Foundational Documents Test

What State Constitution became the biggest model for the United States Constitutuion?

• Virginia Constitution
• Massachusetts Constitution
• New York Constitution
• Pennsylvania Constitution

Popular sovereignty is the idea that...

• the government operates independently of the people's will.
• the people have no role in the governance of the state.
• the authority of a state and its government is created and sustained by the consent of its people.
• the authority of a state is derived from historical traditions.

Who wrote the constitution of Massachuesetts that was adopted in 1780?

• John Adams
• George Washington
• James Madison
• Thomas Jefferson

What was the major weakness of the Articles of Confederation?

• The central government had full control over trade.
• Each state had equal representation in Congress regardless of size.
• The Articles allowed for a strong executive branch.
• The central government lacked the power to tax or to enforce laws.

What event made Americans realize that the Articles of Confederation left the central government dangerously weak?

• The signing of the Declaration of Independence
• The War of 1812
• The Constitutional Convention
• Shays' Rebellion

The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 did which of the following? Click all that apply.

• It established a framework for governance and state admission in the Northwest Territory.
• It created a national bank for the Northwest Territory.
• It established a military presence in the Northwest Territory.
• It outlawed slavery in the Northwest Territory.

Under the Articles of Confederation, Congress was set up as what type of legislature?

• bicameral
• federal
• unicameral
• confederal

What is a bicameral legislature?

• A bicameral legislature is a type of executive branch.
• A bicameral legislature has three chambers.
• A bicameral legislature is a legislative body with two chambers.
• A bicameral legislature is a system of direct democracy.

The Constitution has 7 articles, but what precedes them?

• The Preamble
• The Articles of Confederation
• The Declaration of Independence
• The Bill of Rights

Which Article in the Constitution concerned ratification?

• Article V
• Article III
• Article VII
• Article I