More Sample Questions
1. A legislature passes a law to prohibit private automobiles after January 1, 2010. Individuals who
purchased a car before March 15, 2008, the day the law was passed and signed by the chief
executive, may keep that car after 2010. All other cars must be off the road in 2010. The law is
published and when enforced, is applied against all individuals. What aspect of the rule of law
may be violated in this scenario?
a. Generality
b. Prospectivity
c. Due process
d. Consent
e. Publicity
f. No rule of law is violated.
2. Locke’s second treatise included all of the following except:
a. Concept of a social contract
b. Government relies upon the consent of the governed
c. Right of revolt
d. Separation of power
e. It included all of a-d.
3. Which of the following would be the most likely policy of a mercantilist society?
a. Free international trade
b. Restriction of exports goods
c. Prohibition of technology from leaving the country
d. Prohibition of gold imports
e. Free market in labor
4. As described by Adam Smith, all of the following are likely advantages of a free market economy
except:
a. Distributes income equally across the population
b. Controls self-interest
c. Self-interests are guided to achieve the common good
d. Allows for specialization and trade
e. Competition prevents monopoly power
5. The Declaration of Independence includes all of the following except:
a. Accepts Locke’s view of sovereignty
b. Accuses the British Parliament of acts of tyranny
c. Claims that equality of all men is a self-evident truth
d. Accuses King George of dissolving colonial legislatures
e. Declaration contains all of a-d.
6. According to City Upon a Hill, state governments during and after the revolution were marked
by all of the following except:
a. Violations of the rule of law
b. Legislative tyranny
c. Constitutional drift
d. Domination by a particular interest or faction
e. All of a-d were problems of state governments in this period.
7. The Articles of Confederation were characterized by which of the following?
a. An independent federal judiciary
b. A chief executive officer
c. Federal taxes
d. Resolved western land claims
8. James Madison contributed all of the following to the Constitution except:
a. Developed the idea of a bicameral legislature to represent states and people.
b. Kept notes of the convention
c. Developed the large republic argument
d. Managed the passage of the Bill of Rights post ratification
e. Helped write the Federalist Papers to help ratification in NY.
9. The Constitution was designed to:
a. Reduce the power of slaveowners
b. Increase the power of the national government while limiting that power
c. Increase the enumerated rights of the states
d. Reduce the power of the large states over the small states
e. None of the above.
10. Which of the following is not true of the Constitution?
a. Article 1 enumerates the powers of the legislative branch
b. Article 3 creates a federal judiciary that is independent, once appointed
c. Article 2 enumerates the powers of the presidency
d. Article 6 makes the laws and treaties passed by the U.S. government dominant over the
states.
e. Article 5 provides an amending process.
f. All of the above are true of the Constitution.
11. The country of Montebello develops a Constitution with a parliament which chooses the chief
executives of the government. The Constitution contains a Bill of Rights and limits on the power
of the government. Among the rights, any group of citizens may form a political party and seek
the votes of the people. In this situation we would predict:
a. Several political parties will be competitive and have representation in the parliament.
b. Governing coalitions would be formed before each election and voters will choose
among them.
c. After the election, governing coalitions will be formed regardless of the number of
political parties.
d. After an election, a governing coalition will be formed if no party has a plurality in
parliament.
e. After an election a governing coalition will be formed if no party has a majority in
parliament.
f. a and c
g. a and d
h. a and e
12. All of the following are true of the way the U.S. treated the unsettled land to the west except:
a. The West was surveyed with a grid pattern to allow for ownership on a small scale.
b. The “colonial” approach was taken for western states making them subservient to the
more settled eastern states.
c. Common people held the dream of moving westward to own land.
d. Turner argued that the American democracy was shaped by the existence of a frontier.
e. All of the above were true of the west.
13. Which of the following are true of U.S. Slavery?
a. Slavery was profitable
b. Slaves were highly productive
c. Slaves lacked incentives to work hard and were not productive.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
d. The South depended on slavery for a significant part of its income.
e. Most of the slaves brought from Africa to the western hemisphere came to the U.S.
f. a,c,e
g. a,b,d
h. c,e
i. a and b
The Civil War and its aftermath caused all of the following changes except:
a. 14th amendment
b. Federalism was clarified.
c. Creation of ICC commission to regulate railroads
d. Republican party solidified its role as one of the two major parties
e. All of the above
f. a and b
g. b and d
h. a, b and d
i. a and c
The rise of government was aided by:
a. War
b. Perceived market weaknesses such as economic injustice
c. Income tax amendment
d. Regulation of markets started during the New Deal
e. All of the above
f. a and b
g. b, c, and d
h. c and d
Which of the following amendments reduce the filters of consent?
a. 17th amendment
b. 19th amendment
c. 22nd amendment
d. 25th amendment
e. All of the above
f. a and b
g. a and c
h. b and d
The power of the Supreme Court cannot be checked by:
a. Judicial reinterpretation overturning a previous decision
b. Amendment added to the Constitution
c. Re-drafting of laws to meet constitutional objections.
d. Law passed by Congress and signed by the President defining what is constitutional
e. All of the above may check the power of the Court.
Which match of a market weakness and a problem is incorrect?
a. Oil spill-negative externality
b. Inflation-recession
c. War on terror-public good
d. OPEC sets oil production quotas—monopoly
e. Side effects of prescription drugs—imperfect information
A market economy would be characterized by all of the following except:
a. Economic competition
b. Money used in exchange
c. Exchanges that benefit both parties to the exchange
d. Exchanges made that meet everyone’s basic needs
e. Well-defined property rights
f. Specialization and trade according comparative advantage
20. Voting serves what functions in a democracy?
a. Provides consent for the rule of law
b. Checks the power of government
c. Aligns the interests of candidates and voters
d. Gives a single individual influence over government.
e. All of the above.
f. a and b
g. a, b and c