Unit 3 Test

Legislation whose tangible benefits are targeted solely at a particular legislator’s constituency is A. pork-barrel legislation B. logrolling C. gerrymandering D. private legislation E. public interest legislation

Compared to House incumbents, Senate incumbents are more likely to face the problem of A. raising enough money to run a strong campaign B. an electorate which is inclined to judge their fines for reelection in the context of pork-barrel legislation and other favors for the local community C. a strong challenger D. name recognition E. all these answers are correct

Compared to other congressional campaigns, open-seat races tend to have all of the following characteristics except A. a higher overall level of campaign spending B. more evenly matched competitors C. a higher overall level of campaign spending and more evenly matched competitors D. a more predictable outcome E. none of these answers are correct

Compared to the Senate majority leader, the Speaker of the House has more power because 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 these answers are correct

In contrast to the Speaker of the House, the Senate majority leader 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 are correct

A standing committee in the House or Senate A. is a permanent committee B. has jurisdiction over a particular policy area C. has authority to draft, amend, and recommend legislation D. is usually organized according to the seniority principle E. all these answers are correct

When the House and Senate pass different versions of a bill, the differences are resolved by a A. conference committee B. standing committee C. select committee D. rules committee E. joint committee

Committee staffs within Congress A. concentrate on constituency relations B. perform almost an entire legislative function C. concentrate on public relations D. split their time between legislative functions and public relations E. are devoted to logistical functions and committee public relations

Campaign spending tends to be greatly more important A. for challengers and non-incumbents rather than incumbents B. for Republican candidates C. for Democratic candidates D. for candidates in urban areas that for candidates in rural areas E. for men rather than women

Incumbents may have some problems in reelection campaigns if A. disruptive issues such as a general public discontent with Congress become prominent B. the incumbent is tainted with charges of personal misconduct or corruption C. the election is a midterm election, and the incumbent is of the same party as the president D. through redistricting, they are placed in a disadvantageous district E. all these answers are correct

Because of the inherent tension in Congress between the need for strong leadership at the top and the individual congressional member’s need to act according to local concerns, A. Congress is unable to take effective action to counter the growth in the power of the president B. power in the Congress is widely dispersed C. power in the Congress is highly centralized in the Speaker and the Senate president pro tempore D. members of Congress prefer to address international issues because the tension between local and national issues is less substantial in this situation E. Congress has been made unable to take effective action to counter the growth in the power of the Supreme Court

WHich one of the following statements about the seniority principle is most accurate? A. the seniority principle is based on 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 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

Senators are generally less likely to follow orders of their leaders than House members because A. senators are prohibited by their state legislatures from taking orders by others B. senators think of themselves as being equals and are only willing to be led by persuasion C. senators are more highly paid than House members and are thus immune from financial threats D. House rules mandate that all party members on major bills must vote according to the directions of their leaders E. all these answers are correct

Most of the legislative work of Congress is performed by A. the standing committees and subcommittees with jurisdiction over particular policy areas B. the joint committees chosen to coordinate actions between the two chambers of Congress C. the select committees chosen to study special problems on a temporary basis D. the steering committees that decide party stands on particular bills E. party leaders in both chambers

Through a vote for cloture, the Senate A. confirms presidential appointees B. can end a filibuster C. overrides a presidential pocket veto D. accepts the House version of a bill E. closes its legislative session for the year

Congress’s inability to consistently provide leadership on broad national issues is due to A. the lack of talented leadership in Congress B. the fragmented nature of Congress C. constitutional restrictions on Congress’s lawmaking powers D. the constant threat of a presidential veto E. opposition from the mass media

In which area has Congress been more likely that the president to exert leadership? A. world affairs B. national economic policy C. policies affecting special interests D. social welfare policy E. environmental policy

In initiating broad legislative proposals, the president enjoys all of the following advantages over Congress except A. the president is more likely to take a national perspective on policy issues B. the president is granted more authority by the Constitution in the area of lawmaking C. the president’s actions receive more attention from the national media D. the president has the authority to make policy decisions even when there are conflicting views within the executive branch, while congressional leaders cannot impose their views on other members who disagree with them E. a lack of fragmentation

Most members of Congress are A. concerned with national issues, but even more concerned with local ones B. controlled by special interest groups C. interested only in the work of the subcommittee on which they serve D. opposed to the seniority system E. more interested in oversight than in making laws

By and large, partisanship is A. irrelevant to the work of Congress B. a huge source of cohesion and division within Congress C. relevant only in the context of local representation D. important in lawmaking and representation but not in oversight E. more important in foreign policy than domestic policy

The biggest obstacle to effective congressional oversight is A. the sheer magnitude of the task B. its inadequacy as a means to control the bureaucracy C. its inadequacy as a means to control the power of the president D. its inadequacy as a way to generate publicity for members of Congress E. its inadequacy as a means to control the judiciary

The major function of Congress is to A. enact legislation B. check the president C. appease special interests D. inform the people E. check the Supreme Court

The scheduling of bills in the Senate is left up to A. the Senate Scheduling Committee B. the Senate majority leader C. each of the Senate committees D. the Senate historian E. the Senate parliamentarian

For a bill to pass in either chamber of Congress, A. it must receive the support of a third of its members B. it must receive the support of a simple majority of its members C. it must receive the support of two-thirds of its members D. it must be passed within two weeks of its passage by the other chamber E. it must be passed within a month of its passage by the other chamber