Constructing a Government: the Founding and the Constitution

CHAPTER 2

Constructing a Government: The Founding and the Constitution

Concept Map

I.The First Founding: Pre-Constitutional Government

a.British taxes and colonial interests

i. Sectors of society with stakes in colonial politics

ii. British taxation

1.Stamp Act

2.Sugar Act

3.Boston Massacre

4.Organized resistance as collective action

5.First Continental Congress

b.Political strife and colonial radicalism

i. Boston Tea Party

ii. British reactions to the Tea Party

c.Declaration of Independence

d.Articles of Confederation

i. Weak organization

ii. Confederation—sovereignty in states

II.The Second Founding: Creating the Constitution

a.International standing

b.Annapolis Convention

c.Shays’s Rebellion

d.Constitutional Convention

i. Ideals vs. interests

1.Beard’s economic interpretation

2.Philosophical concerns

ii. Great Compromise

1.Virginia plan vs. New Jersey plan

2.Representation conflict

iii. Three-fifths Compromise

1.Slavery in the Constitution

2.Counting slaves for representation

III.The Constitution

a.Legislative branch

i. Bicameralism

ii. Powers of Congress

iii. Expressed power

iv. Necessary and proper clause

b.Executive branch

i. Powers of the executive

ii. Enables decisive action

c.Judicial branch

i. Powers of the judicial branch

ii. Judicial review

iii. Life tenure

d.National unity and power

i. Supremacy clause

ii. Interstate relations

e.Constitutional limits on federal power

i. Goals of the Constitution

ii. Separation of powers

1.Checks and balances

2.Mixed regime

iii. Federalism

iv. A bill of rights

IV.Ratification

a.Federalists and Antifederalists

b.Representation

c.Tyranny

i. Of the majority

ii. Of an aristocracy

d.Scope of governmental power

V.Constitutional Amendment

a.Process of amendment

b.Twenty-seven amendments

i. The Bill of Rights

ii. Purposes of the amendments

MULTIPLE CHOICE

1.In reaction to English legislative attempts in 1765 to extract tax revenue to pay for the troops that were being sent to defend the colonial frontier, protests erupted throughout the colonies against the infamous:

a.Stamp Act

b.Coinage Act

c.Red Tape Act

d.Westchester Act

ANS: A

NOT: Factual

KEY: Stamp Act (I.a.ii.1)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 30

2.During the period leading to the Revolutionary War, England justified increased taxes because:

a.the East India Company needed government support to deliver products to the colonies

b.the British government accrued large debts in defense of the colonies

c.they needed to supplement the low salaries in the House of Commons

d.they needed to compensate for travel expenses of colonial representatives to parliament in England

ANS: B

NOT: Conceptual

KEY: British taxation (I.a.ii)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 33

3.Why did the British government impose taxes like the Stamp Act specifically on the American colonies instead of in England only?

a.The British government had spent large sums of money on defending the colonies and sought to recapture that revenue from the colonists.

b.Increased taxes were politically unpopular in England, so the government chose to raise taxes on the colonists instead.

c.Influential interest groups supported the colonial taxes.

d.Money raised from the taxes was intended to be used to pacify revolutionary citizens in the colonies.

ANS: A

NOT: Conceptual

KEY: British taxation (I.a.ii)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 33

4.After years of relatively little interference in the local affairs of its American colonies, the English government passed a tax on all printed and legal documents, including newspapers, pamphlets, playing cards, advertisements, notes and bonds, leases, deeds, and licenses. Mass protests declaring “no taxation without representation” erupted throughout the colonies against the:

a.Tea Act

b.Stamp Act

c.Royalist Tariff

d.Colonial Tariff

ANS: B

NOT: Factual

KEY: British taxation (I.a.ii)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Pages 30–31

5.To show their displeasure with the Stamp Act of 1765, colonists in Boston:

a.stormed Bunker Hill and took over its fort

b.organized demonstrations and a boycott of British goods

c.dumped tea into the harbor in what became known as the Boston Tea Party

d.killed twelve British soldiers in what became known as the Boston Massacre

ANS: B

NOT: Factual

KEY: British taxation (I.a.ii)

DIF: Difficult

REF: Page 34

6.In the United States, no set of institutional procedures is more important than the:

a.Constitution

b.Bill of Rights

c.Articles of Confederation

d.Declaration of Independence

ANS: a.

NOT: Factual

KEY: Goals of the Constitution (III.e.ii.1)

DIF: Easy

REF: Page 32

7.In the mid-eighteenth century, the revenues that governments relied on came mostly from:

a.a flat tax

b.an income tax

c.tariffs and duties

d.voluntary citizen donations—usually from elite property owners

ANS: C

NOT: Factual

KEY: British taxation (I.a.ii)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 33

8.The Stamp Act of 1765 and the Sugar Act of 1764 most heavily affected the:

a.small farmers

b.artisans and laborers

c.holders of royal land offices and patents

d.New England merchants and southern planters

ANS: D

NOT: Factual

KEY: Stamp Act and Sugar Act (I.a.ii.1 and I.a.ii.2)

DIF: Difficult

REF: Page 33

9.In the chain of events leading up to the American Revolution, the radical forces were permitted to expand their political influence because the colonial elites were split by:

a.disagreement over slavery

b.western boundary disputes

c.a lack of common currency

d.British tax and trade policies

ANS: D

NOT: Factual

KEY: British taxation (I.a.ii)

DIF: Difficult

REF: Page 33

10.Among the sectors of society that were important in colonial politics prior to the American Revolution, the more radical forces were represented by:

a.the New England merchants

b.holders of lands, offices, and patents

c.the southern planters and ship builders

d.shopkeepers, laborers, and small farmers

ANS: D

NOT: Factual

KEY: Sectors of society with stakes in colonial politics (I.a.i)

DIF: Difficult

REF: Page 28

11.Which of the following was NOT one of the sectors of society that was particularly influential in colonial politics?

a.New England merchants

b.Southern planters

c.the Daughters of the American Revolution

d.small farmers

ANS: C

NOT: Factual

KEY: Sectors of society with stakes in colonial politics (I.a.i)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 32

12.On March 5, 1770, nervous British soldiers opened fire on the mob surrounding them, killing five colonists and wounding eight others. News of this event quickly spread throughout the colonies and was used to fan anti-British sentiment by radicals who called the incident the:

a.Boston Massacre

b.Tuesday butchery

c.Boston Tea Party

d.Tragedy of the commons

ANS: A

NOT: Factual

KEY: Boston Massacre (I.a.ii.3)

DIF: Easy

REF: Page 34

13.The British soldiers involved in the Boston Massacre were defended by a pillar of Boston society and future president of the United States:

a.John Adams

b.James Madison

c.Thomas Jefferson

d.George Washington

ANS: A

NOT: Factual

KEY: Boston Massacre (I.a.ii.3)

DIF: Difficult

REF: Page 34

14.Why did the colonists organize and participate in the Boston Tea Party of 1773?

a.as a response to the unjustness of the Stamp Act

b.as a response to military seizure of tea and other agricultural goods in Boston harbor

c.as a response to the British granting the East India Company a monopoly on the export of tea from Britain

d.as a response to the withdrawal of military protection from commercial ships sailing to the Americas

ANS: C

NOT: Conceptual

KEY: Boston Tea Party (I.b.i)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 35

15.In 1773, the British government granted a monopoly on the export of tea from Britain to the politically powerful East India Company who sought to bypass the colonial merchants and sell the tea directly to the colonies. The merchants called on their radical adversaries for support and the most dramatic result was the:

a.Boston Tea Party

b.attack on Fort Sill

c.Philadelphia slaughter

d.ceremonial burning of the “Union Jack” flag in the Philadelphia
town square

ANS: C

NOT: Applied

KEY: Boston Tea Party (I.b.i)

DIF: Easy

REF: Page 35

16.The Boston Tea Party was led by:

a.Patrick Henry

b.Thomas Payne

c.Samuel Adams

d.Alexander Hamilton

ANS: C

NOT: Factual

KEY: Boston Tea Party (I.b.i)

DIF: Difficult

REF: Page 35

17.The ultimate goal of participants in the Boston Tea Party was to:

a.rescind the Tea Act

b.rescind the Stamp Act

c.close Boston harbor to British commerce

d.alienate the British government from its colonial supporters

ANS: D

NOT: Factual

KEY: Boston Tea Party (I.b.i)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 35

18.By dumping the East India Company’s tea into Boston Harbor, Samuel Adams and his followers pressured the British into enacting a number of harsh reprisals that:

a.radicalized Americans to resist British rule

b.effectively ended the slave trade in the northern states

c.temporarily softened public support for revolutionary forces

d.benefited southern planters at the expense of New England merchants

ANS: A

NOT: Applied

KEY: British Reactions to the Tea Party (I.b.ii)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 35

19.The Boston Tea Party set into motion a cycle of provocation and retaliation that, in 1774, resulted in the convening of an assembly of delegates from all parts of the colonies called the:

a.First Colonial Convention

b.First Continental Congress

c.Boston Confederated Congress

d.Philadelphia Constitutional Convention

ANS: B

NOT: Factual

KEY: First Continental Congress (I.a.ii.5)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 35

20.Dramatic events like the Boston Massacre provide an issue for individuals to organize around when putting together revolutionary activities. This provides a way to overcome:

a.the collective action problem

b.the institutions principle

c.the history principle

d.the revolutionary organization conundrum

ANS: A

NOT: Applied

KEY: Organized resistance as collective action (I.a.ii.4)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 34

21.The Declaration of Independence was written by:

a.James Madison

b.Thomas Jefferson

c.George Washington

d.Alexander Hamilton

ANS: B

NOT: Factual

KEY: Declaration of Independence (I.c)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 36

22.The Declaration of Independence was remarkable for its assertion that there are certain unalienable rights including:

a.life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness

b.due process and equal protection under the law

c.justice, domestic tranquility, and general welfare

d.the freedom of religion, freedom of the press, and freedom of speech

ANS: B

NOT: Factual

KEY: Declaration of Independence (I.c)

DIF: Easy

REF: Page 36

23.In November of 1777, the Continental Congress adopted the United States’ first written constitution. It was known as the:

a.Virginia Plan

b.Annapolis Convention

c.Declaration of Independence

d.Articles of Confederation and perpetual union

ANS: D

NOT: Factual

KEY: Articles of Confederation (I.d)

DIF: Easy

REF: Page 36

24.The result of the 1777 Continental Congress was a constitution concerned primarily with:

a.preventing domestic insurrection

b.limiting the powers of the central government

c.generating new tax revenues to help pay for armed resistance

d.regulating trade among the colonies as well as imports and exports

ANS: B

NOT: Factual

KEY: Articles of Confederation (I.d)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 36

25.Under the Articles of Confederation, the Congress was given the power to:

a.levy taxes

b.declare war

c.regulate commerce

d.build a standing army

ANS: B

NOT: Factual

KEY: Weak Organization (I.d.i)

DIF: Difficult

REF: Page 37

26.Besides the United States under the Articles of Confederation, another example of a confederate system of government where the sub-units of government retain sovereignty but create a higher level of government to serve specific purposes is:

a.the United States under the original Constitution of 1787

b.the United States today under the Constitution of 1787 as amended

c.the United Nations and its member states

d.the United Kingdom

ANS: C

NOT: Applied

KEY: Confederation—sovereignty in states (I.d.ii)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 37

27.During the winter of 1786–1787, John Adams of Massachusetts was sent to negotiate a new treaty with the British to cover disputes left over from the war. The British government responded that it would:

a.set a blockade around Boston harbor

b.relinquish control over the lands to the west

c.negotiate with each of the thirteen states separately

d.require war reparations before signing any new treaty

ANS: C

NOT: Factual

KEY: Confederation—sovereignty in states (I.d.ii)

DIF: Difficult

REF: Pages 37–38

28.Early states had broad latitude to pursue their own policies and the national government, under the Articles of Confederation, had little recourse if they disliked those policies. For example, the Rhode Island legislature, dominated by representatives of small farmers, artisans, and shopkeepers, frightened businessmen and property owners throughout the country by instituting:

a.free trade policies

b.economic policies including drastic currency inflation

c.generous agricultural subsidies and severely protective tariffs

d.eminent domain activities for an extensive statewide park system

ANS: B

NOT: Factual

KEY: Confederation—sovereignty in states (I.d.ii)

DIF: Difficult

REF: Page 38

29.The one positive result of the Annapolis Convention was a resolution calling for:

a.a declaration of independence from England

b.a boycott of tea, linens, and other goods from England

c.ratification of the new Constitution of the United States

d.a later meeting in Philadelphia to reform the Articles of Confederation

ANS: D

NOT: Factual

KEY: International standing (II.a)

DIF: Easy

REF: Page 38

30.It is possible that the Constitutional Convention of 1787 in Philadelphia would never have taken place at all if not for a single event that occurred soon after the Annapolis Convention. This event was:

a.Shays’s Rebellion

b.the Boston Massacre

c.the Boston Tea Party

d.the hanging in effigy of the tax man

ANS: A

NOT: Factual

KEY: Shays’ Rebellion (II.c)

DIF: Easy

REF: Page 39

31.Daniel Shays, a former army captain, led a mob in a rebellion against the Massachusetts government in order to:

a.open up western territories for expansion

b.prevent foreclosures on debt-ridden farm lands

c.release certain British loyalists from captivity as prisoners of war

d.receive full military pensions for service in the Revolutionary War

ANS: B

NOT: Factual

KEY: Shays’s Rebellion (II.c)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 39

32.Why did Shays’s Rebellion enable collective action among those who wanted to revise the Articles of Confederation?

a.Shays was a charismatic political entrepreneur who was able to bring together several key opponents of the Articles.

b.The rebellion provided politicians who were already convinced of the inadequacy of the Articles with the ammunition they needed to convince a broader public of the inadequacy of the Articles.

c.The rebellion showed that the federal government was already strong enough to quell an uprising, which demonstrated that taking further steps toward a stronger central government were attainable goals.

d.Shays introduced key figures in western Massachusetts to the concept of civil disobedience, which in turn caught on with opponents of the Articles across the country.

ANS: B

NOT: Conceptual

KEY: Shays’s Rebellion (II.c)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 39

33.Delegates were sent to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia by every state except:

a.Vermont

b.Delaware

c.Rhode Island

d.Massachusetts

ANS: C

NOT: Factual

KEY: Constitutional Convention (II.d)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 39

34.According to historian Charles Beard, the framers of the Constitution were motivated primarily by:

a.revenge

b.moral principles

c.the quest for justice

d.personal enrichment

ANS: D

NOT: Factual

KEY: Beard’s economic interpretation (II.d.i.1)

DIF: Easy

REF: Page 40

35.Charles Beard’s interpretation of the framing of the Constitution was primarily:

a.legal

b.ethical

c.economic

d.philosophical

ANS: C

NOT: Factual

KEY: Beard’s economic interpretation (II.d.i.1)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 40

36.In contrast to Charles Beard’s approach, some view the framers of the constitution as being motivated by:

a.trust in a strong, centralized government

b.economic self-interest

c.the dominant philosophical and moral values of the day

d.political party identification

ANS: C

NOT: Factual

KEY: Beard’s economic interpretation (II.d.i.1)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 40

37.The founder that probably had the most influence on the Virginia Plan (which served as the framework for the eventual Constitution) was:

a.John Adams

b.James Madison

c.Thomas Jefferson

d.Alexander Hamilton

ANS: B

NOT: Factual

KEY: Virginia Plan vs. New Jersey Plan (II.d.ii.1)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 41

38.The proposal to alter the Articles of Confederation by providing for a system of representation in the national legislature based on the population of each state or the proportion of each state’s revenue contribution, or both, was known as the:

a.Virginia Plan

b.New Jersey Plan

c.Connecticut Plan

d.Massachusetts Plan

ANS: A

NOT: Factual

KEY: Virginia Plan vs. New Jersey Plan (II.d.ii.1)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 41

39.Why did the smaller states object to the Virginia Plan?

a.Roger Sherman and other small state delegates disliked Madison and Randolph and did not want them to receive recognition for advancing the Virginia Plan.

b.In accordance with the institutions principle, small states wanted to maintain the existing institutions (the Articles of Confederation) but the institutions principle does not apply to large states.

c.The Virginia Plan provided greater representation in the national legislature for larger and/or wealthier states, which disadvantaged the small states.

d.The small states tended to be from the North and objected to the strong proslavery content in the Virginia Plan.

ANS: C

NOT: Conceptual

KEY: Representation conflict (II.d.ii.2)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 41

40.The proposal offered by the smaller states during the Constitutional Convention that argued each state should be equally represented in the new regime regardless of its population was known as the:

a.Virginia Plan

b.New Jersey Plan

c.Connecticut Plan

d.Massachusetts Plan

ANS: B

NOT: Factual

KEY: Representation conflict (II.d.ii.2)

DIF: Moderate

REF: Page 41

41.The agreement reached during the Constitutional Convention to adopt the proposal that gave each state an equal number of senators regardless of population, but linked representation in the House of Representatives to population became known as the:

a.Boston Plan