Test your basic knowledge |

CLEP American Government

Subjects : clep, civics
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. Spending by the national committees of the political parties to support the election of congressional candidates is known as






2. The right to privacy is ___________ in the Constitution.






3. Elections that may lead to a basic shift in the party identification of the electorate.






4. The rules and regulations made and applied by federal regulatory agencies and commissions.






5. Presidential management model requiring the President to have strong leadership skills and a keen eye for detail. FDR and JFK were well known for this style of leadership.






6. Guarantees the right to bare arms.






7. An official document - published every weekday - which lists the new and proposed regulations of executive departments and regulatory agencies.






8. Federal grants in which the recipient has little discretion over how the money is spent. The national government sets narrowly defined rules for use of funds and often requires the states or local governments to provide matching funds. These grants a






9. Several Presidents have been elected without winning the popular vote. As a result - In 1970 and 1979 - Amendments were proposed to disband the ______________ - neither passed.






10. During the period from 1976 to 1824 - This party was lead by Alexander Hamilton and James Madison. They wanted a stronger national government that would rectify the pitfalls of the Articles of Confederation. Their supporters held a stronghold in New






11. A jury of 6 to 12 persons who determine guilt or innocence in a civil or criminal action






12. Something given in exchange for something else; swap






13. Multi-interest and often multinational corporations that - under one corporate roof - may manufacture a wide variety of products.






14. Wisconsin Republican who exploited public concern for political gain during the 1950's through freewheeling investigations of alleged Communists.






15. This amendment includes the due process clause - the equal protection clause - and gave rights to former slaves.






16. An economy in which most economic decisions result from the interaction of buyers and sellers in markets - but in which the government plays a significant role in the allocation of resources.






17. In this 1972 case - the Supreme Court established four guidelines for determining if a trial was appropriately speedy and fair: cause of delay - length of delay - affect on the outcome - and the defendant's claim to a speedy trial.






18. ____________________ define Congressional voting districts acting within constraints set down by Congress and the Supreme Court.






19. Presidential staff agency that serves as a clearinghouse for budgetary requests and management improvements for government agencies.






20. Executive check on Legislative Branch.






21. Ruling by the Supreme Court in 1954 that racial segregation in public schools violates the Fourteenth Amendment's requirement of equal protection of the laws for all persons.






22. A philosophy that the Supreme Court should avoid constitutional questions when possible and uphold acts of Congress unless they clearly violate a specific section of the Constitution.






23. An ideology that cherishes individual liberty and insists on a sharply limited government - promoting a free market economy - a non-interventionist foreign policy - and an absence of regulation in the moral and social spheres.






24. The process through which an individual acquires a set of political attitudes and forms opinions about political and social issues.






25. Since 1960 - there has been a general trend of ______________ participation in elections.






26. Committees that pull members from both the house and the senate who meet to discuss major policy issues such as economy and taxation.






27. After hearings are complete - a congressional subcommittee will usually determine a bill's future in final deliberations known as






28. Powers not specifically granted to the federal government or denied to the states belong to the states and the people






29. Method by which federal court judges may lose their position.






30. _____________ is responsible for monetary policy.






31. This group of voters historically supported Republicans - a party founded on an anti-slavery platform. During the 1930's they began supporting the New Deal policies of the Democratic party.






32. During Presidential election years or when the nation is divided on policy agenda - particularly regarding salient issues - voter turnout is _____________






33. A loose grouping of people and organizations who seek to influence policy formation.






34. Unwritten law based on custom and tradition.






35. A public assistance program established in 1965 to help pay hospital - doctor - and medical bills for people with low incomes.






36. The ______________________ were formed to unite the colonists against Britain.






37. The yearly value of goods and services produced within a country.






38. Loose - competitive relationships among policy experts - interest groups - congressional committees - and federal agencies. Many observers argue that these have replaced iron triangles.






39. In 1998 - the Supreme Court struck down the________________ law - declaring it unconstitutional - because Congress did not have the constitutional authority to hand that power to the President.






40. The proceeding before a judge in which the formal charges of an indictment or information are read to an accused person - who may plead guilty or not guilty.






41. Groups whose views serve as guidelines to an individual's opinion. See also primary groups and secondary groups.






42. A relaxation of international tensions.






43. Raise Public Awareness - Create Policy Agenda - Prioritize Agenda - Enact Policy - Public Evaluation






44. Urban or rural areas in which businesses are encouraged to locate because of tax breaks and other incentives.






45. The 1892 platform of the Populist party repudiating laissez-faire and demanding economic and political reform






46. An unwritten custom by which individual senators who belong to the same political party as the president exercise an informal veto power over presidential appointments in their states.






47. The issuance of this document by a judge requires probably cause and must be worded so as to allow for the search and seizure of specific evidence.






48. It the job of _________ committees of a political party to hold voter registration drives - recruit new party members and final candidates for city and county positions.






49. A law passed in 1966 that requires federal executive branch and regulatory agencies to make information available to journalists - scholars - and the public unless it falls into one of several confidential categories.






50. The head of a national political party