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. Money government provides to parents to pay their children's tuition in a public or private school of their choice.






2. A government entity that is independent of the legislative - executive - and judicial branches.






3. Formal orders issued by the president to direct action by the Federal bureaucracy.






4. Presidential refusal to allow an agency to spend funds that Congress authorized and appropriated.






5. The first governing document of the confederated states drafted in 1777 - ratified in 1781 - and replaced by the present Constitution in 1789.






6. Those citizens who follow public affairs carefully.






7. People who favor national action over action at the state and local levels.






8. The process by which we develop our political attitudes - values - and beliefs.






9. The drawing of legislative district boundaries to benefit a party - group - or incumbent.






10. A system of public employment based on rewarding party loyalists and friends.






11. Trade status granted as part of an international trade policy that gives a nation the same favorable trade concessions and tariffs that the best trading partners receive.






12. Widespread agreement on fundamental principles of democratic governance and the values that undergird them.






13. The reliance on economic and military strength to solve international problems.






14. A technique of Congress to establish federal regulations. Federal grants may establish certain conditions that extend to all activities supported by federal funds - regardless of their source. The first and most famous of these is Title VI of the 196






15. Election in which voters choose party nominees.






16. A meeting of party delegates to vote on matters of policy and in some cases to select party candidates for public office.






17. The rights of all people to dignity and worth; also called human rights.






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






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






20. A policy adopted by the Bush administration in 2001 that asserts America's right to attack any nation that has weapons of mass destruction that might be used against U.S. interests at home or abroad.






21. A president's claim of broad public support.






22. The system created by Congress in 1913 to establish banking practices and regulate currency in circulation and the amount of credit available. It consists of 12 regional banks supervised by the Board of Governors. Often called simply the Fed.






23. Constitutional grant of powers that enables each of the three branches of government to check some acts of the others and therefore ensure that no branch can dominate.






24. Statement required by Federal law from all agencies for any project using Federal funds to assess the potential affect of the new construction or development on the environment.






25. Formal accusation by the lower house of legislature against a public official - the first step in removal from office.






26. The process - most notably in families and schools - by which we develop our political attitudes - values - and beliefs.






27. Primary election in which any voter - regardless of party - may vote.






28. The boost that candidates may get in an election because of the popularity of candidates above them on the ballot - especially the president.






29. Clause in the Constitution that states that 'Congress should have the power to make all laws necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers. . . .' This clause is also known as the elastic clause as is a major and significant p

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30. Special spending projects that are set aside on behalf of individual members of Congress for their constituents.






31. An agency of Congress that analyzes presidential budget recommendations and estimates the cost of proposed legislation.






32. The number of Americans who are out of work but actively looking for a job. The number does not usually include those who are not looking.






33. Unlimited amounts of money that political parties previously could raise for party-building purposes. Now largely illegal except for limited contributions to state and local parties for voter registration and get-out-the-vote efforts.






34. A congressional committee created for a specific purpose - sometimes to conduct an investigation.






35. A commission created by the 1974 amendments to the Federal Election Campaign Act to administer election reform laws. It consists of six commissioners appointed by president and confirmed by the Senate. Its duties include overseeing disclosure of camp






36. Literally - a 'friend of the court' brief - filed by an individual or organization to present arguments in addition to those presented by the immediate parties to a case.






37. A law that governs relationships between individuals and defines their legal rights.






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






39. Elections in which voters elect officeholders.






40. Election system in which each party running receives the proportion of legislative seats corresponding to its proportion of the vote.






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






42. 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.






43. An official who is expected to represent the views of his or her constituents even when personally holding different views; one interpretation of the role of legislator.






44. How voters feel about a candidate's background - personality - leadership ability - and other personal qualities.






45. The clause of the Constitution (Article I - Section 8 - Clause 3) that gives Congress the power to regulate all business activities that cross state lines or affect more than one state or other nations.






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






47. Words that by their very nature inflict injury on those to whom they are addressed or insight them to acts of violence.






48. A jury of 6 to 12 persons that determines guilt or innocence in a civil or criminal action.






49. The powers of the national government in foreign affairs that the Supreme Court has declared do not depend on constitutional grants but rather grow out of the very existence of the national government.






50. Conceives of federalism as a marble cake in which all levels of government are involved in a variety of issues and programs - rather than a layer cake - or dual federalism - with fixed divisions between layers or levels of government.