All AP US Government Resources
Example Questions
Example Question #1 : Formation Of Policies
In a closed-shop company __________
The United States government provides funding to support the company.
every decision taken by the company has to be ratified by the shareholders.
workers must be union members throughout their employment.
shareholders have little to no say in the running of the company.
workers cannot join or start a union throughout their employment.
workers must be union members throughout their employment.
In a closed-shop company, as opposed to an open-shop company, workers must remain union members throughout their employment with the company. Union membership is a required condition of employment. The Taft-Hartley Act (1947) mostly outlawed closed shops, although there are loopholes and exceptions that allow some companies to continue the practice in everything but name.
Example Question #2 : Groups Influencing Public Policy
Grassroots is best described as __________.
a judicial decision designed to further extend civil rights to disenfranchised groups
an impeachment movement that begins in a localized political center
a campaign initiated by the common person to affect government policy
a collaboration between special interest groups and congressional committees designed to enact specific legislation
a judicial decision designed to increase the power of the Federal government
a campaign initiated by the common person to affect government policy
A grassroots campaign is a movement initiated by a collection of typical citizens with the intention of garnering enough support and attention for a cause so as to affect government policy. Debate over its effectiveness in the face of special interest groups and corporate donations to campaigns have often been raised, but it remains one of the most accessible means to the common person for trying to implement change in the United States.
Example Question #1 : Public Policy
Non-violent civil disobedience is most closely associated with which American reformer?
Martin Luther King Jr.
William Jennings Bryan
Ralph Nader
Theodore Roosevelt
Susan B. Anthony
Martin Luther King Jr.
Non-violent civil disobedience is a movement associated with various political figures throughout history. It holds that violent resistance against the dominant class in society only produces crackdowns and worse conditions for the oppressed. The best way to promote change is therefore to resist without resorting to violence—through strikes, marches, demonstrations, etc. The movement is most closely associated with Martin Luther King Jr. during the Civil Rights movement.
Example Question #1 : Formation Of Policies
The intention of the Taft-Hartley Act (1947) was to __________.
limit the power of labor unions
limit the power of affirmative action programs
support the extension of higher education to a greater number of Americans
support the growth of affirmative action programs
support the growth of labor unions
limit the power of labor unions
The Taft-Hartley Act of 1947, also called the Labor Management Relations Act, is a Federal law in the United States that was designed to limit the power and ability of the prominent labor unions of the time. Among other things, it makes it more difficult for labor unions to organize, monopolize the supply of labor, and strike. In the years leading up to the Taft-Hartley Act, many prominent American politicians and businessmen were concerned with the rising power, gained through labor unions, of the working classes. The Taft-Hartley Act was one prominent, and perhaps the most effective, way of limiting this growing power.
Example Question #2 : Public Policy
The primary measure of inflation is referred to as __________.
deficit spending
the Consumer Price Index
the national debt
the import-export margin
the Gross Domestic Product
the Consumer Price Index
The Consumer Price Index (often simply seen as the CPI) measures the fluctuations in the cost of goods in the market purchased by an average American household. It is used to measure and track inflation.
Example Question #3 : Public Policy
Which of the following categories of people are not included in the iron triangle?
Media personalities
Judges
Lobbyists
Bureaucrats
Both media personalities and judges
Both media personalities and judges
The iron triangle refers to the three groups of people who have the greatest influence over the process of law making. These groups are lobbyists, Congressmen, and bureaucrats. Although media personalities play a role in swaying public opinion, they are not members of the iron triangle. Likewise, judges are not a part of the iron triangle because they do not have influence over the creation of laws; their role involves the interpretation of the laws.
Example Question #4 : Groups Influencing Public Policy
Which branch of government contains two different bodies of representatives who create bills and other pieces of legislation?
The Legislative Branch
The Judicial Branch
The Executive Branch
The President and their Cabinet
The House of Representatives
The Legislative Branch
The Legislative Branch is correct, as it contains the House of Representatives and the Senate. This branch serves to create different legislation and discuss various policy issues.
Example Question #1 : Public Policy
The Poll Tax was used primarily to __________.
ensure that those voting in elections were well educated
encourage African Americans to vote during and after the Civil Rights Era
prevent any candidate from running for election over and over again
prevent African Americans from voting in the Reconstruction-Era South
prevent the poor and working class from voting in the early days of the Republic
prevent African Americans from voting in the Reconstruction-Era South
The Poll Tax emerged throughout the Reconstruction-Era South as a way for the governments in the South to avoid abiding by the Fifteenth Amendment. The Poll Tax stated that an individual had to pay a certain fee for registering and to vote, and it was used primarily to prevent African Americans from voting in the years after the end of the Civil War.
Example Question #2 : Policy Agendas
Jim Crow laws __________.
encouraged African Americans to vote during the Civil Rights Era.
were not supported by institutions of the United States Government
enforced racial segregation in the Reconstruction-Era South
were overturned by the Supreme Court case, Plessy v. Ferguson
prohibited African-American emancipation in the South prior to the Civil War
enforced racial segregation in the Reconstruction-Era South
Jim Crow laws were a series of bills and rulings passed in the South, during the Reconstruction Era, which were designed to enforce racial segregation after the abolition of slavery. They differ from the Black Codes, which were used in the South prior to the Civil War to prevent African-American emancipation. The Supreme Court case, Plessy v. Ferguson (1890), reinforced the legality of Jim Crow laws by ruling that separate but equal was not unconstitutional. This ruling was overturned by the Supreme Court case, Brown v. Board of Education (1954).
Example Question #1 : Enactment Of Public Policy
The Hyde Amendment ____________.
allows the President to declare war without the consent of Congress
prohibits Congress from setting its own rate of pay and wage structure
prohibits employers from refusing to hire someone on the basis of gender discrimination
prohibits the use of certain Federal funds to pay for abortions
allows Congressmen to engage in insider trading by opening certain loopholes
prohibits the use of certain Federal funds to pay for abortions
The Hyde Amendment is a legislative provision first passed in 1976, in the aftermath of the Supreme Court case Roe v. Wade (1973), which had legalized abortion. The Hyde Amendment prohibits the use of Federal funds to pay for abortions, except in very specific circumstances (such as rape or when the woman's life is endangered by the pregnancy). Because it only focuses on restricting the availability of Federal funding, the Hyde Amendment disproportionately targets extremely poor women.
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