Question 1

Which of the following statements about the structure of American federalism is true?

Accepted Answer

It has contributed to the longevity of the U.S. government by allowing many divisive policy decisions throughout American history to be made by states.

Question 2

Which of the following statements best summarizes President Herbert Hoover's views on federal action during the Great Depression?

Accepted Answer

The federal government could do little to alleviate the misery caused by the depression and state and local governments should be responsible for responding to the crisis

Question 3

In a federal system, governmental responsibilities are

Accepted Answer

shared by both state and federal governments

Question 4

Gibbons v. Ogden (1824) was important because it

Accepted Answer

established the supremacy of the national government in all matters affecting interstate commerce.

Question 5

The Secure Communities program

Accepted Answer

required state and local authorities to check the fingerprints of people being booked into jail against a Homeland Security database

Question 6

Which statement best describes American federalism since the 1930s?

Accepted Answer

Although the federal government has grown significantly more powerful since the 1930s, the basic framework of American federalism has not been altered, and state governments remain important

Question 7

The state government's authority to regulate the safety, health, and morals of its citizens is called the ________ power.

Accepted Answer

Police

Question 8

Which level of government writes the majority of criminal laws?

Accepted Answer

The State Governments

Question 9

Why was United States v. Lopez (1995) important?

Accepted Answer

It was the first time since the New Deal that the Supreme Court limited the power of Congress as outlined under the commerce clause

Question 10

What is the main function of the privileges and immunities clause of Article IV?

Accepted Answer

It prevents states from discriminating against nonresidents

Question 11

The Supreme Court's decision in King v. Burwell (2015) was significant because it

Accepted Answer

ensured that federal subsidies to help pay for health insurance would be available to residents in all states

Question 12

By 1932, ____ percent of the labor force in the United States was unemployed.

Accepted Answer

25

Question 13

Which statement best describes the Supreme Court's decisions about federalism during the 1990s?

Accepted Answer

The Court limited the power of the national government over the state governments

Question 14

The principle of ________ gives the federal government the power to override any state or local law in one particular area of policy.

Accepted Answer

Preemption

Question 15

Which of the following statements about American federalism is true?

Accepted Answer

Liberals tend to prefer a strong federal government because they value equality more than liberty

Question 16

Why did local governments become administratively important in the early years of the Republic?

Accepted Answer

States lacked the power to implement and enforce laws and relied, therefore, on local governments

Question 17

Advocates of limiting the powers of the national government justify their position by pointing to the ________ of the U.S. Constitution.

Accepted Answer

Tenth amendment

Question 18

Nations that adopt a federal arrangement are most likely to have

Accepted Answer

Diverse ethnic or language groups

Question 19

Commerce among the several states was first defined in

Accepted Answer

Gibbons v. Ogden

Question 20

In ________, the Supreme Court reinterpreted the commerce clause, changing it from a check on national power to a source of national power.

Accepted Answer

1937

Question 21

An example of ________ federalism is when federal officials establish environmental standards that every state must follow.

Accepted Answer

regulated

Question 22

Which of the following is the best example of a unitary system of government?

Accepted Answer

The federal government sets detailed educational guidelines that all local governments must implement.

Question 23

The privileges and immunities clause of Article IV is also referred to as the ________ clause.

Accepted Answer

comity

Question 24

Block grants are designed to

Accepted Answer

give the states considerable discretion in how money from the federal government should be spent.

Question 25

Which of the following statements best describes state-level same-sex marriage laws prior to 2015?

Accepted Answer

Thirteen states had passed laws prohibiting same-sex couples from being legally married.

Question 26

Prior to the Supreme Court's 2015 ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges, ________ states recognized same-sex marriage.

Accepted Answer

37

Question 27

Which president introduced and presided over the New Deal

Accepted Answer

Franklin Roosevelt

Question 28

The Supreme Court justices determined that the individual mandate found in the Affordable Care Act was

Accepted Answer

Constitutional under congress's power to tax

Question 29

Which of the following is the best example of a concurrent power under the U.S. Constitution?

Accepted Answer

The power to regulate commercial activity

Question 30

Which of the following economic policies did the national government implement during the nineteenth century?

Accepted Answer

Chartering a national bank

Question 31

What is the purpose of the Tenth Amendment?

Accepted Answer

To limit the powers of the federal government by reserving certain powers to the states and to the people

Question 32

Which clauses of the U.S. Constitution involve the relationships between and among the various states?

Accepted Answer

The full faith and credit clause and the privileges and immunities clause

Question 33

Which powers, derived from the Tenth Amendment, are neither delegated to the national government nor denied to the states?

Accepted Answer

reserved

Question 34

A federal grant to states to assist in the building of new public schools is an example of a ________ grant.

Accepted Answer

categorical

Question 35

Which of the following Supreme Court cases limited federal power?

Accepted Answer

United States v. Lopez and Printz v. United States

Question 36

The specific powers granted to Congress in Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution are called the ________ powers.

Accepted Answer

expressed

Question 37

During the era of dual federalism, what was the primary goal of the federal government's domestic policies?

Accepted Answer

To promote the development of commercial activity between and among the states

Question 38

The fact that state governments are required to enforce restraining orders placed on stalkers and batterers in other states is a result of the

Accepted Answer

Full faith and credit clause of the Constitution

Question 39

To what does the individual mandate in the Affordable Care Act refer?

Accepted Answer

the requirement that individuals purchase health care insurance coverage or pay a penalty to the federal government

Question 40

Which amendment preserves a strong role for the states in the American federal republic?

Accepted Answer

Tenth

Question 41

One argument for a strong federal government is that it promotes ________ across states.

Accepted Answer

equality

Question 42

Which of the following statements about contemporary America is true?

Accepted Answer

About half of all state governments have legalized medical marijuana

Question 43

As of 2016, which of following statements about immigration law is most accurate?

Accepted Answer

The supreme court has ruled that state police are allowed to check the immigration status of anyone stopped or arrested.

Question 44

What is it called when a state grants a city the ability to govern its own local affairs?

Accepted Answer

Home rule

Question 45

What was a major reason that the slogan states' rights became tarnished in the 1950s and 1960s?

Accepted Answer

It had been used by southern opponents of the civil rights movement to support Jim Crow laws.

Question 46

Which constitutional provision was most important in determining the Supreme Court's ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges (2015)?

Accepted Answer

The fourteenth amendment

Question 47

An example of ________ is when federal officials force state officials to implement more stringent water pollution regulations.

Accepted Answer

preemption

Question 48

Which of the following statements best describes the history of American federalism?

Accepted Answer

Since the founding, there has been considerable debate about the allocation of responsibilities between the states and the federal government

Question 49

The power of Congress to regulate commerce with foreign nations, among the several states, and with Native American tribes is found in ________ of the U.S. Constitution.

Accepted Answer

Article I

Question 50

The goal of the Unfunded Mandate Reform Act was to

Accepted Answer

limit the costs associated with unfunded mandates by ensuring that Congress knows how much it is expecting of state and local governments and the private sector.

Question 51

Federal officials seeking to give states more authority are most likely to support

Accepted Answer

Block grants

Question 52

The number of categorical grants in the United States increased dramatically during the

Accepted Answer

1960s

Question 53

The Supreme Court's decision in Obergefell v. Hodges (2015) was significant because it

Accepted Answer

required that all states offer marriage licenses to two people of the same sex.

Question 54

Which Supreme Court decision partially struck down the Defense of Marriage Act?

Accepted Answer

Windsor v. United States

Question 55

Marble cake federalism is associated with the

Accepted Answer

pattern of intergovernmental cooperation that has blurred the lines between the states and the national governments.

Question 56

Which clause in the U.S. Constitution affirms that national laws and treaties are the supreme law of the land?

Accepted Answer

The supremacy clause

Question 57

Who was the first president to promote New Federalism?

Accepted Answer

Richard nixon

Question 58

Congressional grants paid for ________ percent of the development of an interstate highway system after World War II.

Accepted Answer

90

Question 59

________ powers exist when both the state and national governments share authority in certain domains.

Accepted Answer

concurrent

Question 60

Why were attempts by Congress to regulate child labor and factory conditions in local workplaces struck down by the Supreme Court as unconstitutional in the late nineteenth century?

Accepted Answer

Regulating local workplaces was beyond the scope of interstate commerce at the time and was, therefore, perceived to be an unconstitutional exercise of power by the federal government.

Question 61

The form of federal assistance called ________ provides money to state governments with no strings attached.

Accepted Answer

General revenue sharing

Question 62

Who wrote the Supreme Court opinions in both McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) and Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)?

Accepted Answer

John Marshall

Question 63

What is one of the biggest problems with federal block grants?

Accepted Answer

There is a need for greater accountability in how the funds are actually spent by the states

Question 64

________ is the strategy of delegating authority to a lower level of government.

Accepted Answer

devolution

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