Gov test 1

In order to be a good citizen, it is most critical to possess

knowledge

Of the nearly two hundred governments in the world, what is the estimate of the number of actual constitutional democracies?

20

Government can be best defined as

the institutions and procedures by which a territory and its people are ruled

Before the eighteenth century

governments rarely sought the support of their people

the willingness to be restrained by the power of social institutions, but not political or legal institutions, is a hallmark of a ______ regime.

authoritarian

According to the text, what is the main benefit of a constitutional government?

The government is limited by the rule of law

A government that is formally limited by laws and rules is called

constitutional

a government that accepts no legal limits on its power but may accept the restraint of other social institutions, such as churches is known as

authoritarian

What major changes in Western government led to the establishment of constitutional government?

legal limits on government and the right of more people to vote

The demand that there be no taxation without representation is a good example of what political reform of the eighteenth century?

more popular influence on government

The key group in Europe that pushed for limited government was

the bourgeoisie

Historically, what were the most effective intermediaries for i increasing political participation?

parliaments

Which of the following is an instrument of direct democracy?

initiatives

Who described politics as "who gets what, when, and how"?

Harold Lasswell

According to the text, what is the goal of politics?

to have a say in a government’s leadership, organization, and policies

Direct democracy is best defined as

a system that allows citizens to vote directly for laws and policies

Having some share or say in the composition of a government’s leadership, how it is organized, or what it’s policies are going to be is called

power

Politics can be defined as

conflicts over the character, membership, and policies of any organization to which people belong

A representative democracy is a system of government that

gives citizens a regular opportunity to elect top government officials

The National Origins Quota System

allowed a large quota of new immigrants from northern European countries but only a small quota of new immigrants from eastern and southern European countries.

The Bill of Rights was designed to protect

liberty

What are the three core values in American politics?

liberty, equality, and democracy

The Bill of Rights is

the first ten amendments to the constitution

Throughout American history, the concept of liberty has been linked to

the idea of limited government

The right of each citizen to vote is an example of

political equality

The term laissez-faire means

leave alone

In American political culture, economic freedom means

laissez faire capitalism

"One person, one vote" reflects the principle of

political equality

What is the most important check on majority rule in the United States?

minority rights

which of the following statements concerning political values in the united states is true?

American values often conflict with each other in practice

political rights are a protection against

the tyranny of the majority

What led the British to raise taxes on the American colonists during the 1760s?

the french and indian wars

The first written constitution for the united states was called

the articles of confederation

under the united states first constitution

there was no executive branch

as a constitution, the articles of confederation were concerned primarily with

limiting the powers of the central government

Under the articles of confederation, it was left to the _____ to execute the laws passed by Congress

states

Which statement about government under the Articles of Confederation is false?

Members of congress had significant independence from their states

A ______ is a system of government in which states retain sovereign authority except for powers expressly delegated to a national government

confederacy

Shays’s rebellion was significant because it

convinced many observers that the government of the confederation had become dangerously inefficient and indecisive

According to the text, the writing of the constitution demonstrates the

marriage of interests and principles

The great compromise led to the

creation of the bicameral congress

the three-fifths compromise

determined that three out of every five slaves would be counted for purposes of representation and taxation

the system of shared powers, divided between a central government and the states, is called

federalism

Which of the following was designed by the framers to be an office directly elected by the people?

member of the house of representatives

Bicarmeralism is a constitutional principle that means the

division of congress into two chambers

the electoral college is

designed to select the president

Which of the following was a way the framers tried to make the senate a check against excessive democracy?

senators are the only officials immune from impeachment

What is the term length of a member of the House of Representatives?

two years

The three branches of government created by the constitution are

executive, legislative, judicial

Which of the following possesses the sole power to create revenue bills?

the house of representatives

Only one-third of the senate is up for re-election during any single election year because the framers believed that

this was the only way to protect the senate against radical changes

the framers of the constitution intended to create a presidency capable of

withstanding excessive popular pressure by making it subject to indirect election through the electoral college

Judicial review is the power of

the courts to decide on the constitutionality of actions taken by the other branches of government

What is the term length of a federal judge?

ten years

The supremacy clause

announces that the constitution and all laws made under it are superior to any state laws

The ability of the president to veto a bill passed by congress is a good example of what principle of limited government?

checks and balances

In the national debate over ratification of the new Constitution, the Federalists

supported the constitution and preferred a strong national government

During the ratification debates, who were the Antifederalists?

those who opposed the new constitution because they wanted a weaker central government

The Federalists believed that the most apparent source of tyranny was

the popular majority

The Antifederalists argued that the powers of government should be limited by

both confining the powers of the federal government to certain narrowly defined areas and adding a bill of rights to the constitution

The federalists believed that the powers of government could be limited by

creating an internal system of checks and controls within government

The most common method of passing an amendment to the constitution is

passage in both houses of congress by a two-thirds vote, followed by a majority vote in thee-fourths of the state legislature

Which event led directly to the constitutional convention by providing evidence that the government created under the articles of confederation was unable to act decisively in times of national crisis?

Shay’s rebellion