Book: Ch. 3. Quiz / Key terms / Essays

Question 1

Understand federalism (pp. 80–86)

Answer 1

Along with many other countries, the American system
of government has divided power between national and regional or state governments. That division of power has varied over time, and America’s notion of federalism has evolved through a number of forms.

Question 2

federalism (p. 80)

Answer 2

a system of government in which power is divided between a central government and regional governments

Question 3

sovereign (p. 82)

Answer 3

possessing supreme political authority within a geographic area

Question 4

1. Federalism refers to
   a) a system of government where cities are strong.
   b) a system of government where executive power is
   grounded in a committee of governors.
   c) a system of government where there is a national
   government as well as a number of regional govern-
   ments.
   d) a system of government dominated by business
   interests.
   e) a system of government with strong parliaments.

Answer 4

c) a system of government where there is a national
government as well as a number of regional govern-
ments.

Question 5

2. The Articles of Confederation
   a) was a loose confederation of independent states
   that operated in the 1820s.
   b) was never accepted by a majority of the states.
   c) derived its power directly from the state
   governments.
   d) replaced the U.S. Constitution of 1787.
   e) outlawed effective state constitutions.

Answer 5

c) derived its power directly from the state

governments.

Question 6

3. The relationship between the states and the national government
   a) has been a matter of continuing controversy throughout the nation’s history.
   b) was finally settled when the Articles of Confederation were rejected in favor of the U.S. Constitution.
   c) was resolved for all time by the Civil War.
   d) was resolved by Article I, Section 8, of the U.S.
   Constitution.
   e) was not a problem in a federal system.

Answer 6

a) has been a matter of continuing controversy throughout the nation’s history.

Question 7

4. The Supreme Court under John Marshall expanded national power partly through
   a) rejecting the Articles of Confederation.
   b) expanding the meaning of interstate commerce.
   c) expanding Congress’s war-making powers.
   d) ignoring the Tenth Amendment.
   e) increasing the powers of the president.

Answer 7

b) expanding the meaning of interstate commerce.

Question 8

5. Prior to the ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment, the Bill of Rights
   a) applied only to states.
   b) applied only to the national government.
   c) applied to states and the national government.
   d) was essential in protecting individual rights.
   e) was applied only in extreme cases of rights
   violations.

Answer 8

b) applied only to the national government.

Question 9

6. McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) was important
   a) in establishing that the national government had
   implied powers.
   b) in establishing that state governments had implied
   powers.
   c) in showing that the state and national governments
   could cooperate.
   d) in preventing national banks from operating.
   e) in destroying corrupt state banking systems.

Answer 9

a) in establishing that the national government had

implied powers.

Question 10

categorical grants (p. 87)

Answer 10

congressionally appropriated grants to states and localities on the condition that expenditures be limited to a problem or group specified by law

Question 11

New Federalism (p. 90)

Answer 11

the attempts by Presidents Nixon and Reagan to return power to the states through block grants

Question 12

block grants (p. 90)

Answer 12

federal grants that allow states considerable discretion on how funds are spent

Question 13

Describe the sources of national and state power as they relate to federalism today (pp. 90–100)

Answer 13

The incorporation of much of the Bill of Rights has limited the power of state governments by making them subject to restrictions under the U.S. Constitution. Additionally, the preemption doctrine has allowed the national government to prohibit state legislation in certain fields. An important constitutional provision that limits state action is the Fourteenth Amendment, particularly the equal protection clause of that amendment which prohibits discriminatory actions by state governments. Until recently, a number of jurisdictions—including Texas—were limited by the 1965 Voting Rights Act in the legislation they could pass involving the electoral process, although a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision has made it possible for Texas to pass controversial voter identification legislation. Finally, while state governments cannot reduce the rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution, they can expand those guarantees under the concept of independent state grounds.

Question 14

coercive federalism (p. 90)

Answer 14

federal policies that force states to change their policies to achieve national goals

Question 15

unfunded mandates (p. 90)

Answer 15

federal requirements that states or local governments pay the costs of federal policies

Question 16

preemption (p. 90)

Answer 16

where the national government imposes its priorities and prevents the state from acting in a particular field

Question 17

Sanford dictum (p. 94)

Answer 17

held in Gitlow v. New York that the First Amendment right of free speech was a fundamental right that applied to the states

Question 18

selective incorporation (p. 94)

Answer 18

rights in the Bill of Rights that the Court believes are fundamental and are held to apply to the states as well as the national government because they are part of the “liberty” protected from state action in the Fourteenth Amendment

Question 19

7. Dual federalism
   a) refers to a system of government where states do
   most of the governing.
   b) existed in the United States following World War II.
   c) rejected the idea that states were sovereign political entities.
   d) is the idea that there are two branches to the national legislature.
   e) drained all power from state governments.

Answer 19

a) refers to a system of government where states do

most of the governing.

Question 20

8. Layer-cake federalism switched to marble-cake federalism
   a) after the Civil War.
   b) during World War I.
   c) during the New Deal.
   d) after the fall of the Soviet Union.
   e) because of President Ronald Reagan’s efforts.

Answer 20

c) during the New Deal.

Question 21

9. The use of categorical grants was a way of promoting
   a) cooperative federalism.
   b) dual federalism.
   c) coercive federalism.
   d) bipartisan federalism.
   e) civil rights.

Answer 21

a) cooperative federalism.

Question 22

intermediate standard of review (p. 97)

Answer 22

primarily used for classifications in the law based on sex; for the law to be constitutional the government must show important governmental objectives and the law must be substantially related to achievement of those objectives

Question 23

independent state grounds (p. 99)

Answer 23

allow states, usually under the state constitution, to expand rights beyond those provided by the U.S. Constitution

Question 24

10. Hostility to modern federalism is partly a result of
    a) dual federalism.
    b) funded mandates.
    c) unfunded mandates.
    d) Tenth Amendment interpretations.
    e) high taxes.

Answer 24

c) unfunded mandates.

Question 25

11. States must adhere to most of the provisions of the Bill of Rights because of a process known as
    a) inclusion of the Bill of Rights.
    b) incorporation of the Bill of Rights.
    c) expansion of the Bill of Rights.
    d) ratification of the Bill of Rights.
    e) the Sanford dictum.

Answer 25

e) the Sanford dictum.

Question 26

12. The equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment
    a) makes it difficult for states to discriminate against minorities.
    b) is rarely used by federal courts.
    c) ensures that states will continue to have a republi-
    can form of government.
    d) mandates the right to vote for all adult citizens.
    e) requires all states to have an equal number of
    senators.

Answer 26

a) makes it difficult for states to discriminate against minorities.

Question 27

13. The outcome of a court case involving the equal protection clause
    a) tends to be determined by the standard of review that is used.
    b) depends on how unequal the law is.
    c) depends on the skill of the lawyers.
    d) can never be predicted.
    e) is usually in favor of the state.

Answer 27

a) tends to be determined by the standard of review that is used.

Question 28

14. Independent state grounds
    a) allow states to provide fewer state constitutional protections.
    b) allow states to provide more state constitutional protections than the U.S. Constitution.
    c) allow states to remain independent of the national
    government.
    d) prevent the national government from overriding the
    Tenth Amendment rights of states.
    e) limit the power of the national government to pass
    economic regulations.

Answer 28

b) allow states to provide more state constitutional protections than the U.S. Constitution.

Question 29

15. The national government can preempt state laws because
    a) the national government is weaker than any state.
    b) the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution specially allows state laws to be overridden by federal laws.
    c) the supremacy clause of the Constitution makes national laws supreme over state laws.
    d) the Sanford dictum established preemption.
    e) the main reason the Constitution was adopted was
    so that state laws could be preempted.

Answer 29

c) the supremacy clause of the Constitution makes national laws supreme over state laws.

Question 30

16. The Voting Rights Act
    a) ensured the right to vote for women.
    b) ensured the right to vote for 18-year-olds.
    c) approved photo ID requirements for voters.
    d) required that voters know how to read and write.
    e) was the major law providing the right to vote for
    African Americans.

Answer 30

c) approved photo ID requirements for voters.