Chapter 2
The Constitution has remained largely intact for more than 200 years because the principles set forth in the Constitution
A. Are impracticable to amend.
B. Can only be changed in certain parts.
C. Are in a direct linage from the Mayflower Compact to the Articles of Confederation to the Constitution.
D. Are unchallenged principles of the founding fathers.
E. Meet the needs of the states and nation.
Common Sense, written by _______, argued in favor of declaring independence from Great Britain and establishing a new government for the citizens of a new country.
A. Patrick Henry
B. Paul Revere
C. Thomas Paine
D. James Madison
E. Thomas Jefferson
The Declaration of Independence was written by
A. Thomas Paine.
B. James Madison.
C. Thomas Jefferson.
D. Patrick Henry.
E. Paul Revere.
The Declaration of Independence was necessary to
A. Demand a separation of church and state.
B. Identify the reasons the British saw separation from the colonies as necessary.
C. Establish a framework for a new system of government.
D. Create for a delicate balance of federal and state power.
E. Establish the legitimacy of the new nation before the governments in Europe and the colonists.
Which provision in the original draft of the Declaration of Independence had to be removed to gain the unanimous approval of all the colonies?
A. Arguing the necessity of allowing women to vote
B. Calling for the assassination of King George
C. Condemning the slave trade
D. Calling for the separation of church and state
E. Establishing that the United States would be a Christian nation
The Declaration of Independence reflects the philosophy of John Locke, who argued that
A. Government must pledge its allegiance to God before it can claim legitimacy.
B. Government cannot interfere with the reality that life is nasty, brutish, and short.
C. Government must be divided into executive, legislative, and judicial branches in order to be effective.
D. People possess only those rights that government grants to them.
E. All people possess certain natural rights, and it is the duty of the government to protect those rights.
An agreement by the people to form a government and abide by its rules is called
A. Natural law.
B. Community agreement.
C. Unification authority.
D. nullification.
E. Social contract
After the United States gained its independence, the first system of government was created by the
A. Constitution.
B. Franklin Proclamation.
C. Declaration of Independence.
D. Mayflower Compact.
E. Articles of Confederation.
The Article of Confederation established a voluntary association of independent states that
A. Did not collect tariffs on goods coming into the state.
B. Relied on the national government to resolve all regional conflicts.
C. Agreed to only limited restraint on their freedom of action.
D. Were represented on the basis of population in the Confederate Assembly.
E. Paid a yearly levy to the national government to enforce state laws.
Because of the frustrations with King George, the Continental Congress used the Articles of Confederation to a create a government that had
A. Strong economic but weak military powers.
B. Very little power.
C. Strong military but weak economic powers.
D. Very strong, broad powers.
E. Strong diplomatic powers.
The actions of _______ demonstrated the inability of the federal government under the Articles of Confederation to protect the citizenry from armed rebellion or provide adequately for the public welfare.
A. Daniel Shays
B. George Washington
C. Patrick Henry
D. Paul Revere
E. John Locke
The two major accomplishments that occurred under the Articles of Confederation were
A. Passage of the Northwest Ordinance and ending the French and Indian War.
B. Passage of the Bill of Rights and settlement of states' claims to western lands.
C. Establishment of the Supreme Court and payment of damages that occurred during the Revolutionary War.
D. Settlement of states' claims to western lands and passage of the Northwest Ordinance.
E. Ending the French and Indian War and passage of the Bill of Rights.
Under the Articles of Confederation, Congress had the power to
A. Compel states to meet military quotas.
B. Establish and control armed forces.
C. Collect taxes directly from the people.
D. Regulate interstate and foreign commerce.
E. Compel states to pay their share of government costs.
The publicly stated purpose of the convention to be held in 1787 was to
A. Revise the Articles of Confederation.
B. Revisit the principles established in the Declaration of Independence.
C. Develop and write a new Constitution.
D. Create a system of government that would abolish the institution of slavery.
E. Expand the rights of individuals who did not own property.
Functioning of the national government under the Articles of Confederation
A. Depended on the strength of the Army of Confederation.
B. Depended on the goodwill of the people of the Republic.
C. Was in direct correlation to the popularity of the President of the Continental Congress.
D. Depended on tariffs collected by the government.
E. Depended on the goodwill of the states.
The most fundamental weakness of the Articles of Confederation was a lack of
A. Power to tax exports
B. state-supported currencies.
C. A national system of courts.
D. Power to raise funds for the militia.
E. A bicameral legislature.
Generally speaking, the delegates to the Constitutional Convention were
A. Members of the working class.
B. Representative of a wide cross section of American society of the 1700s.
C. Diverse in terms of gender and race.
D. Inexperienced legislators.
E. Experienced in political office or military service.
Edmund Randolph's Virginia Plan
A. Included no provision for a president because of the distrust of so much power being given to a single individual.
B. Called for a national executive that would be elected by the legislative body.
C. Called for a unicameral legislative body.
D. Called for all states to be represented equally in the national legislature.
E. Was basically a minor variation on the Articles of Confederation.
The Virginia Plan favored
A. large, more populous states.
B. small, less populous states.
C. New England states.
D. Southern states.
E. Western states.
The most important part of the New Jersey Plan was its
A. Reference to a supremacy doctrine.
B. Specific mention of checks and balances.
C. Provisions for a Supreme Court.
D. Plan for taxation.
E. Interstate commerce clause.
The Great Compromise resolved the impasse between the
A. Large and small states regarding the executive branch.
B. Large and small states regarding representation.
C. Northern and southern states regarding slavery.
D. Northern and southern states regarding representation.
E. Federalists and Anti-Federalists regarding the executive branch.
The Great Compromise
A. Provided that slavery would not be allowed to exist under the new Constitution.
B. Created a unicameral Congress.
C. Established that all states would be represented equally in the House of Representatives.
D. Established that states would be represented according to the size of their populations in the Senate.
E. Created a Congress composed of two chambers: one with representation based on population and the second with equal state representation.
The Three-fifths Compromise, which was crafted to address the impasse on slavery,
A. Brought an immediate end to the institution of slavery.
B. Enhanced the influence that northern states would have in a newly created Congress.
C. Avoided the use of the word "slave," instead referring to "all other persons."
D. Illustrated the power of the northern states at the convention.
E. Did not abolish slavery but did bring an immediate end to the importation of slaves into this country.
At the Constitutional Convention, the South insisted that
A. Export taxes not be imposed.
B. Lower federal courts be created as well as a Supreme Court.
C. Slavery be abolished.
D. The power to regulate interstate commerce must belong to Congress.
E. An income tax never be imposed.
James Madison argued in Federalist Paper No. 51 that "the greatest security against a gradual concentration of the several powers in the same department" was the
A. Identification in the Constitution of each specific power that the branches of government would possess.
B. Selection by the voters of men of good character and conscience who would resist the temptation to extend their power.
C. Granting of the means and the motive to each branch of government to resist encroachment upon their areas of authority.
D. Establishment of a single branch of government that would be clearly superior to the other branches, thus ensuring consistency and regularity.
E. Establishment of a Bill of Rights that limited governmental power.
James Madison's "constitutional means" found in Federalist Paper No. 51refers to
A. the Supremacy Clause in Article VI of the Constitution.
B. Checks and balances.
C. De jure stability.
D. Separation of powers.
E. the Full Faith and Credit Clause in Article IV of the Constitution.
The Electoral College
A. Has guaranteed that the candidate who wins the presidency is the one with the greatest public support.
B. Was seen by some delegates as an alternative to allowing Congress to choose the president.
C. Insured that the president would be subjected to direct popular control.
D. Was designed to select a plural executive composed of representatives from various regions of the country.
E. Ensured that Congress would be able to control the presidency.
The Electoral College created a system in which
A. The president was insulated from direct popular control.
B. The president relied on intermediaries to a strike a deal with political leaders in each state.
C. Political parties became less important than intra-regional alliances.
D. The smaller, less populous states held more power in the election process than did the more populous state.
E. Interest groups became important in the election of the president.
The Constitution created a
A. Confederal system of government that grants fewer powers to the national government than the Articles of Confederation.
B. Confederal system of government that divides powers between the states and national government
C. Federal system of government that divides powers between the states and national government.
D. Federal system of government that grants fewer powers to the national government than the Articles of Confederation.
E. Unitary system of government that divides powers between the states and national government.
Special conventions in each state were used to ratify the Constitution because
A. Conventions could meet more quickly than legislatures.
B. Legislatures were far more likely to attempt to amend the document.
C. Most legislatures were unlikely to approve the document.
D. Conventions were more democratic than legislatures.
E. Legislatures were likely to take far too long to approve the document.
What was significant in having the approval of nine states to bring the Constitution into being?
A. In most federal constitutions a three-fourths vote is required to amend or create a constitution.
B. A unanimous vote of the states was necessary to change the Articles of Confederation that was unlikely to happen.
C. Nine-thirteenths provided an unequal percentage.
D. Nine was an odd number.
E. A super majority was unusual in the eighteenth century, but necessary to achieve ratification.
The Federalist Papers were written by
A. Washington, Franklin, and Jefferson.
B. Madison, Jefferson, and Hamilton.
C. Madison, Hamilton, and Jay.
D. Madison, Jefferson, and Franklin.
E. Madison, Hamilton, and Franklin.
The Anti-Federalists
A. Represented a radical fringe and constituted a very small minority in their position on the Constitution.
B. Favored ratification of the Constitution.
C. Believed the Constitution created an overly powerful central government that would be hostile to personal liberty.
D. Were mainly wealthy bankers, lawyers, and plantation owners.
E. Were at a disadvantage because they were arguing in favor of changing the status quo and thus had the burden of advocating change.
Charles Beard argued that the Framers of the Constitution were
A. The best and the brightest of their time and wanted a strong government so that they could expand the rights of all people.
B. incompetents, who ascended to power only through their families' wealth and influence.
C. Wealthy property owners who wanted a powerful government that could protect their property interests.
D. flawed, but well-meaning human beings who did the best they could under extraordinary circumstances.
E. Inspired by God and wanted a strong government so that good works could be performed.
The first federal system was created by
A. Great Britain
B. Mexico.
C. Italy.
D. France.
E. the United States.
Making one liable for an act that has already taken place is a(n)
A. Bill of attainder.
B. Statutory law.
C. Ex post facto law.
D. Example of natural law.
E. Example of constitutional law.
A process through which Congress could pass judgment on someone without legal process is a(n)
A. Statutory law.
B. Bill of attainder
C. Example of natural law.
D. Constitutional law.
E. Ex post facto law.
Bills of attainder and ex post facto laws are
A. Not prohibited in the United States.
B. Are prohibited in the body of the U.S. Constitution.
C. Not allowed under provisions of the Third Amendment.
D. Outlawed under the Fourteenth Amendment.
E. Outlawed under Avalon v. The U.S. Congress
The Framers established that the Constitution would be ratified by
A. Nine of thirteen ratifying conventions to be held in the states.
B. All thirteen state legislatures.
C. All thirteen ratifying conventions to be held in the states.
D. Nine of thirteen state legislatures and both houses of Congress.
E. Nine of thirteen state legislatures.
Originally, the Bill of Rights
A. Applied only to local governments.
B. Applied to both the national and state governments.
C. Applied only to states that entered into regional agreements.
D. Did not apply to the national government.
E. Did not apply to the state governments.
The Bill of Rights limited the power of
A. The power of the state governments to tax the national government.
B. Government over the rights and liberties of individuals.
C. State governments over the inherent powers of the national government.
D. The national government over the rights of the states.
E. The national and state governments to tax individuals.
Some opponents of the Bill of Rights argued that
A. Most people opposed the principle of strong national government.
B. Carefully articulating certain rights might encourage the national government to abuse any rights that were not specifically defined.
C. the Federalists outnumbered the Anti-Federalists.
D. Specifying particular rights might lead state governments to abuse rights that were not carefully defined.
E. Most people opposed the idea of strong individual rights.
Informal methods of changing the U.S. Constitution include
A. Ad hoc juris, judicial review, and bureaucratic action.
B. Decisions of state courts, constitutional legislation, judicial review, and presidential action.
C. Congressional legislation, judicial review, and presidential action.
D. Stare decisis, mens rea, and judicial review.
E. Acts of international legislatures, stare decisis, and presidential action.
The power of the Supreme Court to declare acts unconstitutional was established by
A. Gibbons v. Ogden.
B. Judicial Review Act of 1789.
C. Seventeenth Amendment.
D. Marbury v. Madison.
E. the Judiciary Act of 1812.
The Supreme Court adapts the Constitution to modern situations using
A. Bills of attainder.
B. Natural law.
C. Judicial review.
D. Formal methods to amend the Constitution.
E. The concept of stare decisis.
The modern process for nominating candidates for office
A. Is the creation of the two major political parties and not the Constitution.
B. Reflects the resistance of the Constitution to the ways of doing political business.
C. Is detailed in Article II of the Constitution.
D. Shows that the founding fathers understood how government would develop over time.
E. Suggests how the party system has failed to change the way the president is elected.
Article ___ specifies how the Constitution can be amended.
A. III
B. I
C. VII
D. V
E. II
Constitutional amendments can be proposed by
A. Unanimous votes in both houses of Congress.
B. A majority vote in both houses of Congress.
C. A majority vote in either house of Congress.
D. two-thirds of either house of Congress.
E. two-thirds of both houses of Congress.
According to the Constitution, a national constitutional convention can be called by
A. two-thirds vote of either the U.S. House or U.S. Senate.
B. by Congress at the request of two-thirds of the states.
C. three-fourths of the states.
D. A majority of the states.
E. A majority vote in both houses of Congress.
Constitutional amendments can be ratified by
A. two-thirds of both houses of Congress.
B. two-thirds of state conventions.
C. three-fourths of state legislatures.
D. two-thirds of state legislatures.
E. A majority vote in both houses of Congress.
The constitutional amendment process has been used to
A. Limit the number of terms a president can serve.
B. Require the president to deliver a State of the Union address.
C. Require the president to get the approval of Congress before committing the armed forces to battle.
D. Limit the president's ability to employ the power of the pardon.
E. Define the actions for which the president can be impeached.
The Twenty-sixth Amendment to the Constitution extended the right to vote to
A. eighteen-year-olds.
B. Those pardoned by governors.
C. Citizens of the U.S. Territory of Puerto Rico.
D. Convicted felons.
E. twenty-one-year-olds.
The constitutional amendment process has been used to
A. Limit members of the House of Representatives to serving five terms.
B. limit Senators to serving two terms.
C. allow Congress to impose an income tax.
D. Limit the total time any individual can spend in Congress to twenty years.
E. require Congress to construct a balanced budget.
The constitution was amended to prohibit which of the following?
A. White primaries
B. Grandfather clauses
C. Literacy tests
D. Poll taxes
E. Separate drinking fountains
Which practice was abolished by a constitutional amendment?
A. Slavery
B. Flag burning
C. Dueling
D. Execution by the electric chair
E. Polygamy
An amendment designed to _________ was approved by Congress but ultimately the amendment never received the support necessary to become a part of the Constitution.
A. Forbid abortion
B. Abolish the death penalty
C. Restrict flag burning
D. Guarantee equal rights for women
E. Restrict immigration
Which amendment gave former male slaves the right to vote?
A. Eighteenth Amendment
B. Twenty-first Amendment
C. Thirteenth Amendment
D. Twenty-sixth Amendment
E. Fifteenth Amendment
Which amendment gave women the right to vote in national elections?
A. Twenty-second Amendment
B. Fourteenth Amendment
C. Nineteenth Amendment
D. Fifteenth Amendment
E. Ninth Amendment
Freedom of the press is protected by the
A. Eleventh Amendment.
B. Tenth Amendment.
C. Third Amendment.
D. Eighth Amendment.
E. First Amendment.
The right of people to peaceably assemble is protected by the
A. Third Amendment.
B. First Amendment.
C. Ninth Amendment.
D. Thirteenth Amendment.
E. Twelfth Amendment.
Protection from unreasonable searches and seizures is guaranteed by the
A. Tenth Amendment.
B. First Amendment.
C. Eighth Amendment.
D. Fifth Amendment.
E. Fourth Amendment.
Protection from self-incrimination—a person being forced to give evidence against himself or herself—is guaranteed by the
A. Tenth Amendment.
B. Fourth Amendment.
C. First Amendment.
D. Fifth Amendment.
E. Eighth Amendment.
A constitutional guarantee not to be tried twice for the same crime is found in the
A. Fourth Amendment.
B. Tenth Amendment.
C. First Amendment.
D. Eighth Amendment.
E. Fifth Amendment.
The right to counsel for those accused of a crime is guaranteed by the
A. First Amendment.
B. Sixth Amendment.
C. Fourth Amendment.
D. Fifth Amendment.
Cruel and unusual punishment is prohibited by the
A. Sixth Amendment.
B. Eighth Amendment.
C. Third Amendment.
D. Ninth Amendment.
E. Seventh Amendment.
Article ___ describes the powers of Congress.
A. II
B. IV
C. I
D. VI
E. V
Article ___ establishes the Supreme Court.
A. III
B. IV
C. X
D. VI
E. II
Which of the following is true?
A. It was feared that the delegates from Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia would withhold their support if the Constitution threatened the existence of slavery.
B. James Madison characterized slavery as "evil" and argued that there would be nothing worse than allowing it to continue.
C. The significance of the slavery issue at the constitutional convention is greatly exaggerated, given the fact that there were less than 50,000 slaves in the United States in 1787.
D. Benjamin Franklin, the president of the Pennsylvania Society for the Abolition of Slavery, insisted that the Constitution be written to prohibit slavery.
E. George Washington, a slave owner from Virginia, was one of the few delegates to state firmly and unapologetically his support of the institution of slavery.
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