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

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