Question 1

________ was the former Texas Speaker of the House who was indicted for taking an illegal gift from a law firm that specialized in collecting delinquent taxes for local governments.

Accepted Answer

A)  Gib Lewis 
B)  James "Pete" Laney 
C)  Bill Ratliff 
D)  Tom Craddick

Question 2

A lobbyist is an individual employed by a political action committee who tries to influence governmental decisions on behalf of that group.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 3

Which of the following is/are employed to express the values of interest groups?

Accepted Answer

A)  pressure group 
B)  lobbyists 
C)  executive appointees 
D)  legislative assistants

Question 4

It is vital for lobbyists to gain access to politicians and policy makers.Describe some of the ways in which interest groups and their representatives gain access in Texas politics.What are some of the potential abuses of this process?

Accepted Answer

The answer of It is vital for lobbyists to gain...

Question 5

Which U.S.Supreme Court case in 2009 created the opportunity for organizations opposed to powerful incumbents NOT disclose their donors?

Accepted Answer

A)  Clinton v. Patriot Citizens 
B)  Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission 
C)  McCutcheon v. Federal Elections Commission 
D)  Bush v. Federal Elections Commission

Question 6

What are the top two reasons Texans give for NOT voting?

Accepted Answer

A)  bad weather and inconvenient hours for voting 
B)  busy and forgot to vote 
C)  not interested/vote does not matter and don't like the candidates 
D)  busy/conflict with work and not interested/vote does not matter

Question 7

Entertaining politicians is one of the most critical ways for lobbyists to gain access.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 8

As in the U.S.Congress,most campaign contributions in Texas go to

Accepted Answer

A)  incumbents. 
B)  supporters of environmental interests. 
C)  Democrats. 
D)  political parties.

Question 9

Interest groups representing labor organizations dominate Texas politics.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 10

Lobbyists may gain access to legislators by building support for an issue among their constituents.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 11

The primary goal of interest groups is to

Accepted Answer

A)  influence all branches of government at all levels. 
B)  mobilize citizens. 
C)  testify before legislative committees. 
D)  inform and educate public officials.

Question 12

Which incentives do interest groups engage in to overcome the free rider problem?

Accepted Answer

A)  special discounts 
B)  subscription to a magazine 
C)  access to special information on the Internet 
D)  All of these are correct.

Question 13

Texans Advocating for Meaningful Student Assessment enabled people to join together and seek policy change in a number of ways EXCEPT by

Accepted Answer

A)  providing like-minded individuals an organizational structure for discussing problems and offering solutions. 
B)  providing a vehicle for working with other organizations like the Texas Association of School Administrators, which was also concerned with testing. 
C)  raising money to help pay for their efforts. 
D)  successfully removing the end-of-year course exams.

Question 14

Civil rights groups such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the Mexican American Legal Defense Fund represent their groups' interests only through litigation,especially in the federal courts.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 15

One important way for interest groups to gain access to those in Texas government is to employ ________ as lobbyists.

Accepted Answer

A)  retired sports stars 
B)  political science majors 
C)  Republican campaign consultants 
D)  former legislators and government officials

Question 16

Redistricting and scandal are the two greatest threats to an incumbent's electoral advantage.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 17

Battleground Texas is the latest attempt by the Democratic Party to do all of the following EXCEPT

Accepted Answer

A)  identify potential Democratic voters. 
B)  identify potential candidates. 
C)  make voters familiar with Democratic positions. 
D)  make voters familiar with Democratic candidates.

Question 18

The Texas Medical Association is best described as what kind of interest group?

Accepted Answer

A)  professional 
B)  public employee 
C)  public interest 
D)  ideological

Question 19

Which of the following is the best example of a public interest group?

Accepted Answer

A)  the Mexican American Legal Defense Fund 
B)  the Texas Medical Association 
C)  Common Cause 
D)  Texans for Lawsuit Reform

Question 20

What are interest groups and why are they important in our political system? How are they important to legislators?

Accepted Answer

The answer of What are interest groups and why are...

Exam 6: Interest Groups and Lobbying

________ was the former Texas Speaker of the House who was indicted for taking an illegal gift from a law firm that specialized in collecting delinquent taxes for local governments.

A lobbyist is an individual employed by a political action committee who tries to influence governmental decisions on behalf of that group.

Which of the following is/are employed to express the values of interest groups?

It is vital for lobbyists to gain access to politicians and policy makers.Describe some of the ways in which interest groups and their representatives gain access in Texas politics.What are some of the potential abuses of this process?

Which U.S.Supreme Court case in 2009 created the opportunity for organizations opposed to powerful incumbents NOT disclose their donors?

What are the top two reasons Texans give for NOT voting?

Entertaining politicians is one of the most critical ways for lobbyists to gain access.

As in the U.S.Congress,most campaign contributions in Texas go to

Interest groups representing labor organizations dominate Texas politics.

Lobbyists may gain access to legislators by building support for an issue among their constituents.

The primary goal of interest groups is to

Which incentives do interest groups engage in to overcome the free rider problem?

Texans Advocating for Meaningful Student Assessment enabled people to join together and seek policy change in a number of ways EXCEPT by

Civil rights groups such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the Mexican American Legal Defense Fund represent their groups' interests only through litigation,especially in the federal courts.

One important way for interest groups to gain access to those in Texas government is to employ ________ as lobbyists.

Redistricting and scandal are the two greatest threats to an incumbent's electoral advantage.

Battleground Texas is the latest attempt by the Democratic Party to do all of the following EXCEPT

The Texas Medical Association is best described as what kind of interest group?

Which of the following is the best example of a public interest group?

What are interest groups and why are they important in our political system? How are they important to legislators?