Columbia College
Oakdale Campus
Political Science 10: Constitutional Government
Midterm Examination
Part 1: Short Response (40-points)
In one paragraph, briefly discuss how each of the following 5 terms applies to government in the United States or to the American political tradition. As appropriate, cite one or more specific examples to aid in your definition. Simoncini will select the 5 terms.
Chapters 1-2
Discuss in detail two compromises of the Constitutional Convention
English Bill of Rights (1689)
Explain the Electoral College and how it works in presidential elections
Explain the process of amending the Constitution
Proxy British officials and colonial legislatures
Shays’ Rebellion including the concept of stay acts
Weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation
Chapters 3-4
Block grants
Categorical Grants
Devolution
Dual Federalism
Federal mandates and unfunded federal mandates
Horizontal Federalism
The Supremacy Clause with an example of how it has been loosely applied in the past or
Chapter 5
Economic (fiscal) conservatism/liberalism vs. social conservatism/liberalism
Linkage Institutions
Polarization
Political Efficacy
Political predisposition
Political socialization
Rational public
Salience
Soccer Mom Vote
Chapter 6
Horse-race-journalism
Informal Rules of Journalism
Infotainment
The CNN Effect
The Fourth Estate
Thomas Nast
Yellow Journalism
Chapter 7
Federalist Paper 10
Private Interests vs. Public Interests
Disturbance theory
Single issue voting
The Outside Game vs. the Inside Game
Actual representation vs. virtual representation
Iron Triangle vs. Issue Network
Part 2: Essay (60-points) Respond to the following prompt by writing an essay that thoroughly and fully develops the topic, including using specific examples to support your points.
How did the early history of England’s North American colonies (including how the people in the colonies maintained or adapted English political traditions) and the early history of the United States (prior to 1787) factor into the creation of the United States Constitution with its ideas of popular sovereignty, limited government, its system of representative government based on a separation of powers and checks and balances, and its system of federalism? In your response, cite specific historic examples that you believe the Founders factored in as they created the Constitution. Also discuss how the often vague nature of the Constitution has allowed it to be interpreted different ways by different people over the years and provide at least one example of how that vague nature was used to create specific institutions within the government of the United States.