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CLEP American Government

Subjects : clep, civics
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. Theory that a government requires the consent of the governed.






2. A broadly based coalition that attempts to gain control of the government by winning elections in order to exercise power and reward its members.






3. James Madison proposed to deal with the threat of political factions by ______________________.






4. Article I of the Constitution establishes the ___________________ branch.






5. It the job of _________ committees of a political party to hold voter registration drives - recruit new party members and final candidates for city and county positions.






6. Government agencies that exercise quasi-judicial and quasi-legislative powers and are administratively independent of both the president and Congress (although politically independent of neither).






7. Authority based on an individual's outstanding traits - which attract followers






8. Clause in the 14th Amendment that forbids any state to deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. The 5th Amendment also imposes this limitation on the national government.






9. Information sent out in order to observe the reaction of an audience. Used by politicians who deliberately leak information on a policy change under consideration.






10. A method of amending state constitutions under which proposed constitutional amendments can be placed on the ballot if enough signatures are obtained on a petition. Almost half the states also employ the initiative on the ballot to allow voters to en






11. The number of ______________ a state receives is based on the number Representatives and Senators that the state has in Congress






12. A joint committee of Congress established to help negotiate discrepancies and gain consensus between legislation passed in each house before sending the bill to the President.






13. Colonies controlled by the British king through governors appointed by him and through the king's veto power over colonial laws.






14. This 1st amendment clause prohibits the government from making any law prohibiting the exercise of any religion






15. A policy adopted by the United States after the Second World War that assumed that if enough nuclear weapons were deployed by the United States - an enemy would not attack for fear of being destroyed in retaliation.






16. Which powers of the national government flow from its enumerated powers and from the 'elastic clause' of the Constitution?






17. The term 'Reagan Democrats' has become a generic term for






18. The 23rd Amendment guaranteed voting rights to whom?






19. Author of The Spirit of the Laws advocating balance of power in politics with liberty is dependant upon a separation of the judicial - legislative - and executive branches of government.






20. The provisions of the Constitution that divide power among three constitutionally equal and independent branches of government






21. The structure and set of regulations in place to control activity - usually in large organizations and government. it is represented by standardized procedure (rule-following) that dictates the execution of most or all processes within the body - for






22. A philosophy that Supreme Court justices and other judges should boldly apply the Constitution to social and political questions.






23. Makes sure that funds are used safely and wisely. They oversee the state's financial records






24. This contraversial 2001 law allows anti-terrorism authorities to monitor e-mail and Internet traffic in order to prevent terrorist attacks. The government argues that cyberspace is public domain and that no warrants should be needed to access informa






25. Walter DeVries and Lance Tarrance have concluded that in many elections the outcome is determined by ______________.






26. In this essay - James Madison recognized that reconciling the competing interests of various groups was what legislation was all about






27. The Articles of Confederation established a ________________ legislature.






28. In Woodson v. North Carolina - the Supreme Court struck down mandatory sentencing of capital punishment as ______________________ because it does not allow for any discretion.






29. If significant amendments are made to a bill during committee - the bill is sometimes given a new number as a _______________.






30. A court decision in an earlier case with facts and legal issues similar to a dispute currently before a court.






31. The action - or actions - taken by government to carry out a policy.






32. The right to privacy is ___________ in the Constitution.






33. In Reynolds v. US (1879) - the Supreme Court denied this right to Reynolds because his religion's practice of polygamy violated federal law.






34. A place of work in which any person may be hired provided that he or she joins the union within a specified time.






35. The separation of people by race.






36. Guarantees that citizens cannot be compelled by the government to act in a way that is contrary to their religious beliefs. (ex. Conscientious objection to military service required by the draft is the execution of ______________)






37. 14th Amendment is often used to support the right to ____________.






38. Members of this party typically include women who support liberal policies on abortion and equal pay - Jews - Catholics - Blacks and other minorities - Blue-collar working class - urban - labor unions - and intelligensia






39. Largest interest group in the US.






40. The right of the Supreme Court - under the Constitution - to hear certain kinds of cases directly - such as cases involving foreign diplomats - or cases in which one of the 50 states is a party.






41. Responsibilities include: Coordinating the nation's intelligence activities and Evaluating and disseminating intelligence that affects national security






42. This amendment includes the due process clause - the equal protection clause - and gave rights to former slaves.






43. Special courts assigned to deal with specific legislative issues such as taxes - military appeals - and international trade.






44. Practice by which voters of one party crossing over and voting in the primary of another party - effectively allowing a party to help choose its opposition's candidate.






45. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 required states in the covered jurisdiction to attain _________________ from the Attorney General before making changes to voting standards - practice - or procedure






46. The view of the majority of the Supreme Court that First Amendment rights must be weighed against the competing needs of the community to preserve order.






47. _____________ was the Democratic Party political machine that played a major role in controlling New York City politics and helping immigrants (most notably the Irish) rise up in American politics from the 1790s to the 1960s.






48. A form of city government under which a board of city commissioners is popularly elected (often on a nonpartisan ballot). The commissioners make policy as a city council - but they also run city departments as administrators.






49. While the verbiage of the 4th Amendment is vague as to what constitutes 'reasonable'. Police departments must rely on _____________; they cannot act on unfounded suspicion.






50. A system in which national and state governments are competitors with distinct powers. This system was prominent in the US from the during the 19th century until 1937.







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