Political Party

Why are PAC's formed?

• allow interest groups to pay lobbyist

• allow interest groups to contribute money to candidates and campaigns

• assign volunteers to groups that need them

• fund the mass media

The MOST important reason to look at the source of political advertising is to protect them from

• Bias

• Fraud

• Slander

• media

Which question would a citizen want to ask to determine whether a lobbyist is working on behalf of the public interest?

• Has the lobbyist worked as a public official before?

• How long has the person been a lobbyist?

• How much is the lobbyist being paid?

• What organization hired the lobbyist?

What is the best reason that press releases from a politician or a government agency are not always the best source of information about an issue?

• they are not covered by n ew outlets

• they give too much detail to be useful

• they may release too late to be useful

• they may present only on point of view about an issue

Why is it important to analyze political campaign ads carefully before choosing a candidate?

• they are designed to convince you to vote for a candidate and may not present all sides of an issue

• they are usually an afterthought for a campaign and probably do not contain up-to-date information

• they contain only propaganda and lies and should not be a factor when selecting a candidate

• they often present a balanced viewpoint of all issues and therefore can be a good source of information

What is the most important thing that a political debate can teach a voter about a candidate?

• How much support the candidate already has

• what kind of television personality the candidate has

• where the candidate stands on certain issues

• whether the candidate is comfortable on camera

What are the two main political parties in our government

• Libertarian's and Republicans

• Communist and Socialist

• Republicans and Democrats

• Green Party and Know Nothing Party

Which position would most likely be found in the Libertarian Party Platform?

• support for the Affordable Care Act

• support for absolute freedom of speech and religion

• support for higher taxation to provide more government services

• support for increased regulation of business to curb the exploitation of natural resources

What is an important difference between interest groups and political parties?

• interest groups have more members than political parties

• interest groups have platforms addressing all issues of public concern

• interest groups are organized to elect their candidates to political office

• interest groups attempt to influence government directly on particular issues

Sarah felt strongly about an issue in the news. She wrote to her representative in Congress and expressed her feeling on the issue. Then she wrote a short article for her local newspaper and sent it off.

Which statement describes Sarah's activities?

• She was acting as a lobbyist

• She was forming her own political party

• She was starting her own special interest group

• She was participating directly in government