Download SOL Practice - Loudoun County Public Schools

Government & Supreme Court
Cases
In the 1780’s, many Americans distrusted a
strong central government. This distrust is best
shown by the
A. lack of debate over the ratification of the
United States Constitution
B. plan of government set up by the Articles of
Confederation
C.development of a Federal court system
D. constitutional provision for a strong President
The authors of the United States Constitution believed
that the voice of the people should be heard
frequently. Which part of the Government was
instituted to respond most directly to the will of the
people?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Senate
House of Representatives
Supreme Court
Presidency
Which quotation from the United States Constitution
provides for a Federal system of government?
A. “He shall have power . . . with the advice and
consent of the Senate, . . . and . . . shall appoint . . .“
B. “Every bill . . . shall, before it becomes a law, be
presented to the President of the United States; . . ."
C. “The powers not delegated to the United States . . .
are reserved to the states . . .“
D. “Full faith and credit shall be given in each state to
the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of
every other state.”
The system of checks and balances is best
illustrated by the power of
A. the President to veto a bill passed by
Congress
B. Congress to censure one of its
members
C. a governor to send the National Guard
to stop a riot
D. state and Federal governments to levy
and collect taxes
Adherence to a strict interpretation of the
Constitution would have prevented
A. President Thomas Jefferson from
making the Louisiana Purchase
B. writing “State of the Union” messages
C. receiving ambassadors
D. commissioning military officers
Which phrase from the Declaration of
Independence most clearly reflects the idea
that the people are the source of government?
A. “. . . that all men are created equal,...”
B. “. .. all men are . . . endowed by their
Creator with certain unalienable rights
C. “. . . deriving their just powers from the
consent of the governed. . .“
D. “. . . governments long established should
not be changed for light and transient
causes . . .
One way in which the United States
Constitution differed from the Articles of
Confederation was that the Constitution
A. created a national government having
three branches
B. provided for the direct election of the
President by the voters
C. made the amendment process more
difficult
D. increased the powers of the states
At the Constitutional Convention of 1787,
delegates from the small states most
strongly supported the idea of
A. establishing a strong national
executive
B. levying taxes on exports
C. popular election of Senators
D. equal representation for the states in
the national legislature
One way in which the authors of the
Constitution tried to create “limited
government” was by providing for
A. a loyal opposition through a two-party
system
B. a division of power between the national
and state governments
C. the establishment of naturalization laws
D. the popular election of Federal judges
The flexibility of the original United States
Constitution is due mainly to
A.its provision for the amending process and
judicial interpretation
B.its guarantees of freedom and justice for all
people
C.the ability to create new branches of
government as needed
D.the willingness of the states to accept
Federal control
“In framing a government which is to be
administered by men over men, the great
difficulty lies in this, you must first enable the
government to control the governed; and in the
next place, oblige it to control itself.”
This passage from the Federalist Papers refers to
the need for
A.
B.
C.
D.
a strong executive
a system of checks and balances
an independent military
a national education system
During the debates over the ratification of the
United States Constitution, Federalists and
Anti-Federalists disagreed most strongly over
the
A. division of powers between the national
and state governments
B. provision for admitting new states to the
Union
C. distribution of power between the Senate
and the House of Representatives
D. method of amending the Constitution
Which constitutional provision was intended
to give the people the most influence over
the Federal Government?
A. President’s duty to give Congress
information about the state of the Union
B. electoral college system for choosing the
President
C. direct election of members of the House of
Representatives for two-year terms
D. process for proposing and ratifying
amendments to the Constitution
The Articles of Confederation are best
described as a
A. statement of principles justifying the
Revolutionary War
B. plan of union for the original thirteen
states
C. set of arguments supporting ratification
of the Constitution
D. list of reasons for the secession of the
Southern States
The major reason the Bill of Rights was added
to the United States Constitution was to
A. limit the power of state governments
B. protect individual liberties against abuse
by the Federal Government
C. provide for equal treatment of all people
D. separate powers between the three
branches of government
Which idea is illustrated by the Supreme
Court cases Schenck v. United States and
Korematsu v . United States?
A. The free speech rights of Communists
have often been violated.
B. During wartime, limitations on civil rights
have been upheld by judicial action.
C. The rights of protestors have been
preserved even in times of national stress.
D. Economic interests of foreign nations are
frequently upheld in United States courts.
The Dred Scott decision on the issue of
slavery upheld the Southern viewpoint that
A. the power of the Supreme Court does
not extend to cases of race
B. Congress could not pass a law
depriving territorial residents of their
property
C. a national vote should be held to decide
the legality of slavery
D. the economic well-being of the western
states depended on slave labor
The decisions of the United States
Supreme Court in Miranda v. Arizona,
Gideon v. Wainwright, and Escobedo v.
Illinois all advanced the
A. voting rights of minorities
B. guarantees of free speech and press
C. principle of separation of church and
state
D. rights of accused persons
The significance of the Supreme Court
case Marbury v. Madison is that the
decision
A. advanced civil rights for minorities
B. upheld the constitutionality of a national
bank
C. limited Presidential control of foreign
policy
D. established the power of judicial review
"Separate educational facilities are inherently
unequal." -Brown v. Board of Education
The effect of this Supreme Court ruling was to
A. establish affirmative action programs in higher
education
B. require the integration of public schools
C.desegregate the armed forces and the military
academies
D. force states to spend an equal amount on each
public school student
What was the result of many of the Supreme
Court decisions made under Chief Justice
John Marshall between 1801 and 1835?
A. The system of slavery was weakened.
B. The federal government was
strengthened.
C. The rights of workers were supported.
D. Antitrust laws were upheld.
The Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade
(1973) was based on the constitutional
principle of
A.
B.
C.
D.
protection of property rights
freedom of speech
right to privacy
freedom of religion
The Jim Crow legal system, which expanded
in the South after Plessy v. Ferguson (1896),
was based on the Supreme Court’s
interpretation of the
A. due process clause of the 5th Amendment
B. states’ rights provision of the 10th
Amendment
C. equal protection clause in the 14th
Amendment
D. voting rights provision in the 15th
Amendment
The cartoonist is commenting
on public reaction to the
Supreme Court decision that
A. restricted attendance in
churches
B. mandated home-based
prayer
C. declared school-sponsored
prayer unconstitutional
D. banned public observance
of religious holidays