1. Today, on Average, Americans Pay ___ Percent of Their Income to Federal Payroll Taxes

That's Bolshevik and You Know It!

Created in 2011 by:

 Central Organizer: Julian Lang

 Multiple Choice coordinator: Heath Dobson

 Multiple Choice researcher: Mike Jones

 Short Answer Questions coordinator: Jake Meizell UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS Section I

UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS SECTION I Time – 45 minutes Directions: You have 45 minutes to answer all 60 of the following questions. Please choose the best response to each question and fill it in your answer sheet. Any work written in this test booklet will not be counted toward your grade.

1. Today, on average, Americans pay ___ c. selected by members of the Supreme percent of their income to federal payroll Court taxes d. elected directly by the people a. 1 e. Both A and D. b. 4 5. The original purpose of the Constitutional c. 21 Convention was to... d. 75 a. draw up a bill of rights. e. 83 b. discuss regulations on intrastate commerce. 2. The Great Compromise... c. levy taxes. a. required Supreme Court justices to be d. build an army. confirmed by the Senate e. revise the articles of confederation. b. based House representation on population and Senate population on 6. About __ of the delegates at the equality Constitutional Convention participated c. solved the conflict between those who regularly... wanted a powerful House and those who a. 12 did not b. 30 d. provided that the president be selected c. 39 by the electoral college d. 55 e. dealt with, without mentioning by name, e. 74 “slavery.” 7. Which of the following liberties was 3. When he wrote the Declaration of included in the Constitution before the Bill Independence, Thomas Jefferson replaced of Rights was added? ______with “the pursuit of happiness.” a. The writ of Habeas Corpus a. life b. Freedom of speech. b. property c. Right to petition the government for c. justice redress of grievances d. liberty d. Right to bear arms e. equality e. Protection from double jeopardy

4. Before a committee created the electoral 8. The landmark case MucCulloch v. Maryland college, convention delegates suggested the determined that... president be... a. a state had the power to tax the federal a. chosen by Congress government b. chosen by the state legislatures b. the federal government had the power to tax a state c. Congress did not have the power to set d. An independent judiciary up a national bank e. All of the above d. the “necessary and proper” clause allowed for the creation of a bank e. The constitution was established by the states 9. Compared with people in other democracies, 13. A properly conducted poll of 250 million Americans are particularly preoccupied with people can capture “public opinion” with as a. elections few as ______of them. b. the assertion of rights a. 1,500 c. social harmony b. 2,000 d. institutions c. 3,000 e. equality d. 4,500 e. 5,000 10. Which statement is incorrect? a. In the 1830's, de Tocqueville was 14. The “gender gap” refers to the tendency of amazed at how religious Americans female voters to ______in recent elections were a. support Democratic candidates b. The average American is more likely to b. vote Republican believe in God than the average c. support Independent candidates European. d. refrain from voting c. Religious revival movements of the e. contribute more money 1700's transformed political life in the colonies 15. Students attending more prestigious or d. Today, America is less religious than selective colleges are more ______than most European countries. the general population e. Candidates for national office in most a. liberal contemporary democracies rarely b. conservative mention religion. c. Democratic d. Republican 11. Which of the following statements e. moderate concerning recent trends in tolerance is most accurate? 16. In this country about ______of the voting a. Female candidates are less tolerated than age population is registered to vote they once were a. one-eighth b. Americans are increasingly less tolerant b. one-quarter than they were in the 1950's. c. one-half c. The level of tolerance in America has d. two-thirds not changed in the last twenty or thirty e. ninety five percent years. d. Americans appear to be more tolerant 17. Adoption of the Australian ballot enabled than they were twenty or thirty years United States citizens to vote... ago. a. early and often e. Americans are less tolerant of b. more easily Communists than they once were c. by absentee ballot d. without being informed 12. Which of the following was intended to e. in secret serve as a check on public opinion? a. Representative Governments 18. “Campaigning” has largely become b. Federalism synonymous with... c. Separation of Powers a. fundraising b. mobilization c. triangulation 24. The major union movement in America d. clarification occurred in the... e. polarizing a. 1920's b. 1930's 19. Parties in the United States are relatively c. 1950's weak today mainly because... d. 1960's a. the laws and rules under which they e. 1970's operate have taken away much of their power 25. Which of the following was a milestone in b. political leaders have insisted that the development of a reasonably nonpartisan ballots do not identify the party of the and unbiased press? candidates a. The establishment of the Gazette of the c. interest groups are less influential than United States during the Washington they were 40 years ago administration d. many voters have lost their sense of b. The establishment of the Associated commitment to party identification Press in 1848 e. A and D c. The creation of the National Intelligence by Jacksonian Democrats 20. George Washington was critical of political d. The rise of magazines of opinion in the parties most notably in his... late 1800's a. Last Will and Testament e. The rise of competition from radio in the 1920's b. inaugural speech c. messages to congress 26. Politicians wishing to make news are well d. Farewell Address advised to criticize e. correspondence with Thomas Jefferson. a. the President b. Congress 21. The Mugwumps were... c. the Supreme Court a. a political branch of the American d. the federal bureaucracy Legion e. state government b. a faction of the Republican party c. the forerunners of the Ku Klux Klan 27. For a public official in the United States to d. an activist Indian tribe win a libel suit against the press, he or she e. Louisiana tobacco farmers who held must prove that... land near the coast. a. what was printed was untrue b. the material was untrue and was printed maliciously 22. Where political parties are strong, interest c. the material causes “emotional duress” groups are likely to be... d. his or her privacy was violated a. stronger e. the printing of the material in question b. independent has done “substantial harm” to the c. weak public interest d. more numerous e. non-ideological 28. The Framers saw no need for a bill of rights because 23. Americans have an unusually high rate of a. in their view, civil liberties were a matter membership in for the states, not for the federal gov. a. religious organizations b. they were convinced that in a b. civic organizations democratic republic, public opinion was c. business organizations a sufficient protection d. political associations c. no one even bothered to bring up the e. A, B, and D topic at the Constitutional Convention d. they assumed that the federal 33. According to the Supreme Court, differences government could not do things that it based on sex are permitted for was not explicitly authorized to do a. the age at which men and women are e. their chief concern was protecting public allowed to buy beer order, not guaranteeing rights. b. the age at which men and women legally 29. Which amendment prohibited the become adults deprivation of life, liberty, and property c. allowing women to remain officers without “due process of law?” longer than men without being promoted a. Tenth in the Navy b. Thirteenth d. excluding girls from playing on Little c. Fourteenth League baseball teams d. Fifteenth e. insisting women pay more for insurance e. Twenty-sixth benefits because, on average, they live longer 30. Libel is defined as... a. stating something untrue about another 34. Presidents have asserted the right to send person troops abroad on their own authority in more b. writing something false about someone than ____ instances. without their knowledge a. 6 c. an oral statement defaming another b. 13 person c. 30 d. a written statement defaming another d. 90 person e. 125 e. maliciously intending to defame a public official 35. Beginning with the ______administration, the National Security 31. The Supreme Court's decision in Plessy v. Council has grown in influence. Ferguson (whatever its wider implications) a. Roosevelt directly concerned... b. Truman a. segregation on railroad cars c. Kennedy b. voting rights for blacks d. Eisenhower c. interracial marriage e. Johnson d. lynching e. the ability of Congress to regulate race 36. The only war in which public support relations in the states remained high was... a. the Korean War 32. In 1954, the Supreme Court ruled that b. the Vietnam War segregation in public schools was c. A and B “inherently unequal” on the basis of... d. World War II a. the fact that black children were not e. World War I achieving success academically b. the Equal Protection clause of the 37. Bill Clinton promised to lift the official ban Fourteenth Amendment on gays and lesbians serving in the military c. apparent psychological harm done to if he were elected, but... black children in separate schools a. the Joint Chiefs of Staff lifted the ban d. inadequate expenditures on black before he had the chance to education b. he instead settled with a compromise e. a philosophical understanding of the “don't ask, don't tell” policy essentials of equality c. the Pentagon decided the traditional policy could not be modified in any significant way d. the Democratic National committee 44. Political scientists define a “safe” district as insisted that he detach himself from the one where the incumbent received __ issue percent or more of the vote in the previous e. he instead referred the question to a election. bipartisan committee of members of a. 50 Congress b. 55 38. The total federal debt is around... c. 60 a. $1 trillion d. 65 b. $3 trillion e. 80 c. $5 trillion d. $8 trillion 45. When voting on matters in which constituency e. $30 trillion interests or opinion are not vitally at stake, members of Congress respond primarily to 39. The biggest problem facing majoritarian voting cues provided by... welfare programs is... a. their colleagues a. their cost b. judicial rulings b. their legitimacy c. interest groups c. their goals d. PAC's d. who will benefit e. administrative agencies e. how should clients be served 46. During the 1950's and 1960's, the Senate 40. The typical representative or senator is... was dominated by... a. white a. northern senators b. male b. liberal senators c. Protestant c. conservative Republicans d. a lawyer d. southern senators e. all of the above e. freshman senators

41. Originally, filibusterers were 16th century... 47. The real leadership in the Senate rests with the a. auctioneers a. majority leader b. lawyers b. president pro tempore c. salesmen c. managers d. cavalrymen d. vice president e. pirates e. Senate whip

42. Until 1913, senators were... 48. Each member of the House usually serves on a. popularly elected __ standing committees. b. picked by state legislatures a. 2 c. appointed by state governors b. 3 d. selected by the state judiciaries c. 4 e. elected by the electoral college d. 6 e. 7 43. Which amendment changed the manner in which U.S. Senators are selected? 49. Bills which contain a large number of a. Tenth “riders” are known as “______bills.” b. Fourteenth a. Loaded c. Fifteenth b. Constituency d. Seventeenth c. Valentine e. Twenty-first d. Dry Ice e. Christmas Tree 50. The Framers first considered having ______select the president 56. Once in office, a president can expect to see a. the Supreme Court his popularity... b. Congress a. increase over time c. the state legislatures b. remain about the same d. the various governors c. fluctuate in a manner that admits no e. the large states generalization 51. Which amendment formally limited d. decline over time presidents to two terms? e. be dependent on the actions of Congress a. 9th b. 10th 57. The issue of executive privilege was not c. 17th directly addressed by the Supreme Court d. 22nd until e. 26th a. John F. Kennedy was reported to have had dealings with organized crime 52. Which of the following actions did Abraham b. Harry Truman refused to provide Lincoln take without prior congressional testimony in regard to some approval? controversial last minute pardons a. Raised an Army c. George Bush interfered with Iran-Contra b. Spent Money prosecutions c. Blockaded Southern ports d. Richard Nixon attempted to withhold d. Suspended the writ of habeas corpus tape recordings from a special e. All of the above prosecutor e. Gerald Ford pardoned Richard Nixon 53. The elimination of the Electoral College might have the effect of... 58. During the average year, Congress passes a. encouraging third parties ______bills b. reducing vote turnout a. between 50 and 100 c. increasing the importance of less b. between 200 and 300 populous states c. between 400 and 600 d. reducing the importance of independent d. over one thousand candidates e. over six thousand e. expediting the results of presidential elections 59. The dramatic increase in the number of federal employees from 1816 to 1861 was 54. Which organizational structures runs the risk the direct result of... of isolating or misinforming the president? a. the need for Secret Service agents in the a. Pyramid White House b. Circular b. expansion in the size of the c. Ad Hoc congressional staff d. Titular c. an increase in the demands on e. Vertical government, especially the Post Office d. the Hatch Act 55. There is a noticeable decline in the number e. President Grant's concern over the of ______by recent Whiskey Ring scandal presidents a. public appearances made 60. Franklin Roosevelt's plan to reorganize the b. public speeches given Supreme Court called for.. c. press conferences held a. the Court to meet once every other year d. cabinet meetings called e. State of the Union addresses given b. the total number of justices to be d. the Senate to have the power to remove increased according to the age of sitting justices from the Court at will justices e. all New deal legislation to be removed c. the president to select justices without from the Court's jurisdiction senatorial confirmation UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS SECTION II Time – 100 minutes Directions: You have 100 minutes to answer all four of the following questions. Unless the directions indicate otherwise, respond to all parts of all four questions. It is suggested that you take a few minutes to plan and outline each answer. Spend approximately one-fourth of your time (25 minutes) on each question. In your response, use substantive examples where appropriate. Make certain to number each of your answers as the question is numbered below.

1. The framers of the United States Constitution created a federal system  Define Federalism  Select two of the following and explain how each has been used to increase the federal government relative to the states. ▪ Categorical grants ▪ Federal Mandates ▪ Selective incorporation  Select two of the following and explain how each has been used to increase the states relative to the federal government. ▪ Welfare Reform Act of 1996 ▪ Block Grants ▪ The 10th Amendment

2. The graph shows reelection rates for incumbents in the House and Senate. From this information and your knowledge of United States politics, perform the following tasks.  Identify two patters displayed in the graph  Identify two factors that contribute to incumbency advantage. Explain how each factor contributed to incumbency advantage.  Discuss one consequence of incumbency advantage for the United States political process. 3. A number of factors enable presidents to exert influence over Congress in the area of domestic policy. However, presidents are also limited in their influence over domestic policymaking in Congress. The Constitution grants the president certain enumerated powers.  Describe two of these formal powers that enable the president to exert influence over domestic policy  Define each term and explain how each limits the president's ability to influence domestic policymaking in Congress. ▪ Lame Duck Period ▪ Party Polarization

4. In the United States Congress, the majority party exerts a substantial influence over lawmaking. However, even when one party has a numerical majority in each chamber of the United States Congress, there is no guarantee that legislation supported by that majority party will be passed by both chambers. Rules of each chamber independently influence the likelihood that legislation will pass in that chamber; legislation passed by one chamber is not always passed by the other.  Describe two advantages the majority party in the United States House of Representatives has in lawmaking, above and beyond the numerical advantage that that majority party enjoys in floor voting.  Describe two differences between House and Senate rules that may make it likely that legislation may pass in one chamber but not in the other.  Explain how the differences identified in the second bullet can lead to the passage of a bill in one chamber but not in the other

END OF EXAMINATION