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• POLS101_MH_V4
• Topic 10: Congressional Governance
Started on Saturday, April 9, 2022, 2:32 PM
State Finished
Completed on Saturday,
... [Show More] April 9, 2022, 2:55 PM
Time taken 22 mins 44 secs
Grade 120.00 out of 125.00 (96%)
Question 1
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James Madison argued
Select one:
a. against all interest groups.
b. for the advocacy of self-interest free from all systems of restraint.
c. for regulation of interests through a governing system of checks and balances.
d. for the replacement of interest groups by formal political parties.
e. for a powerful judiciary.
Question 2
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In acknowledging the dilemma inherent in group activity, James Madison
Select one:
a. argued that the free-rider problem would hurt some groups more than others.
b. claimed that government could listen to all groups, but should only enact policies that promote the interests of majority groups.
c. worried that government would be overly dominated by groups, but recognized that a free society is obliged to permit the advocacy of self-interest.
d. argued that government must restrict the activities of groups, so that political parties could act as the major instrument of democracy.
e. All of these answers are correct.
Question 3
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A flaw in pluralism theory is the fact that
Select one:
a. the interest group system is unrepresentative, because some interests are far better organized and more powerful than others.
b. the public interest is never served by policies that promote special interests.
c. larger groups always prevail politically over smaller groups.
d. political parties better represent different interests than do interest groups.
e. All of these answers are correct.
Question 4
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________ wrote that "Liberty is to faction what air is to fire."
Select one:
a. James Madison
b. Alexis de Tocqueville
c. Thomas Jefferson
d. Theodore Lowi
e. Theodore Roosevelt
Question 5
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A main difference between iron triangles and issue networks is that
Select one:
a. an iron triangle includes members of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, while issue networks bypass the judicial branch.
b. issue networks involve a stable group of bureaucrats, legislators, and lobbyists, while iron triangles exclude lobbyists in an attempt to reach impartial decisions.
c. issue networks are generally less stable than iron triangles, in that the members of an issue network may change as the issue develops.
d. issue networks, being less formal, rely on outside lobbying only, while iron triangles use inside lobbying only.
e. All of these answers are correct.
Question 6
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The term iron triangle refers to
Select one:
a. a tightly-knit set of lobbying groups.
b. the relationship among the Congress, the military, and defense contractors.
c. a small and informal but relatively stable set of bureaucrats, legislators, and lobbyists who are concerned with promoting a particular interest.
d. the strategy of lobbying all three branches of government simultaneously.
e. a corrupt relationship among the president, Congress, and the Supreme Court.
Question 7
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An informal grouping of officials, lobbyists, and policy specialists who come together temporarily around a policy problem is
Select one:
a. an iron triangle.
b. an issue network.
c. a caucus.
d. a policy system.
e. an ideological network.
Question 8
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In the dynamics of an iron triangle, what benefit do interest groups provide to friendly government agencies?
Select one:
a. services for constituents
b. travel funds
c. campaign spending
d. administration of mutually beneficial policies
e. lobbying support for agency programs
Question 9
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Economist Mancur Olson refers to what aspect of interest groups as "the size factor"?
Select one:
a. Larger interest groups are able to draw on greater financial resources, which makes them more capable of getting the ear of lawmakers and thus achieving policy change.
b. The interests of groups with large memberships would typically prevail over the interests of smaller groups.
c. Small groups are ordinarily more united on policy issues and often have lower costs, enabling them to win out more often than large groups.
d. The smaller an interest group, the more likely that its motivating issue will be subsumed by the agenda of a larger interest group.
e. Small interest groups can often enhance their bargaining power by linking themselves to the agenda of a larger interest group that has greater resources.
Question 10
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Which of the following organizations is NOT an example of a single-issue group?
Select one:
a. Sierra Club
b. National Rifle Association
c. climate change groups
d. right-to-life groups
e. American Conservative Union
Question 11
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In the 1830s, the Frenchman Alexis de Tocqueville wrote that the "principle of ________" was nowhere more evident than in America.
Select one:
a. hard work
b. separation of church and state
c. association
d. citizenship
e. statesmanship
Question 12
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Effective inside lobbying is based upon
Select one:
a. countering the aims of other groups.
b. providing useful and persuasive information to key officials.
c. mobilizing the group's members.
d. bribing or threatening officials.
e. using the media to exert pressure.
Question 13
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The fact that farmers have more influence over agricultural price-supports than do other groups is an example of:
Select one:
a. majoritarianism.
b. interest group-liberalism
c. elitism.
d. constitutionalism.
e. corporate power.
Question 14
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Congressmen are focused on local issues and the concerns of their constituents. Funding secured by congressmen for their districts is called:
Select one:
a. appropriations
b. constituent services
c. Pork-barrel spending
d. service strategy
e. cost of doing business
Question 15
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What percentage of state legislators are women?
Select one:
a. less than 5 percent
b. more than 20 percent
c. about 50 percent
d. about 60 percent
e. more than 40 percent
Question 16
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Which of the following statements is TRUE?
Select one:
a. Political parties are unimportant in the organization of the U.S. Congress.
b. Party-line voting rarely occurs in Congress.
c. Party-line voting has increased in recent years.
d. Partisanship makes virtually no difference in the votes cast in Congress.
e. None of these answers is correct.
Question 17
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In contrast with the Speaker of the House, the Senate majority leader
Select one:
a. plays a key role in formulating the majority party's legislative positions.
b. seeks to develop influential relationships with his/her colleagues.
c. is not the presiding officer of his/her chamber.
d. holds a position that is defined in the Constitution.
e. None of these answers is correct.
Question 18
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Compared with the Senate majority leader, the Speaker of the House has more power because
Select one:
a. the House places more limits on debate.
b. the House is the larger chamber in terms of membership.
c. the House has less of a tradition as a chamber of equals.
d. the Speaker is that chamber's presiding officer.
e. All of these answers are correct.
Question 19
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Defining the conditions and scheduling a bill for floor debate in the House of Representatives is the responsibility of the
Select one:
a. Ways and Means Committee.
b. Rules Committee.
c. Budget Committee.
d. Appropriations Committee.
e. Judiciary Committee.
Question 20
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If the Rules Committee applies the "closed rule" to a bill,
Select one:
a. no amendments will be permitted.
b. the bill will not be allowed a vote.
c. the bill will require a 2/3 majority for passage.
d. no further floor debate is allowed.
e. no filibusters will be allowed to prevent a vote.
Question 21
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Which of the following statements is TRUE about congressional members over the last three decades?
Select one:
a. Republicans have become more conservative.
b. Republicans have continued to be moderate.
c. Republicans have become more liberal.
d. Democrats have become more moderate.
e. Democrats have become more conservative.
Question 22
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Campaign spending tends to be a much greater task for
Select one:
a. challengers than for incumbents.
b. Republican candidates.
c. Democratic candidates.
d. candidates in urban areas than for candidates in rural areas.
e. men than for women.
Question 23
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The most powerful person from the minority party in the House is the
Select one:
a. minority whip.
b. minority leader.
c. deputy whip.
d. Speaker of the House.
e. None of these answers is correct.
Question 24
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Which one of the following statements about the seniority principle is MOST accurate?
Select one:
a. The seniority principle is based on the length of time the member has spent in Congress.
b. Because of seniority, committee chairs exercise absolute power over their committees.
c. Seniority is no longer absolute in the selection of committee chairs, but it is usually followed.
d. Seniority is no longer used at all in the choice of committee chairs.
e. Seniority is used in the Democratic Party, but not in the Republican Party.
Question 25
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In the 1970s, roll-call votes
Select one:
a. generally demonstrated the power of incumbents.
b. generally demonstrated an increase in party loyalty.
c. generally did not pit most Republicans against most Democrats.
d. were less common than voice votes.
e. were generally not used to record each member's vote. [Show Less]