FINAL EXAM: PRINCIPLES OF DEMOCRACY
  • 1. A legislature is
A) a group of people who have the right to vote
B) a group of people elected to create charters
C) a group of people who support tyranny
D) a group of people chosen to make laws
  • 2. Freedom of the press
A) allowed everything except criticizing the government
B) led to John Peter Zenger's arrest
C) meant that newspapers had to print the truth
D) did not exist under English Law
  • 3. The idea of direct democracy came from
A) Roman Law
B) ancient Athens
C) colonial newspapers
D) the Magna Carta
  • 4. Tyranny refers to
A) a government that abuses its power
B) a powerful monarchy
C) a strong central government
D) a government controlled by citizens
  • 5. Madison's plan for government
A) seemed too weak to many delegates
B) was rejected almost immediately
C) was especially popular with the smaller states
D) created a strong central government
  • 6. The Great Compromise
A) won by a huge majority of the votes at the Constitutional Convention
B) showed the weaknesses of the Constitutional Convention
C) was never adopted by the delegates
D) established a two-house legislature
  • 7. In order the the Constitution to go into effect it had to be approved by
A) the Continental Congress
B) at least nine state conventions
C) The President
D) a least nine state legislatures
  • 8. Under federalism
A) the federal government decides what powers the states have
B) state and federal governments have completely different powers.
C) the states can check the power of the federal government.
D) state and federal governments have some shared and some separate powers
  • 9. Separation of powers means that
A) each branch can limit the powers of the other branches.
B) power is divided among the three branches of government.
C) the judicial branch decides the powers of the other branches.
D) state and federal governments have different powers.
  • 10. People who take "the fifth"
A) have to tell the truth even if it will send them to jail.
B) are using their constitutional right to remain silent.
C) misunderstand the Constitution.
D) are admitting their guilt.
  • 11. In the Tinker case, the Supreme Court ruled that
A) armbands may be regulated by a school principal.
B) political armbands disrupt classes and may not be worn.
C) armbands are a form of speech protected by the First Amendment.
D) schools are not places for political demonstrations.
  • 12. The 13th Amendment
A) gave African American men the right to vote.
B) abolished slavery.
C) made African Americans citizens of the states in which they lived.
D) was overturned by a later amendment.
  • 13. The 14th Amendment
A) abolished slavery.
B) was found unconstitutional.
C) gave citizenship to African Americans born in the United States.
D) gave African American men the right to vote.
  • 14. The 15th Amendment
A) abolished slavery.
B) gave African American men the right to vote.
C) made segregation illegal.
D) made African Americans citizens of the states in which they lived. B. made segregation illegal.
  • 15. The 24th Amendment
A) has not yet been passed.
B) declared that citizens do not have to pay a tax to vote.
C) gave African American women the right to vote.
D) gave African Americans equal protection of the laws.
  • 16. Women gained suffrage
A) from the 23rd Amendment
B) from the 19th Amendment
C) from the Bill of Rights
D) from the 24th Amendment
  • 17. The Twenty-sixth Amendment granted the right to vote to
A) immigrants
B) African American Women
C) all women
D) people between 18 and 21 years of age.
  • 18. The amendments to the Constitution are evidence that the Constitution
A) is flexible
B) changes only in wartime
C) is finally perfect
D) gives people too much power
  • 19. The Supreme Court
A) can change the Constitution.
B) must be obeyed except by the President.
C) has the final say over whether a law is constitutional.
D) cannot overturn its earlier decisions.
  • 20. Which statement does NOT describe what the colonists usually meant by religious freedom?
A) Colonists could disagree with the Anglican church.
B) People could belong to any Christian church.
C) People would not be punished for joining the Presbyterian church.
D) Non-Christians would be free to practice their religions.
  • 21. The Magna Carta is still important today because
A) it still protects the English nobles.
B) it is England’s constitution.
C) it was an important step toward establishing rights that no government can take away.
D) it lists the rights of England’s kings and queens.
  • 22. Which was NOT a reason for revising the Articles of Confederation?
A) Congress could not enforce the laws.
B) Congress had already agreed on a new form of government.
C) Congress could not tax.
D) Congress could not settle disputes between states.
  • 23. On the question of the slave trade, the delegates
A) could not reach agreement.
B) agreed to end it in 1808.
C) agreed that the national government could not end it before 1808.
D) agreed that each state should end it by 1808.
  • 24. Which of the following is NOT a goal set forth in the Preamble to the Constitution?
A) to provide for the common defense
B) to promote the general welfare
C) to create a bicameral legislature
D) to establish justice
  • 25. The main argument in favor of the Bill of Rights was that it would
A) make the Constitution more like the Magna Carta.
B) test whether the amendment process worked.
C) win more public support for the new government.
D) limit the constitutional powers of the federal government.
  • 26. All of the following are true about the powers of state government EXCEPT
A) none are shared with the national government.
B) they are part of the compromise called federalism.
C) the U.S. Constitution does not specifically list them.
D) states alone have the power to set up public school systems.
  • 27. State constitutions
A) usually do not include a bill of rights.
B) are less detailed than the national Constitution.
C) were models for the national Constitution.
D) cannot be amended.
  • 28. A common argument for strong state governments is that, compared to the federal government, they are
A) better able to serve their citizens’ needs.
B) better able to solve problems involving many states.
C) less corrupt.
D) more likely to provide equal opportunities.
  • 29. Seats in state legislatures are apportioned on the basis of the
A) wealth of the districts.
B) area of the districts.
C) population of the districts.
D) needs of the districts.
  • 30. One main difference between state legislatures and Congress is that
A) all state legislators are volunteers.
B) state legislators are appointed by the governor.
C) citizens in some states can propose and pass laws.
D) state legislatures cannot propose constitutional amendments.
  • 31. Most state tax revenue comes from
A) income and sales taxes.
B) property and income taxes.
C) sales and excise taxes.
D) excise and property taxes.
  • 32. The greatest source of executive power is the governor’s
A) role as commander in chief of the National Guard.
B) power to enforce laws.
C) power to change the state constitution.
D) budget-making role.
  • 33. Local governments are created by
A) the state government.
B) the local voters.
C) the U.S. Constitution.
D) a board of supervisors.
  • 34. The weak-mayor plan
A) requires direct election of the mayor by voters.
B) gives executive power to the city manager.
C) is one type of commission plan.
D) gives both legislative and executive power to a council.
  • 35. Local governments spend the most money on
A) schools
B) parks
C) roads
D) jails
  • 36. Education is paid for by
A) state governments.
B) local government and the federal government.
C) local governments.
D) local, state, and federal governments.
  • 37. Zoning is the power of local government to
A) provide for public safety.
B) divide power among city, state, and federal governments.
C) make rules for land use.
D) make sure that restaurants meet health standards.
  • 38. A job of the local planning commission is to
A) set goals for land use.
B) set a city’s spending goals.
C) decide what form of government a city should have.
D) attract new businesses to a community.
  • 39. To pay for the services they provide, local governments
A) dependentirelyonpropertytaxes.
B) can never collect income taxes
C) depend on state and federal funds.
D) can collect any taxes they want.
  • 40. Which is NOT a way that local governments cooperate?
A) providing emergency services
B) operating jails
C) combining their city councils
D) building hospitals
  • 41. Local, state, and federal governments disagree about all of the following EXCEPT
A) that no one level of government can meet all citizens’ needs.
B) who will decide what kinds of services to provide.
C) how to spend grant money.
D) how to spend grant money.
  • 42. The governors in many states have less power than the President to
A) veto bills.
B) influence lawmaking.
C) make the budget.
D) appoint top executive branch officials.
  • 43. The first unit of local government to form in the colonies was the
A) city
B) township
C) county
D) special district
  • 44. Capital includes
A) tools and factories.
B) time and energy
C) knowledge and skills.
D) soil, minerals, and water.
  • 45. In a market economy, economic choices are NOT affected by
A) profit seeking
B) central parking
C) competition
D) bargaining
  • 46. Most economic systems of the world today are
A) mixed economies.
B) traditional economies
C) command economies
D) market economies
  • 47. A command economy is
A) largely based on choices made by the government.
B) largely based on choices made by producers and consumers.
C) able to meet all the wants of its people.
D) not based on choices.
  • 48. The economy of the United States is
A) not based on choices.
B) largely based on choices made by producers and consumers.
C) largely based on choices made by the government.
D) able to meet all the wants of its people.
  • 49. Which of the following steps is NOT part of the circular flow of economic activity?
A) Individuals work for wages.
B) Union members strike for higher wages.
C) Producers sell goods for money.
D) Consumers pay money for goods.
  • 50. According to the law of demand, when the price of a commodity goes up
A) people will usually buy more of it.
B) the supply curve will slope down.
C) people will usually buy less of it.
D) the demand curve will slope up.
  • 51. According to the law of supply, when the price of a good goes up
A) producers will want to make more of it.
B) the supply curve will slope down.
C) the demand curve will slope up.
D) producers will want to make less of it.
  • 52. People who start a business take a risk in return for
A) rent, wages, and interest.
B) goods and services.
C) money borrowed from the bank.
D) the hope of earning a profit.
  • 53. Entrepreneurs are important in a market economy because they
A) take risks to start new businesses.
B) make decisions about who should get goods and services.
C) keep corporations from getting too large.
D) provide interest on investments.
  • 54. The major costs of running a business usually include
A) shares of stock.
B) wages, rent, and interest.
C) profit.
D) the market price.
  • 55. Most products, profits, and jobs in the United States are created by
A) sole proprietorships
B) partnerships
C) corporations
D) stockholders
  • 56. American workers formed labor unions because
A) immigrants were taking their jobs.
B) they needed work.
C) they wanted control over working conditions
D) their jobs required special skills.
  • 57. When unions and employers meet to reach agreement on wages and working conditions, it is called
A) a boycott.
B) collective bargaining
C) strikebreaking.
D) a sit-down strike.
  • 58. Labor unions have played a key role in bringing about all of the following gains EXCEPT
A) the shift from a manufacturing to a service economy.
B) minimum wage laws.
C) laws protecting the safety of workers.
D) banning child labor.
  • 59. Workers have a basic conflict with employers because
A) Employers want to keep costs high.
B) Workers want to keep profits high.
C) Employers want to increase profits
D) Workers want to limit wages.
  • 60. The first steps in learning how to manage your money include all of the following EXCEPT
A) knowing what your expenses will be.
B) understanding stocks.
C) understanding your income.
D) knowing what your goals and values are
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