PS4700 American Political Thought Practice Test

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• In state-level policy decisions, direct democracy tools like initiative and referendum are commonly used to decide which areas?
• What is the role of civic virtue in republican theory?
• What key changes did the New Deal bring to federal power and the economy?
• How did Ralph Waldo Emerson contribute to American political thought?
• Which thinker is associated with praising democratic institutions and civil associations as a hallmark of American democracy?
• How did the incorporation doctrine extend the Bill of Rights to apply against the states?
• Which thinker highlighted systemic racial inequality and the color line in American democracy?
• Which plan introduced by William Patterson featured a unicameral legislature with equal representation among states?
• Which description best captures Marshall's approach to constitutional interpretation?
• Which author wrote Leviathan and argued for a strong sovereign to escape the state of nature?
• Which thinker argued that political power should be divided among three types of government: republics, monarchies, and despotisms, with checks and balances and separation of powers?
• Which thinker emphasized natural rights and manhood suffrage, prioritizing political rights over property rights?
• What is the main impact of Jefferson's endorsement of religious liberty and the wall of separation on constitutional thought?
• Which amendments are associated with abolition and expanded suffrage?
• Which concept embodies the idea that a Bill of Rights would limit federal power?
• The Putney Debates of 1647 discussed voting rights and the future political system of which country?
• What are the central provisions of the 14th Amendment?
• Which group argued that the Constitution needs a Bill of Rights to protect against the federal government?
• Which early modern figure argued that political rights should be prioritized over property rights and supported manhood suffrage?
• Under the new framework, the executive branch is structured as a single national office separate from the legislature.
• What is the primary purpose of checks and balances in Federalist No. 51?
• What did Tocqueville mean by 'tyranny of the majority' and the role of civil associations?
• How do libertarianism and liberalism differ in their approaches to rights and government?
• Which issue encompassed the 3/5 compromise, moratorium on importation of slaves, and the fugitive slave clause?
• In Hobbes's view, the natural condition of mankind is a state of what?
• Which figure is associated with Federalist Puritan traits—Austerity, work-ethic, sumptuary laws—and with Separation of Powers plus Checks and Balances?
• Who is primarily credited with drafting the Virginia Bill of Rights?
• Edward Coke is associated with which idea?
• Who is primarily associated with the Mirror Theory as its author?
• What is the significance of the Civil Rights Movement's philosophy of nonviolence?
• Which faction argued that states already possess Bills of Rights in some form, making a federal Bill of Rights less necessary?
• Which amendments collectively abolished slavery and defined citizenship and equal protection?
• What did the Three-Fifths Compromise determine, and what did it affect?
• Which figure is said to believe that consenting to government is not necessary for rule and that natural hierarchy justifies political authority?
• Which thinker is associated with the idea of 'tyranny of the majority' and the role of civil associations?
• How do Thoreau's ideas about civil disobedience relate to American political thought?
• Debates over church-state separation influence policy areas in modern American politics. Which area is least directly influenced by these debates?
• What is the difference between the "Living Constitution" and "Originalism" in constitutional interpretation?
• Which statement characterizes the Virginia Bill of Rights according to the notes?
• During the pamphlet wars, which pamphlet was authored by John Dickinson?
• Which constitutional development extended civil liberties against state action through the incorporation doctrine?
• Which document announced formal separation from Britain and justified it through natural rights and consent of the governed?
• Public Happiness refers to what concept?
• What is a key impact of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 on the political landscape?
• Which practice has enabled broad delegation by Congress while recognizing limits?
• What is originalism and what is living constitution in constitutional interpretation?
• Medicare and Medicaid were central to which policy era's initiatives?
• The New Jersey Plan, referenced in the material, was supported by which figure?
• What is direct democracy, and what forms does it take at the state level in the United States?
• What is James Madison's argument for an extended republic, and what limits does it face?
• Compare Jeffersonian republicanism and Hamiltonian liberalism in their visions of liberty and economic policy?
• Imperium in Imperio presents a view on federalism stating that which arrangement better preserves state autonomy?
• What is the name of the plan that aimed to redistribute land to prevent concentration of land and power, ensuring broadly shared political and economic power?
• Which plan proposed that the House would elect the Senate?
• What were the goals and outcomes of Reconstruction, and how did Black Codes relate to that era?
• Under the Great Compromise, how were representation and power distributed between the two chambers of Congress?
• Which Boston lawyer challenged British customs officers in 1761 for searching colonists' homes under broad warrants and hinted at judicial review?
• Which economic principle advocates minimal government interference in the market?
• Which figure is associated with the idea that people are in a state of nature and government should be limited, with the legislature able to replace a tyrannical executive?
• Which theologian's beliefs include predestination and the sovereignty of God, along with emphasis on Scripture and church-state cooperation?
• Which group argued wealth comes primarily from agriculture and advocated laissez-faire, influencing Adam Smith?
• Which thinker is associated with endorsing a mixed regime and church authority over governance?
• Which figure argued that the colonies were legally under Parliament's authority, resisting British laws was unlawful, and that economic protests would hurt the colonies?
• Which Chief Justice is associated with McCulloch v. Maryland and Marbury v. Madison?
• What best explains the Civil Rights Movement's nonviolent philosophy in terms of political reform?
• Which concept discusses federalism and the idea of 'an empire within an empire' at the state level?
• What term describes a series of printed pamphlet debates between Patriots and Loyalists about British rule, rights, and independence, including Common Sense and Letters From a Farmer in Pennsylvania?
• What characterizes American conservatism as a distinct tradition?
• What term describes the British claim that colonists were represented in Parliament even though they did not elect members?
• The Jeremiad is a Puritan sermon describing a call to reform; it argued the community had drifted away from its founding religious mission. Which best describes it?
• Which policy stance best describes Economic Nationalism?
• What term refers to the traditional political and legal rights English subjects possessed under the crown, such as trial by jury and due process?
• What concern did Anti-Federalists raise about a strong national presidency under the proposed Constitution?
• Which English religious group sought to reform the Church of England and was known for moral discipline and political/religious freedom (including John Winthrop and Nathaniel Ward)?
• Shays' Rebellion occurred in Massachusetts and helped spark what political development?
• During the English Civil War (1642–1649), what was a central issue?
• Rawls's difference principle holds that social and economic inequalities are permissible only if they benefit which group?
• How did the 'clear and present danger' test evolve into the modern standard of protecting political speech?
• Which political philosophy advocates a limited government role and a so-called nightwatchman state?
• The Mirror Theory posits what relationship between government and society?
• How did Reaganomics redefine economic policy in the United States?
• John Calvin disliked democracy and supported which type of regime, with authority concentrated in the church?
• According to Aristotle, what are the three pure forms of government and their corresponding corrupt forms?
• Which pair of names is given as an author associated with the idea that colonists were under Parliament's authority and economic protests would harm the colonies?
• What is the difference between pluralist and majoritarian theories of political power?
• In which procedure does one house cut and the other house choose?
• How do dual federalism and cooperative (marble cake) federalism differ in theory and practice?
• Which figure is described as reading Leviathan and writing Commonwealth of Oceana, proposing republic and rotations in office?
• How has the idea of American exceptionalism evolved in political thought from the founding to the present?
• Which constitutional principle involves distributing governmental power across branches and providing checks and balances?
• Natural Aristocracy refers to leaders who rise due to?
• How did the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 reshape American politics?
• What impact did Dred Scott v. Sandford have on citizenship and slavery in the United States?
• Nathaniel Ward was openly against religious toleration. Which work is associated with this stance?
• How did Cold War liberalism shape civil liberties and economic policy in mid-20th-century America?
• The term for a military force composed of ordinary citizens rather than professional soldiers is?
• Alexander Hamilton's economic vision is best described as which concept?
• How does the concept of a nation differ from an empire?
• What is the significance of the 19th Amendment in American political history?
• One major issue during the formation of the new government concerned how enslaved people would be counted for representation in Congress.
• Under the Articles of Confederation, the central government was
• Which model emphasizes Reason as the basis for balancing interests?
• What was the significance of the Great Compromise for the structure of Congress?
• Which policy direction is most closely associated with Jeffersonian republicanism?
• Which group were English Protestants who aimed to reform the Church of England, live morally strict lives, and sought religious/political freedom (including John Winthrop and Nathaniel Ward)?
• One key Anti-Federalist criticism of the proposed Constitution was the absence of what protection?
• Which political theorist is associated with The Commonwealth of Oceana and rotations in office?
• Which term describes the Protestant doctrine that justification is by faith alone?
• What concept did W. E. B. Du Bois describe as the internal sense of looking at oneself through the eyes of a racist society?
• Which statement describes the ratification process for the Constitution as noted in the materials?
• How does the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause contribute to civil rights jurisprudence?
• Which plan, advocated by Madison and presented by Edmund Randolph, called for a stronger national government with three branches and a bicameral legislature based on population?
• What is the name of the idea that rulers may be resisted, claiming God's authority as ultimate?
• Which era is most associated with the expansion of the administrative state and regulatory agencies?
• What are the main aims of the Great Society programs?
• What is the structure of Congress in the new government?
• Which principle states that the Constitution is the supreme law of the land?
• Which figure is described as Puritan and moderate, first governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony, and describing the colony as a 'City Upon a Hill'?
• What does the phrase "wall of separation between church and state" refer to in American political thought?
• Which historian argued that the Constitution was designed to protect the economic interests of elites, especially property owners?
• The Nightwatchman State is best described as?
• According to Machiavelli, stability requires what else besides good laws?
• What principle holds that the main powers of government should be divided among branches so that no one person or group can gain too much control?
• What best describes Marshall's jurisprudence regarding the Constitution?
• What is the Non-Delegation Doctrine, and how has it limited congressional delegation to administrative agencies?
• Which term best describes a political entity in which a people govern themselves as a single political community?
• Which constitutional interpretation is more likely to justify changing constitutional meaning in response to social evolution?
• Which thinker emphasized transcendentalism and self-reliance shaping democratic ideals?
• Which standard replaced the 'clear and present danger' test, providing stronger protection for political speech?
• How did the Progressive Era expand the administrative state and explain the rationale?
• Which Supreme Court case upheld implied powers and federal supremacy?
• The Madisonian Republic is an example of which governance model?
• How does Federalist No. 51 describe checks and balances and the separation of powers?
• How does the concept of popular sovereignty manifest in the American political tradition?
• Which group advocated for ratifying the Constitution and favored a strong national government?
• Which pair emphasizes informed public opinion and media shaping political outcomes and accountability?
• What term describes Hobbes's idea that political authority arises from a covenant with a sovereign to escape the state of nature?
• What is John Rawls's theory of justice as fairness and its two principles?
• What role did John Dewey assign to education and democracy in his pragmatic philosophy?
• Ward Democracy is best described as?
• Which outcome is associated with the expansion of federal enforcement following the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965?
• Which policy areas were emphasized by the Great Society programs?
• Which nationalist elitist wrote The Continentalist advocating a stronger national government and regulation of commerce?
• Which decision established judicial review in the United States?
• Which meeting focused on fixing the issues of the Articles of Confederation and designing a new national government?
• How did Lincoln's use of executive power during the Civil War illustrate federal emergency powers?
• Which term appears in the Taxation Debate as a form of democracy?
• The Madisonian Republic is characterized by which features?
• The Levellers were a reform movement in England that advocated which political change?
• Which figure helped write the Articles of Confederation and argued that British taxes were illegal under British law, citing "Letters From A Farmer in Pennsylvania"?
• Which plan proposed three branches of government with a bicameral legislature where representation in the lower house is based on population and the upper house is elected by the lower house?
• Mercantilism is most closely associated with which idea?
• The concept of separation of powers and checks and balances is associated with which figure?
• What is the significance of the Commerce Clause in expanding federal power, exemplified by Gibbons v. Ogden?
• Which term describes a political entity where a central authority rules many territories that may not govern themselves?
• Compare Nozick's libertarian critique of distributive justice with Rawls's theory of justice.
• Which case established federal authority over interstate commerce by interpreting the Commerce Clause?
• Which term describes governance that relies on representation and checks and balances to manage factions?
• What is civic republicanism and how does it differ from pure liberal individualism?
• In what year were the Putney Debates held?
• Which view is associated with Ireton/Cromwell as described in the notes?
• What is the central claim of Federalist No. 10 about factions in an extended republic?
• How did Tocqueville and Du Bois provide different analyses of American democracy and race relations?
• The phrase "Letters From A Farmer in Pennsylvania" is associated with which figure, known for arguing that British taxes are illegal under British law?
• The Ancient Constitution holds that English rights existed how?
• What event in Massachusetts sparked a call for a Constitutional Convention due to debt and currency issues?
• Divine Right of Kings asserts that?
• Parliament and the King refers to a conflict in 17th-century England over sovereignty between which institutions?
• Which concept holds that believers are free from human-imposed religious rules through faith in Christ?
• Under Freeholder Suffrage, which voters were eligible?
• In Paine's Common Sense, which concept is described as the Mirror Theory equating representation with democracy?
• How does public opinion and media function in democratic theory according to Madison, Dewey, and others?
• Which constitutional changes were driven by abolition and suffrage movements?
• Which philosopher is described as founder of Rhode Island, preaching religious toleration and a high wall of separation of Church and State?
• Which work is associated with a radical call for independence and a republic without monarchy?
• What is the difference between equality of opportunity and equality of outcome?
• Which plan introduced by William Patterson proposed a unicameral legislature with equal representation for states and gave Congress commerce power and an executive committee chosen by Congress?
• What did Madison describe the Bill of Rights as?
• James Harrington argued that political power is derived from what source, according to his political theory?
• Who was W. E. B. Du Bois and what concept did he develop regarding self-perception in a racist society?
• Which individual strongly defended the power of the states and supported the New Jersey Plan, ultimately leaving the Constitutional Convention?
• Who was a leading activist who argued for civil liberties and popular political rights during the English Civil War era?
• How did McCulloch v. Maryland fortify federal supremacy and interpret the Necessary and Proper Clause?
• In Montesquieu's framework, small states are associated with which type of regime?
• Which statement best describes Mercantilism?
• In the large republic concept, what is a key function of protecting liberty?
• Which scholar stressed civic virtue and believed in Separation of Powers and the pursuit of Public Happiness, viewed through a progressive lens?
• Which statement best contrasts liberalism with republicanism?
• Which Virginia political leader authored the Virginia Bill of Rights and helped draft a new constitution but refused to sign because no Bill of Rights?
• Who became famous for arguing that people have the right to resist tyrannical rulers and that government exists to serve the public good, differing from Calvinist thought?
• Which Virginian figure is noted for opposing the Constitution at the convention due to the absence of a Bill of Rights?
• In liberalism, what is emphasized regarding governance?
• Which concept states that people consent to be governed and surrender some freedoms in exchange for security and order?
• Which Federalist paper argues that a large republic can control factions by distributing power among many competing interests?