AP Government Review 5

Congress adopted the War Powers Resolution to 

• give the president additional powers in the case of military emergencies
• delineate a clear chain of command in the event of nuclear war
• criticize the president for declaring war without authorization from Congress
• limit the president's authority to commit troops overseas

Which of the following types of committees deals with broad areas of public policy and can be found in both houses of Congress?

• Rules
• Select
• Joint
• Standing

Which of the following explains why any attempt to reduce Social Security benefits is difficult?

• the Supreme Court has ruled that benefits are constitutionally required
• interest groups concerned with Social Security are ineffective
• there are many voters who support Social Security
• government cannot predict the number of new retirees each year

Which of the following describes the president's Cabinet?

• it consists of career civil servants with decades of experience in government service
• its members have varying levels of influence on presidential decisions
• its members hold office for fixed terms that coincide with the president's 
• its members must be selected from among current or former members of Congress

The development and persistence of the two party system in the United States is best accounted for by

• the 12th Amendment
• proportional representation
• single member legislative districts 
• strong party loyalty of elected representatives

The concept of realignment refers to changes in 

• the US system of international alliances
• the social bases of the parties' voting support
• the media's criticism of the president and Congress
• the rate of voter participaton

Much of the steady increase in federal government expenditures since 1960 has been caused by

• increases in entitlement programs
• higher interest rates caused by an increase in the discount rate
• increased purchases of US government securities by foreign investors
• the growth of the US trade imbalance

Establishing the boundaries of the US congressional districts to give one party an advantage over another party is referred to as

• apportionment
• reapportionment
• gerrymandering
• filibustering

Congress is most likely to exert oversight of the executive bureaucracy in which of the following ways?

• directly selecting the head of an executive agency
• impeaching the head of an executive agency
• using the Court to block implementation of proposed regulations
• controlling an executive agency's annual budget

Which of the following statements about voting behavior in national elections is most accurate?

• men are more likely to vote than women
• blue collar workers are more likely to vote than are professionals
• those with less than a high school  education are more likely to vote than are college graduates
• seniors citizens are more likely to vote than are college students