Presidential

The most common previous occupation of presidents in the United States has been

U.S. Senators have a difficult time being elected president because they

A. Are unlikely to have a background in law, which most presidents have had.

B. Often come from privileged backgrounds and elite families.

C. Frequently have difficulty defending their voting records.

D. Often do not have great financial wealth.

E. Prefer to pursue a Supreme Court nomination after their legislative careers.

To be elected president one must receive

A. A simple majority of the popular vote.

B. A simple majority of the electoral vote.

C. A plurality of the popular vote.

D. A plurality of the electoral vote.

E. Every electoral vote.

If the Electoral College fails to give any presidential candidate a majority, the election of the president is determined by

A. the Senate.

B. the House.

C. A second ballot in the Electoral College between the top two contenders.

D. A run-off election between the top two candidates.

E. the Supreme Court.

Which constitutional amendment specifies the separate election of the president and vice president by the Electoral College?

Presidents tend to have

A. Low legislative success rates at the beginning of their administrations with a steep increase in the middle and then a decline at the end.

B. High legislative success rates throughout their administrations as they pursue their role as Chief Legislator.

C. Low legislative success rates throughout their administrations as Congress checks and balances them.

D. No consistent pattern in their legislative success rates.

E. High legislative success rates at the beginning of their administrations with a steep decline at the end.

The president, in his capacity as head of state, is responsible for

A. Determining the countries in which the United States will have diplomatic relations.

B. Engaging in activities that are largely symbolic or ceremonial in nature.

C. Conducting the foreign policy of the country.

D. Leading the legislative process by submitting legislation.

E. Administering the laws.

Going on official state visits to other countries, decorating war heroes, and dedicating parks are all examples of the president's role as

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 the United Nations.

The number of political appointments available to the president

A. Are constrained by the civil service system.

B. Puts the president in charge of deciding which individuals will occupy more than fifty thousand jobs in government.

C. Allows the president to appoint a majority of the civilian appointments in the bureaucracy.

D. Is confined mainly to the military.

E. Has been dramatically limited by the use of the constitutional amendment process.

The granting of release from the punishment for a crime is called

As Commander in Chief, the president is

A. Only a symbolic leader of the military.

B. The ultimate decision maker in military matters.

C. Allowed to make military decisions, but only with the approval of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

D. Not responsible for military decisions.

E. Obligated to sit on the Board of Regents for the military, the naval and the air force academies.

As chief diplomat, the president

A. Is responsible for selecting judges to federal courts.

B. Is responsible for all actions within the executive branch.

C. Selects leaders of his or her party in Congress.

D. Negotiates treaties, recognizes foreign governments, and makes executive agreements.

E. Ratifies treaties.

Before a treaty can become legally binding, the treaty must be

A. Signed by the justices of the World Court.

B. Approved by three-fourths of the state governments.

C. Ratified by the Supreme Court.

D. Approved by a two-thirds vote in the Senate.

E. Approved by a majority vote in both chambers of Congress.

Executive agreements are

A. Not valid in foreign policy matters unless approved by the Senate.

B. Agreements between the president and a head of government in another country that do not have to be approved by the Senate.

C. An unconstitutional expansion of the power of the president

D. Binding upon future presidents.

E. Used to achieve trivial matters, because the most significant issues must be addressed by the Senate.

The role of the president in influencing the making of laws is called

The State of the Union message

A. Is delivered by the president to the General Assembly of the United Nations at least once every four years.

B. Is a policy statement of Congress over which the president seldom has influence.

C. Is required by the Constitution and gives a broad view of what the president wishes the legislature to accomplish during the session.

D. Is an effective tool used by the president to limit other countries' foreign policy endeavors in this hemisphere.

E. Is limited to reviewing the events of the last year.

A pocket veto

A. Can be used by a president only once during his term in office, although he can use it twice if he serves two terms.

B. Can only be used when Congress adjourns for the session within ten days of the bill being submitted to the President.

C. Means that the legislation cannot be reintroduced in the next Congress.

D. Was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 1936.

E. Is a veto in which the president does not send a veto message back to Congress.

A veto is

A. Usually employed to punish members of the president's party who disagree with him.

B. More likely when the president's party controls Congress.

C. A clear-cut indication of the president's dissatisfaction with legislation.

D. Likely to be overridden about half the time.

E. Required to be used at least once during each president's term.

A power created for the president through laws passed by Congress is called a(n)

The president's authority to fill a government office or position in the executive branch and federal judiciary is known as

Which of the following is not an example of the president's constitutional powers?

Presidential approval ratings tend to be

A. Very high when a new president takes office and then quickly declines to a low that is maintained throughout the remainder of the term.

B. Very high throughout the term as the president demonstrates his power as the Chief Legislator.

C. Very low throughout the term as Congress immediately and continually attacks the new president.

D. Very high when a new president takes office with a decline in the last two years of the second term.

E. inconsistent, with no regular pattern that can be identified.

"Going public" means that the president

A. Goes to the public and over the heads of the members of Congress.

B. Goes to the Washington community and over the heads of the members of Congress.

C. Refrains from invoking executive privilege.

D. Puts pressure on members of Congress by threatening to release details about their private lives.

E. Publicizes information that was formerly classified.

An executive order

A. Is a rule issued by the president that has the effect of law.

B. Is not valid unless both chambers of Congress approve it.

C. Must be approved by a majority of the cabinet.

D. Can only be issued when Congress is not in session.

E. Cannot be overturned by Congress.

Executive privilege

A. Involves the ability of the president and executive branch officials to withhold certain information from Congress and the courts.

B. Means that members of the executive branch cannot be prosecuted for official acts.

C. Is the concept that has been applied to the president's use of the pocket veto.

D. Allows the president discretion in making political appointments.

E. Was ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 1974.

An inherent power exercised by the president during a period of national crisis is known as

The Cabinet is

A. Is vital for holding important Presidential dishes.

B. The president's clerical staff.

C. An informal group of presidential advisers.

D. Explicitly established in Article II of the Constitution.

E. An advisory group selected by the president to aid in making decisions.

The office that works most closely with the president is the

The Office of Management and Budget

A. helps Congress write the budget.

B. Helps the president prepare the annual budget.

C. Has the power to revise the budget passed by Congress.

D. Is rarely newsworthy in modern times.

E. Is an innovation introduced by the George W. Bush administration.

The Chief of Staff

A. Is the President's personal secretary.

B. Directs the White House Office and advises the president.

C. Is the senior officer of the combined military.

D. Serves at the pleasure of the president's Cabinet.

E. Is the director of the Executive Office of the President.

Presidential candidates have asked individuals to join the ticket as a vice presidential candidate for all of the following reasons EXCEPT

A. To balance the ticket by region or political philosophy.

B. To serve as president if the president dies.

C. To reinforce one of the presidential candidate's strong points.

D. To campaign for the presidential candidate.

E. To serve as a co-president.

According to the Twenty-fifth Amendment, if a president's ability to discharge his normal functions is in question and he is unable to communicate,

A. the Supreme Court is empowered to select a physician to certify whether or not the president is able to perform the functions of his office.

B. the Speaker of the House becomes acting president until the matter is resolved.

C. A majority of the cabinet, including the vice president, can declare the president incapable.

D. The president must be permanently removed from office.

E. The vice president has the exclusive power to determine the president's capability.

Typically, administrations use executive privilege

A. To circumvent congressional authority.

B. To protect the president from civil lawsuits.

C. To safeguard national security secrets.

D. Only when the Constitution explicitly says that it is applicable.

E. To fill top political posts.

Which of the following is not a paradox of the presidency.

A. The presidency is sometimes too strong, yet other times too weak.

B. Americans want powerful, self-confident presidential leadership. Yet we are inherently suspicious of leaders who are arrogant, infallible and above criticism.

C. We yearn for the democratic “common person” and also the uncommon, charismatic, heroic, visionary performance.

D. We want a manipulative ruthless president yet we also seek an all powerful president who believes the “ends justify the means.”

The requirement that the President of the United States report to Congress within 48 hours of sending troops into hostilities and then obtain the approval of Congress within sixty days is established by

A. the Supreme Court's decision in United States v. Curtiss-Wright Export Corp.

B. the War Powers Resolution

C. the National Security Act

D. the Nixon Protocol

E. Article II of the Constitution

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