APG Unit III Review

1. APG Unit III Review Fall 2013

2. Which branch was expected to execute acts of Congress and protect against mass movements to redistribute wealth? • The Executive branch

3. What are three specific powers given to the President? • Commander in Chief, appoints cabinet members, grant pardons, make treaties appoints judges and ambassadors, etc.

4. Why was Washington so careful about the discharge of his duties? • Fearful of setting precedents, which is how most presidential powers have been established

5. Who must the Supreme Court count on to make sure that its decisions are adequately enforced? • Executive Branch

6. Who served as the first President and Vice President of the United States? • George Washington and John Adams

7. Who appoints Justices & Ambassadors? Who approves them? President, Senate

8. Who has the power to negotiate treaties and enforce the laws? President

9. Who is commander in Chief of the armed forces and also in charge of federal departments (Defense, Treasury, State, etc.) • the President

10. What branch has used many precedents over time to add to its powers? When did many of these take place? • executive branch; during times of national crisis (war, Great Depression, etc.)

11. What are two formal ways the President can try to influence Congress? Informal? • veto, call special session, make State of the Union Address; use bully pulpit, trade political favors/offer campaign support

12. What are two powers Congress has over the President? • approve treaties, cabinet officials, & judges, veto override, control the budget process

13. What is a plurality election? • An election involving more than two candidates in which the person who receives the most votes is the winner

14. Who has the power to enforce laws? President (Executive Branch)

15. Which branch of government must approve the President’s decision to deploy troops? • None (trick question) • Although the 1973 War Powers Act places limits on the President’s ability to do this

16. What is the chief difference between a President and a Prime Minister? The President is an independent executive power (potential divided government), the PM always comes from the majority party in the legislature (no divided gov’t)

17. Identify three key types of federal officials that are appointed by the President. SC Justices, ambassadors, cabinet members, cabinet level posts (OMB, SBA, CEA, etc.)

18. How long is a President’s term in office? How many terms can one president serve? 4 years, 2 terms (22nd Amendment established this in 1951)

19. What are three of the Constitutional requirements for being President? 35 years of age, natural born citizen of the U.S., resident for 14 years

20. What two types of government offices are most often held by people who later become President? senator & governor

21. What typically happens to Presidential candidates who are either very liberal or very conservative? Give an example. they are defeated, Goldwater or McGovern

22. What religious background have all but one of our Presidents come from? Who was the exception? Protestant (non-Catholic Christian), JFK

23. When you have more popular votes than your competition, but not a majority, you have a _____ of the votes. Name two presidents who won this way. • Plurality; Truman in ’48, Nixon in ‘68, Clinton in ‘92

24. Identify 5 constitutionally designated roles of the President. • Commander in Chief, Head of State, Present State of the Union, Negotiate treaties, Chief Executive (oversee Cabinet & Bur)

25. What are the primary roles of the White House staff? • Advise President on policy, handle relations with Congress and bureaucracy (cabinet), public & press relations (speech writing, etc.)

26. What government entity is charged with determining voter eligibility requirements? Why is this significant? • individual state governments get to decide the requirements for their respective states; voting conditions and practices really vary from state to state

27. Name three activities PACs engage in to gain access to legislature. • make campaign contributions, run issue ads, lobby, research

28. Which cabinet member is effectively the CEO of the Department of Justice? • Attorney General

29. How is the president chosen if no candidate wins a majority of the electoral vote? • the House chooses based on a majority vote of its state delegations (each state gets one vote)

30. What is political efficacy?What demographics define voters who have it? • A citizen’s belief that they understand politics, and that their political participation matters; efficacy increases with age and education

31. What are “inherent powers” of the president? Give an example. • Powers exercised based on the authority granted be Article II, not specifically listed; Louisiana Purchase, internment of Nisei, half of the New Deal… 

32. Name three traditional reasons for low voter turnout. • registration requirements, weak party affiliation, weekday elections, frequent local and state elections

33. What are 4-5 factors that play a role in how likely someone is to vote? • Their age, gender, education level, race, marital status, and whether or not they belong to a union

34. What is the “mandate theory of elections”? Do political scientists support this theory? • It’s the idea that voters “send a message” when they vote – so that those elected (especially by large margins) have their mandate to make change; pol scientists do not support mandate theory

35. Since 1972, voters in presidential elections have been less tied to party loyalties and more interested in what? • the characteristics and positions of individual candidates

36. What are the three biggest influences on how someone decides to vote? • Party identification, their evaluations of the candidates, their views on specific policies

37. What are “motor voter” laws? What is their intent? • Laws that allow you to register to vote at the same time you apply for a drivers license; designed to increase voter registration

38. What religious group has enjoyed increasingly greater influence in the Republican Party since the early 1980s? How did they get there? • Evangelical Christians; Reagan’s bundling of conservative views on social issues

39. What types of party members attend their party’s presidential nominating convention? • “strong” party voters, very ideological in their approach and dedicated to the party

40. What is a “pocket veto”? What effect does it have? • President takes no action on a bill for 10 days while Congress is not in session; it effectively kills the bill

41. How did the framers handle their fears regarding the abuse of executive power? Put many legislative & judicial checks on the executive in place

42. How did historians feel about the use of Presidential power in the two decades following WWII? How and why did that change in the 1960s & 1970s? They favored a powerful Presidency, but LBJ, the Vietnam War, Nixon, and Watergate made the public more fearful of Presidential power

43. Who are the first two people in line to succeed the President? the VP and then the Speaker of the House

44. Identify two ways the role of the VP has expanded since Eisenhower. represent U.S. to foreign countries, serve on the National Security Council, play a larger policy shaping role

45. Since Lady Bird Johnson, how have most First Ladies chosen to define their role? By focusing on one issue (beautification, literacy, healthier diet & exercise, etc.)

46. Who officially elects the President? How do you earn votes in this system? the electoral college, if you win the popular vote in a state you win all of the electoral votes

47. What is the group of the President’s advisors called? Cabinet (14 advisors plus the Attorney General

48. Identify four Cabinet Departments. Justice, State, HUD, Health and Human Services, Defense, Treasury, Interior, Labor, Commerce, Transportation, Education, VA, Homeland Security

49. Who approves cabinet appointees, do they generally accept or reject them? the Senate, accept

50. What are the two key factors that limit the role of the cabinet? conflicting loyalties with the President and maintaining secrecy with a large group (14 of them)