Question 1

The American system, with multiple points at which various powers can block action, often leads to

Accepted Answer

A)   effective government.
B)   caretaker government.
C)   limited government.
D)   impeachments of government officials.
E)   a call for new elections.

Question 2

The Articles of Confederation

Accepted Answer

A)   provided for a bicameral legislature.
B)   established a strong executive branch.
C)   allowed the states to retain most of the power.
D)   created a way to raise taxes to fund an army.
E)   ended slavery.

Question 3

An executive elected by Congress, as proposed in the Virginia Plan, would have likely led to more periods of

Accepted Answer

A)   unified and effective government.
B)   divided government.
C)   limited government.
D)   gridlock.
E)   None of the above.

Question 4

Taxes that the British attempted to impose on the American colonies in the years leading up to the Revolutionary War included all of the following except

Accepted Answer

A)   the Sugar Act, which imposed a tax on sugar.
B)   the Stamp Act, which taxed legal documents and newspapers.
C)   duties on glass, lead, and paint.
D)   a tax on tea.
E)   an income tax.

Question 5

The First Continental Congress

Accepted Answer

A)   declared independence from Britain.
B)   was held in Boston, Massachusetts.
C)   urged colonists to purchase British goods to win favor with the king.
D)   encouraged the colonists to petition King George III to express their grievances.
E)   produced a document that the colonists found to be coercive.

Question 6

The Jamestown colonists set a political precedent by

Accepted Answer

A)   allowing the governor to use a line-item veto.
B)   instituting a direct democracy.
C)   instituting a representative assembly.
D)   creating a judicial system.
E)   writing a constitutional document.

Question 7

Informal methods of constitutional change include

Accepted Answer

A)   Congress proposing an amendment with a three-fourths majority of both houses.
B)   state governments changing their constitutions to give them supremacy.
C)   the use of judicial review by the courts.
D)   state governments agreeing to hold conventions to amend the Constitution.
E)   All of the above are true.

Question 8

Describe the competing interests of the small states and the large states. How were these conflicting interests resolved in the final version of the Constitution in 1787?

Accepted Answer

The competing interests of the small sta...

Question 9

The framers of the Constitution set

Accepted Answer

A)   no time limit for the ratification process.
B)   a limit of twelve months for the ratification of an amendment.
C)   a limit of twenty-four months for the ratification of an amendment.
D)   a seven-year limit for the ratification of an amendment.
E)   a provision for extensions for ratification.

Question 10

A constitutional amendment can be proposed by

Accepted Answer

A)   a national convention called by Congress at the request of two-thirds of the state legislatures.
B)   a two-thirds vote in each chamber of Congress.
C)   the legislatures in two-thirds of the states.
D)   a majority vote in both chambers of Congress, provided the amendment is not vetoed by the president.
E)   Options A and B are true.

Question 11

While there are multiple possibilities to formally amend the Constitution, the most common method has been for __________ to propose new amendments and for _________ to ratify them.

Accepted Answer

A)   the people; Congress
B)   a national convention; state legislatures
C)   Congress; state legislatures
D)   a national convention; special state conventions
E)   Congress; special state conventions

Question 12

The first draft of the Declaration of Independence was written by

Accepted Answer

A)   John Locke.
B)   John Adams.
C)   Thomas Jefferson.
D)   George Washington.
E)   Benjamin Franklin.

Question 13

In a parliamentary system

Accepted Answer

A)   the chief executive has little real power.
B)   the chief executive rotates between the heads of the major parties.
C)   a monarch chooses the chief executive.
D)   chief executives are chosen through a popular vote of the people.
E)   the legislature chooses the chief executive.

Question 14

With regard to the system of courts, delegates to the Constitutional Convention decided to do all of the following except

Accepted Answer

A)   allow presidents to nominate Supreme Court justices.
B)   create both a Supreme Court and a system of lower courts.
C)   allow the Senate to confirm justices to the Supreme Court.
D)   allow Congress to establish lower courts.
E)   create a Supreme Court.

Question 15

The Virginia Plan

Accepted Answer

A)   called for a bicameral legislature.
B)   worked to the advantage of small states.
C)   provided for the direct election of a president by the people.
D)   settled all controversy.
E)   Options B and C are true.

Question 16

The process of amending the U.S. Constitution is an intentionally difficult one. Yet those in each branch of government have found ways in which the Constitution can be changed informally. Describe the methods, both formal and informal, of constitutional change.

Accepted Answer

The formal method of amending the U.S. C...

Question 17

The factions among delegates at the Constitutional Convention

Accepted Answer

A)   wanted a strong central government.
B)   were concerned about claims to western lands.
C)   had republican leanings.
D)   had nationalist leanings.
E)   All of the above are true.

Question 18

The concept of separation of powers was included in the Constitution to prevent

Accepted Answer

A)   disputes between the federal and state governments.
B)   the imposition of export taxes.
C)   a major dispute over power between the House and the Senate.
D)   disputes over power between Congress and the president.
E)   tyranny by either the majority or the minority.

Question 19

One of the main actions of the Second Continental Congress was to

Accepted Answer

A)   establish an army and appoint a commander in chief.
B)   sign a treaty with Britain prohibiting trade with France.
C)   sign a treaty with France to declare war on Britain.
D)   create a unitary government in America.
E)   establish a document with ambitious designs to separate from Britain.

Question 20

Judicial review is

Accepted Answer

A)   a method by which the president can check the judiciary.
B)   the process of confirmation of federal judges by Congress.
C)   the ability of the courts to declare acts of the legislative and executive branches of government unconstitutional.
D)   not applicable to actions by state governments.
E)   None of the above is true.

Exam 2: The Constitution

Describe the competing interests of the small states and the large states. How were these conflicting interests resolved in the final version of the Constitution in 1787?

Correct AnswerAnswered by ExamLex AIThe competing interests of the small sta...View AnswerShow Answer

Judicial review is

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Taxes that the British attempted to impose on the American colonies in the years leading up to the Revolutionary War included all of the following except

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

The American system, with multiple points at which various powers can block action, often leads to

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

While there are multiple possibilities to formally amend the Constitution, the most common method has been for __________ to propose new amendments and for _________ to ratify them.

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

The Articles of Confederation

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

The process of amending the U.S. Constitution is an intentionally difficult one. Yet those in each branch of government have found ways in which the Constitution can be changed informally. Describe the methods, both formal and informal, of constitutional change.

Correct AnswerAnswered by ExamLex AIThe formal method of amending the U.S. C...View AnswerShow Answer

A constitutional amendment can be proposed by

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

The First Continental Congress

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

The Jamestown colonists set a political precedent by

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

One of the main actions of the Second Continental Congress was to

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

The first draft of the Declaration of Independence was written by

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Informal methods of constitutional change include

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

The factions among delegates at the Constitutional Convention

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

The Virginia Plan

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

The framers of the Constitution set

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

The concept of separation of powers was included in the Constitution to prevent

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

An executive elected by Congress, as proposed in the Virginia Plan, would have likely led to more periods of

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

In a parliamentary system

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

With regard to the system of courts, delegates to the Constitutional Convention decided to do all of the following except

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Correct Answer
Answered by ExamLex AI
The competing interests of the small sta...
View Answer

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

While there are multiple possibilities to formally amend the Constitution, the most common method has been for __ to propose new amendments and for _ to ratify them.

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
Answered by ExamLex AI
The formal method of amending the U.S. C...
View Answer

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified