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| 1 | |
Which of the following is true about Congress? |
| | A) | In the nineteenth century, service in Congress was not a career for most of its members. |
| | B) | Most members of Congress today are professional politicians. |
| | C) | The vast majority of all incumbents get routinely reelected. |
| | D) | Both are true: Most members of Congress today are professional politicians; and the vast majority of all incumbents get routinely reelected. |
| | E) | All these answers are correct. |
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| 2 | |
Roughly _____ percent of all incumbents in the U.S. House of Representatives are typically reelected. |
| | A) | 33 |
| | B) | 50 |
| | C) | 66 |
| | D) | 85 |
| | E) | 95 |
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| 3 | |
What happened as a result of the 2000 census? |
| | A) | The U.S. House of Representatives was reapportioned. |
| | B) | New York lost House seats. |
| | C) | Arizona gained House seats. |
| | D) | Both occurred: The U.S. House of Representatives was reapportioned; and New York lost House seats. |
| | E) | All these answers are correct. |
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| 4 | |
The original gerrymander goes back to |
| | A) | 1790. |
| | B) | 1812. |
| | C) | 1861. |
| | D) | 1888. |
| | E) | 1911. |
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| 5 | |
Under the U.S. Constitution, to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives a person must be _____ years of age, and _____ years of age to serve in the U.S. Senate. |
| | A) | 25; 25 |
| | B) | 25; 30 |
| | C) | 30; 30 |
| | D) | 35; 40 |
| | E) | 40; 50 |
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| 6 | |
Which of the following is true of Congress today? |
| | A) | About one in three members has studied law. |
| | B) | Women and minority group members make up about 15 percent of Congress. |
| | C) | Members of Congress are overwhelmingly white and male. |
| | D) | Working professionals make up more than 90 percent of Congress. |
| | E) | All these answers are correct. |
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| 7 | |
Which of the following statements is true? |
| | A) | More than 20 percent of state legislators today are women. |
| | B) | The South has a higher proportion of female legislators than the rest of the country. |
| | C) | The northeastern and western regions have a higher proportion of female legislators than the rest of the country. |
| | D) | More than 20 percent of state legislators today are women and the northeastern and western regions have a higher proportion of female legislators than the rest of the country. |
| | E) | None of these answers is correct. |
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| 8 | |
After the president, _____ is said to be the second most powerful official in Washington, D.C. |
| | A) | the vice president |
| | B) | the U.S. Senate majority leader |
| | C) | the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives |
| | D) | the chief justice of the Supreme Court |
| | E) | the U.S. Senate president pro tempore |
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| 9 | |
There are currently _____ voting members in the U.S. House of Representatives, and _____ voting members in the U.S. Senate. |
| | A) | 300; 50 |
| | B) | 400; 80 |
| | C) | 435; 100 |
| | D) | 500; 150 |
| | E) | 600; 200 |
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| 10 | |
Most of the work that is done in Congress today |
| | A) | occurs in the standing committees. |
| | B) | is done in conjunction with the president. |
| | C) | is done on the floor of each chamber. |
| | D) | occurs in private meetings with lobbyists. |
| | E) | None of these answers is correct. |
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| 11 | |
_____ requires that each bill introduced in Congress be referred to the proper committee. |
| | A) | The U.S. Constitution |
| | B) | The Legislative Act of 1789 |
| | C) | Public opinion |
| | D) | The Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946 |
| | E) | None of these answers is correct. |
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| 12 | |
How is extended debate in the U.S. Senate terminated? |
| | A) | by a majority vote |
| | B) | by cloture |
| | C) | by the Senate Rules Committee |
| | D) | by the Senate majority leader |
| | E) | by the president of the Senate |
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| 13 | |
Differences in House and Senate bills are resolved by |
| | A) | standing committee chairs. |
| | B) | the leaders in both chambers. |
| | C) | conference committees. |
| | D) | both standing committee chairs and the leaders in both chambers. |
| | E) | None of these answers is correct. |
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| 14 | |
Which of the following is true of congressional oversight? |
| | A) | The biggest obstacle of oversight is the magnitude of the task. |
| | B) | Most members of Congress spend more time on other aspects of their job than on oversight. |
| | C) | Most members of Congress spend more time on oversight when a scandal is revealed. |
| | D) | Both are true: Most members of Congress spend more time on other aspects of their job than on oversight; and the biggest obstacle of oversight is the magnitude of the task. |
| | E) | All these answers are correct. |
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| 15 | |
More than 85 percent of contributions by political action committees go to |
| | A) | liberals. |
| | B) | conservatives. |
| | C) | incumbents. |
| | D) | challengers. |
| | E) | third party candidates. |
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| 16 | |
Which of the following statements is true about midterm elections? |
| | A) | The president's party usually gains seats. |
| | B) | The party of the presidency is more likely to lose seats in the Senate than in the House of Representatives. |
| | C) | Midterm elections usually see a higher turnout than presidential elections. |
| | D) | The 2006 midterm election, when the Republicans lost seats, fits the typical pattern of midterm election. |
| | E) | The party of the president usually picks up seats in the Senate but loses them in the House. |
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| 17 | |
_____ controls the scheduling of bills for debate in the U.S. House of Representatives. |
| | A) | The House majority leader |
| | B) | The House majority whip |
| | C) | The House clerk |
| | D) | The chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee |
| | E) | The House Rules Committee |
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| 18 | |
Which of the following is true of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate? |
| | A) | The House and Senate are separate and co-equal chambers. |
| | B) | Many democracies have a one house dominant form of legislature. |
| | C) | The House and Senate are separate and co-equal chambers, and many democracies have a one-house dominant form of legislature. |
| | D) | Both chambers are much weaker than the House of Lords in Great Britain. |
| | E) | None of these answers is correct. |
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| 19 | |
Which of the following statements is true about Congress? |
| | A) | The House and Senate both employ a system of seniority. |
| | B) | The Senate, but not the House, employs a system of seniority. |
| | C) | A junior House member can rise to prominence more quickly than a junior Senate member. |
| | D) | The House, but not the Senate, employs a system of seniority. |
| | E) | All these answers are correct. |
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| 20 | |
What is Congress's version of the Office of Management and Budget? |
| | A) | General Accounting Office |
| | B) | Congressional Budget Office |
| | C) | Congressional Research Service |
| | D) | Office of Congressional Management and Budget |
| | E) | Congressional Accounting Office |
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