Constitutional Foundations of the United States
Exam Answer Key
Course Introduction
This course explores the historical and philosophical roots of the United States Constitution, examining the foundational principles that shaped its development. Students will analyze the debates and compromises of the Constitutional Convention, the influence of Enlightenment thinkers, and the role of the Federalist and Anti-Federalist perspectives. Key constitutional concepts such as federalism, separation of powers, checks and balances, and the protection of individual rights are discussed, offering students a comprehensive understanding of how the Constitution continues to influence American law and government.
Recommended Textbook
American Government and Politics Today The Essentials 17th Edition by Barbara A. Bardes
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Page 2
Chapter 1: The Democratic Republic
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Q1) All of the following are principles of democratic governments \(\bold{except}\)
A) universal suffrage.
B) majority rule and protection of minority rights.
C) free, competitive elections.
D) limited government.
E) limited suffrage.
Answer: E
Q2) In the United States, basic guarantees of liberty are found in
A) the Declaration of Independence.
B) the annual Congressional budget report.
C) the Bill of Rights.
D) the statement of Rights and Responsibilities.
E) National Rights Foundation.
Answer: C
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Page 3
Chapter 2: The Constitution
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Q1) The United States is among the few countries that do not tax their exports because A) it does not need the money.
B) it encourages exports.
C) the South obtained a promise that export taxes would not be imposed.
D) the World Trade Organization prohibits it from doing so.
E) the president of the United States vetoed the bill.
Answer: C
Q2) The voting age of eighteen was set by A) Congress.
B) the Twenty-sixth Amendment.
C) the Nineteenth Amendment.
D) the Supreme Court.
E) the states.
Answer: B
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Chapter 3: Federalism
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Sample Questions
Q1) Examples of vertical checks and balances include
A) the reserved powers of the states.
B) administration of many national programs and policies by the states.
C) the requirement that Constitutional amendments be ratified by the states.
D) the power of the national government to shape state policies by federal grant program requirements.
E) All of the above are true.
Answer: D
Q2) The controversy that led to the Civil War was
A) the dispute over states' rights and national supremacy.
B) interstate commerce.
C) the application of the Bill of Rights to the states.
D) taxation.
E) the admission of Texas into the union.
Answer: A
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Page 5
Chapter 4: Civil Liberties
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Q1) According to the Supreme Court ruling in Roe v. Wade, which of the following restrictions may the state place on abortions?
A) During the first trimester, the state can prevent some abortions for reasons relating to the mother's health.
B) During the second trimester, the state can prevent all abortions.
C) During the third trimester, the state cannot regulate abortion except to require that it be performed by a doctor.
D) During the third trimester, the state may regulate or outlaw abortions except when necessary to preserve the life or health of the mother.
E) The states may place no restrictions on abortions.
Q2) The Communications Decency Act of 1996 and the Children's Online Protection Act of 1998
A) were designed to protect children from online pornography.
B) were found to violate protections against free speech.
C) used community standards to determine if materials were offensive.
D) were both challenged in the courts.
E) All of the above are true.
Q3) Identify and explain the civil rights of criminal suspects.
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Chapter 5: Civil Rights
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Q1) The riot at Stonewall Inn that began the modern movement for equality for Gay Males and Lesbians was sparked by
A) a raid by police on a bar popular with gay men and lesbians.
B) a feeling in the gay and lesbian community that the police were targeting them for harassment.
C) anti-gay protestors who showed up at the bar.
D) an attempt by a gay couple to hold a marriage ceremony at the bar.
E) Options A and B are true.
Q2) In the 1996 decision of Romer v. Evans, the Supreme Court
A) overturned a Georgia law that declared homosexual conduct a crime.
B) discouraged states from repealing sodomy laws.
C) invalidated Colorado anti-discrimination laws that protect homosexuals.
D) invalidated a Colorado law that denied homosexuals the right to seek specific protection of the law.
E) ruled that the federal government could not refuse to hire gay men or lesbians.
Q3) Contrast the approaches of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X.
Q4) Explain the Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education and the impact it had on education and the new problems it created.
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Page 7
Chapter 6: Public Opinion and Political Socialization
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Q1) Studies suggest that parents' political influence over their children is due to
A) the strong need of children for parental approval.
B) the ability of parents to communicate frequently with their children.
C) the ability of parents to communicate feelings and preferences to their children.
D) family links to other factors that affect opinion, such as race, social class, education, and religious beliefs.
E) All of the above are true.
Q2) In the twentieth century, the magazine, Literary Digest
A) enjoyed readership across the economic spectrum and provided accurate polling data of prospective voters.
B) was popular with wealthier subscribers and polling by the journal inaccurately predicted Franklin D. Roosevelt's defeat in the 1936 presidential election.
C) was popular with factory workers and a survey of subscribers predicted the election of Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1936.
D) held a perfect record of presidential election predictions based on polling from questionnaires.
E) Options A and D are true.
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Chapter 7: Interest Groups
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Q1) Describe the categories of economic interest groups and provide examples of each.
Q2) A lobbyist is
A) any association of individuals.
B) inevitably affiliated with one of the two major political parties.
C) an individual or organization who attempts to influence legislation and the administrative decisions of government.
D) a member of Congress who challenges the majority position.
E) a member of the congressional leadership who is in a position to shape the legislative agenda in a way that benefits powerful interest groups.
Q3) All of the following are true about labor unions \(\bold{except}\)
A) the number of members in labor unions has been declining.
B) American labor unions continue to support candidates for Congress.
C) labor unions provide volunteers for campaigns and campaign contributions.
D) a large turnout of union members will increase the final vote totals for Republicans.
E) there has been a growth in the unionization of public employees.
Q4) What would be the unintended consequences if lobbying was abolished?
Q5) Describe the role played by interest groups in shaping public policy.
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Page 9
Chapter 8: Political Parties
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Q1) All of the following are true of the elections of 2000 and 2004 \(\bold{except}\)
A) Al Gore won the popular vote for president in 2000.
B) George W. Bush became president in 2004.
C) commentators began to use the terms "red states" for those that had voted Democratic and "blue states" for those that voted Republican.
D) only three states changed their votes for president in 2004 from the 2000 election.
E) the Republican and Democratic Parties were very close in the number of votes each got.
Q2) Which of the following is false?
A) The Jewish electorate tends to be heavily Democratic.
B) Hispanics are strongly Republican.
C) Urban people tend to vote Democratic.
D) Rural voters support Republicans.
E) Union members tend to vote Democratic.
Q3) Describe the different functions of political parties in our system.
Q4) How can an individual voter become involved with a political party? Outline some party activities that are available for individual voters.
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Page 10
Chapter 9: Campaigns, Elections, and the Media
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Q1) All of the following statements are true \(\bold{except}\)
A) Voter I.D. laws are likely to suppress the vote of low-income voters.
B) The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the Indiana voter ID law.
C) Voter I.D. laws are favored by Republicans.
D) Voter I.D. laws are favored by Democrats.
E) Voter I.D. laws are likely to suppress the vote of minority voters.
Q2) In midterm elections
A) voters choose all members of the U.S. House of Representatives.
B) national elections are held in which candidates for president are not on the ballot.
C) voters choose one-third of the members of the U.S. Senate.
D) Options A and B are true.
E) All of the above are true.
Q3) How has the advent of online fundraising changed the process of raising campaign funds? Which candidates have used the technique with great success?
Q4) Which people are least likely to vote? How does this affect government policies?
Q5) Explain how the electoral college works, the situations in which it has produced controversial results, and the criticisms leveled against it.
Q6) Describe the steps you can take to become a critical news consumer.
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Chapter 10: The Congress
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Q1) Redistricting is
A) the allocation of seats in the House to each state after each census.
B) the redrawing of district boundaries within each state to ensure equal district populations.
C) a court order to hold new elections because of voting irregularities.
D) altering a legislative formula that apportions spending among the states.
E) normally a bipartisan exercise.
Q2) The Speaker of the House and the Senate majority leader
A) influence committee assignments and schedule legislation for debate.
B) are elected to these constitutional jobs by the entire House and Senate.
C) are the longest-serving members of the Senate and House.
D) are symbolic positions.
E) All of the above are true.
Q3) All of the following are true of the Senate \(\bold{except}\)
A) the Senate has a tradition of unlimited debate as a blocking tactic.
B) the Senate can end debate by invoking cloture.
C) the Senate cannot pass budget bills without first allowing a filibuster.
D) the Senate can circumvent a filibuster by using reconciliation.
E) the Senate use of filibuster has expanded.
Q4) Explain the difference between reapportionment and redistricting.
Page 12
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Chapter 11: The President
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Q1) The National Security Council is a link between
A) Congress and the president.
B) leaders of foreign governments and the president.
C) the Security and Exchange Commission and the president.
D) key foreign and military advisors and the president.
E) state governments and the president.
Q2) Which of the following is an example of the president acting as head of state?
A) Sending new legislation on healthcare to Congress for consideration
B) Appointing a new person to be Secretary of State
C) Hosting the Queen of Great Britain and Northern Ireland at a special dinner in her honor
D) Sending troops and a hospital ship into an international disaster zone
E) Receiving a new ambassador from Russia
Q3) As chief executive, the president is constitutionally bound to
A) enforce laws, treaties, and court orders.
B) submit a balanced budget to Congress.
C) inform Congress prior to any military action.
D) oversee actions of state governments.
E) honor pronouncements of previous presidents.
Q4) Analyze the president's functions as party chief and superpolitician.
Page 13
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Chapter 12: The Bureaucracy
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Q1) Explain both sides of the issue of the privatization of government. Provide examples of ways privatization might make government more efficient and some of the unintended consequences of privatization.
Q2) According to Max Weber, a bureaucracy should be all of the following \(\bold{except}\)
A) an apolitical organization.
B) made up of unspecialized staff to avoid delays in policy implementation.
C) an organization where decisions are based on logic and analysis.
D) an organization that makes promotions on the basis of merit, not politics.
E) an organization that applies similar decisions to similar situations.
Q3) In 2008, the Trouble Asset Relief Program (TARP)
A) was used to create the government-sponsored enterprises, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.
B) provided bailouts to homeowners who were upside down in their home loans.
C) was the first time the government intervened in a business failure in American history. D) provided a bailout to banks, automobile companies, and the AIG insurance company. E) helped small businesses expand during the economic downturn.
Q4) Describe the ways in which bureaucracy both controls and benefits your life.
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Page 14
Chapter 13: The Courts
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Q1) Which of the following are important requirements that must be met before a case can be brought to court?
A) Issues must be political questions.
B) Jurisdiction and standing to sue
C) Precedents and stare decisis
D) Judicial maxims
E) Requirements for legislation
Q2) The U.S. Supreme Court can review a state supreme court decision
A) if there are damages in excess of $50,000.
B) only if a federal question is involved.
C) if the solicitor general asks them to do so.
D) in all cases.
E) in cases in which the state is a party.
Q3) Appointments to the federal courts of appeal
A) are far less numerous than federal district court appointments.
B) are usually selected because of their important position in state government.
C) are less important than federal district court appointments.
D) are often "stepping-stones" to the Supreme Court.
E) Options A and D are true.
Q4) Describe the sources of American law.
Page 15
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Chapter 14: Domestic and Economic Policy
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Q1) With regard to the issue of oil and energy,
A) the United States' dependence on foreign oil is down sharply from just a few years ago.
B) a new technology called fracking is allowing more oil to be extracted from domestic and Canadian sources.
C) fracking can only extract oil, not natural gas.
D) the United States gets nearly 80 percent of its oil and gas from foreign sources.
E) Both options A and B are true.
Q2) The population group with the highest incarceration rate is
A) non-Hispanic white men, ages 30-34.
B) non-Hispanic African American men, ages 30-34.
C) non-Hispanic Asian American men ages 30-34.
D) Hispanic men aged 25-29.
E) non-Hispanic African American women ages 30-35.
Q3) Explain the problem of long-term unemployment and the affect on government spending.
Q4) Examine the federal budget deficit, why it occurred and what measures should be taken to bring it down.
Q5) Explain the impact of Keynesian economics on fiscal policy in the United States.
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Chapter 15: Foreign Policy
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Q1) Describe the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians and the efforts to bring peace to this troubled part of the world.
Q2) Explain the role that China has come to play in the world. How should the United States interact with China?
Q3) The practice of sending experts with technical skills to aid other nations is called
A) an in-kind subsidy.
B) a tariff.
C) technical assistance.
D) exports.
E) military aid.
Q4) To which international issues has the United States applied diplomacy instead of military force?
A) The proliferation of nuclear weapons
B) The growing power of China.
C) The Israeli-Palestinian conflict
D) The global economic crisis
E) All of the above.
Q5) What problems might there be if the draft was used again in the United States?
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