Test your basic knowledge |

AP Government

Subjects : civics, ap
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. A system of government in which the legislature selects the prime minister or president.






2. Candidate or party with the most votes cast in an election - not necessarily more than half.






3. Implies that although federalism provides 'a sharing of power and authority between the national and state governments - the state's share rests upon the permission and permissiveness of the national government.'






4. Federal program that provides medical benefits for low-income persons.






5. A secret ballot printed by the state.






6. Lawsuit brought by an individual or group of people on behalf of all those similarly situated.






7. A convention held in September 1786 to consider problems of trade and navigation - attended by five states and important because it issued the call to Congress and the states for what became the Constitutional Convention.






8. A minor party dedicated to the environment - social justice - nonviolence - and the foreign policy of nonintervention. Ralph Nader ran as the Green party's nominee in 2000.






9. A theory of international relations that focuses on the tendency of nations to operate from self-interest.






10. A formal agreement between the U.S. president and the leaders of other nations that does not require Senate approval.






11. Largely banned party soft money - restored a long-standing prohibition on corporations and labor unions for using general treasury funds for electoral purposes - and narrowed the definition of issue advocacy.






12. Domination of an industry by a single company that fixes prices and discourages competition; also - the company that dominates the industry by these means.






13. An agreement among two or more states. Congress must approve most such agreements.






14. Authority given by Congress to the Federal bureaucracy to use reasonable judgment in implementing the laws.






15. Governance divided between the parties - as when one holds the presidency and the other controls one or both houses of Congress.






16. Procedure for submitting to popular vote measures passed by the legislature or proposed amendments to a state constitution.






17. The tendency of presidents to learn more about doing their jobs over time.






18. In a criminal action - the person or party accused of an offense.






19. A philosophy that encourages individual nations tacked together to solve international problems.






20. Economic theory based on the principles of John Maynard Keynes stating that government spending should increase during business slumps and be curbed during booms.






21. The authority of a court to hear a case 'in the first instance.'






22. An election system in which the candidate with the most votes wins.






23. A belief that government can and should achieve justice and equality of opportunity.






24. The total output of all economic activity in the nation - including goods and services.






25. Interpretation of the First Amendment that holds that the government cannot interfere with speech unless the speech presents a clear and present danger that it will lead to evil or illegal acts.






26. A committee composed of members of both the House of Representatives and the Senate; such committees oversee the Library of Congress and conduct investigations.






27. Theory that opposes governmental interference in economic affairs beyond what is necessary to protect life and property.






28. Conservative Christians who (as a group) have become more active in politics in the last two decades and were especially influential in the 2000 presidential election.






29. A consistent pattern of beliefs about political values and the role of government.






30. A provision attached to a bill






31. A belief that limited government insures order competitive markets and personal opportunity.






32. A division of population based on occupation - income - and education.






33. Tax levied on imports to help protect the nation's industries - labor - or farmers from foreign competition. It can also be used to raise additional revenue.






34. Established by Congress in 1978 as a flexible - mobile corps of senior career executives who worked closely with presidential appointees to manage government.






35. The difference between the political opinions or political behavior of men and of women.






36. Primary election in which only persons registered in the party holding the primary may vote.






37. Powers the Constitution specifically grants to one of the branches of the national government.






38. Clause in the First Amendment that states that Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion. The Supreme Court has interpreted this to forbid governmental support to any or all religions.






39. Views the Constitution as giving a limited list of powers—primarily foreign policy and national defense—to the national government - leaving the rest to the sovereign states. Each level of government is dominant within its own sphere. The Supreme Cou






40. Through different grant programs - slices up the marble cake into many different pieces - making it even more difficult to differentiate the functions of the levels of government.






41. Divisions within society that reinforce one another - making groups more homogenous or similar.






42. A theory that is based on creating enough military strength to convince other nations not to attack first.






43. Established rules and regulations that restrain government officials.






44. An informal and subjective affiliation with a political party that most people acquire in childhood.






45. A formal written statement from a grand jury charging an individual with an offense; also called a true bill.






46. Democratic party primary in the old 'one-party South' that was limited to white people and essentially constituted an election; ruled unconstitutional in Smith v. Allwright (1944).






47. A small political party that rises and falls with a charismatic candidate or - if composed of ideologies on the right or left - usually persists over time; also called a third party.






48. The total amount of money the Federal government has borrowed to finance deficit spending over the years.






49. The Federal government's primary intelligence officer - responsible for overseeing all national intelligence agencies and providing advice to the President on terrorist threats.






50. The act of declaring party affiliation; required by some states when one registers to vote.