Name: ______Date: ______Period: ______
Government
Chapter 3 and 4 Exam
Matching: Match the descriptions with the correct term.
a. unconstitutional d. veto
b. separation of powers e. federalism
c. judicial review
_____ 1. the power of the courts to decide whether government acts are constitutional
_____ 2. illegal; null and void; of no force and effect
_____ 3. the division of power between a central government and several regional governments
_____ 4. a governmental system having basic political powers distributed among three distinct and independent branches
_____ 5. the President’s rejection of an act of Congress
Multiple Choice: Choose the letter of the best answer.
_____ 6. Which of the following principles holds that government may do only those things that the people have given it power to do?
a. limited government c. checks and balances
b. separation of powers d. judicial review
_____ 7. When James Madison wrote, “The accumulation of all powers…in the same hands…may be pronounced as the very definition of tyranny,” he was arguing on behalf of which of the following constitutional principles?
a. federalism c. separation of powers
b. popular sovereignty d. judicial review
_____ 8. The principle of popular sovereignty means that the
a. federal budget must be balanced every year.
b. people are the only source for governmental power.
c. Supreme Court has the power to check on the executive branch.
d. government must be conducted according to constitutional principles.
_____ 9. Which of the following constitutional principles was devised as a compromise between a powerful central government and a loose confederation of states?
a. constitutionalism c. rule of law
b. federalism d. none of the above
_____ 10. Which constitutional principle applies when the Senate confirms or rejects the President’s appointee to run the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)?
a. separation of powers c. judicial review
b. federalism d. checks and balances
_____ 11. The participation of both the Federal Government and State governments in the amendment process is evidence of what constitutional principle?
a. popular sovereignty c. federalism
b. checks and balances d. limited government
_____ 12. An amendment may be formally proposed ONLY by
a. the President or the Court.
b. Congress or national conventions.
c. Congress of the President.
d. State conventions or the electorate.
_____ 13. Which statement illustrates how difficult it is to amend the Constitution?
a. Only 10 amendments were added to the Constitution in 1791.
b. The President has never formally proposed an amendment.
c. The Court has the right to review all amendments.
d. A simple majority is not enough to satisfy constitutional requirements in either the proposal stage or the ratification stage of the amendment process.
_____ 14. Which of the following is NOT a right guaranteed by the Bill of Rights?
a. women’s right to vote
b. freedom of expression and belief
c. freedom of security of the person
d. fair and equal treatment before the law
_____ 15. Which method of amending the Constitution has been the most commonly used?
a. Congress proposes, State conventions ratify
b. Congress proposes, State legislatures ratify
c. national convention proposes, State legislatures ratify
d. national convention proposes, State conventions ratify
Matching: Match the descriptions with the correct term.
a. senatorial courtesy d. Cabinet
b. executive agreement e. treaty
c. electoral college
_____ 16. custom that the Senate will approve only presidential appointees acceptable to the senator(s) of the President’s party from the State involved
_____ 17. advisory board to the President
_____ 18. a formal agreement between two or more sovereign states
_____ 19. the group that formally selects the nation’s President
_____ 20. a pact a President makes with the head of a foreign state
Multiple Choice: Choose the letter of the best answer.
_____ 21. Which of the following is an informal process to change the Constitution?
a. Congress proposes, State convention ratifies
b. presidential edict
c. Supreme Court case decisions
d. general election
_____ 22. Which of the following informal customs was eventually added to the written Constitution through formal amendment?
a. women’s suffrage c. party conventions
b. voting age at 18 d. no third term for presidents
_____ 23. Congress may informally change the constitution by passing laws that
a. expand the brief provisions of the Constitution.
b. require the courts to decide their constitutionality.
c. require popular support.
d. none of the above.
_____ 24. Which if the following is one reason the Presidents use executive agreements with heads of foreign states instead of the formal treaty process?
a. Presidents want the right to back out of any agreements they make.
b. Heads of foreign states prefer informal agreements.
c. Congress refuses to support the president in foreign affairs.
d. Executive agreements do not require Senate approval.
_____ 25. The fact that government in the United States is in many ways government through political party is
a. because George Washington was a strong supporter of political parties.
b. the result of a long history of informal constitutional change.
c. because of the selection of the Constitution concerning the Electoral College.
d. due to a Supreme Court decision.
_____ 26. The United States has a federal system of government because
a. it is the only form of government that promotes democracy.
b. federalism was the traditional form of government in England.
c. the system was implied in the Constitution and expressed in the 10th amendment.
d. the majority of the population supports it.
_____ 27. Which of the following is an example of an expressed power?
a. the power to collect taxes c. the power to declare war
b. the power to coin money d. all of the above
_____ 28. The Necessary and Proper Clause is called the Elastic Clause because
a. like elastic, if stretched too far it doesn’t work.
b. over time, it has stretched to cover so many implied powers.
c. it has been used to stretch the law to benefit a few people.
d. it gives States as much power as they need.
_____ 29. According to the Supremacy clause, which of the following is the correct order of the “ladder of laws” in the United States, from top to bottom?
a. the U.S. Constitution, State constitutions, acts of Congress and treaties
b. the U.S. Constitution, acts of Congress and treaties, State constitutions, State statutes, local laws
c. State constitutions, acts of Congress and treaties, U.S. Constitution, State statutes, local laws
d. none of the above
_____ 30. The process of admitting a new State begins with
a. an invitation from Congress.
b. congressional review of the potential State’s constitution.
c. the area’s residents asking Congress for admission.
d. a vote in neighboring states.
Matching: Match the descriptions with the correct term.
a. delegated powers d. inherent powers
b. expressed powers e. concurrent powers
c. implied powers
_____ 31. powers reasonably thought to be granted, but not spelled out specifically, in the Constitution.
_____ 32. powers granted to the National Government in the Constitution
_____ 33. powers that belong to the National Government because it is a sovereign state
_____ 34. powers spelled out in the Constitution
_____ 35. powers possessed and exercised by both National and State governments
Multiple Choice: Choose the letter of the best answer.
_____ 36. Which of the following is NOT an example of the National Government’s obligation to protect States?
a. protection against a foreign invasion
b. protection against riots and civil unrest
c. protection against the worst results of a natural disaster
d. none of the above
_____ 37. Which of the following is an example of an enabling act?
a. a law passed by Congress directing an area to frame a State constitution
b. an area requesting Statehood
c. a law passed by Congress, granting admission of an area into the Union
d. an act placing conditions on Statehood
_____ 38. Which of the following is an example of a grant-in-aid?
a. taxes sent to the National Government by employers
b. loans made by the National Government to the States
c. money given to a private cancer research program by the National Government
d. bonds bought by patriotic Americans
_____ 39. Which kind of grant-in-aid has to be applied for?
a. a categorical grant c. revenue sharing
b. a project grant d. a block grant
_____ 40. What part of the Constitution stops each State from discriminating against residents of other States?
a. the Privileges and Immunities Clause
b. the Full Faith and Credit Clause
c. the First Amendment
d. the Preamble
_____ 41. Which of the following is an exception to the regular observance of the Full Faith and Credit Clause?
a. acceptance of other states’ laws
b. recognition of other states’ records
c. enforcement of other states’ criminal laws
d. agreement with other states’ court actions
_____ 42. Which of the following cases established the principle that States were not required to apply full faith and credit to “quickie” divorces obtained in other States?
a. Kentucky v. Dennison c. Puerto Rico v. Branstad
b. Williams v. North Carolina d. Virginia v. Tennessee
_____ 43. Which of the following is a compact all 50 States have joined?
a. Colorado River Compact
b. New York Port Authority Compact
c. Compact for Supervision of Parolees and Probationers
d. State University Compact
_____ 44. Which constitutional principle allows drivers holding a Texas driver’s license to operate a motor vehicle in any other State?
a. Fifth Amendment c. Privileges and Immunities Clause
b. Full Faith and Credit Clause d. act of admission
_____ 45. A person robs a bank in Mississippi and drives to Tennessee. The legal process by which Tennessee police will return the person to Mississippi to stand trial is called
a. grants-in-aid. c. federalism.
b. checks and balances. d. extradition.