Unit 2 Congressional Behavior Quiz

"We have before us one of the most important duties of the U.S. Senate and of the U.S. Congress, and that is to decide whether or not we will be involved in war. I think it is inexcusable that the debate over whether we involve the country in war, in another country's civil war, that this would be debated as part of a spending bill, and not as part of an independent, free-standing bill. I think it is a sad day for the U.S. Senate. It goes against our history. It goes against the history of the country."

• Senator Rand Paul, Senate Floor Speech, 2014

Which of the following statements best summarizes this excerpt from Senator Paul's speech?

• The United States should not become involved in another country's civil war

• The president should not have war-making authority except in an emergency

• The military intervention the United States is considering needs a spending appropriation

• The U.S. Senate should decide on war-like action on its merits, not along with other legislation

Which power of Congress is Senator Paul probably most concerned about based on the passage?

"We have before us one of the most important duties of the U.S. Senate and of the U.S. Congress, and that is to decide whether or not we will be involved in war. I think it is inexcusable that the debate over whether we involve the country in war, in another country's civil war, that this would be debated as part of a spending bill, and not as part of an independent, free-standing bill. I think it is a sad day for the U.S. Senate. It goes against our history. It goes against the history of the country."

• Congress's power to tax and spend

• The Senate's power to ratify treaties

• The expressed power to declare war

• The power to regulate interstate commerce

Which foreign policy reality might limit what the Senate can do in this scenario?

"We have before us one of the most important duties of the U.S. Senate and of the U.S. Congress, and that is to decide whether or not we will be involved in war. I think it is inexcusable that the debate over whether we involve the country in war, in another country's civil war, that this would be debated as part of a spending bill, and not as part of an independent, free-standing bill. I think it is a sad day for the U.S. Senate. It goes against our history. It goes against the history of the country."

• Senator Rand Paul, Senate Floor Speech, 2014

• The reserved powers clause requires House approval for military intervention

• The president's power to declare war on foreign nations overrides the Senate's power to declare war

• The Senate requires advice and consent power from the president to act in war

• The War Powers Act gives the president freedom to act with the military for a limited time

(a)   are the powers of Congress that are stated in the Constitution.

• expressed
• reserved
• implied
• concurrent

Match the following as a federal or state power

• state

• coin money

• federal

• punish crime

• state

• declare war

• state and federal

• create public schools

• federal

• create traffic laws

​ (a)   is NOT a power of Congress?

• Appointing Supreme Court Justices
• Collecting taxes
• Declaring War
• Passing laws about immigration

What is the sole factor in determining representation in the lower chamber of Congress? 

• the geographic size of the state
• the population of each individual state
• the gross domestic product of each state 
• the population of the three largest cities in each state

A senator realizes a Senate vote on an immigration bill is coming up. The senator examines public opinion polls on the issue and carefully reads her inbox for constituents' views on the bill and the issue. This senator is showing concern for which type of influence on Congressional decision-making?

• Party politics

• Caucuses

• Voters in the specific area that elects them

• The general US populous

All four of Utah’s congressional districts meet in the middle of Salt Lake County, cracking apart the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. This robs the state’s largest metropolitan area of a dedicated representative in Congress in order to ensure Republican control of all four of the state’s congressional districts. (CLC represents plaintiffs suing in Utah court challenging this map.)

This is a following example of which type of phenomenon?

• Gerrymandering

• Mandatory spending

• Discretionary spending

• Logrolling

Which of the following is NOT a role of legislative committees?

• Developing expertise about a certain topic

• Splitting up work since there is so much to be done in Congress

• Acting as gatekeepers to decide which bills will advance to the full chamber

• To make the final ruling on whether or not an existing law is constitutional