American Government 100 - Fullerton College



American Government 100 Part III

Patterson, pgs. 359-381, AG19-17

Media & Money

True or False Questions

1. The Internet has become the foundation of the candidates’ fundraising and get-out-the-vote efforts, while television remains the primary means through which candidates appeal for voters’ support. True or False

2. By the time of the presidential debates between the two major candidates, most voters have yet to make up their minds and recent history suggests that the candidate who performs well generally wins the presidency. True or False

3. It is no longer possible for members of the Senate to filibuster presidential nominees, including Supreme Court justices. True or False

4. According to Patterson, strong presidents have typically had a clear sense of where they want to lead the country and an ability to communicate that vision effectively. True or False

5. The U.S. form of executive leadership based on separation of powers was copied by European democracies. True or False

6. In a parliamentary system, the prime minister does not have to share executive authority with members of the cabinet and can ignore the latter’s advice. True or False

7. An irony of the presidency is that presidents are often most powerful when they are least experienced— during their first months in office. True or False

8. Presidents have considerable ability in the foreign policy area to act on their own, separate from what Congress might want. True or False

9. Executive agreements that presidents make on their own with foreign nations are legally binding even if the agreement conflicts with the Constitution or laws enacted by Congress. True or False

10. Because an executive agreement becomes law simply on the basis of the president’s signature, it cannot be voided by a subsequent president. False

11. In no area, however, is the president’s capacity for unilateral action clearer than in the use of military force. True or False

12. Since World War II, the United States has engaged in military hostilities more than 100 times, usually at the instigation of the president. True or False

13. Fortunately for the United States, the Bush administration was successful in finding the weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, saving us from the possibility of annihilation. True or False

14. Although the president gets most of the attention, Congress has lawmaking authority, and presidents need its cooperation to achieve their legislative goals. True or False

15. Congress has often mustered the two-thirds majority in each chamber required to override a presidential veto, so the threat of a veto is almost meaningless to Congress. True or False

16. Richard Neustadt argues that the veto is more a sign of presidential strength than weakness, because it usually comes into play when Congress has refused to go along with the president's ideas. True or False

17. No source of support is more important to presidential success than whether the president’s party controls Congress. True or False

18. At the time the Senate acquitted Clinton of impeachment charges for having an affair with Monica Lewinsky, polls indicated that most Americans believed that Clinton’s behavior constituted treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors. True or False

19. During the Vietnam War, Presidents Johnson and Nixon misled Congress, supplying it with intelligence estimates that painted a falsely optimistic picture of the military situation. True or False

20. The War Powers Act prohibits a president from sending troops into combat unless Congress immediately grants permission. True or False

21. We are simply living in an era in which Democrats dislike a Republican president (and Republicans dislike a Democratic one) even before [he] has taken a single official action. True or False

22. Presidents have tremendous control over the economy, giving them the ability to maintain public support. True or False

23. The presidents receives twice as much news coverage as Congress, giving him the ability to nurture public support. True or False

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What two states today do not apply the unit rule when it comes to distributing their electoral college votes for president? a) Georgia and New Hampshire, b) South Carolina & Vermont, c) Maine & Nebraska, b) Massachusetts and New York.

2. The following compels candidates running for president to focus on the toss-up (competitive) states: a) the unit rule, b) the plebiscite rule, c) the district election rule, d) marginal plurality rule.

3. In a presidential race, those states that conceivably could be won by either party: a) open primary, b) competitive states, c) plurality election, d) states that limit debate.

4. What amount of public funds were available to the two major nominees for president in 2016? a) $20 million, b) $50 million, c) $95 million, d) $120 million.

5. What percentage of the vote must a minor party candidate receive to be eligible for public financing? a) 3 percent, b) 5 percent, c) 10 percent, d) 13 percent.

6. Who determines the role that the vice president assumes in the American system of government? a) The Constitution since it specifies the vice-president's responsibilities, b) There has been a strong and well-developed tradition that requires the vice-president to participate in all key decision-making committees and agencies within the executive branch, c) The president, d) The Chief of Staff.

7. In 1939, in order to provide the president with the staff necessary to coordinate the activities of the executive branch, Congress created: a) The Executive Office of the President, b) The White House Administrative Office, c) The Chief Executive's Management Department, d) The Office of Executive Administration.

8. There are about how many full-time presidential appointees in Washington, D.C.? a) less than 1,000, b) more than 2,000, c) close to 3,000, d) more than 5,000.

9. When a presidential appointee is “captured” by the agency he has been assigned to administer? a) the appointee loses perspective and starts demanding that agency heads will roll, b) the president has so overwhelmed his appointee, that the latter cannot effectively function, c) the appointee simply starts to puppet what the agency wants in spite of what the president intended, d) agencies have the power to refuse a presidential appointee.

10. The following president whose personal integrity made him perhaps the most trusted president of the twentieth century: a) Richard Nixon, b) Dwight Eisenhower, c) Jimmy Carter, d) Bill Clinton.

11. In European democracies, the chief executive is: a) a member of the legislature, b) selected by the monarchy, c) appointed by the head of the Church, d) elected by a national referendum independent of party affiliation.

12. In 1981 what enabled Ronald Reagan to gain Congress' support for some of the most notable taxing and spending changes in history? a) he had large working Republican majorities in Congress, b) he came to office as a result of high unemployment and high inflation, c) his ability to circumvent Congress through threats and intimidation, d) his power to apply the line-item veto.

13. The period encompassing the first few months of a newly elected president's term in office: a) the love affair, b) the by-partisan approval stage, c) the free-blanket condition, d) the honeymoon period.

14. The fiasco that occurred the first year of John F. Kennedy’s presidency, where a U.S.-backed invasion force of anticommunist Cubans was easily defeated by Fidel Castro’s army: a) Guantanamo Debacle, b) Castro Containment, c) Bay of Pigs, d) Intelligence Catastrophe.

15. In the 1960s, political scientist Aaron Wildavsky wrote that the nation has: a) only one president when it comes to both foreign and domestic policy, b) two presidencies, one dealing with domestic policy and the other dealing with foreign policy, c) three presidencies which include, domestic, foreign, and fiscal policies, d) four presidencies, which deal with domestic, fiscal, legal, and foreign policies.

16. When comparing presidential responsibilities and power, presidents still have a slight edge in the foreign policy because: a) Congress at times will defer to presidents’ in this area in order to maintain America’s credibility abroad, b) the people insist that the president be left alone, c) the courts have ruled that foreign affairs are part of our institutional system, d) foreign policy is a more attractive arena because the media emphasizes international success stories.

17. The president has acquired the power to make treaty-like arrangements with other nations as a result of the following: a) executive agreements, b) presidential commitments, c) chief executive resolutions, d) presidential initiatives.

18. In 1937 the Supreme Court ruled that executive agreements that are signed and approved by the president: a) must also be approved by the Congress before achieving the force of law, b) are limited in scope and do not have the same authority as a treaty, c) have the same legal status as treaties, d) are unconstitutional if they deal with foreign policy.

19. In the past eight decades, presidents have negotiated over _______ executive agreements—more than 15 times the number of treaties ratified by the Senate during the same period. a) 125, b) 1237, c) 2,570, d) 17,000.

20. Unlike other federal agencies, why are the defense, diplomatic, and intelligence agencies more responsive to the president than to Congress? a) other agencies are much more dependent on private-sector assistance, b) the president has more control over agencies involved in domestic policies, c) the Congress has no ability to control the funding or oversight over these 3 agencies unlike others, d) their missions closely parallel the president’s constitutional authority as commander in chief and chief diplomat.

21. The power of the president is unrivaled when it comes to: a) educational policy, b) environmental protection, c) setting the national agenda, d) regulatory reform.

22. Soon after taking office, what action did Jimmy Carter do that established a conflict-ridden relationship with Congress? a) He refused to meet with members of the opposition party, b) He deleted a number of public works projects from his budget, c) He proposed the creation of the independent counsel to monitor the activities of members of Congress, d) He refused to respond to the Iranian hostage crisis, embarrassing America’s standing in the world.

23. After Republicans took control of Congress in 1995, Clinton's legislative success rate went from 80% to: a) below 10 percent, b) below 12 percent, c) below 40 percent, d) below 70 percent.

24. A term used to describe the situation where one party controls the presidency and both houses of Congress: a) efficient government, b) unified government, c) centralized government, d) integrated government.

25. The Budget Impoundment and Control Act of 1974 was the result of: a) Gerald Ford wanting to be more fiscally responsible, b) Lyndon Johnson abusing funds for the war effort in Vietnam, c) Richard Nixon’s practice of withholding funds from programs he disliked, d) Ronald Reagan’s efforts to provide financial and military support for the Contras in Nicaragua.

26. How many presidents have been removed from office as a result of an impeachment conviction? a) none, b) one , c) two, d) three.

27. Why did Presidents Ford, Carter, and the first President Bush lose their reelection bids? a) the economy went bad at a critical stage, b) scandal plagued these administrations, c) all 3 were horrible communicators, d) they lacked the leadership and political skills to maneuver.

28. Theodore Roosevelt's ability as president to go directly to the American people by using the press to support his program initiatives: a) the Great Communicator, b) Public Gamesmanship, c) the Bully Pulpit, d) Presidential Appeal.

Fill-in Questions

1. The Constitution specifies that the president must be

a) at least ______-_____ years old,

b) be a ________-_____ U. S. citizen, and

c) have been a U.S. resident for at least _________ years.

2. In 1964 and 1965, what enabled Lyndon Johnson to push through landmark civil rights and social welfare legislation through Congress?

a) on the strength of the ______ _______ movement,

b) the legacy of the _____________ President Kennedy, and

c) large Democratic ___________ in the House and _______.

3. Periods of presidential dominance were marked by a special set of circumstances which included:

a) a decisive _________ ________ that gave added force to the president’s leadership,

b) a compelling _________ ________ that convinced Congress and the public that

c) bold presidential _______ was needed, and

d) a president who was ________ of what was expected and ___________ policies consistent with expectations.

4. Richard Neustadt was referring to presidential power according to the following:

a) At base, it is the power to _________.

b) Like any singular notion of presidential power, Neustadt’s has ____________.

c) Presidents at times have the power to ________ and to threaten.

d) They can also appeal directly to the _________ _______ as a means of pressuring _________.

5. The process of impeaching and removing the president from office requires:

a) The House of Representatives decides by _________ vote whether the president should be impeached,

b) and the Senate conducts the ______ and then votes on the president’s case,

c) with a ____-_______ vote required for removal from office.

6. The War Powers Act requires the president to do the following when introducing troops to combat:

a) it requires the president to ________ with Congress whenever feasible before doing so and

b) requires the president to inform Congress within ___ ______ of the reason for the military action,

c) it further specifies that hostilities must end within ___ _____ unless Congress extends the period,

d) and gives the president an additional ___ _____ to withdraw the troops from hostile territory (although Congress can shorten the period).

Answers

True or False Questions

1. True

3. False

5. False

7. True

9. False

11. True

13. False

15. False

17. True

19. True

21. True

23. True

Multiple Choice Questions

1. c

3. b

5. b

7. a

9. c

11. a

13. d

15. b

17. a

19. d

21. c

23. c

25. c

27. a

Fill-in Questions

1. a) 35, b) natural born, c) 14

3. a) election victory, b) national problem, c) action, d) mindful, championed

5. a) majority, b) trial, c) two-thirds

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