction to a policy.
Definition
true
Term
Generally, the President gets more press coverage than Congress.
Definition
true
Term
Popular election of U.S. Senators was required by the ____ Amendment.
Definition
17th
Term
Which of the following is a prolonged speech, or series of speeches, made to delay action in the U.S. Senate, and is referred to as Rule 22?
Definition
Filibuster
Term
The Virginia General Assembly meets for at least 10 months of a calendar year.
Definition
false
Term
Drawing a district boundary in some bizarre or unusual shape to make it easy for the candidate to win election in that district is
Definition
gerrymandering
Term
The only type of courts required by the Constitution is/are
Definition
Supreme Court
Term
_____ is a legal concept that refers to who is entitled to bring a case in a federal court.
Definition
Standing
Term
After 1936, the Supreme Court was preoccupied with political liberties.
Definition
true
Term
Up through the Civil War, the Supreme Court was largely concerned with national supremacy and the government's ability to regulate commerce.
Definition
true
Term
The Supreme Court is described in what part of the U.S. Constitution?
Definition
Article III
Term
A(n) _____ is a test of ideological purity in selecting judges.
Definition
litmus test
Term
A(n) _____ is written briefs or even oral arguments that may be offered by a "friend of the court."
Definition
amicus brief
Term
This case emphasized that the term "contract" referred to transactions involving individual property rights, not to "the political relations between the government and its citizens." It established national supremacy in the "contract clause" of Article I, Section 10.
Definition
Dartmouth College v Woodward (1819)
Term
This case established the following two principles: (1) that the Constitution grants to Congress implied powers for implementing the Constitution's express powers, in order to create a functional national government, and (2) that state action may not impede valid constitutional exercises of power by the Federal government. (In this case in the taxation of a national bank.)
Definition
MuCullock v Maryland (1819)
Term
_____ was a case in which the Supreme Court held that the power to regulate interstate navigation was granted to Congress by the Commerce Clause of the Constitution.
Definition
Gibbons v Ogden
Term
_____ was a historically important case argued before the Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that the Fourteenth Amedment to the US Constitution had extended the reach of certain provisions of the First Amendment — specifically the provisions protecting freedom of speech and freedom of the press — to the governments of the individual states.
Definition
Gitlow v New York
Term
In _____ the Court brushed aside the First Amendment issue and declared that "all evidence obtained by searches and seizures in violation of the Constitution is, by [the Fourth Amendment], inadmissible in a state court."
Definition
Mapp v Ohio
Term
_____ established a "test", which details the requirements for United States legislation concerning religion.
Definition
Lemon v Kurtzman
Supporting users have an ad free experience!