POLS 1101 American Government Exam 4 |395
Questions and Answers
How many representatives in the house does each state have? - -Proportionally to the
population size of the state as determined by census
-How many senators come from each state? - -Two
-which chamber of the United States congress has more authority? - -They have nearly
equal authority
-what is the name of the idea, traceable to the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle, that a
good political system should mix democratic and aristocratic elements to gain the
advantages, and avoid the disadvantages, of either a pure democracy or pure aristocracy. -
-Mixed Regime.
-To promote a mixed regime, the founders designed the House of representatives to be
more______ than the senate, While the senate was intended to be more _______ than the house
of representatives. - -- Democratic
- Aristocratic
-what are the two main reasons why the founders designed the congress to be a bicameral
legislature? - -- To promote a mixed regime
- To represent states of different population sizes.
-what is referred to as the great compromise? - -Equal representation from each state in
the senate and proportional representation of the states in the house of representatives
-The U.S House and Senate are separate and coequal chambers, each with its own
leadership and rules. Compared with other democracies that have a bicameral legislatures,
how can this type of legislative structure be described? - -it is not found in most
democracies.
-Today Senators are_____ - -Elected by the people
-Political scientist say a legislative chamber is "________" to the extent that there are
significant discrepancies in voting power of citizens across the states or districts
represented within that chamber. - -Malapportioned.
-By the Samuels and Snyder measure of malapportionment, the U.S. Senate is_______
malapportioned upper chambers in the world. - -one of the most
, -By the Samuels and Snyder measure of malapportionment, the U.S. house of
representatives is_____ malapportioned lower legislative chambers in the world. - -one of
the least
-Each voting member of congress represents a district with a population of about______ - -
760,000
-what does political scientist lee drutman advocate for? - -Increasing the number of house
seats from 435 to 700
-The global average for lower legislative chambers is approximately ______ persons per
representative - -100,000
-when was the current limit of 435 voting members in the house of representatives
established? - -Early last century
-Since the limit of 435 voting members was established early last century, the number of
seats has not changed. why has not it been increased? - -There is no significant political
pressure to do so.
-When members of a party band together to vote the same way on legislation, it is called
party ________. - -Unity
-which of the following is true for the speaker of the house? - -- Next to the president, it is
the most powerful federal official
- Has certain formal powers that enhances their ability to influence legislative activity in
the house
- They are always a member of the majority party
-who assists the speaker of the house? - -- The house majority leader
- The house majority whip
-What does the house minority leader do? - -- Plays the leading role in developing the
party's legislative positions
- Heads the party's caucus and its policy committee.
-which of the following describes the position of the senate majority leader? - -- heads the
majority-party caucus
- Formulates the majority party's legislative agenda
- Persuades party members to support the party's positions on issues
-who can act as the presiding officer of the united states senate? - -- President pro tempore
- The vice president of the united states.
-In the absence of the vice president, who serves as the president pro tempore of the
senate? - -The majority party's most senior member.
, -Rank the following positions according to how much real power they have. Put the most
powerful one at the top. - -- The Speaker of the House
- The Senate majority leader.
- The senate's president pro tempore.
-Which of the following describes the position of the president pro tempore? - -- In the
absence of the vice president, can preside over the senate.
- Mostly honorary position
- has no real power
-most of the work in Congress is conducted through_______. - -Standing Committees.
-permanent congressional committees with responsibility for a particular area of public
policy are called________committees. - -Standing
-what role do committees play in congress? - -Committees are an essential part of the
legislative process.
-Congressional committees created for a specific time period and purpose are
called_______committees. - -select
-________ committees are congressional committees composed of members of both houses
and that perform advisory functions. - -Joint
-Temporary committees that are formed to resolve differences between house and senate
versions of a bill are called______ committtees. - -confederence
-According to the 1946 legislative reorganization act, each bill introduced in congress has
to be referred to ________ - -the proper committee
-the policy area in which a particular congressional committee is authorized to act is called
the _______ of a congressional committee. - -Jurisdiction.
-what is the ratio of democrats to republicans on each committee? - -Approximately the
same as the ratio in the full house or senate.
-How is the ratio of democrats to republicans on each committee determined? - -The
majority party determines the ratio.
-How are congress members assigned to committees? - -- Each party has a special
committee in each chamber that decides who will fill committee seat vacancies.
- Most newly elected members of congress ask for and receive assignment to a committee
on which they can serve their constituents' interest
, -How are subcommittee seats assigned? - -The members of each party on a committee
decide who among the will serve on each of its sub-committees.
-which of the following is true about the position of the committee chair? - -- committee
chairs are always members of the majority party
- it is a powerful position.
- It is usually the party member with the most seniority on the committee
-what are some roles and responsibilities of a committee chair? - -- Scheduling committee
meetings
- Directing the committee's majority staff
- Leading the debate when a a committee bill goes to the floor of the chamber for a vote.
- presiding over committee discusions
- determining the order in which committee bills are considered.
-are the parties or committees more powerful? which is in control? - -The balance
between the party power and committee power is an ongoing issue
-How is the ratio of democrats to republicans on each committee determined? - -The
majority party determines the ratio.
-How is the ratio of democrats to republicans on each committee determined? - -
-What are the differences between civil rights and civil liberties? - -Civil Liberties:
-Only applies to government actions
-Protects individuals from abuse of power
Civil Rights:
-Focused on equality
-Applies to discrimination by private and government actors
-Classify which entities are responsible for public vs. private discrimnation. - -Public:
-Government
Private:
-Businesses
-Individuals
-Generally speaking, how are public and private discrimination currently made illegal? - --
Public discrimination is banned in constitutions and legislative statues.
-Private discrimination is banned only in legislative statues
-Which of the following is the most importanat civil rights provision in the U.S.
Constitution? - --Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment
Questions and Answers
How many representatives in the house does each state have? - -Proportionally to the
population size of the state as determined by census
-How many senators come from each state? - -Two
-which chamber of the United States congress has more authority? - -They have nearly
equal authority
-what is the name of the idea, traceable to the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle, that a
good political system should mix democratic and aristocratic elements to gain the
advantages, and avoid the disadvantages, of either a pure democracy or pure aristocracy. -
-Mixed Regime.
-To promote a mixed regime, the founders designed the House of representatives to be
more______ than the senate, While the senate was intended to be more _______ than the house
of representatives. - -- Democratic
- Aristocratic
-what are the two main reasons why the founders designed the congress to be a bicameral
legislature? - -- To promote a mixed regime
- To represent states of different population sizes.
-what is referred to as the great compromise? - -Equal representation from each state in
the senate and proportional representation of the states in the house of representatives
-The U.S House and Senate are separate and coequal chambers, each with its own
leadership and rules. Compared with other democracies that have a bicameral legislatures,
how can this type of legislative structure be described? - -it is not found in most
democracies.
-Today Senators are_____ - -Elected by the people
-Political scientist say a legislative chamber is "________" to the extent that there are
significant discrepancies in voting power of citizens across the states or districts
represented within that chamber. - -Malapportioned.
-By the Samuels and Snyder measure of malapportionment, the U.S. Senate is_______
malapportioned upper chambers in the world. - -one of the most
, -By the Samuels and Snyder measure of malapportionment, the U.S. house of
representatives is_____ malapportioned lower legislative chambers in the world. - -one of
the least
-Each voting member of congress represents a district with a population of about______ - -
760,000
-what does political scientist lee drutman advocate for? - -Increasing the number of house
seats from 435 to 700
-The global average for lower legislative chambers is approximately ______ persons per
representative - -100,000
-when was the current limit of 435 voting members in the house of representatives
established? - -Early last century
-Since the limit of 435 voting members was established early last century, the number of
seats has not changed. why has not it been increased? - -There is no significant political
pressure to do so.
-When members of a party band together to vote the same way on legislation, it is called
party ________. - -Unity
-which of the following is true for the speaker of the house? - -- Next to the president, it is
the most powerful federal official
- Has certain formal powers that enhances their ability to influence legislative activity in
the house
- They are always a member of the majority party
-who assists the speaker of the house? - -- The house majority leader
- The house majority whip
-What does the house minority leader do? - -- Plays the leading role in developing the
party's legislative positions
- Heads the party's caucus and its policy committee.
-which of the following describes the position of the senate majority leader? - -- heads the
majority-party caucus
- Formulates the majority party's legislative agenda
- Persuades party members to support the party's positions on issues
-who can act as the presiding officer of the united states senate? - -- President pro tempore
- The vice president of the united states.
-In the absence of the vice president, who serves as the president pro tempore of the
senate? - -The majority party's most senior member.
, -Rank the following positions according to how much real power they have. Put the most
powerful one at the top. - -- The Speaker of the House
- The Senate majority leader.
- The senate's president pro tempore.
-Which of the following describes the position of the president pro tempore? - -- In the
absence of the vice president, can preside over the senate.
- Mostly honorary position
- has no real power
-most of the work in Congress is conducted through_______. - -Standing Committees.
-permanent congressional committees with responsibility for a particular area of public
policy are called________committees. - -Standing
-what role do committees play in congress? - -Committees are an essential part of the
legislative process.
-Congressional committees created for a specific time period and purpose are
called_______committees. - -select
-________ committees are congressional committees composed of members of both houses
and that perform advisory functions. - -Joint
-Temporary committees that are formed to resolve differences between house and senate
versions of a bill are called______ committtees. - -confederence
-According to the 1946 legislative reorganization act, each bill introduced in congress has
to be referred to ________ - -the proper committee
-the policy area in which a particular congressional committee is authorized to act is called
the _______ of a congressional committee. - -Jurisdiction.
-what is the ratio of democrats to republicans on each committee? - -Approximately the
same as the ratio in the full house or senate.
-How is the ratio of democrats to republicans on each committee determined? - -The
majority party determines the ratio.
-How are congress members assigned to committees? - -- Each party has a special
committee in each chamber that decides who will fill committee seat vacancies.
- Most newly elected members of congress ask for and receive assignment to a committee
on which they can serve their constituents' interest
, -How are subcommittee seats assigned? - -The members of each party on a committee
decide who among the will serve on each of its sub-committees.
-which of the following is true about the position of the committee chair? - -- committee
chairs are always members of the majority party
- it is a powerful position.
- It is usually the party member with the most seniority on the committee
-what are some roles and responsibilities of a committee chair? - -- Scheduling committee
meetings
- Directing the committee's majority staff
- Leading the debate when a a committee bill goes to the floor of the chamber for a vote.
- presiding over committee discusions
- determining the order in which committee bills are considered.
-are the parties or committees more powerful? which is in control? - -The balance
between the party power and committee power is an ongoing issue
-How is the ratio of democrats to republicans on each committee determined? - -The
majority party determines the ratio.
-How is the ratio of democrats to republicans on each committee determined? - -
-What are the differences between civil rights and civil liberties? - -Civil Liberties:
-Only applies to government actions
-Protects individuals from abuse of power
Civil Rights:
-Focused on equality
-Applies to discrimination by private and government actors
-Classify which entities are responsible for public vs. private discrimnation. - -Public:
-Government
Private:
-Businesses
-Individuals
-Generally speaking, how are public and private discrimination currently made illegal? - --
Public discrimination is banned in constitutions and legislative statues.
-Private discrimination is banned only in legislative statues
-Which of the following is the most importanat civil rights provision in the U.S.
Constitution? - --Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment
