AP USG&P Unit 3: Legislative Branch I

1. The constitutional power of the president to send a bill back to Congress with reasons for objecting to it is the

• 1. Legislative veto.

• 1. Veto.

• 1. Overdraft power.

• 1. Power to persuade.

• 1. Pocket veto.

1. A midterm election is

• 1. A congressional election that is not accompanied by a presidential election.

• 1. A presidential election that occurs during a session of Congress.

• 1. A special election that may remove an official from office in the middle of the term.

• 1. One in which the incumbent is running for reelection.

• 1. Held every two years.

1. An “iron triangle” consists of

• 1. A metal stamp used to certify that the president has approved a new regulation and it now takes legal effect.

• 1. A bureaucratic agency, an interest group, and a congressional committee or subcommittee.

• 1. The president, the head of a relevant congressional committee, and the head of any regulatory agency.

• 1. Those favoring regulation X, those opposing regulation X, and a regulatory agency in charge of overseeing X.

• 1. Representatives of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government.

1. Congress’s authority to levy an income tax comes from where?

• 1. Interstate Commerce clause

• 1. Sixteenth Amendment

• 1. Budget Act (1974)

• 1. Bill of Rights

• 1. Marbury v. Madison

1. What happens to representation in Congress as the population increases? 

• 1. The total number of representatives in Congress goes up.

• 1. The number of people that all members of Congress represent increases.

• 1. The seats in Congress are redistributed (reapportioned) so that states with more people have more seats.

• 1. The states are forced to abandon single-member election districts.

• 1. A constitutional amendment providing for term limits of congressional members is enacted.

1. Which situation is usually the main reason for incumbent members of the House of Representatives to be re-elected?

• 1. The incumbent has name recognition and may have done casework for the constituency well.

• 1. The country is facing a foreign-policy crisis.

• 1. The president wins re-election by a large margin.

• 1. The economy is strong and stable.

• 1. The incumbent is faced with a wealthy challenger.

1. Why is the incumbency effect more helpful for members of the House than the Senate?

• 1. The franking privilege is not available to incumbent senators.

• 1. Senate challengers always outspend a senator running for re-election.

• 1. Senators consider themselves trustees rather than delegates.

• 1. Senators usually represent a much larger population and have less contact with their constituents.

• 1. Senators spend less time campaigning for re-election.

1. All of these factors contribute to the success of incumbent members of Congress, except

• 1. incumbents usually raise more campaign funds than do their challengers.

• 1. incumbents tend to understand national issues better than do their challengers.

• 1. incumbents are usually better known to voters than are their challengers.

• 1. incumbents can use staff to perform casework for constituents.

• 1. incumbents often sit on committees that permit them to help serve district interests.

1. What are the advantages of incumbency in congressional elections?

2. I Incumbents receive more campaign contributions than do challengers.

   II Incumbents are able to provide important services for individual voters.

   III The government provides campaign funds for incumbents.

   IV The president always endorses incumbents for re-election.

   V Most American voters believe Congress does a good job.
   
   
   
   

• 1. I and II only

• 1. III and IV only

• 1. I, IV, and V only

• 1. II, III, and V only

• 1. III, IV, and V only

1. A member of the House of Representatives who wishes to be influential in the House itself would most likely seek a place on which committee?

• 1. Agriculture

• 1. District of Columbia

• 1. Public Works and Transportation

• 1. Rules

• 1. Veterans Affairs