Deck 2: The American Constitution

Question 1

In establishing their new government, Americans tried to establish a form that would operate with

A) the monarchy.
B) absolute authority.
C) popular consent.
D) royal governors.
E) tacit consent.

Answer 1

popular consent.

Question 2

The "critical period" that heavily influenced the formation of the Constitution was the

A) Revolutionary War.
B) Second Constitutional Convention.
C) years between the battles of Bunker Hill and Valley Forge.
D) years between the Declaration of Independence and the end of the war.
E) years between independence and the convening of the Constitutional Convention.

Answer 2

years between independence and the convening of the Constitutional Convention.

Question 3

Why did Connecticut and Rhode Island draft constitutions many years after the other eleven states?

A) They were not confident that independence would last.
B) Their original constitutions were acceptable because they had not had royal governors.
C) They could not reach a consensus at their state conventions.
D) They were too preoccupied with their obligations to the national constitution.
E) They preferred to operate without formal constitutions.

Answer 3

Their original constitutions were acceptable because they had not had royal governors.

Question 4

Which of the following were common features of many of the early state constitutions?

A) Separation of powers, strong executives, bicameral legislatures, property qualifications
B) Separation of powers, weak governors, single house legislatures, property qualifications
C) Lack of a judicial branch, strong governors, bicameral legislatures, property qualifications
D) Separation of powers, powerful executives, single house legislatures, no voting restrictions
E) Separation of powers, weak governors, bicameral legislatures, property qualifications

Question 5

What did the Second Continental Congress declare must happen before the Articles of Confederation would go into effect?

A) Nine of the thirteen states must concur.
B) All of the thirteen states must ratify it.
C) Each state must write a new constitution.
D) A new representative must be elected from each state.
E) Each state must submit suggested modifications to the document.

Question 6

Which was not a provision of the Articles of Confederation?

A) Limited powers of the national authority
B) State equality
C) Supermajority requirement on most important matters
D) Unanimous consent to changes made to the Articles
E) A judicial branch of government

Question 7

Why did the delegates fashion a weak central authority in the Articles of Confederation?

A) Connecticut and Rhode Island refused to write new constitutions unless this concession was made.
B) European allies insisted upon it.
C) They wanted to protect the prerogatives of the state governments.
D) They could not agree on anyone to be the head of the central government.
E) The weakness of the central government was unintentional.

Question 8

Why did Maryland initially refuse to ratify the Articles of Confederation?

A) Maryland's legislature did not believe the revolution should have been carried so far.
B) Maryland was preoccupied with writing its own constitution.
C) Other states refused to cede lands rightfully belonging to Maryland.
D) Maryland objected to the claim by other states to lands west of the Appalachians.
E) Maryland did not yet exist.

Question 9

The Congress under the Articles of Confederation was called

A) the Confederation Congress.
B) the Constitutional Congress.
C) the Bicameral Congress.
D) the Liberated Congress.
E) the National Congress.

Question 10

Why did the Articles of Confederation last only eight years?

A) Several states withdrew their votes in its favor.
B) South Carolina threatened to secede.
C) The confederation was only ratified on a temporary basis.
D) War broke out among the states.
E) It proved to be too weak for its intended purpose.

Question 11

Why did the national government have difficulty maintaining its army during the Revolutionary War?

A) The majority of the delegates were opposed to the war.
B) It was dependent upon the states for revenues and an army.
C) Many soldiers were defecting to the British army.
D) The army commanders were unable to disperse funds and equipment effectively.
E) British spies were stealing equipment and money from army storehouses.

Question 12

The name of the central authority from 1781 to 1789 was the

A) American National Government.
B) Confederation Congress.
C) Continental Congress.
D) Executive Branch.
E) President.

Question 13

Under the Articles of Confederation, why was the central government continually on the verge of bankruptcy?

A) The states failed to meet their monetary obligations to the central government.
B) All of its cash went to payment for soldiers during the war.
C) Money went to paying bribes to the French and Spanish governments to keep them out of the war.
D) The government established too many social welfare programs.
E) It was funneling too much money into the states.

Question 14

How was the sovereignty dispute discussed in the text finally settled between Vermont and New York?

A) New York ceded the land to Vermont.
B) The Confederation Congress threatened military force.
C) George Washington met with leaders of both sides to reach a compromise.
D) The national government compensated New York for the land, and then admitted Vermont as the fourteenth state.
E) Vermont feared losing commerce ties while the dispute dragged on, so the legislature conceded.

Question 15

What was the cause of Shays's Rebellion?

A) A pro-British insurgency
B) An election dispute
C) Economic strife among poor farmers
D) Rampant crime
E) A whiskey tax imposed by the new federal government

Question 16

What effect did Shays's Rebellion have on the nation?

A) It nearly bankrupted the national government.
B) It nearly resulted in the secession of several states from the confederation.
C) It showed the central and state governments to be too powerful.
D) It demonstrated the weakness of the government.
E) It violated the terms of the Treaty of Paris, jeopardizing alliances with European allies.

Question 17

Why did many people want the state government to print paper money?

A) It would allow them to borrow more easily from the government against their property in order to pay their taxes and debts.
B) Gold and silver coins were too heavy to carry around.
C) It was becoming fashionable in Europe.
D) It would hold its value longer than coins, thereby improving the depressed economic conditions.
E) It would be easier to use in trade between the states.

Question 18

Laws regarding paper money passed in Rhode Island demonstrated the problem of _________ because it responded legally to the desires of most of the citizens despite being unwise and unjust.

A) deliberative government
B) democracy
C) independence
D) majority faction
E) representative government

Question 19

The ___________ Convention was the first convention called to address commercial problems in September 1786.

A) Annapolis
B) Baltimore
C) New Jersey
D) Philadelphia
E) Washington

Question 20

The delegates at the Constitutional Convention adopted a rule of secrecy in order to

A) keep out British spies.
B) protect their families from retaliation.
C) prevent the national Congress from stopping their progress.
D) protect themselves as the meeting was illegal.
E) reduce political pressures.

Question 21

According to the text, what was the importance of the presence of George Washington and Benjamin Franklin at the Constitutional Convention?

A) Their prestige among their countrymen enhanced the convention's credibility.
B) They gave some of the most influential speeches at the convention.
C) They were the responsible for drafting the final document.
D) They were chosen to present the document to the people for consideration.
E) They chose the delegates who attended the convention.

Question 22

Who was chosen as the presiding officer at the Constitutional Convention?

A) Benjamin Franklin
B) George Washington
C) James Madison
D) John Hancock
E) Thomas Jefferson

Question 23

Patrick Henry did not attend the Constitutional Convention because

A) he was not selected to be a delegate from his state.
B) he was ill.
C) he was serving as ambassador to France at the time.
D) he was opposed to a strong central government.
E) he had died several years earlier.

Question 24

Which of the following prominent political figures attended the Constitutional Convention?

A) Gouverneur Morris
B) John Adams
C) Andrew Jackson
D) Samuel Adams
E) Thomas Jefferson

Question 25

Which three men were most important to the actual drafting of the Constitution?

A) Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and George Washington
B) George Washington, John Adams, and James Madison
C) James Madison, James Wilson, and Gouverneur Morris
D) James Madison, John Jay, and Alexander Hamilton
E) John Adams, Samuel Adams, and James Madison

Question 26

The Virginia Plan was the

A) plan prepared by Thomas Jefferson as an alternative to James Madison's plan.
B) plan for a new state constitution for Virginia.
C) plan for a new national government prepared by the delegates from Virginia.
D) plan for incorporating Virginia into the United States.
E) Constitutional Convention's response to the New Jersey Plan.

Question 27

According to the text, what is most striking about the Virginia Plan?

A) It was nearly identical to the Articles of Confederation.
B) It was actually written by the delegates from New Jersey.
C) It advocated absolute executive veto power over state laws.
D) It embraced the British form of government.
E) It completely rejected the state-based Articles of Confederation.

Question 28

What was the effect of requiring the new constitution to be ratified by popularly elected assemblies?

A) The central government lost much of its power.
B) The new government was sunk more deeply into the people.
C) Several new states were created.
D) More delegates were required to attend the convention.
E) The Declaration of Independence was overturned.

Question 29

How were the Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan similar?

A) Both gave the national government the power to veto state laws.
B) Both had a true separation of powers system.
C) Both had governing institutions that represented the states rather than the people.
D) Both increased the powers of the national government relative to the Articles of Confederation.
E) Both were drafted by James Madison.

Question 30

When Alexander Hamilton spoke for the first time at the Constitutional Convention, he told the delegates that he

A) wished both plans could be adopted, as they were both commendable.
B) believed neither plan was sufficient to correct the problems of the Articles of Confederation.
C) preferred the Virginia Plan.
D) preferred the New Jersey Plan.
E) preferred to keep the Articles of Confederation.

Question 31

How did the Great Compromise appease both the large states and the smaller states?

A) It added land to the smaller states, thereby creating more equality among the states.
B) It allowed each state to choose between the Virginia and New Jersey Plans.
C) It based both houses of the legislature on population.
D) It established state equality in one branch of the legislature and gave the popular house more power over taxing and spending bills.
E) It increased the power of the state assemblies.

Question 32

The proposal of the Committee of Detail gave the power to regulate interstate and foreign commerce to

A) the states.
B) Congress.
C) the President.
D) the judiciary.
E) the people.

Question 33

What two goals or principles for the presidency did the delegates struggle to combine in the Constitution?

A) Independence from the people and reeligibility
B) Independence from the legislature and reeligibility
C) Independence from the legislature and vetoing laws
D) Making treaties and vetoing laws
E) Making treaties and making laws

Question 34

The Twelfth Amendment requires that the president

A) and the vice president run together on one ticket.
B) and vice president be elected with separate votes.
C) appoint senators.
D) be elected directly by the people.
E) not be related to the vice president.

Question 35

The electoral college is

A) a graduate university often attended by state legislators.
B) a national meeting, in one location, of all those designated to elect the president.
C) the name given to the method of electing presidents outlined in the Constitution of 1787.
D) one of the two houses of Congress.
E) an early name for the House of Representatives.

Question 36

What did the delegates hope to achieve in the presidency by removing all limits on presidential reelection?

A) The prospect of reelection would give the president an incentive to do a good job.
B) George Washington would remain president for the remainder of his life.
C) The executive branch would become more powerful than the legislative branch.
D) More people would be encouraged to run for president.
E) The legislature would be encouraged to assume a dominant role in government.

Question 37

What is key to the nature of Congress as outlined by the Constitution of 1787?

A) Equal representation of the states
B) Representation based on population
C) Short term limits
D) The bicameral design
E) Election by the state legislatures

Question 38

The delegates feared that the House of Representatives would

A) be too subservient to the president.
B) become too powerful due to the long terms of its members.
C) eclipse the Senate.
D) create and institute a new government.
E) grow too large for true deliberations.

Question 39

What provision for the Senate was designed to promote consistent policies?

A) Only one-third of senators would face reelection every two years.
B) It would have power over taxing and spending bills.
C) Senators would serve shorter terms than members of the House of Representatives.
D) Senators would be selected by the president.
E) All senators would face reelection every two years.

Question 40

Why were federal judges appointed to serve for life?

A) A life term was considered a sign of respect.
B) They were not especially important to the new government.
C) Qualified men were too scarce to continue finding new judges.
D) A life term insulated them from political pressures.
E) They were considered superior to politicians who had to be held accountable to the public.

Question 41

Why is the American system also called a presidential government?

A) The president is supreme over the legislative and judicial branches of government.
B) The president has final veto power over all laws.
C) The president influences the legislature by appointing its members.
D) The president serves the longest term of elected officials.
E) The president is independently elected and cannot be dismissed by the legislature.

Question 42

If the Republican party controls Congress and the president is a Democrat, this is a case of

A) divided government.
B) liberal democracy.
C) democratic government.
D) division of labor.
E) separation of powers.

Question 43

What was the Committee of Style?

A) A committee assigned to design the building where Congress would meet
B) Delegates who argued that the Constitution should not be written in a formal style
C) Men who engrossed the Constitution
D) A committee assigned to give final form to the Constitution
E) Delegates who objected to the stylized form of the final Constitution

Question 44

George Washington proposed that they

A) change the ratio of representation in the House of Representatives.
B) revise the Senate.
C) create a triumvirate rather than a single president.
D) return to the Articles of Confederation.
E) end the debates and sign the Constitution.

Question 45

The Constitution requires an oath to be administered each time that

A) Congress is recessed.
B) the President signs a bill into law.
C) a member of Congress hires a senior staff member.
D) a Supreme Court justice writes an opinion for a case.
E) the Senate conducts an impeachment trial.

Question 46

Why did the delegates reject a requirement for unanimous ratification of the Constitution?

A) It would be too time consuming.
B) Rhode Island refused to participate if unanimous ratification was required.
C) It would be unfair to the majority of states and their people if one state refused to ratify the Constitution.
D) Unanimity was unpopular with the people.
E) Unanimous ratification was not required by the Articles of Confederation.

Question 47

One advantage of the ratification method established by the Constitutional Convention was that it

A) included small and large state delegations.
B) combined public opinion and deliberation.
C) required unanimous consent.
D) allowed states to adopt different versions of the Constitution.
E) did not require participation of the people.

Question 48

What was a major complaint of the opposition to ratification in many states?

A) The failure to address slavery
B) The large bicameral legislature
C) The sole executive
D) Life terms of federal judges and short terms of representatives
E) The absence of a bill of rights and express protections for state powers

Question 49

Which of the following was a problem posed by the resistance of New York and Virginia to ratification?

A) Most of the delegates at the Constitutional Convention were from these states.
B) Without these two states, the nation would be divided into three separate parts.
C) Both states had close ties to Britain.
D) The Constitution required the participation of at least one of these states.
E) The nation's most prominent political figures, and potential presidential candidates, lived in these two states.

Question 50

In the debate over ratification, the name given to proponents of ratifying the Constitution was

A) Federalists.
B) Anti-Federalists.
C) Constitutionalists.
D) Jeffersonians.
E) Hamiltonians.

Question 51

The Federalist Papers are

A) a collection of James Madison's notes from the Constitutional Convention.
B) the most comprehensive defense of the Constitution.
C) Philadelphia's major newspaper.
D) Thomas Paine's sequel to Common Sense.
E) John Jay's published court decisions.

Question 52

According to the Federalists, which of the following was NOT an object that should be entrusted to the national government?

A) Common defense
B) Preservation of peace against external and internal threats
C) Regulation of interstate and foreign commerce
D) Conduct of foreign relations
E) Establishment of voting restrictions

Question 53

What was the main reason Anti-Federalists distrusted a standing army?

A) They did not want to use tax money to support it.
B) They did not think it was necessary.
C) A standing army could be used against the people.
D) It was too difficult to regulate command of a standing army.
E) They feared that soldiers would always be quartered in citizens' homes.

Question 54

The phrase "separation of powers" means

A) separating the duties of the national and state governments.
B) creating institutions of government.
C) dividing governmental power into types and assigning each to a different institution of government.
D) outlining the duties of the government.
E) establishing checks and balances.

Question 55

The phrase "checks and balances" refers to the

A) ability of each branch of government to control partially the power exercised by another.
B) ability of one branch of government to dictate the actions of another.
C) dividing of governmental powers.
D) allocation of funds in the federal budget.
E) formation of new states to counteract the power of the federal government.

Question 56

Which of the following would the framers understand as an example of "checks and balances"?

A) judicial power to hear cases
B) president's power to veto laws passed by Congress
C) president's power to appoint federal judges
D) Congress's power to declare war
E) Congress's power to levy taxes

Question 57

James Madison believed that ______ were "the most common and durable sources of factions."

A) property disputes
B) industry interests
C) agricultural needs
D) taxes
E) family conflicts

Question 58

What did Madison believe was the main reason a large republic would seldom experience a majority faction?

A) Republican virtue would guard against it.
B) People would be too removed from the government to get involved.
C) Representatives would be better able to control their constituents.
D) A large number and variety of groups within the society would make it difficult to sustain an unjust majority.
E) States would quell any majority factions before they got out of hand.

Question 59

Under the Constitution, the states were ___________ than they had been under the Articles of Confederation.

A) larger
B) smaller
C) less powerful
D) more powerful
E) fewer in number

Question 60

Publius acknowledged that a republican government assumes that the citizenry has

A) diverse opinions on national policies.
B) too few factions for interest groups to be a problem.
C) too little education to make wise decisions.
D) selfish motives.
E) sufficient virtue for self government.

Question 61

What is one of the rights enumerated in the original Constitution?

A) Right to a speedy trial
B) Right to bear arms
C) Freedom of speech
D) Pursuit of happiness
E) Writ of habeas corpus

Question 62

An act of the legislature convicting someone of a crime and imposing a punishment without a trial is called a(n)

A) bill of attainder.
B) ex post facto law.
C) initiative.
D) referendum.
E) writ of habeas corpus.

Question 63

What is one reason that supporters of the Constitution gave during the ratification debates opposing a bill of rights?

A) A bill of rights would nullify the Constitution.
B) The addition of a bill of rights would be a concession to the Anti-Federalists.
C) Only monarchies should have bills of rights.
D) A bill of rights was not necessary because the national government would have limited powers.
E) The enumeration of rights should be left up to the states.

Question 64

What event brought about the end of organized opposition to the Constitution?

A) Election of George Washington
B) Final ratification of the Constitution
C) Adoption of the Bill of Rights
D) War of 1812
E) Onset of the Civil War

Question 65

How did some colonial assemblies attempt to restrict the slave trade?

A) Outright prohibitions
B) Imposing heavy import duties on slaves
C) Restricting the number of slaves any one person could own
D) Religious appeals
E) Laws for gradual emancipation

Question 66

Why did the framers of the Constitution take care never to use the words "slave" or "slavery?"

A) They did not want to admit in the Constitution the idea that men could be property.
B) They did not want to offend pro-slavery activists.
C) They did not want to address the issue at all for fear of political repercussions.
D) Northern states threatened to leave the Union if these words appeared.
E) They wanted the Constitution to have a universal impact.

Question 67

The three-fifths clause stipulated that

A) three-fifths of the states would need to ratify the Bill of Rights.
B) a person must receive three-fifths of the popular vote in order to become president.
C) a three-fifths majority was needed to override a presidential veto.
D) slaves would be allowed three-fifths of a vote in elections.
E) slaves would count as three-fifths of a person for the purposes of determining a state's representation in Congress.

Question 68

The importation of slaves clause limited the

A) number of slaves a state could import.
B) remaining time slaves could be imported into the United States.
C) power of Congress to end the foreign slave trade.
D) number of slaves that could be transported across state lines.
E) power of the states to import slaves.

Question 69

How do the events in the first decade after American independence illustrate the deficiencies of the state constitutions and the Articles of Confederation? How do they demonstrate the tension between the two great principles of the Declaration of Independence?

Question 70

Besides the events during the "critical period," have there been other times in American history when majorities in the nation or the states violated the rights of citizens? If so, what explains these violations?

Question 71

What was the argument against the new Constitution from opponents of a strong central government? What was the response of those who advocated fundamental change?

Question 72

How did the Virginia Plan, the New Jersey Plan, and Hamilton's plan differ? In what ways were they similar?

Question 73

Describe the presidential election process as outlined by the delegates at the Constitutional Convention.

Question 74

According to some of the original states during the Constitutional Convention, what were the potential problems of the popularly-elected House of Representatives? How did the delegates at the convention try to remedy these problems with the Senate?

Question 75

What were the principal issues in the debate over ratification of the Constitution?

Question 76

How does a presidential government differ from a parliamentary government? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each system?

Question 77

During the ratification process, why did some proponents of the Constitution argue against including a Bill of Rights?

Question 78

Did the framers of the Constitution compromise on the issue of slavery? How did they address the issue in the Constitution?