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WorksheetsCh 1@2 Test Am Gov
Total questions: 40
Worksheet time: 20mins
What is government?
the services provided a community, such as police protection, fire protection, and public health programs
the laws that protect peoples' rights and ensure the safety of a state's citizens
the institution through which a society makes and enforces its public policies
the process by which public officials are elected to and removed from office
Which of the following is the best definition of the public policies of a government?
everything a government decides to do
everything a government does related to public services
everything a government does to collect taxes
everything a government decides to do regarding foreign affairs
Which of these characteristics represents the system a state uses to make and enforce public policy?
population
sovereignty
government
territory
Which one of these explanations about the origins of states best applies to the type of political system created by the U.S. Constitution?
force theory
evolutionary theory
divine right of kings theory
social contract theory
Use the Preamble to the Constitution to answer the question.
"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."—U.S. Constitution, Preamble
Which of the following actions is one example of how the American government establishes justice?
keeping the peace within the borders of the United States
creating a set of laws and a court system
protecting the United States from foreign threats
establishing safety regulations to protect the public
Use the photo to answer the question.
In which way are the women shown on this poster demonstrating their support for the ideals of American government?
fighting on the country's behalf overseas
preserving the freedom of individuals
displaying patriotism by volunteering to serve the public good
showing good citizenship by obeying the law
Which of the following examples shows a government exercising its executive powers?
deciding whether or not a law is constitutional
.enforcing a new tax law
.making a law that alters voting requirements
settling a dispute between two branches of government
This image shows Kim Jong-un, the Supreme Leader of North Korea, surrounded by his military officers.
Which type of government does Kim Jong-un represent?
oligarchy
democracy
republic
theocracy
Use this excerpt from the text to answer the question.
"Some people insist the United States is more properly called a republic rather than a democracy."
The people who support this statement argue that the United States is a republic because in its government,
powers are divided between the executive, judicial, and legislative branches.
political power is used indirectly by elected officials, not directly by the citizens themselves.
power is shared by a central government and many State governments.
the people do not have the power to influence the decisions made by the government.
If you know that a nation uses a parliamentary system of government, but have no other information, what do you know for certain about the structure of that government?
who is allowed to participate in the governing process
the geographic distribution of power in the state
the relationship between the executive and legislative branches
that its laws must be collected in a written constitution
Use this excerpt from the text to answer the question.
"A majority of the governmental systems in the world today are parliamentary, not presidential, in form."
Which of the following explanations best explains why people support parliamentary systems?
Parliamentary systems are not democracies, so rulers can keep more power for themselves.
Parliamentary governments are better able to prevent conflict between the executive and legislative branches.
In a parliamentary system, there are checks and balances between the executive and legislative branches.
A parliamentary system allows the people to choose who will be the chief executive.
Use this quote written by the English jurist William Blackstone about the common law to answer the question.
"For it is an established rule to abide by former precedents, where the same points come again … to keep the scales of justice even and steady."
Which of the following statements is an accurate rephrasing of Blackstone's argument?
The common law is based upon the will of the people who decide what is just and what is not.
Courts should interpret each new case based mainly on the judge's personal opinions.
Only laws that are written down can be considered by the courts.
Judges have a duty to look at previous legal decisions when deciding new cases.
Use this quote by the French Enlightenment thinker Baron de Montesquieu to answer the question.
"In every government there are three sorts of power; the legislative; the executive, in respect to things dependent on the law of nations; and the executive, in regard to things that depend on the civil law."
What principle of government presented by the U.S. Constitution is Montesquieu describing?
federalism
republicanism
separation of power
sovereignty
In what way was the government of ancient Athens different from that of the United States?
Athens was a direct democracy in which citizens voted on laws themselves.
Athens was an oligarchy ruled by the wealthy members of the Council of Five Hundred.
Athens was a republic in which the people voted for their representatives.
Athens was an autocracy ruled by a dictator who had absolute power.
Which system of government was mostly closely associated with scenes like this one showing serfs working in a field?
democratic republic
feudalism
absolute monarchy
theocracy
Use the chart to answer the question.
Duties are actions a citizen is required to take. Responsibilities are actions a citizen should take. Which of the following actions is a responsibility of citizenship?
serving on a jury if called
voting in elections
paying taxes
registering for the draft
In the United States, the concept of equality means that every individual
must sacrifice his or her interests so the needs of the many can be met.
is born with as much talent and ability as everyone else.
is entitled to receive the same treatment under the law.
should receive the same share of worldly goods as everyone else.
What political theory did John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, and Jean Jacques Rousseau all contribute to
Force theory
Divine Right of Kings theory
Social Contract theory
Evolutionary theory
Which of the following is not a purpose of government set forth by the Preamble of the U S Constitution?
Form a more perfect Union
Establish Justice
Insure Domestic Tranquility
Prevent War with other nations
Our United States government has three types of power which of the following is not one of them?
Legislative
Judicial
Military
Executive
Use this quotation to answer the question.
"No freeman [person] shall be taken or imprisoned, . . . or outlawed, or banished, or in any way destroyed, unless by the lawful judgment of his peers, or by the law of the land. . . .”
—Magna Carta, 1215
Which of the following principles does this quotation from the Magna Carta explain?
guarantee of freedom of speech
guarantee of due process
prohibition against excessive fines and bail
protection of the right of the state to organize a militia
Which of the following accurately summarizes the different purposes of the First and the Second Continental Congresses?
The First Continental Congress was held to write new laws for the colonies, while the Second Continental Congress implemented those laws.
The First Continental Congress was held to write new State constitutions, while the Second Continental Congress ratified those constitutions.
The First Continental Congress was held to limit the authority of royal governors in the colonies, while the Second Continental Congress issued the Declaration of Rights.
The First Continental Congress was held to determine a response to British policies, while the Second Continental Congress governed the nation during the Revolutionary War.
Which of the following events happened FIRST?
The colonies declared their independence from Great Britain.
The States began to adopt written constitutions.
The Stamp Act Congress met in New York.
The colonies rejected Benjamin Franklin's Albany Plan of Union.
Use the quotation to answer the question.
"We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately.”
—Benjamin Franklin
What message was Franklin trying to convey to the Second Continental Congress when he spoke these words?
The thirteen colonies should make peace with Great Britain since they were much more likely to thrive as a colony than as a separate nation.
Each of the thirteen colonies should make its own trade and other agreements with Great Britain.
The thirteen colonies should work together to better their chance of success of winning independence from Great Britain.
The thirteen colonies should enlist the suppport of other countries as they negotiate with Great Britain over its colonial policies.
Which of the following MOST DIRECTLY led to the calling of the First Continental Congress?
the Stamp Act Congress
the Stamp Act
the Intolerable Acts
.the Boston Tea Party
Read the excerpt and answer the question.
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, . . .”
—The Unanimous Declaration of the Thirteen United States of America
Which of the following BEST paraphrases this statement?
People must show allegiance to their king and country throughout their lives.
People need to help others understand their basic rights as citizens.
People owe their allegiance first to God, then to the monarch.
People are born with certain rights that no one can take from them
In 1754, Ben Franklin drew this cartoon.
For what purpose did he draw it?
to unite the colonists against French and Native American attacks
to urge the colonists to fight the British after the British Tea Party
to warn the colonists about the political oppression of the British
to convince the colonists to unite against British authority
In 1643, a group of colonies banded together to form a confederation, or league of friendship against Native American groups.
Identify the areas on the map in which this Confederation was formed.
Massachusetts Bay, Plymouth, New Haven, and Connecticut
New Haven, New Netherland, and Massachusetts Bay
Rhode Island, Plymouth, and Connecticut
New Netherland, Rhode Island, Plymouth, and New Haven
The guarantee of religious liberty found in this proposed law is the sort of guarantee of individual rights that Anti-Federalists demanded be added to the Constitution.
"We the General Assembly of Virginia do enact, that no man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious Worship place or Ministry whatsoever, nor shall be enforced, restrained, molested, or burthened [burdened] in his body or goods, nor shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions or belief, but that all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain their opinions in matters of religion, and that the same shall in no wise [way] diminish, enlarge, or affect their civil capacities." —Virginia General Assembly, 1777
This resulting listing of basic liberties in the Constitution is called
the 1st Amendment.
Article V.
the Bill of Rights.
the Declaration of Independence.
Use the quotation to answer the question.
“. . . it is expedient that on the second Monday in May next a Convention of delegates who shall have been appointed by the several States be held in Philadelphia for the sole and express purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation. . . .” —The Continental Congress, 1787
This quotation is historically significant because at this meeting, the Framers
planned to write a constitution but were delayed by delegates who would not attend the convention.
debated to resolve the Articles of Confederation, but ended up voting for a new President.
organized documents to ratify the Articles of Confederation, but could not resolve the Virginia Plan.
met to address the Articles of Confederation but ended up creating a new form of government.
Use the excerpt from The Federalist essays to answer the question.
“[A] people descended from the same ancestors, speaking the same language, professing the same religion, attached to the same principles of government, very similar in their manners and customs, and who . . . have nobly established general liberty and independence.This country and this people seem to have been made for each other . . . united to each other by the strongest ties, should never be split into a number of unsocial, jealous, and alien sovereignties” —The Federalist No. 2, John Jay
Based on this excerpt, which statement best describes the Federalist view of the proposed Constitution?
The Federalists believed that similarities of the people in the United States was a source of strength and should be further strengthened by a strong national government.
The Federalists believed that similarities of the people in the United States was a weakness and could only be strengthened by a strong national government.
The Federalists believed that the variety of the people in the United States was a strength that could only be further strengthened by strong state government.
The Federalists believed that a strong national government would weaken the strength of the diversity of the American people.
Use this excerpt to answer the question.
". . . Doctor Franklin, looking towards the President’s chair, at the back of which a rising sun happened to be painted, observed to a few members near him, that painters had found it difficult to distinguish in their art a rising sun from a setting sun. ‘I have,’ said he, ‘often and often in the course of the Session . . . looked at that behind the President without being able to tell whether it was rising or setting: But now at length I have the happiness to know that it is a rising and not a setting Sun."—Notes of Debates in the Federal Convention of 1787, James Madison
Which of the following best summarizes Franklin's thoughts on the future of the new United States?
Franklin believed that the new country was doomed to fail.
Franklin believed from the outset that the new country would prosper.
Franklin never had any doubt in the ability of the delegates to create a new government and was saddened that Madison believed otherwise.
Franklin initially had some doubts about the ability of the delegates to create a government but eventually came to see a bright future for the new country.
Use the photo to answer the question.
How does the event depicted in this painting fit into the sequence of events leading to independence?
George Washington led troops across the Delaware River after Congress finished the Articles of Confederation.
George Washington led troops across the Delaware River at the same time Congress worked on the Articles of Confederation.
George Washington led troops across the Delaware River one year before Congress finished the Articles of Confederation.
George Washington led troops across the Delaware River one year after Congress finished the Articles of Confederation.
Which plan foresaw the benefits of colonial unity? Who proposed it?
the Virginia Plan; Thomas Jefferson
the Albany Plan; Benjamin Franklin
the New Jersey Plan; William Patterson
the Plan of Confederation; James Madison
In the early years of settlement in North America, most settlers, traders, and explorers were French, Dutch, Spanish, and Swedish. Based on the chart, what is the best summary of the population much later, in 1790?
Irish, French, English, and African
English, African, Irish, German
African, English, Dutch, German
Scottish, African, English, Dutch
Based on this chart, which of the following explains why some States supported the Three-Fifths Compromise?
Virginia and South Carolina had the highest slave populations and could add three-fifths of each slave to their population for representation.
Only six States had slave populations of more than thirty percent to add three-fifths of each slave to their population for representation.
Fewer than fifty percent of the States had a significant slave population to take advantage of the Three-Fifths Compromise.
New Hampshire and North Carolina had insignificant slave populations and the Three-Fifths Compromise was of no advantage.
The colonists built their governments based on customs and ideas borrowed from England and early civilizations, including unwritten, judge-made law developed over centuries. This type of law is known as
constitutionalism.
common law.
Hammurabi's Code.
the rule of law.
Which of the following is MOST directly related to the idea that government should be restricted in what it can do?
representative government
ordered government
limited government
colonial government
The Magna Carta established the idea that
a monarch's power was not absolute
privileged classes were entitled to more rights.
monarchs had the right to make arbitrary laws.
a subject's right to trial by jury was not guaranteed.
Laws passed by the legislatures in the royal colonies had to be approved by the governor and the Crown. This went AGAINST which of the following basic concepts of government?
ordered government
royal government
limited government
charter government
