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 law that defines crimes against the public order.






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






3. Alternative means of health care in which individuals make tax-deductible contributions to a special account that can be used to pay medical expenses.






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






5. During the Great Society - the marble cake approach of intergovernmental relations.






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






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






8. An economic and governmental system based on public ownership of the means of production and exchange.






9. The power to keep executive communications confidential - especially if they relate to national security.






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






11. The legislative leader selected by the minority party as spokesperson for the opposition.






12. Remedial action designed to overcome the effects of discrimination against minorities and women.






13. Aid to the poor; 'welfare.'






14. The means by which individuals can express preferences regarding the development of public policy.






15. An election during periods of expanded suffrage and change in the economy and society that proves to be a turning point - redefining the agenda of politics and the alignment of voters within parties.






16. Interest groups organized under section 527 of the Internal Revenue Code may advertise for or against candidates. If their source of funding is corporations or unions - they have some restrictions on broadcast advertising. 527 organizations were impo






17. A theory that government should control the money supply to encourage economic growth and restrain inflation.






18. General tax on sales transactions - sometimes exempting food and drugs.






19. Those citizens who follow public affairs closely.






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






21. The political arm of an interest group that is legally entitled to raise funds on a voluntary basis from members - stockholders - or employees to contribute funds to candidates or political parties.






22. Means of communication that are reaching the public - including newspapers and magazines - radio - television (broadcast - cable - and satellite) - films - recordings - books - and electronic communication.






23. A provision in a deed to real property prohibiting its sale to a person of a particular race or religion. Judicial enforcement of such deeds is unconstitutional.






24. A company with a labor agreement under which union membership can be a condition of employment.






25. An international trade organization with more than 130 members - including the United States and the People's Republic of China - that seeks to encourage free trade by lowering tariffs and other trade restrictions.






26. 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.






27. Party leader who is the liaison between the leadership and the rank-and-file in the legislature.






28. The clause in the Constitution (Article 1 - Section 8 - Clause 1) that gives Congress the power to regulate all business activities that cross state lines or affect more than one state or other nations.






29. 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.






30. A court order forbidding specific individuals or groups from performing certain acts (such as striking) that the court considers harmful to the rights and property of an employer or community.






31. Voting by member of one party for a candidate of another party.






32. A court order requiring explanation to a judge why a prisoner is being held in custody.






33. A notion held by a nineteenth-century Americans that the United States was destined to rule the continent - from the Atlantic the Pacific.






34. 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.






35. The process by which provisions of the bill of rights are brought within the scope of the Fourteenth Amendment and so applied to state and local governments.






36. Synonymous with 'collective action -' it specifically studies how government officials - politicians - and voters respond to positive and negative incentives.






37. A technique of Congress to establish federal regulations. These sanctions permit the use of federal money in one program to influence state and local policy in another. For example - a 1984 act reduced federal highway aid by up to 15 percent for any






38. Photo opportunities set up by the candidates. The media have been accused of simplifying complicated political issues by relying on photo ops to explain them to the public.






39. Election in which voters choose party nominees.






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






41. A characteristic of individuals that is predictive of political behavior.






42. Government by religious leaders - who claim divine guidance.






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






44. A theory of international relations that focuses on the hope the nations will act together to solve international problems and promote peace.






45. Government policy that attempts to manage the economy by controlling taxing and spending.






46. Congress appropriates a certain sum - which is allocated to state and local units and sometimes to nongovernmental agencies - based on applications from those who wish to participate. Examples are grants by the National Science Foundation to universi






47. 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






48. The idea that the rights of the nation are supreme over the rights of the individuals who make up the nation.






49. The widespread belief that the United States is a land of opportunity and that individual initiative and hard work can bring economic success.






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