The following questions appeared on the 1994 AP U.S. Government and Politics Exam. Please keep in mind that as the United States government and other governments evolve, changes take place. As a result, some questions may become dated and no longer have a single best answer.

1. The framers of the Constitution all believed that one of the primary functions of government is
   1. educating citizens
   2. protecting individual property rights
   3. protecting new immigrants from persecution
   4. expanding the borders of the nation
   5. ensuring that anyone accused of a crime has the right to legal representation
      
      

      (B.) The founders feared that in a democracy, the many (who were poor) would attempt to take the property of the few (who were rich); hence, they built safeguards into the Constitution to protect property rights.

2. In The Federalist papers, James Madison expressed the view that political factions
   1. should be nurtured by a free nation
   2. should play a minor role in any free nation
   3. are central to the creation of a free nation
   4. are undesirable but inevitable in a free nation
   5. are necessary to control the masses in a free nation
      
      

      (D.) Madison feared factions, but understood that differing interests in a free society would produce them.

3. Agreement among four justices on the Supreme Court is always sufficient to
   1. decide the outcome of the case
   2. write a majority opinion
   3. set a precedent
   4. overturn a lower court's opinion
   5. accept a case for consideration
      
      

      (E.) The "Rule of Four" decrees that only four justices need decide to hear a case for it to appear before the Court.

4. hich of the following is true of nominees for federal judgeships?
   1. They are recruited from the current pool of United States attorneys.
   2. They are nominated by the Senate and approved by the House of Representatives.
   3. They are elected in popular elections in individual states.
   4. They must receive the approval of the American Bar Association upon nomination.
   5. They are appointed for life by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate.
      
      

      (E.) Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution describes the process of selection; Article III, Section 1 decrees federal judges have lifetime appointments.

5. In selecting members of the White House staff, Presidents primarily seek people who
   1. give the White House ideological balance
   2. are personally loyal to the President
   3. have extensive governmental experience
   4. will help the President develop a good working relationship with Congress
   5. can bring a nonpartisan perspective to policy deliberations
      
      

      (B.) Because the White House staff are the President's closest advisors, they are chosen based on personal loyalty.

6. Which of the following is a correct statement about political action committees (PAC's)?
   1. The number of PAC's has remained stable over the past decade.
   2. Most PAC money is distributed to challengers in an effort to unseat hostile incumbents.
   3. The amount of money that PAC's can contribute directly to an individual candidate is limited by law.
   4. PAC's are illegal in most states.
   5. PAC's rarely attempt to influence legislation through lobbying activities.
      
      

      (C.) Federal laws limit the amount PACs can contribute to individual campaigns.

7. A "cloture motion" passed in the Senate does which of the following?
   1. Returns a bill to committee.
   2. Cuts off debate on a bill.
   3. Criticizes a senator guilty of improprieties.
   4. Removes a President who has been impeached by the House.
   5. Brings a bill directly to a vote without formal committee approval.
      
      

      (B.) Cloture motions are used to end floor debate, usually to end a filibuster.

8. The use of direct primaries instead of the convention system in selecting presidential candidates results in which of the following?
   1. A weakening of party control over nominations
   2. A reduction in the costs of election campaigns
   3. An increase in the number of people involved in the choice of candidates
   4. An increase in voter turnout in midterm elections
      
      
      1. I and III only
      2. II and IV only
      3. III and IV only
      4. I, II, and III only
      5. I, II, III, and IV
         
         

      (A.) Party organizations have less control over nominations (I), and primaries involve more people in the nomination process (III).

9. Which of the following factors best accounts for the rise of interest groups and the decline of political parties in recent years?
   1. National parties have become too closely identified with controversial issues.
   2. Court decisions have restricted the political parties' abilities to recruit new members.
   3. It is less expensive to join an interest group than to join a political party.
   4. Interest groups have been more successful in avoiding negative press coverage than have political parties.
   5. Interest groups are better able to articulate specific policy positions than are political parties.
      
      

      (E.) Interest groups represent narrow interests very specifically; parties tend to be vaguer on specific issues.

10. Which of the following best characterizes the influence of the news media on public opinion in the United States?
    1. They alter the public's views on issues.
    2. They affect which issues the public thinks are important.
    3. They determine how citizens will vote.
    4. They are most able to influence people with the highest level of education.
    5. They are most able to influence the urban sectors of society.
       
       

       (B.) The media can draw public attention to issues.

11. Of the following, which group voted most heavily Democratic in presidential elections between 1964 and 1992?
    1. Mexican Americans
    2. Chinese Americans
    3. Jewish Americans
    4. Black Americans
    5. Roman Catholic Americans
       
       

       (D.) Black Americans voted the most heavily Democratic during this period.

12. To enforce the Fourteenth Amendment more clearly, Congress passed the
    1. Civil Rights Act of 1964
    2. Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act
    3. Social Security Act
    4. Twenty-sixth Amendment
    5. War Powers Resolution
       
       

       (A.) The Civil Rights Act bans all forms of discrimination by race and gender, giving power to equal protection under the Fourteenth Amendment.

13. In the United States, most criminal cases end in
    1. a plea bargain negotiated by the defense and prosecution
    2. an appeal to the United States Court of Appeals
    3. an appeal to a state court of appeals
    4. a trial by judge
    5. a trial by jury
       
       

       (A.) Most criminal cases are settled by plea bargain and never go to trial.