Political Science 1 - Government of the United States and California » Summer 2020 » Constitutional Development Quiz

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Question #1
A constitutional amendment can be ratified by
A.   a two-thirds vote in both houses of Congress.
B.   a positive vote in three-fourths of the legislatures of the various states.
C.   presidential approval.
D.   a majority of the popular vote.
E.   approval of the legislatures in two-thirds of the states.
Question #2
A _________ is a voluntary agreement among individuals to secure their rights and welfare by creating a government and abiding by its rules.
A.   carte
B.   unitary govenrment
C.   constitution
D.   confederation
E.   social contract
Question #3
According to the Separatists, the Mayflower Compact was necessary because it
A.   protected the colonists from England.
B.   protected the colonists from other foreign governments.
C.   imposed some form of public authority on the colonists.
D.   limited the power of women in the colonies.
E.   imposed religious order on the colonies.
Question #4
All of the following developments took place in the colonial period EXCEPT
A.   the colonists passed the Pennsylvania Frame of Government, which foreshadowed our modern Constitution.
B.   the colonists exercised a large measure of self-government.
C.   Louisiana was established as the last of the thirteen colonies.
D.   the colonists developed a concept of limited government.
E.   the colonists acquired crucial political experience.
Question #5
All of the following is widely considered to be an informal method of amending the Constitution EXCEPT
A.   the formal amendment process.
B.   interpretation, custom, and usage.
C.   Presidential action.
D.   Congressional legislation.
E.   Supreme Court decisions.
Question #6
Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution gives Congress the power to
A.   establish a system of courts below the Supreme Court.
B.   limit the power of local governments.
C.   regulate the media.
D.   levy income taxes.
E.   override presidential vetoes.
Question #7
Basically, the New Jersey Plan was
A.   the result of the Great Compromise.
B.   a way for large states to grab power.
C.   the Constitution.
D.   simply an amendment of the Mayflower Compact.
E.   simply an amendment of the Articles of Confederation.
Question #8
In 1803, the Supreme Court claimed the power of ______ for itself in Marbury v. Madison.
A.   legislative ratification
B.   appeal
C.   constitutional amendment
D.   executive review
E.   judicial review
Question #9
Judicial review is
A.   a method by which the president can check the judiciary.
B.   the process of confirmation of federal judges by Congress.
C.   the power of the courts to declare federal or state laws and other acts of government unconstitutional.
D.   not applicable to actions by state governments.
E.   restricted to the Supreme Court in overturning decisions by lower courts
Question #10
Probably the most fundamental weakness of the Articles of Confederation, and the most basic cause of their eventual replacement by the Constitution, was the
A.   one-vote-per-state system.
B.   absence of an executive committee.
C.   lack of power to raise funds for the militia.
D.   lack of ability to conduct foreign policy.
E.   lack of provision for a president of the United States.

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