Deck 1: American Government: Democracy in Action

Question 1

Which country is classified as "not free" by the Freedom House rankings?

A) Canada
B) India
C) Saudi Arabia
D) Mexico

Answer 1

Saudi Arabia

Question 2

What is a distinguishing feature of democracy?

A) People have opportunities to influence the decisions of government.
B) People can realistically expect to control the government's choice of priorities.
C) People can realistically expect to control the government's production of laws.
D) People can realistically expect to influence the decisions of local government, but not state or federal government.

Answer 2

People have opportunities to influence the decisions of government.

Question 3

The rules of society and the priorities for government resources and action are referred to collectively as which of the following?

A) democracy
B) public policy
C) politics
D) litigation

Answer 3

public policy

Question 4

Under a ________ government, a small group of elites exercise unlimited power over individuals in all aspects of life.

A) totalitarian
B) theocratic
C) authoritarian
D) republican

Question 5

What happens in the process of litigation?

A) A new statute is created.
B) A lawsuit is filed and brought to court.
C) An executive order is issued.
D) A citizen is guaranteed a free and fair trial.

Question 6

The activities that seek to affect the composition, power, and actions of government are known as _______.

A) opportunism
B) civics
C) public affairs
D) politics

Question 7

Your local government has just passed an ordinance that you disagree with, so you organize your friends who feel as you do about the ordinance to write letters to council members and hold a rally at a local farmer's market to voice your concerns and beliefs. You are engaging in which of the following?

A) democracy
B) lobbying
C) grassroots activities
D) litigation

Question 8

Of the following, which is the most common form of citizen participation in a democracy?

A) running for office
B) lobbying
C) grassroots activities
D) voting

Question 9

When a new ordinance violates existing laws, citizens can legally challenge the issue through ________.

A) policy making
B) litigation
C) grassroots activities
D) police intervention

Question 10

In state governments, which entity is responsible for voter registration?

A) Social Security
B) Federal Communications Commission
C) Selective Service
D) Secretary of State Office

Question 11

At the federal level, why are judges appointed for life?

A) It is difficult to convince anyone to serve as a federal judge.
B) They have little power when it comes to invalidating government policies.
C) This approach is designed to insulate them from public opinion.
D) All policy and laws go through the judicial system.

Question 12

Government is primarily about _______, whereas politics is primarily about ________.

A) institutions; process
B) process; constitutions
C) documents; institutions
D) elections; people

Question 13

Which of the following statements expresses the central idea of democracy?

A) Every person in the country should be allowed to vote.
B) Ordinary people want to rule themselves and are capable of doing so.
C) Security, along with religious laws and values, is the most important function of government.
D) Governing should be carried out by a single, enlightened leader.

Question 14

How does average voter turnout from around the world compare?

A) Canada and the United States have an almost identical percentage of turnout.
B) Greece has a lower turnout than the United States.
C) The United States has a higher turnout than Israel.
D) The United States has a higher turnout than South Africa.

Question 15

The average American is most likely to participate in which pathway?

A) elections
B) court
C) lobbying
D) grassroots

Question 16

Which activity is part of the lobbying pathway?

A) volunteering for a reelection campaign
B) writing a letter to a member of Congress
C) voting in an election
D) filing a lawsuit

Question 17

The power of the judiciary in the United States is which of the following?

A) much weaker and narrower than in most other democracies
B) very similar to other democracies
C) stronger and broader than in most other democracies
D) subservient to the other branches of government

Question 18

A 1998 decision by the Michigan Supreme Court ruled that a law prohibiting the shouting of profanity was an unconstitutional violation of freedom of speech rights because __________.

A) any attempt to limit free speech is unconstitutional
B) the court had been taken over by liberal activist judges
C) the law was unevenly enforced
D) the law did not provide guidance on what constituted profanity

Question 19

Women were granted the right to vote in the United States by which of the following?

A) Supreme Court decision
B) presidential decree
C) constitutional amendment
D) congressional legislation

Question 20

Which of the following is an example of the cultural change pathway?

A) newspaper articles
B) voting for someone because of their religious beliefs
C) circulation of a petition to be sent to government officials
D) a lawsuit intended to force government action

Question 21

The struggle for civil rights in the United States was initiated in which pathway?

A) elections
B) cultural change
C) grassroots mobilization
D) court

Question 22

The group MADD is most well known for its campaign around which of the following?

A) nuclear disarmament
B) reducing taxes
C) drinking and driving
D) introducing term limits

Question 23

The bombing of a federal office building in Oklahoma City in 1995 demonstrated which of the following?

A) that some U.S. citizens see violence as the most effective way to achieve their political aims
B) the importance of economic equity
C) how ethnic discrimination within society can lead to violence
D) the failure of the federal government to deal effectively with the threat of international terrorism

Question 24

Which pathway is the least direct pathway of action?

A) elections
B) court
C) grassroots mobilization
D) cultural change

Question 25

An important aspect of representative democracy is __________.

A) a class structure that lets the elite rise to the top
B) periodic elections so citizens can replace those whose views no longer reflect the views of the majority
C) elections that limit competition so that citizens aren't confused by too many choices
D) control over a candidate's message so that he or she doesn't mislead the people

Question 26

The failure of elections and lobbying activity to influence the government sometimes prompted __________ that took the form of boycotts.

A) cultural change
B) grassroots mobilization
C) legal actions
D) violent disobedience

Question 27

Citizens organize a boycott of the U.S. Postal Service in order to bring about change in the delivery service. Their actions are an example of the __________ pathway.

A) cultural change
B) election
C) legal action
D) grassroots

Question 28

Even though women gained the right to vote in 1920, gender discrimination was still prevalent and took the __________ pathway before things really changed.

A) legal action
B) grassroots mobilization
C) cultural change
D) lobbying

Question 29

The primary desired outcome of democracy and the opportunities it provides for citizens to participate in their government is __________.

A) the recognition of a ruling elite that is in the best position to make decisions for all
B) the creation and maintenance of a stable society
C) unlimited opportunities for economic success
D) a society where all citizens can do as they please

Question 30

The quality and effectiveness of laws is greatest when _______.

A) individuals take violent action to influence government decisions
B) citizens neglect to keep themselves informed about government actions
C) the governing power rests in the hands of a few well-informed people
D) people actually become engaged in public affairs

Question 31

Which pathway of action was used by pro-choice supporters to change the law for the entire nation?

A) court
B) lobbying
C) grassroots mobilization
D) cultural change

Question 32

Efforts to change the broader framework within which debates over abortion take place, such as the use of phrases "reproductive freedom" and "partial-birth abortion," are examples of the successful use of which pathway?

A) elections
B) cultural change
C) lobbying
D) court

Question 33

On what legal basis was the right to abortion confirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court?

A) the right to privacy
B) the right of freedom of association
C) the right of freedom of speech
D) the concept of equal protection

Question 34

The legal challenge in Roe v. Wade initially challenged __________.

A) Illinois law that permitted abortion but only in the cases of rape
B) doctors who refused to perform abortions in the case of rape in Florida and Georgia
C) federal laws that made abortion illegal
D) a Texas law that made it a crime to obtain an abortion

Question 35

Which of the following was one of the immediate consequences of Roe v. Wade?

A) The number of deaths of pregnant women increased dramatically.
B) No doctors could refuse to perform abortions.
C) Opponents mobilized supporters.
D) Only the prohibition on abortion in the case of rape was dropped.

Question 36

Opponents of abortion stand with signs outside a women's clinic to discourage women who are seeking an abortion. Their action is an example of the __________ pathway.

A) lobbying
B) legal
C) election
D) grassroots

Question 37

Opponents of abortion work to elect a Republican president who will appoint Supreme Court justices in favor of overturning Roe v. Wade. Their action is an example of the __________ pathway.

A) lobbying
B) legal
C) election
D) grassroots

Question 38

Abortion opponents have convinced some states to impose requirements such as counseling before a woman can obtain an abortion. Their action is an example of the __________ pathway.

A) lobbying
B) court
C) election
D) grassroots

Question 39

In some states, activists are putting personhood amendments on the ballot. What would the passage of such an amendment mean for the state's residents?

A) Abortions would be outlawed.
B) Life would be defined as beginning at birth rather than conception.
C) All women would be free to choose abortion.
D) Contraception would be made available to all to eliminate unwanted pregnancies.

Question 40

Alexis de Tocqueville, the French scholar who traveled the United States, is the author of which of the following?

A) Common Sense
B) Democracy in America
C) Letter from a Birmingham Jail
D) Politics and Society in the United States

Question 41

Alexis de Tocqueville described the essence of American politics as __________.

A) a weak political culture
B) a complex maze of institutions
C) real freedom of mind coupled with little independence of discussion
D) the shared values of its citizens

Question 42

Because of the country's widely shared values and beliefs, when it comes to addressing issues, most Americans __________.

A) consider a single option as optimal
B) suggest the system should be changed
C) focus on fixing specific problems within the parameters of the system
D) leave all decisions to well-informed elected officials

Question 43

Which of the following represents an element of stability in a political system?

A) weak political culture
B) frequent changes in political leadership
C) the existence of a variety of ways for citizens to seek and achieve policy implementation and change
D) a broadly debated political and economic framework

Question 44

The American political culture tends to be which of the following?

A) less stable than other political cultures
B) more reflexive than other political cultures
C) more stable than other political cultures
D) more liberal than other political cultures

Question 45

Which of the following is ultimately responsible for protecting the rights and freedoms of Americans?

A) the president
B) Congress
C) the Supreme Court
D) the American people

Question 46

A reference to the "American Creed" is talking about which of the following?

A) the structure of the government
B) Americans' allegiance to their government
C) America's political culture
D) the American dream

Question 47

Which of the following is considered the foundational document of the United States?

A) the Magna Charta
B) the Articles of Confederation
C) the Constitution
D) the Bill of Rights

Question 48

What name did Swedish social scientist Gunnar Myrdal give to the motivations Americans have to live up to their principles?

A) reverence for the Constitution
B) American Creed
C) Democracy in America
D) the sacrifices of the founders