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Q:
In the 1900s a number of states included provisions in their state constitutions creating a method to allow a state's voters to pass laws directly without having to go through the state legislature. These measures are referred to as
A.referendum.
B.veto.
C.canvass.
D.solicitation.
E.legislation override.
Q:
Many state constitutions were rewritten between the American Revolution and the Civil War. Which of the following is NOT one of the common changes made among the states to their constitutions?
A.provisions for the popular election of state officials including judges
B.strengthened the powers of the governor
C.extended suffrage by removing property ownership as a qualification for voting
D.the appointment of legislative representatives by political parties
E.greater democratization of state institutions
Q:
Which of the following would NOT be one of the common themes of most state constitutions and the U.S. Constitution?
A.Power emanates from the people.
B.The people have the power to change the constitution.
C.The Constitution can be amended.
D.The power to raise and equip armies is a given.
E.Early state constitutions placed greater power in the legislative branch than the executive branch.
Q:
How do state constitutions normally differ from the U.S. Constitution?
A.State constitutions deal only with the criminal law and rights of the accused.
B.State constitutions are generally more wordy and more specific on policy issues.
C.State constitutions are very simple documents that give a general outline for state government.
D.The U.S. has one constitution; some states have more than one constitution.
E.State constitutions rely on the U.S. Constitution to guarantee rights to its citizens
Q:
What is the only restriction placed on a state constitution by the U.S. Constitution?
A.The state may not have royal titles.
B.The state must guarantee allegiance to the Untied States.
C.Neither the state constitution nor the state's laws can conflict with the U.S. Constitution.
D.The state may not raise an army.
E.There are no restrictions since the state is sovereign.
Q:
The fundamental law governing the structure and activities of state and local government is called
A.traditionalistic culture.
B.moralistic culture.
C.individualistic culture.
D.the state constitution.
E.state administrative code.
Q:
The 50 states have several things in common. Which of the following is NOT one of the common components shared by all state governments?
A.a state constitution
B.a judicial system
C.a democratically elected state legislature
D.a two-chamber legislative branch
E.an elected governor
Q:
How is the final approval authorized when admitting new states into the United States?
A.Each branch (executive, legislative, and judicial) must give its approval to the new state.
B.All existing state governments must vote to support the new state.
C.The American people must hold a vote to approve the admission of a new state.
D.There is no approval on the receiving side, only the potential state must vote to be admitted.
E.After the potential state sets up a proper governmental structure, Congress simply passes a bill that needs the usual presidential signature.
Q:
Under the Articles of Confederation in the new United States, what was a critical problem with arrangement of states' powers?
A.States were forced to recognize the autonomy of other states.
B.Individual states retained too much power which severely weakened the central government.
C.States had no separate power apart from the federal government.
D.State governments did not have a bill of rights to protect their citizens.
E.State governments were required to depend on federal courts to settle their internal disputes.
Q:
Through what structure or organization did the 13 British colonies in America cooperate with each other prior to the American Revolutionary War?
A.The colonies worked together as a single legislative entity under the British crown.
B.Several individual colonies, especially those less populated, formed loose alliances to share resources.
C.The colonies were 13 sovereign nations.
D.Each colony acted independently, having its own court system, legislative body, and governor.
E.Each colony was controlled totally by British government and had no individual decision-making authority.
Q:
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis in 1932 referred to the states as "laboratories of democracy." Which of the following would NOT be one of the explanations for Justice Brandeis's description?
A.If a state does not experiment with a right, then its denial may be fraught with serious consequences to the nation.
B.A single state may try novel social and economic experiments without risk to the rest of the country.
C.States are subordinate to the federal government and should be expected to test an issue for the federal government.
D.States may experiment with differing ideological orientations on the same issue with one being more liberal and the other more conservative.
E.The success or failure of an initiative within a state may be justification for its nationwide adoption or rejection.
Q:
Which of the following is NOT an issue that individual states have grappled with separately from the federal government?
A.legalization of marijuana
B.right to die
C.same-sex marriage
D.military draft
E.teaching of creationism in public schools
Q:
Discuss the role of the executive branch in foreign policy making
Q:
Discuss the impact of two major events and how they changed American foreign policy.
Q:
Compare and contrast containment and the Bush Doctrine of preemption.
Q:
What was the Cold War and how did it originate? Who were the major players in this era? What roles did NATO and the Warsaw Pact play? How did the Cold War end?
Q:
Describe the differences between the ideologies of isolationism, expansionism, pacifism, and internationalism. To which of these does the United States currently tend to gravitate?
Q:
In 1973 Congress passed the War Powers Resolution. Why was this law created? How have presidents responded to this legislation since its enactment?
Q:
Describe the constitutional provisions given to each branch of government in regard to foreign policy.
Q:
Describe the policy and philosophy behind the Monroe Doctrine, and explain how it fundamentally opposed the concept of isolationism.
Q:
Which of the following is not a key actor in formulating U.S. foreign policy?
A.State Department
B.Defense Department
C.National Security Council
D.Federal Bureau of Investigation
E.Joint Chiefs of Staff
Q:
The era of reduced tension and increased communication between the United States and the Soviet Union was known as
A.rapprochement.
B.dtente.
C.engagement.
D.procurement.
E.reconciliation.
Q:
The Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) is most closely associated with
A.Barack Obama.
B.Bill Clinton.
C.Ronald Reagan.
D.Jimmy Carter.
E.Dwight Eisenhower.
Q:
________ caused Americans to question the policy agenda of the containment doctrine.
A.World War II
B.The Korean War
C.The Vietnam War
D.The invasion of Panama
E.The invasion of Iraq
Q:
Identify the policy program to help rebuild the economies of war-torn Europe by sending large amounts of aid.
A.Roosevelt Corollary
B.Truman Doctrine
C.Marshall Plan
D.Harvard Plan
E.Virginia Plan
Q:
The policy adopted in 1947 to contain communist threats in regions such as the Middle East was called the
A.Roosevelt Doctrine.
B.Truman Doctrine.
C.Churchill Doctrine.
D.Dead Reds Doctrine.
E.Marshall Plan.
Q:
The international organization created to keep the peace after World War I was the
A.World Peace Federation.
B.International Peace Council.
C.Carnegie Endowment for Peace.
D.League of Nations.
E.United Nations.
Q:
President ________ led the U.S. into World War I.
A.Roosevelt
B.Wilson
C.Harding
D.Coolidge
E.Hoover
Q:
What propelled the United States into World War I?
A.British trade and taxation policies toward the United States.
B.The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
C.The invasion and subsequent occupation of France.
D.Widespread violations of human rights in Europe.
E.Germany's policy of unrestricted submarine warfare.
Q:
Which of the following is most consistent with the principle of isolationism?
A.Truman Doctrine
B.Marshall Plan
C.Bush Doctrine
D.Participation in the United Nations
E.Refusal to join the League of Nations
Q:
Which president pledged that the United States would oppose any attempt by European states to extend political control into the Western Hemisphere?
A.Thomas Jefferson
B.John Adams
C.James Monroe
D.Andrew Jackson
E.George Washington
Q:
Which of the following is a foreign policy power held by Congress?
A.Ordering troops into combat
B.Signing treaties
C.Funding the army
D.Appointing ambassadors
E.Nominating the defense secretary
Q:
The Framers divided foreign policy powers between
A.the Democrats and the Republicans.
B.Congress and the Supreme Court.
C.Congress and the president.
D.the president and the Supreme Court.
E.the states and the federal government.
Q:
What is isolationism?
A.The reluctance to become involved in military conflicts in the remote corners of the world
B.America's willingness to intervene in the foreign affairs of rogue nations even if other countries are unwilling to participate
C.A national policy of avoiding participation in foreign affairs
D.The belief that the best way to counter terrorism is to improve the economic well-being of foreign nations
E.The position of the United States as the only surviving superpower
Q:
In his farewell address, ___________ warned the nation against entanglement in foreign alliances.
A.John Adams
B.Thomas Jefferson
C.Abraham Lincoln
D.George Washington
E.Theodore Roosevelt
Q:
Which nation controls a land mass of nearly six million square miles and maintains one of the world's most powerful military threats due to its nuclear arsenal?
A.China
B.the Russian Federation
C.Iran
D.Iraq
E.Brazil
Q:
What is the name for the 1993 economic policy meant to liberalize global trade by lifting trade barriers such as protective tariffs and investment restrictions?
A.dtente
B.NAFTA
C.protectionism
D.isolationism
E.expansionism
Q:
China is a _____ nation that is also a crucial market for U.S. goods because it contains _____ of the world's population.
A.terrorist; one-tenth
B.Communist; one-fifth
C.socialist; one-sixth
D.democratic; one-fourth
E.theocratic; one-eighth
Q:
What is considered the fundamental risk of military pre-emptive actions?
A.They place the military in an offensive position rather than a defensive one.
B.Such tactics against another country rarely succeed in stopping the undesired behavior.
C.They can only be successful in countries that lack the capacity to retaliate.
D.They place individual soldiers in dangerous situations.
E.Such actions are almost always doomed to fail from the start.
Q:
The assumed right of the military to use advance strikes to stop rogue states from developing weapons of mass destruction is called
A.nation building.
B.the pre-emption doctrine.
C.the Monroe Doctrine.
D.the Powell Doctrine.
E.the counterpoint tactic.
Q:
Political scientist John Mueller assessed the role of the military in foreign relations and the public's acceptance of that role. Which of the following is Mueller's argument in this regard?
A.The isolationist vein that runs predominantly through American collective ideology is contrary to the American practice of using its troops as international peacekeepers.
B.The public pays little attention or shows little concern regarding military deployments.
C.Americans have a strong tolerance for all types of military action.
D.If they are not being killed, American troops can remain in peacekeeping or other ventures virtually indefinitely with little public criticism.
E.The American public has very low tolerance for long-term deployment of troops in any situation.
Q:
Political scientist John Mueller assessed the risks taken by presidents in developing and implementing foreign policy initiatives. Which of the following represents Mueller's argument?
A.Presidents must exercise prerogatives in foreign policy in order to appear decisive to the American public.
B.The advantage to a president of a success in minor foreign policy ventures is marginal; the disadvantage to a president of a failure in such a venture is more than marginal.
C.The risk of avoiding military action is always greater than that of initiating military action.
D.A policy initiative will always have some level of negative repercussion.
E.The disadvantage to a president is that success in foreign policy will meet with hostility from foreign citizens, whereas failure brings hostility of American citizens.
Q:
At the height of the Cold War, to what percentage of the overall federal budget did defense spending increase?
A.10 percent
B.15 percent
C.40 percent
D.60 percent
E.90 percent
Q:
What is the term used for the vast network of defense industries in the United States, such as manufacturers of weapons, missiles, aircraft, submarines, and their bureaucratic allies? As a whole it maintains a keen interest in foreign policy making that is concerned with defense and national security.
A.civilian military influence
B.AFL-CIO
C.military-industrial complex
D.aerospace industry
E.academic/industrial alliance
Q:
Though the CIA still functions as an intelligence gathering agency, in recent years there have been concerns that the CIA is poorly suited to coordinate intelligence coming from multiple parts of government. This was magnified after the attacks of September 11, 2001. How did Congress respond to this lack of intelligence coordination?
A.delegated the duties to the Department of State
B.moved the Central Intelligence Agency under the direction of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
C.abolished the CIA and distributed its duties to the U.S. Naval Operations
D.created a new cabinet-level office of Director of National Intelligence (DNI)
E.created a national division of the Central Intelligence Agency
Q:
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) was created by the National Security Act of 1947. Which of the following is NOT an official duty of the CIA?
A.coordinating worldwide intelligence information affecting national security
B.performing public relations functions for the U.S. government
C.disseminating propaganda on behalf of the U.S. government
D.engaging in covert activities at the direction of the president
E.assassinating rogue dictators
Q:
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was created in 2002. Which of the following federal agencies is NOT subordinate to this department?
A.U.S. Coast Guard
B.U.S. Border Patrol
C.Federal Emergency Management Agency
D.U.S. Foreign Embassy Service
E.U.S. Secret Service
Q:
Ideological individuals who advocate that diplomacy rather than military action should be the preferred means of protecting U.S. interests abroad are often referred to as
A.hawks.
B.republicans.
C.realists.
D.socialists.
E.isolationists.
Q:
Politicians and presidential advisors who call for aggressive military action wherever hostile forces may be found are often referred to as
A.doves.
B.hawks.
C.realists.
D.precursors.
E.pacifists.
Q:
The National Security Council (NSC) was established in 1947. What is its purpose?
A.It is an advisory body to the president, coordinating information about foreign, military, and economic policies that affect national security.
B.It is an advisory board to the United Nations on issues related to U.S. interests.
C.It is a division of the Department of Homeland Security that is charged with tracking terrorist cells in the U.S.
D.It is a military advisory body to the president, making recommendations on military strategy and use of military resources to meet U.S. objectives.
E.It is a federal auditing agency that ensures the military is at peak performance and is utilizing resources appropriately.
Q:
What is the presidential advisory group that includes the chief military personnel of all four branches of the armed forces?
A.Joint Chiefs of Staff
B.President's Cabinet
C.Homeland Security
D.Joint Executive High Command
E.West Point Advisory Team
Q:
What is the executive body, headed by a civilian presidential appointee, that plays a critical role in helping to formulate and implement U.S. foreign policy through management of the nation's military?
A.Joint Chiefs of Staff
B.Department of State
C.Department of the Army
D.Department of Defense
E.United Nations
Q:
Which of the following is NOT a program of the U.S. Department of State?
A.foreign aid to developing nations
B.oversight of homeland security
C.contributor and policy participant to the World Bank
D.diplomatic missions to other countries
E.oversight of all foreign embassies
Q:
Who served as secretary of state under George H.W. Bush and later as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (the highest military position in the United States.) under George W. Bush? In the latter position, this individual advocated military action only as a last resort when faced with overwhelming force.
A.Madeline Albright
B.Colin Powell
C.Condoleeza Rice
D.George Schultz
E.Hugh Robinson
Q:
Which agency has the primary responsibility for most foreign relations contacts and policy programs?
A.Department of Homeland Security
B.Attorney General's Office
C.Department of Defense
D.Department of State
E.United States Embassies
Q:
Though the balance of powers between the legislative and executive branches has been the source of controversies, there are positives to having a presidential dominance over foreign policy. Which of the following is such a positive element?
A.The president has the ability to act quickly and unilaterally to stop the formation of upstart governments that are hostile to U.S. interests.
B.A presidential dominance allows for the U.S. government to act immediately and decisively in response to developments abroad.
C.A large body such as Congress is rarely capable of reaching a suitable solution in the necessary amount of time.
D.Congress rarely gets beyond partisan politics in making decisions on foreign policy, so a strong president needs to act in the place of Congress.
E.Allowing Congress to override presidential prerogatives only serves to encumber the process of responding decisively.
Q:
In 1993 Congress enacted, with approval of the Clinton Administration, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Though it has been politically controversial at times within the United States, what is the purpose of NAFTA?
A.to lift trade barriers such as protective tariffs and investment restrictions between the United States, Canada, and Mexico
B.to strictly guard American economic interests in the global market
C.to form economic alliances that would later lead to cooperative military cooperation against common threats
D.to lift trade barriers to China and East Asian markets in order to increase American exports into those regions
E.to force American companies to increase trade with Mexico
Q:
With the collapse of the Soviet Union's status as superpower in the early 1990s, the global community witnessed the rise a new economic force that is often opposed to the United States in ideology and political goals. What is this nation?
A.Canada
B.Mexico
C.Vietnam
D.Taiwan
E.China
Q:
The end of the Cold War brought an end to direct tensions between the two superpowers. In its place arose an initiative characterized by conflicts in Third World countries, a war on terrorism, and threats of nuclear attack from rogue nations and terrorists. In 1991, President George H.W. Bush coined what term to refer to this era?
A."city on a hill"
B."thousand points of light"
C."soft diplomacy and hard reality"
D."new world order"
E."dawn of forced democracy"
Q:
Arms limitation treaties and reduced tensions with the Soviet Union in the 1970s gave way to increased tensions and confrontations in the early 1980s. President Reagan outlined a new initiative called the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), or "Star Wars," as the press dubbed it. What was the basic goal of SDI?
A.The United States, it was later determined, intended to launch pre-emptive attacks on the Soviet Union from outer space using SDI.
B.The SDI would take the realm of war into space versus the earth's surface, thus future war would destroy only equipment and not lives.
C.There would be an antimissile system based on the use of lasers and particle beams to shoot down Soviet nuclear missiles in outer space.
D.The SDI was to be a military base on the moon that could launch stealth responses to threats on earth.
E.There would be no need for infantry units, as military actions would be fought from vast distances using virtual technologies.
Q:
In the 1970s, a period of somewhat eased tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union led to several strategic arms treaties. This period of eased tension was referred to as
A.demilitarization.
B.perestroika.
C.dtente.
D.delimited nuclear treaty.
E.manifest destiny.
Q:
Which theory referred to the policy held by certain U.S. presidents, positing that the Communist takeover of Vietnam or Korea during their respective wars would lead to the fall of other Asian countries as well?
A.expansion theory
B.domino theory
C.Asian theory
D.anti-Communist theory
E.American sphere of influence theory
Q:
What was an American foreign policy following World War II that restricted Soviet power and resisted efforts to expand Communism?
A.containment
B.isolationism
C.manifest destiny
D.de-expansionism
E.strategic isolation
Q:
What was a military alliance of Eastern European nations that lay within the Soviet Union's sphere of influence?
A.Warsaw Pact
B.North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
C.Alliance of Communism
D.Strategic Air Command (SAC)
E.Alliance of the Red Star
Q:
Created in 1949, which alliance bound the United States to the military defense of Western Europe and placed it squarely at odds with the Soviet Union?
A.Warsaw Pact
B.North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
C.League of Nations
D.Strategic Air Command (SAC)
E.Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)
Q:
Out of World War II emerged two superpowers, the United States and the Soviet Union, which became locked into a half-century struggle of indirect hostilities. This struggle was referred to as
A.the Communist resistance.
B.American expansionism.
C.the Russo-European War.
D.the Cold War.
E.the East-West alliance.
Q:
What is a foreign policy that is virtually the opposite of isolationism, one that advocates economic and military actions to secure boundaries and interests worldwide?
A.expansionism
B.internationalism
C.manifest destiny
D.secularism
E.militarism
Q:
What was a proactive and aggressive action by the United States following World War II to provide $13 billion in aid to help rebuild the nations of former allies who were ravaged by the war?
A.League of Nations
B.United Nations
C.Marshall Plan
D.Warsaw Pact
E.North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Q:
Though President Wilson was instrumental in creation of the League of Nations following World War I, the United States never joined the League. Why?
A.The defeated Germany was felt to have received too many concessions from the League.
B.President Wilson quickly became disillusioned with the process of international alliances.
C.The U.S. Senate rejected Wilson's recommendation to adopt the treaty and returned the nation to an era of isolationism.
D.The United States realized that it would subordinate its military to a foreign power.
E.Other League members wanted to allow former enemy nations into the League.
Q:
President Wilson played a major role in drafting the agreement that ended World War I. What was the name of this agreement?
A.League of Nations
B.Warsaw Pact
C.NATO Accords
D.Treaty of Versailles
E.European Common Union
Q:
Though World War I began in Europe in 1914, the United States did not enter the war until 1917. What was the primary reason for this delay?
A.The United Nations had forbidden the United States to intervene.
B.The United States had no allies at the time among the European nations.
C.The United States advocated a policy of isolationism and neutrality until its shipping was directly attacked by Germany.
D.The United States saw the war as a European problem and thus stayed clear of intervention.
E.The Untied States did not have the military personnel or equipment to fight a major war.
Q:
Following a war with Mexico from 1846 to 1848, the United States acquired considerable territories and land. Which of the following modern states or parts of states was NOT acquired by the United States as a result of the Mexican War?
A.Nevada
B.California
C.Florida
D.Texas
E.Wyoming
Q:
In the 1800s and early 1900s, many Americans viewed the nation's defining ideology as acquiring lands and occupying the entire continent from ocean to ocean. What was this ideology commonly called?
A.expansionism
B.manifest destiny
C.continentalism
D.blitzkrieg
E.isolationism
Q:
Which of the following refers to the doctrine of increasing the territory or economic influence of one's own country?
A.isolationism
B.expansionism
C.manifest destiny
D.pacifism
E.militarism
Q:
In the first two decades of the twentieth century, European imperialism increased and the U.S. took action to protect its interests. As a result, which of the following nations was NOT one of those in which the United States intervened with military action or threat of action during these two decades?
A.Haiti
B.Iran
C.Nicaragua
D.Venezuela
E.Dominican Republic
Q:
The presidential proclamation in 1823 that there be no attempt to colonize North and South America by European powers and that such actions would be cause for military action was called
A.the War Powers Resolution.
B.the Monroe Doctrine.
C.the Truman Doctrine.
D.the Treaty of Versailles.
E.manifest destiny.
Q:
Which of the following is a policy that refuses to sanction any military conflict and opposes all war making?
A.isolationism
B.pacifism
C.expansionism
D.libertarianism
E.agnosticism
Q:
Which political ideology opposes American interventions in distant wars or involvement in permanent military alliances?
A.isolationism
B.pacifism
C.expansionism
D.conservatism
E.containment
Q:
What has been the response of the presidents since the passage of the War Powers Resolution in 1973?
A.They have willingly complied with the act.
B.Every president has either circumvented or ignored the act.
C.Most presidents have complied with the act but purposely wait until the end of the 60-day period before reporting to Congress.
D.The presidents who have had a cooperative Congress have complied with the act.
E.They have not had to deal with it because the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the executive branch by invalidating the act.
Q:
Which of the following was NOT a provision of the 1973 War Powers Resolution?
A.The president generally cannot wage war without congressional approval.
B.The president must seek congressional approval no later than 60 days after committing troops in an emergency.
C.The role as commander-in-chief of the armed forces was passed to the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
D.The president may commit troops to combat in emergency circumstances.
E.The president must report any hostile military actions directly to Congress.