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Executive privilege

In a 1990 court case, President Ronald Reagan refused to make public his dairies written around the time of the Iran-Contra affair. This refusal is an example of a president utilizing which power?

Veto threat

President Obama has promised not to sign into law any legislation that repeals the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. This is an example of a/an \________.

Commander in chief; executor of the laws

The Supreme Court has granted wider latitude to the president in his or her role as \________ than as \________ due to powers stated in the Constitution.

Which of these duties does the vice president perform?

Casts tie breaking votes in the Senate

A national party's presidential nominating convention helps resolve \________ among its state party leaders.

Coordinations problems

Why would presidents utilize executive orders?

Overturning them requires an act of congress

Which is the best example of an agent when the president is the principal?

Agency head

How do veto threats shape Congress's creation of legislation?

Content of legislation is often changed to more closely match the president's preferences.

On July 22, 2004, President George W. Bush issued a formal directive to the Department of Homeland Security to create the Coordinating Council on Emergency Preparedness and Individuals with Disabilities in order to develop and implement procedures for ensuring the safety of people with disabilities during natural disasters and other emergencies. This is an example of an \________.

Executive order

Which of these is an example of a president "going public"?

Holding a press conference

On April 13, 2011, President Barack Obama gave a nationally televised speech opposing the congressional Republicans' deficit-reduction plans and offering an alternative set of fiscal proposals. This is an example of \________.

Going public

The Constitutional Convention's decision to vest the national government's executive authority in a single person was principally intended to \________.

resolve collective dilemmas resulting from limited executive authority under the Articles of Confederation

What is an example of a formal presidential power?

Appointing judges

Which of these presidents was most influential in developing mass political parties as a tool of presidential power and electoral support?

Martin Van Buren

How can divided government shape bargaining between Congress and the president?

The preferences of Congress and the president are further apart, making passing legislation more difficult.

The presidency is less democratically accountable than Congress due to \________.

Election by the electoral college

Which is an enumerated power of the president?

Power to veto legislation

Over time, presidential powers have grown due to which of the following?

Wars, depression, and civl unrest

President Barack Obama appointed Charles Rivkin to serve as ambassador to France. Mr. Rivkin had previously served as the California finance cochair for President Obama's election campaign, raising more than $500,000 for the election effort. President Obama's appointment of Mr. Rivkin may be considered part of a/the \________.

Spoils system

Why does the power of the president increase most dramatically in wartime?

The president has the power to make efficient decision necessary for war

The governor of North Carolina is empowered to veto specific provisions in legislation that have passed both houses of the state legislature. This is an example of a \________.

Line item veto

All of the following are important roles of the vice president EXCEPT \________.

Acting as the ceremonial head of state

The number of electoral college votes per state equals the \________.

Number of house members and senators per state

Which of these requires the approval of the Senate?

treaty

A president may be removed from office if he or she is impeached by the \________ and convicted by the \________.

House of representatives; senate

The president needs the approval of the \________ for appointments, and the \________ for declaring war.

Senate; house and senate

What role best explains why the president is better able to solve collective action problems than Congress?

Single actor

What is an example of an informal presidential power?

Leading a political party

Why might members of a popular president's party do better electorally than members of an unpopular president's party?

The president is the face of a political party

One important implied power of the president is executive privilege, which refers to the president's ability to \________.

Keep documents and other sensitive information private

The tension between a president's desire to enforce policies in a particular way and a bureaucrat's preferences to enforce policies otherwise creates a/an \________ for the president.

Principal agent problem

The Environmental Protection Agency is considering a new regulation that would require all car owners to install new emissions reduction equipment after two years of ownership. Before it can make this regulation into a law, it must make all records about the development of the regulation public and solicit public comments because of the \________ Act.

Administrative Procedure

In cases of bureaucratic capture, who is doing the capturing?

nongovernmental organizations or industries, who gain favorable regulation when agencies are more beholden to them than to principals

The American Procedure Act, the Freedom of Information Act, and the Sunshine Act together constitute a congressional \________ that allows Congress to keep a close eye on the bureaucracy.

fire-alarm oversight

High-level federal bureaucrats, such as cabinet secretaries, are typically \________.

presidential appointees

Corruption in the bureaucracy increased because of \________.

the spoils system

What is an "iron triangle"? What institutions are part of an iron triangle, and how do they interact? How does the structure of an iron triangle support effective governance? How do iron triangles promote inefficiencies and bad public policies?

• Iron triangle refers to the special relationship that develops among interest groups representing the private sector being regulated by government, the congressional committees in charge of writing related laws, and the bureaucratic agency that implements the laws.

In order to carry out their jobs, what do bureaucrats usually want?

clear instructions from Congress and the president

Which of the following is operated most like a private corporation?

government corporation

What type of law is made within the executive-branch bureaucracy?

administrative

Which is an agency run outside of the cabinet departments and run with greater freedom from presidential influence?

independent agency

\________ occurs when a regulatory agency becomes beholden to the organizations or interests it is supposed to regulate.

Bureaucratic capture

The town of Springfield has an extensive public transportation system that has grown steadily over time in response to the city's changing needs. However, the town council realizes that it is not as efficient as it might be. The town decides to hire a private company to run its bus service, because a private company has greater incentives to run the system efficiently. This is an example of \________.

privatization

Bureaucracies respond to many different types of problems. Regardless of their disparate purposes, they are all intended to create \________.

public goods

Amtrak, a company that provides passenger railway service, has been struggling financially and would like to stop service on its least profitable routes. Amtrak is usually relatively independent; it sets ticket fares and schedules, decides how to invest in new equipment, and is expected to generate enough revenue to cover expenses. However, the U.S. Congress stops it from cutting unprofitable service routes because, as a/an \________, part of Amtrak's purpose is to serve the entire country, even little-used rural passenger routes.

government corporation

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is tasked with regulating the conduct of business corporations. To give the EPA more autonomy, it is structured so that the president is limited in his or her ability to remove those leading the agencies. This level of oversight is typical of \________.

an independent agency

What are "street-level" bureaucrats?

bureaucrats whose primary job is implementing policy

Suppose a federal agency created under a Democratic president and a Democratic-controlled Congress finds itself at odds with a newly elected Republican president and Republican-controlled Congress. This is an example of \________

coalitional drift

Patronage appointments resulted in \________.

underqualified bureaucrats and less effective implementation of government policies

Which term describes a formal agreement in which the government hires a company or an organization to carry out certain tasks on its behalf?

contract

President Bartlett creates an agency dedicated to ensuring that all U.S. trading partners must meet strict labor standards or face stiff tariffs. He staffs the agency with experts in trade and economics to ensure that the standards make sense and are followed strictly. However, many of these experts believe that trade regulations are harmful, ultimately isolating countries and leading to poorer working conditions. Over time, agency employees' own beliefs take precedence, and they become more and more relaxed about enforcing standards and begin to decrease fines against countries that do not meet the president's labor standards. This is an example of \________.

Bureaucratic drift

Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council established a legal standard for judicial review of \________.

rules and regulations issued by executive agencies under authority delegated by Congress

What are the three corners of an "iron triangle"?

an interest group, a congressional committee, and a federal agency

Define the principal-agent problem and its relevance for understanding interactions among Congress, the president, and federal bureaucracies. Which institution or set of institutions usually acts as the principal, and which acts as the agent? What mechanisms and strategies are available to the principal to control the agent and minimize shirking?

• Discussion of principal-agent problem, generally: instance in which one actor (principal) contracts another actor (agent) to act on the principal's behalf; however, actors may not share goals or preferences and the principal lacks the means to observe all of the agent's behavior

• Bureaucrats are agents; Congress/president is the principal.

President Obama, a Democrat, wants to increase the Environmental Protection Agency's power to regulate and penalize private businesses. The Republicans have a majority in the House of Representatives and they believe that regulating private business is harmful and invasive. Republicans can most effectively undermine Obama's directive by \________.

Withholding appropriations

Which term describes money that the government provides to individuals or organizations to perform tasks in the public's interest?

grant

Which is a system of congressional oversight of federal agencies that relies on interest groups and citizens to inform Congress of unwanted actions?

fire-alarm oversight

Which is the general term for the agencies and offices devoted to carrying out the tasks of government consistent with the law?

government bureaucracy

The president is creating a new agency tasked with restoring funding for music education in primary schools. Because this initiative has received a lot of publicity and will reflect on her administration in the upcoming election, the president wants to make sure those running the agency do not have too much independence. She therefore creates the initiative within the Department of Education and requires the initiative leaders to report to the Secretary of Education. This is an example of \________.

An agency created as part of a cabinet department

Military officers often retire to work for defense contractors and interest groups that support the defense industry. Congressional committees dealing with national security often employ staff members who are retired from the military or have employment experience in private defense industries or interest groups. In the case of national defense, the relationships among the Department of Defense, congressional committees dealing with national security, and the defense industry and its interest groups may be described as a/an \________.

Iron triangle

Which institution determines which cases will be heard by the Supreme Court?

Supreme court

In the Escola v. Coca-Cola Bottling Co. (1944) California Supreme Court case, Justice Roger Traynor was a member of the majority; he wrote an opinion arguing that rather than deciding the case on grounds of negligence, a rule of strict liability should be imposed on manufacturers whose products cause injury to consumers. This is an example of a \________.

Concurring opinion

Suppose Bob agrees to sell his car to Mary for $5,000. They draw up a contract stating that Mary will pay Bob the money on May 1 and that Bob will give the car to Mary on May 2. In the absence of a court of law, Bob might be tempted to "defect" from the agreement by taking Mary's money and then denying her possession of the car. A court, however, enables Mary to sue Bob if he does not honor his obligations under the contract. The relationship between Bob and Mary is a type of \________.

Prisoner dilemma

Which of the following is a lawsuit in which the plaintiff is a group of individuals pressing a common claim?

Class action

Historically, strict constructionists have tended to be ideologically \________, while judicial activists have tended to be ideologically \________.

Conservative; liberal

Why is the Supreme Court referred to as the court of last resort?

There can be no further legal appeals after a hearing at this level

Chief Justice John Roberts's opinion in Independent Business v. Sebelius was surprising because

It set a precedent that Congress can tax "inactivity"

Federal courts are sometimes called upon to decide whether, in a given circumstance, it is appropriate to overturn state courts' decisions. Generally, federal courts \________.

would rather defer to the state courts if the matter is internal to the states and does not obviously violate national law

Which model of judicial behavior reflects the idea that judges decide cases based on the objective application of legal rules to the facts presented to the court?

legal

Which model of judicial behavior reflects the idea that judges decide cases based on their assessments of the likely behavior of other judges, political institutions, and the public?

strategic

Which is an opinion written by a member of the majority of the Supreme Court in a given case that offers alternative legal reasoning for reaching the same result in the case?

concurring

Judges who examine how the law as written should be applied to contemporary affairs are \________.

Judicial activists

Each state has its own hierarchy of courts. At the bottom level is/are \________. In the middle are \________ courts. And at the top of the hierarchy is/are the \________.

State trial courts; state appellate; court of last resort/state supreme court

Which of the following provisions is NOT found in Article III of the U.S. Constitution?

The Supreme Court has the power of judicial review

The Supreme Court decision in Citizens United v. FEC ruled that the \_____________.

McCain-Feingold campaign finance law violated the freedom of speech protected by the First Amendment

The pattern of partisan voting among Supreme Court justices in the case of Bush v. Gore—with the Democratic justices supporting Gore's position and the Republican justices supporting Bush's—is most consistent with the \________ model of judicial behavior.

Attitudinal

Which is an opinion written by a member of the Supreme Court offering legal reasons why the Court's majority erred in its resolution of a case?

Dissenting

A/an \________ is an individual or organization that is not party to a given case that submits a brief to a court in support of one side or another in pending litigation.

Amicus curiae

A distinctive feature of state courts in the United States, which sets them apart from the federal courts and from most courts around the world, is that \________.

a sizable proportion of their judges and prosecutors are elected by voters, rather than appointed by elected officials

A student suspended from a public school for wearing a T-shirt promoting drug use appeals her suspension to a federal district court on First Amendment grounds. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) files a brief with the court in support of the student's appeal. In this case, the ACLU is a/an \________.

Amicus curiae

Courts' abilities to enforce contracts may create incentives for two parties to uphold an agreement when they otherwise would have preferred to defect. By doing so, courts prevent the contracting parties from facing a/an \________.

Prisoners dilemma

U.S. Supreme Court justices are \________ for \________.

Appointed; life (condition on good behavior)

In Brown v. Board of Education, the Supreme Court invalidated the "separate but equal" doctrine articulated in its 1896 decision in Plessy v. Ferguson. The Court's decision in Brown was, therefore, a violation of \________.

Stare decisis

What is the LEAST democratic branch of the American national government?

The supreme court

Which is a coherent, organized set of ideas and principles that functions as a core from which individuals draw when forming attitudes about public affairs?

ideology

In a presidential election poll surveying a random sample of 1,200 voters, the margin of error is around 1.5 percent. This means that if a candidate, according to the sample of voters in the survey, will receive 51 percent of the vote on Election Day, we can confidently predict that in the real election that candidate will receive \________ percent of the vote.

49.5 percent to 52.5

In statistical research, a \________ is a subset of people who are chosen to provide information as representatives of the entire group in which a researcher is interested.

sample

A \________ sample does not accurately represent the overall population from which it is drawn.

biased

Choosing the best available options given one's interests and information is \________.

rationality

Americans \________ at lower rates than people in most other democracies.

vote in national elections

By the 1860s, the United States had the most expansive franchise in the world, meaning that \________.

larger percentages of the male population were allowed to vote than anywhere else

Which of the following could be considered an unintentional barrier to voting?

having fewer voting machines in precincts in poorer neighborhoods

Explain the paradox of voting. What is paradoxical or puzzling about individuals' decisions to cast a ballot? What accounts for the fact that some individuals ultimately do vote, overcoming the paradox, while others do not?

The paradox of voting is the notion that people still vote even though the individual costs of voting likely outweigh the benefit to the individual.

How do interest groups and other organizations work to mobilize voters? How do these mobilization efforts relate to the paradox of voting? In other words, how do these activities help potential voters overcome forces that may prevent them from voting?

Interest groups and organizations find it easier to contact and convince people of higher income and better-educated status. As such, richer and more educated people, already more likely to face lower costs when voting and participating, are more receptive to appeals to participate from these organizations.

• Being mobilized reduces information costs—the group typically tells one how to vote or how to get involved. Being mobilized also improves one's knowledge of the benefits of winning and increases the sense of efficacy individuals feel.

The probability of a grave accident while attempting to get to the polls is higher than the probability of swaying a national election with a single vote. This leads scholars to ask, "Why does anyone even bother to vote in mass elections?" This is an example of \________.

the paradox of voting

Which is the principle that the authority to make decisions on behalf of society belongs to the people?

popular sovereignty

The Help America Vote Act of 2002 caused states to \________.

decrease the number of polling places by almost 40 percent

Writing letters to a member of Congress, attending a political rally, and donating money to a political campaign are examples of \________.

political participation

Mary is concerned about plans to build a waste-to-energy facility in her district. She decides to write a letter to her member of Congress expressing her displeasure with the current proposal. Mary has engaged in a/an \________.

conventional form of political participation