Chapter 3 Questions

Question 1

Which government has sovereignty in a federal system?

Answer 1

National and State governments share sovereignty

Question 2

The Founders hoped that federalism, like the separation of powers, would serve what major goal?

Answer 2

protecting individual liberties

Question 3

According to Alexander Hamilton in Federalist No. 28, how would the Founders’ vision for a federal republic work

Answer 3

People could shift their support between national and state governments as needed to maintain a balance of power.

Question 4

Which of the Founders’ assumptions about how the United States’ federal system would work is spelled out in the Tenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution?

Answer 4

The Tenth Amendment reserves any powers not expressly given to the national government for the states and the people.

Question 5

What is the purpose of the elastic clause?

Answer 5

The elastic clause allows Congress to make new laws in order to execute its powers as the need arises.

Question 6

What part of the Constitution did the Supreme Court reinforce when, in McCulloch v. Maryland, it upheld the right of Congress to create a bank?

Answer 6

the elastic clause

Question 7

What does the doctrine of nullification affirm?

Answer 7

the states can declare a federal law void that violates the U.S. constitution

Question 8

What effectively invalidated the doctrine of nullification?

Answer 8

the civil war

Question 9

Debates over what clause in the U.S. Constitution resulted in the doctrine of dual federalism?

Answer 9

the commerce clause

Question 10

The No Child Left Behind Act is an example of which kind of federalism at work?

Answer 10

cooperative federalism

Question 11

cooperative federalism

Answer 11

when both the state and the federal government cooperate to make and implement a policy

Question 12

What type of federalism exists when national and state governments are equally supreme but kept separate?

Answer 12

dual federalism

Question 13

When the Supreme Court ruled in United States v. Lopez (1995) that Congress overstepped its power to regulate commerce by prohibiting guns in a school zone, it reaffirmed what type of federalism?

Answer 13

dual federalism

Question 14

Why did the Supreme Court overturn the Violence Against Women Act in United States v. Morrison (2000)?

Answer 14

it found the act unconstitutional because attacks against women do not involve interstate commerce

Question 15

When gridlock occurs in a divided Congress, how does federalism help citizens address pressing issues?

Answer 15

Citizens can appeal to state governments to address issues the national government is unable to address.

Question 16

In what way does Congress ensure the independence of the states?

Answer 16

State residents elect representatives to the U.S. Congress, and these representatives are responsive and accountable to those constituencies.

Question 17

How does federalism in the United States mobilize political activity?

Answer 17

People are more likely to engage in political activity when they have reason to believe their actions may produce an effect.

Question 18

Initiative, referendum, and recall are all examples of what form of democracy at the state level?

Answer 18

direct

Question 19

Which procedure permits voters to remove an elected official from office?

Answer 19

recall

Question 20

Land grant colleges are an example of what element of American federalism?

Answer 20

grants in aid

Question 21

Beginning in the 1960s, federal grants to states were increasingly made on what basis?

Answer 21

What federal officials perceived to be national needs

Question 22

What type of federal funding is intended to be used for a specific purpose?

Answer 22

a categorical grant

Question 23

The federal government may create rules that all states must follow, whether or not they accept federal grant money. What are these rules called?

Answer 23

mandates

Question 24

What name is given to the Republican effort in the 1980s and 1990s to pass federal functions on to the states?

Answer 24

devolution

Question 25

What person or group led the devolution attempt in the 1980s and 1990s?

Answer 25

congress

Question 26

A Congressional representative, a governor, and a city mayor representing the same location may differ on certain issues. This illustrates what facet of contemporary American federalism?

Answer 26

The differing experiences and views among members of an increasingly diverse society