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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. A veto exercised by the president after Congress has adjourned; if the president takes no action for 10 days - the bill does not become law and does not return to Congress for possible override.






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






4. Weakening of partisan preferences that points to a rejection of both major parties and a rise in the number of independents.






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






6. The inclination to focus on national issues - rather than local issues - in an election campaign. The impact of the national tide can be reduced by the nature of the candidates on the ballot who might have differentiated themselves from their party o






7. Compromise between northern and southern states at the Constitutional Convention that three-fifths of the slave population would be counted for determining direct taxation and representation in the House of Representatives.






8. A dispute growing out of an actual case or controversy and that is capable of settlement by legal methods.






9. Attempting to overthrow the government by force or use violence to interrupt its activities.






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






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






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






13. The precise legal definition of how government will implement a policy.






14. The residents of a congressional district or state.






15. Programs that the Federal government requires States to implement without Federal funding.






16. A government agency or commission with regulatory power whose independence is protected by Congress.






17. Clause of the Constitution (Article I - Section 10) originally intended to prohibit state governments from modifying contracts made between individuals; for a while interpreted as prohibiting state governments from taking actions that adversely affec






18. The process by which individuals screen out messages that do not conform to their own biases.






19. 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.






20. Agency that administers civil service laws - rules - and regulations.






21. International organization derived from the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) that promotes it free trade around the world.






22. Constitutional arrangement in which power is distributed between a central government and subdivisional governments - called states in the United States. The national and the subdivisional governments both exercise direct authority over individuals.






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






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






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






26. Quality or state of a work that taken as a whole appeals to a prurient interest in sex by depicting sexual conduct in a patently offensive way and that lacks serious literary - artistic - political - or scientific value.






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






28. Agreement signed by the United States - Canada - and Mexico in 1992 to form the largest free trade zone in the world.






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






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






31. 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.






32. Government regulation of property so extensive that government is deemed to have taken the property by the power of eminent domain - for which it must compensate the property owners.






33. 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.






34. Assigning police to neighborhoods where they walk the beat and work with churches and other community groups to reduce crime and improve relations with minorities.






35. A collection of people who share a common interest or attitude and seek to influence government for specific ends. Interest groups usually work within the framework of government and try to achieve their goals through tactics such as lobbying.






36. The right to renounce one's citizenship.






37. Power of a government to take private property for public use; the U.S. Constitution gives national and state governments this power and requires them to provide just compensation for property so taken.






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






39. A minor party founded by Ross Perot in 1995. It focuses on national government reform - fiscal responsibility - and political accountability. It has recently struggled with internal strife and criticism that it lacks an identity.






40. A grouping of human beings with distinctive characteristics determined by genetic inheritance.






41. Established rules and regulations that restrain government officials.






42. 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.






43. A requirement the federal government imposes as a condition for receiving federal funds.






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






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






46. A decision by the president not to spend money appropriated by Congress - now prohibited under Federal law.






47. Segregation resulting from economic or social conditions or personal choice.






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






49. A meeting of local party members to choose party officials or candidates for public office and to decide the platform.






50. A technique of Congress to establish federal regulations. Direct orders must be complied with under threat of criminal or civil sanction. An example is the Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972 - barring job discrimination by state and local gover







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