Question 1
A unitary form of government is defined as:
A system in which states and other governmental units have supreme authority over themselves
A system in which states and other governmental units are completely controlled by and under the authority of a central government
A system in which the people have supreme authority over themselves
A system in which governmental units and states share power with a central government
Question 2
At the time of the founding of the new nation, Britain had what form of government?
State-based form of government
Direct democracy
Unitary form of government
Central form of government
Question 3
Based on the 1790 U.S. Census, the National Archives estimates that only 20.7 percent of the U.S. population were White males 16 years and older. What percentage of the U.S. population does the National Archive estimate was eligible for participation in the political system by way of being White male property owners?
18 percent
2 percent
14 percent
6 percent
Question 4
Concurrent Resolution 331, which was passed by the U.S. Congress in 1988, recognized the influence of the ____________ on the _____________ and the ____________.
Iroquois Confederacy; Articles of Confederation; Bill of Rights
Iroquois Constitution; U.S. Constitution; Bill of Rights
Algonquin Confederacy; Articles of Confederation; Bill of Rights
Iroquois Constitution; Articles of Confederation; U.S. Constitution
Question 5
Democracy is:
A system of government in which religious leaders control the political process
A system of government in which the people exercise political power
A system of government in which the people control their economic well-being
A system of government in which political leaders make all social and economic decisions
Question 6
Do contemporary conservatives fully adhere to classical republican theories?
Yes, contemporary conservatives support using the government to solve social problems
No, contemporary conservatives believe in a limited role for government for solving social problems
Yes, contemporary conservatives value individual liberty over the public good
No, contemporary conservatives believe the government has a role to play in individual lives
Question 7
For the Constitution to become the new national government after the Continental Congress passed it, __________ of the states had to ratify it.
All
Two-thirds
Three-fourths
One-half
Question 8
Government provides security for its citizens by:
Protecting them from unfair business practices
Protecting them from discrimination
Maintaining armed forces
All of the above
Question 9
Lemuel Haynes argued that slavery directly violated classical republican theory. Which of the following arguments would not fit into this argument?
People cannot be classified as property
Denying liberty to slaves undermines the intrinsic virtue of the citizenry
Given that slaves are individuals, their rights should be protected under the law
Because liberty is a natural right, slavery is unlawful
Question 10
Rule of law is defined as:
The idea that laws only applies to the people and not to the politicians
The idea that although laws are important, general government decisions are supreme
The idea that laws should take precedence over arbitrary governance
The idea that laws should be based on biblical authority
Question 11
The Articles of Confederation established a _____________, in which the legislative body consisted of only one house.
Government with three branches
Unicameral form of government
Bicameral form of government
Government run solely through Congress
Question 12
The Articles of Confederation failed due to:
The inability of the government to declare war and make peace
A lack of will among the states to maintain alliances
The inability of the government to make decisions
The inability of the government to exert any real power in the running of the nation
Question 13
The body of political philosophy concerned with the idea that rule by the people should be indirect through representatives is known as:
Classical egalitarianism
Classical liberalism
Classical republicanism
Inegalitarianism
Question 14
The creation of a weak central government under the Articles of Confederation was a logical step for the new nation given that:
The colonists did not think government was useful
The colonists had rebelled against overbearing religious dogma
The colonists had rebelled against the absolutism of the British government
The colonists knew nothing of political philosophy
Question 15
The existence of the Internal Revenue Service is an example of Congress’s:
legislative powers
implied powers
stated powers
enumerated powers
Question 16
The Framers of the Constitution worked to find a balance between:
The authority of the states and the authority of the central government
The authority of religion and the authority of government
The authority of the rich and the authority of the poor
The authority of monarch and the authority of the legislature
Question 17
The main overarching mechanism for controlling people’s behavior and managing their conflicts is:
Government
Religion
Military action
Naure
Question 18
The official resolutions adopted by the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate in 2008 and 2009 concerning the historical relationship between the government and African Americans included all of the following EXCEPT:
A resolution to provide reparations for descendants of slaves
A formal apology for slavery
An acknowledgment of harmful government action against African Americans via Jim Crow laws
An acknowledgment that past government actions have influenced the current position of African Americans
Question 19
The social construction of race is defined as:
The construction of a group of people based on skin color to fit religious norms
The construction of a group of people of various phenotypes, skin colors, and physical characteristics for political and social purposes
The codification of the reality that some groups of people are innately different from others
The understanding that race is innately biological and free from governmental influences
Question 20
The sociopolitical philosophical tradition supporting the exclusion of large segments of the American population from participation in the political system is known as:
Inegalitarianism
Classical liberalism
Classical egalitarianism
Classical republicanism
Question 21
The U.S. Congress provided an apology and reparations to which of the following groups?
Native Hawaiians for the seizure of their land
Japanese Americans interned during World War II
African American descendants of slaves
Jewish Americans in European concentration camps during World War II
Question 22
The U.S. Congress’ Naturalization Act of 1790 pronounced that:
Only free persons born in the United States were eligible for citizenship
Only free White persons were eligible for citizenship
Only free White males were eligible for citizenship
All persons born in the United States were eligible for citizenship
Question 23
The U.S. government is an example of which type(s) of democracy?
Representative democracy
Direct democracy
Constitutional democracy
B and C
Question 24
To control the behavior of its people, government:
All of the above
Devises rules and regulations
Manages conflict
Establishes order
Question 25
To protest the Tea Act in 1773, colonists disguised as ____________ boarded ships in Boston Harbor and threw tea chests overboard.
Runaway slaves
Women
American Indians
British royals
Question 26
To provide for the public good, governments must:
None of the above
Place the needs of groups with the most resources over groups with few resources
Occasionally encroach on individual liberty
Regularly encroach on the national security of society
Question 27
Under the Constitution, the amendment ratification process:
Allows one state to veto any changes
Allows two states to veto any changes
Is difficult and allows a small minority of states to veto any changes
Is easy in that it does not take a majority of states to veto any changes
Question 28
What are enumerated powers?
Powers of the state governments specifically stated in the Constitution
Powers of the state governments that are inferred from the powers expressly stated in the Constitution
Powers of the federal government specifically stated in the Constitution
Powers of the federal government that are inferred from the powers expressly stated in the Constitution
Question 29
Which of the following are to be considered natural rights?
Those rights that exist only in nature
Those rights to which every person is entitled and that are independent of government
Those rights that are based on social, economic, and political status
Those rights that are clearly delineated in a constitution
Question 30
What factors contributed to the broad-scale institution of slavery in Virginia by 1661?
Increase in the supply of African slaves
Difficulty with Indian servitude
Lack of sufficient White indentured servitude
All of the above
Question 31
What is a confederation?
A system in which states and other governmental units relinquish all political power, and no economic power, to the central government
A system in which states and other governmental units are completely controlled by and under the authority of a central government
A system in which states and other governmental units organize a weak central government while maintaining ultimate power for themselves
A system in which there is only a central government
Question 32
What is the main point of the supremacy clause?
It establishes that the Constitution and the laws of the United States are the law of the land and supreme to all laws passed by the state and local governments
It establishes that the national, state, and local governments have equal amounts of power
It establishes that the Articles of Confederation and the laws of the United States are the law of the land and supreme to all laws passed by the state and local governments
It establishes that the laws of the state and local governments are the law of the land and supreme to all laws passed by the national governments
Question 33
When a government provides for the public good, it:
Makes decisions that reflect a narrow set of social interests
Ensures that discrimination only applies to a few specific groups
Creates policies that benefit individuals, rather than society as a whole
Creates policies that benefit society as a whole, rather than specific individuals
Question 34
When did the first Africans arrive in the American colonies?
1607
1641
1683
1619
Question 35
Which central questions fueled the American Revolution?
Monarchical autonomy and autocratic freedom
British freedom and colonial rule
Colonial government and autocratic freedom
Colonial autonomy and monarchical rule
Question 36
Which characteristics do all classical liberal theories share?
Pessimism about individual behavior, group favored over the individual, heavily regulated economy, reason before religious faith
Pessimism about individual behavior, group favored over the individual, free-market economy, religious dogma over scientific reason
Optimism about individual behavior, individual favored over the group, free-market economy, reason before religious faith
Optimism about individual behavior, individual favored over the group, heavily regulated economy, religious dogma over scientific reason
Question 37
Which clause gives Congress the authority to make essential and appropriate laws to carry out its enumerated responsibilities?
Supremacy clause
Equal protection clause
Due process clause
Necessary and proper clause
Question 38
Which compromise resolved the issue of how to count slaves for representational purposes?
Three-Fifths Compromise
New Jersey Compromise
Virginia Compromise
Two-Thirds Compromise
Question 39
Which group was in favor of the ratification of the Constitution?
Anti-Constitutionalists
Antifederalists
Federalists
Constitutionalists
Question 40
Which of the following is an example of direct democracy?
Referendums
Congressional elections
Initiatives
A and C
Question 41
Which of the following doctrines aided in the justification of the exclusion of women from the political system?
Racial inequality
Protestantism
Coverture
Civilization
Question 42
Which of the following was not a power of the Congress under the Articles of Confederation?
Power to enact taxes
Power to coin money
Power to make treaties
Power to declare war
Question 43
Which of the following helped to expose the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation?
Bacon’s Rebellion
None of the above
Shays’s Rebellion
Revere’s Rebellion
Question 44
Which of the following plans proposed a system of government with a strong central government with three branches, and a legislature with proportional representation?
Virginia Plan
Massachusetts Plan
Rhode Island Plan
New Jersey Plan
Question 45
Which of the following plans proposed a system of government that maintained a confederation with a unicameral legislature with equal representation for each state?
Rhode Island Plan
New Jersey Plan
Virginia Plan
Massachusetts Plan
Question 46
Which of the following was a direct effect of the Three-Fifths Compromise?
Small states had significantly more representation in the House than they would have if slaves were not counted
Slaveholding states had significantly more representation in the House than they would have if slaves were not counted
None of the above
All non-White individuals in the United States were counted as three-fifths of a person for representation purposes
Question 47
Which of the Founders posited the belief that Blacks were innately inferior to Whites and called on science to demonstrate this inferiority?
Adams
Jefferson
Madison
Franklin
Question 48
Which Parliamentary act was the first to impose a direct tax on the colonists?
Quartering Act
Stamp Act
Sugar Act
Declaratory Act
Question 49
Which Supreme Court ruling resulted in a broad interpretation of the necessary and proper clause?
McCulloch v. Maryland [1819]
Barron v. Baltimore [1833]
Dred Scott v. Sandford [1857]
Hurtado v. California [1884]
Question 50
Why were the Antifederalists opposed to the Constitution?
All of the above
They feared a consolidated government
They opposed unlimited taxing power
It lacked a bill of rights
