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 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.






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






3. The rights of an individual to own - use - rent - invest in - buy - and sell property.






4. 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.






5. Legislative act inflicting punishment - including deprivation of property - without a trial - on named individuals or members of a specific group.






6. Philosophy proposing that judges should interpret the Constitution to reflect current conditions and values.






7. Providing automatic increases to compensate for inflation.






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






9. The Supreme Court has ruled that individuals - groups - and parties can spend unlimited amounts in campaigns for or against candidates as long as they operate independently from the candidates. When an individual - group - or party does so - they are






10. Promoting a particular position or an issue by interest groups or individuals but not candidates. Much issue advocacy is often electioneering for or against a candidate and - until 2004 had not been subject to regulation.






11. Promoting a particular position or an issue paid for by interest groups or individuals but not candidates. Much issue advocacy is often electioneering for or against a candidate - and until 2004 had not been subject to any regulation.






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






13. The difference between the revenues raised annually from sources of income other than borrowing and the expenditures of government - including paying the interest on past borrowing.






14. A system of government in which the legislature selects the prime minister or president.






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






16. Democratic and civic habits of discussion - compromise - and respect for differences - which grow out of participation in voluntary organizations.






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






18. The joint listing of the presidential and vice presidential candidates on the same ballot as required by the Twelfth Amendment.






19. An imbalance in international trade in which the value of imports exceeds the value of exports.






20. Government by the people - both directly or indirectly - with free and frequent elections.






21. The power of a court to refuse to enforce a law or a government regulation that in the opinion of the judges conflicts with the U.S. Constitution or - in a state court - the state constitution.






22. Censorship imposed before a speech is made or a newspaper is published; usually presumed to be unconstitutional.






23. Agreement between a prosecutor and a defendant that the defendant will plead guilty to a lesser offense to avoid having to stand trial for more serious offense.






24. Loss of tax revenue due to Federal laws that provide special tax incentives or benefits to individuals or businesses.






25. A rise in the general price level (and decrease in dollar value) owing to an increase in the volume of money and credit in relation to available goods.






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






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






28. Clause in the Fifth Amendment limiting the power of the national government; similar clause in the Fourteenth Amendment prohibits the state governments from depriving any person of life - liberty - or property without due process of law.






29. The formal instructions that government issues for implementing laws.






30. A combination of entitlement programs - paid for by employer and employee taxes - that includes retirement benefits - health insurance - and support for disabled workers and the children of deceased or disabled workers.






31. Championed by Ronald Reagan - presumes that the power of the federal government is limited in favor of the broad powers reserved to the states.

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32. Governance according to the expressed preferences of the majority.






33. The portion of the Federal budget that is spent on programs - such as Social Security - that the president and Congress are unwilling to cut.






34. A formal - public agreement between the United States and one or more nations that must be approved by two thirds of the Senate.






35. A tax on increased value of the product at each stage of production and distribution rather than just at the point of sale.






36. The rule of precedent - whereby a rule or law contained in a judicial decision is commonly viewed as binding on judges whenever the same question is presented.






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






38. 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.






39. Literacy requirements some states imposed as a condition of voting - generally used to disqualify black voters in the South; now illegal.






40. An electoral district in which voters choose one representative or official.






41. Legislative or executive review of a particular government program or organization. Can be in response to a crisis of some kind or part of routine review.






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






43. A jury of 12 to 23 persons who - in private - hear evidence presented by the government to determine whether persons shall be required to stand trial. If the jury believes there is sufficient evidence that a crime was committed - it issues an indictm






44. The distribution of individual preferences or evaluations of a given issue - candidate - or institution within a specific population.






45. A policy-making alliance among loosely connected participants that comes together on a particular issue - then disbands.






46. The principle of a two-house legislature.






47. A philosophy that encourages individual nations to act on their own when facing threats from other nations.






48. Elections in which voters elect officeholders.






49. Clause in the Fifth Amendment limiting the power of the national government; similar clause in the Fourteenth Amendment prohibiting state governments from depriving any person of life - liberty - or property without due process of law.






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