Ideas at the Heart of US Government

What year did the Second Continental Congress issue the Declaration of Independence?

• 1775

• 1781

• 1789

• 1776

What type of government did the Framers decide to create?

• Direct democracy

• Limited government

• Oligarchy

• Monarchy

Who inspired Thomas Jefferson's description of unalienable rights in the Declaration of Independence?

• John Locke

• Thomas Hobbes

• Benjamin Franklin

• George Washington

What is the main purpose of a government according to the Founders?

• To collect taxes

• To protect and uphold natural rights

• To maintain a strong military

• To regulate trade

What concept theorized by Thomas Hobbes is foundational to government?

• Natural rights

• Social contract

• Republicanism

• Popular sovereignty

What principle states that the government’s power comes from the will of the people?

• Republicanism

• Limited government

• Social contract

• Popular sovereignty

What was a famous phrase leading up to the Revolutionary War that emphasized the colonists' desire for representation?

• United we stand, divided we fall!

• No taxation without representation!

• Give me liberty or give me death!

• Liberty, equality, fraternity!

Initially, who were the only people allowed to vote in the United States?

• Men and women over the age of 21

• All men over the age of 21

• White, landowning men

• All citizens over the age of 18

What was the primary purpose of the Federalist Papers?

• To argue against the ratification of the Constitution

• To outline the failures of the Articles of Confederation

• To persuade New Yorkers to support the ratification of the Constitution

• To declare independence from Britain

Who is known as the 'Father of the Constitution'?

• George Washington

• Thomas Jefferson

• James Madison

• Benjamin Franklin