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.

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

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.

4. The original gerrymander goes back to

A) 1790.

B) 1812.

C) 1861.

D) 1888.

E) 1911.

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

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.

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.

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

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

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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