Test Bank
to accompany
Edwards s Wattenberg s Lineberry
Government in America:
People, Politics, and Policy, 14/e
A. Lanethea Mathews-Gardner
Muhlenberg College
Longman
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Test Bank to accompany Government in America: People, Politics, and Policy, 14/e, by Edwards, Wattenberg, and Lineberry.
Copyright © 2009 Pearson Education, Inc.
All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. Instructors may reproduce portions of this book for classroom use only. All other reproductions are strictly prohibited without prior permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles
and reviews.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10——11 10 09 08
ISBN: 0-205-68435-1
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter 1 Introducing Government in America 1
Chapter 2 The Constitution 43
Chapter 3 Federalism 99
Chapter 4 Civil Liberties and Public Policy 155
Chapter 5 Civil Rights and Public Policy 211
Chapter 6 Public Opinion and Political Action 267
Chapter 7 The Mass Media and the Political Agenda 315
Chapter 8 Political Parties 359
Chapter 9 Nominations and Campaigns 415
Chapter 10 Elections and Voting Behavior 469
Chapter 11 Interest Groups 521
Chapter 12 Congress 577
Chapter 13 The Presidency 629
Chapter 14 The Congress, the President, and the Budget 681
Chapter 15 The Federal Bureaucracy 735
Chapter 16 The Federal Courts 783
Chapter 17 Economic Policymaking 837
Chapter 18 Social Welfare Policymaking 885
Chapter 19 Policymaking for Health Care and the Environment 935
Chapter 20 National Security Policymaking 981
Chapter 21 The New Face of State and Local Government 1035
iii
Copyright © 2009 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Longman.
CHAPTER 1: Introducing Government in America
1.1 -- The questions in this section appear only in this printed Test Bank and in the Computerized Test Bank.
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS
1. According to Michael Delli Carpini and Scott Keeter, political knowledge is important because it
a. fosters civic virtues.
b. helps citizens identify policies that would benefit them.
c. promotes active participation in politics.
d. All of the above
e. None of the above
Answer: d
Bloom’s level: Knowledge
Page reference: 5
2. Who claimed that there has never been, nor ever will be, a people who are politically ignorant and free?
a. Thomas Jefferson
b. Franklin D. Roosevelt
c. Ronald Reagan
d. Bill Clinton
e. George W. Bush
Answer: a
Bloom’s level: Knowledge
Page reference: 5
3. According to Michael Delli Carpini and Scott Keeter, all of the following are strong reasons for staying informed about political affairs EXCEPT
a. fostering civic virtue.
b. helping citizens identify policies that will benefit them.
c. easing the burden placed on journalists and media organizations charged with educating the public.
d. promoting active participation in politics.
e. helping citizens incorporate policy information into their voting behavior.
Answer: c
Bloom’s level: Knowledge
Page reference: 5-6
4. Which of the following statements about American youth is FALSE?
a. In a 2007 nationwide survey, only 37 percent of college freshman said that “keeping up with politics” was an important priority for them.
b. Political interest among college students rose to record heights following September 11th, surpassing levels of interest among college students of the 1960s.
c. American youth are more likely to be informed about politics than are older Americans.
d. All of the above
e. Both b and c
Answer: e
Bloom’s level: Knowledge
Page reference: 4
5. Which of the following statements is TRUE of the relationship between age and political knowledge as suggested by data from the National Election Studies shown in Figure 1.2?
a. Americans aged 45-65 had higher levels of political knowledge in 2004 than in 1964.
b. Americans younger than age 30 had higher levels of political knowledge in 2004 than they did in 1964.
c. Since 1964, all Americans’ political knowledge has decreased.
d. Since 1964, all Americans’ political knowledge has increased.
e. Americans age 65 and older display higher levels of political knowledge in 2004 than they did in 1964.
Answer: c
Bloom’s level: Analysis
Page reference: 5 (Figure 1.2)
6. Which of the following statements is FALSE of age and political knowledge, as shown in Figure 1.2?
a. In 1964, there was virtually no relationship between age and political knowledge.
b. In 1964, Americans under the age of 30 ranked higher on measures of political knowledge than did senior citizens.
c. In 2004, young people gave fewer correct answers to political knowledge questions than did older Americans.
d. Young people in 2004 are less knowledgeable than older Americans.
e. Young people in 2004 are more knowledgeable than older Americans.
Answer: e
Bloom’s level: Analysis
Figure 1.2
7. Which of the following is TRUE of voter turnout in the United States?
a. People over 65 have turned out to vote at a higher rate than young Americans since the early 1970s.
b. Young Americans have increased voter participation in the early twenty-first century, but still vote at lower rates than they did in the early 1970s.
c. In 2004, young Americans surpassed a record of voter turnout, set earlier in the 1970s.
d. Both a and b are true.
e. None of the above is true.
Answer: a
Bloom’s level: Analysis
Page Reference: 6
8. Which of the following statements helps explain the link between youth voter turnout and changes in media communication and technology?
a. The current generation is the first to grow up in a media environment with few shared experiences.
b. The proliferation of television channels makes it easier for young Americans to avoid exposure to politics.
c. Most young Americans have not developed habits of following the news.
d. All of the above
e. A and b only
Answer: d
Bloom’s level: Comprehension
Page reference: 7
9. The institutions and processes through which public policies are made for a society are collectively called
a. government.
b. the separation of powers.
c. federalism.
d. power.
e. politics.
Answer: a
Bloom’s level: Knowledge
Page reference: 8
10. Which of the following is NOT a part of the national government?
a. Congress
b. Presidency
c. Judiciary
d. Federal administrative agencies
e. Interest groups
Answer: e
Bloom’s level: Knowledge
Page reference: 8
11. Harold Lasswell’s definition of politics is
a. “who gets what, when, and how.”
b. “what gets done, then, and now.”
c. the authoritative allocation of the Gross National Product, or GNP.
d. voting in a duly constituted election.
e. joining a political party.
Answer: a
Bloom’s level: Knowledge
Page reference: 9
12. The who of politics includes voters, candidates, groups and parties; the what refers to the
a. media organizations that cover voters, candidates, groups, and parties.
b. institutions that respond to voters, candidates, groups, and parties.
c. substance of politics and government—benefits and burdens.
d. procedures through which voters, candidates, groups, and parties get what they want.
e. winners and losers.
Answer: c
Bloom’s level: Analysis
Page reference: 10
13. ______is the process by which policy comes into being and evolves over time.
a. Democracy
b. The policymaking system
c. A constellation
d. The bureaucracy
e. Government
Answer: b
Bloom’s level: Knowledge
Page reference: 10
14. The media usually focus on the ____ of politics.
a. “who”
b. “what”
c. “when”
d. “how”
e. “why”
Answer: a
Bloom’s level: Comprehension
Page reference: 10
15. Which of the following best describes a linkage institution?
a. A channel through which people’s concerns become a political agenda
b. A location to express a political opinion
c. Formation of a special interest group
d. An environment where one learns about the political process
e. A gathering of people to represent a public opinion
Answer: a
Bloom’s level: Knowledge
Page reference: 11
16. Which of the following is an example of a linkage institution?
a. Political parties
b. Interest groups
c. The presidency
d. All of the above
e. Both a and b
Answer: e
Bloom’s level: Application
Page reference: 11
17. Which of the following is a linkage institution?
a. USA Today
b. The president’s cabinet
c. The House of Representatives
d. The ambassador to France
e. All of the above
Answer: a
Bloom’s level: Application
Page reference: 11
18. The ______describes those issues that attract serious attention from public officials and policymakers.
a. backburner
b. policy agenda
c. bureaucracy
d. policymaking process
e. gatekeeper
Answer: b
Bloom’s level: Knowledge
Page reference: 11
19. Which of the following is NOT a policymaking institution established by the Constitution?
a. Congress
b. The presidency
c. The courts
d. The media
e. Both c and d.
Answer: d
Bloom’s level: Knowledge
Page reference: 12
20. Another name for a law passed by Congress is a(n)
a. budgetary choice.
b. regulation.
c. bill.
d. congressional statute.
e. presidential action.
Answer: d
Bloom’s level: Knowledge
Page reference: 12
21. Public policy
a. is specifically defined as government action.
b. only relates to democracies.
c. is not relevant unless it is coupled with political culture.
d. includes all decisions and nondecisions made by government.
e. None of the above
Answer: d
Bloom’s level: Comprehension
Page reference: 12-13
22. A law passed by Congress and adoption of a regulation by an agency are both examples of
a. public policies.
b. interest groups.
c. red tape.
d. exercises in public opinion.
e. majoritarian politics.
Answer: a
Bloom’s level: Comprehension
Page reference: 12
23. The U.S. troop invasion of Iraq resulted from a
a. congressional statute.
b. presidential action.
c. court decision.
d. budgetary choice.
e. regulation.
Answer: b
Bloom’s level: Application
Page reference: 12
24. What kind of public policy involves the legislative enactment of taxes and expenditures?
a. Congressional statute
b. Presidential action
c. Court decision
d. Budgetary choice
e. Regulation
Answer: d
Bloom’s level: Application
Page reference: 12
25. Public policy
a. consists of laws passed by Congress.
b. includes what government chooses NOT to do.
c. involves making decisions.
d. All of the above
e. None of the above
Answer: d
Bloom’s level: Knowledge
Page reference: 12-13
26. According to The Communist Manifesto, the specter haunting Europe was
a. democracy.
b. military dictatorship.
c. communism.
d. freedom.
e. liberalism.
Answer: c
Bloom’s level: Knowledge
Page reference: 13
27. Enlightened understanding, inclusion, and majority rule are
a. among Robert Dahl’s five criteria for democracy.
b. impossible to achieve in the United States.
c. incompatible with pluralist politics.
d. second in importance to equality in voting and citizen control of the agenda.
e. of little consequence to the United States’ constitution.
Answer: a
Bloom’s level: Comprehension
Page reference: 14-15
28. Which of the following statements is TRUE?
a. The authors of the U.S. Constitution were wary of democracy and doubted the ability of ordinary Americans to make informed judgments about what government should do.
b. Most people in most democracies around the world believe that although democracy has its faults, it is the best form of government.
c. Government “by the people,” is literally impossible in the U.S.
d. All of the above
e. Both a and b
Answer: d
Bloom’s level: Knowledge
Page reference: 13-14
29. Free speech and a free press are essential to which principle of traditional democracy theory?
a. Equality in voting
b. Effective participation
c. Enlightened understanding
d. Inclusion
e. Citizen control of the agenda
Answer: c
Bloom’s level: Comprehension
Page reference: 14-15
30. The basic principles of traditional democratic theory include all of the following EXCEPT
a. equality in voting.
b. effective participation.
c. government control of information.
d. inclusion.
e. citizen control of the agenda.
Answer: c
Bloom’s level: Comprehension
Page reference: 14-15
31. Which principle of traditional democracy theory is violated in circumstances in which the wealthy have influence far exceeding what would be expected based on their numbers?
a. Equality in voting
b. Effective participation
c. Enlightened understanding
d. Inclusion
e. Citizen control of the agenda
Answer: e
Bloom’s level: Application
Page reference: 14-15
32. The principle that, in a democracy, choosing among alternatives requires the majority’s desire to be respected is called
a. majority rule.
b. minority rights.
c. representation.
d. pluralism.
e. enlightened understanding.
Answer: a
Bloom’s level: Knowledge
Page reference: 15
33. Pluralist theory suggests that, in the United States,
a. society is governed by an upper-class elite.
b. too many influential groups cripple government’s ability to govern.
c. many groups vie for power with no one group dominating politics.
d. Congress is stronger and more influential than the presidency.
e. because most citizens fail to pay attention to serious issues, government has become an elite institution.
Answer: c
Bloom’s level: Comprehension
Page reference: 15
34. The theory that argues that group competition results in a rough approximation of the public interest in public policy is
a. hyperpluralist theory.
b. balance of power theory.
c. elite and class theory.
d. pluralist theory.
e. bureaucratic theory.
Answer: d
Bloom’s level: Comprehension
Page reference: 15
35. The notion that, in politics, the desires of the people should be replicated in government through the choices of elected officials is called
a. minority rights.
b. majority rules.
c. representation.
d. pluralism.
e. political participation.
Answer: c