AP+Exam+Short+Answer+Questions+2b

= AP Government and Politics Exam Guide for Unit II=

Each of the links below contain all of the Wilson Study Guides for each chapter (featuring outlines, matching, true/false, multiple choice, and SRQs) that came from the 12th edition of the Wilson workbook. The multiple choice questions found on your unit exam may be taken from this bank of questions...study and review all of them in order to prepare!

[|Chapter 4 Study Guide] [|Chapter 18 Study Guide] [|Chapter 19 Study Guide]

The following SRQ (Short Response Questions) are the actual questions that were originally found in the Advanced Placement United States History Exams that have been held since 1999. Learn from the past and anticipate answering similar questions on the AP Exam this year...


 * 2000 Exam - Question 2:** The Supreme Court is commonly throught to be "above politics." However, one can argue that the appointment of Supreme Court justices is political.
 * Identify three characteristics of Supreme Court nominees and discuss how each characteristic has been politically relevant during the appointment process.
 * Identify two methods that have been used by interest groups to influence the appointment process. Explain how each of these methods has been used to infleunce that process.


 * 2000 Exam - Question 3:** The figure below displays voting patterns by state in the 1992 and 1996 presidential elections. Using the information in the figure and your knowledge of United States voting behavior, perform the following tasks.
 * Using the map [|located here], identify one of the numbered regions with strong support for the Democratic presidential candidate and identify and explain two factors that contribute to that support.
 * Using the map [|located here], identify one of the numbered regions with strong support for the Republican presidential candidate and identify and explain two factors that contribute to that support.


 * 2001 Exam - Question 3:** Many scholars and observers have argued that the ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution has become the single most important act in all of United States politics.
 * Identify which provision of the Fourteenth Amendment was applied in one of the following Supreme Court cases. For the case you select, explain the significance of the decision in United States politics.
 * //Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas// (1954)
 * //Baker v. Carr// (1962)
 * //Regents of the University of California v. Bakke// (1978)
 * Identify which provision of the Fourteenth Amendment was applied in one of the following Supreme Court cases. For the case you select, explain the significance of the decision in United States politics.
 * //Mapp v. Ohio// (1961)
 * //Gideon v. Wainwright// (1963)
 * //Miranda v. Arizona// (1966)


 * 2005 Exam - Question 1:** The judicial branch is designed to be more independent of public opinion than are the legislature or the executive. Yet, the United States Supreme Court rarely deviates too far too long from prevalent public opinion.
 * Describe two ways in which the United States Supreme Court is insulated from public opinion.
 * Explain how two factors work to keep the United States Supreme Court from deviating too far from public opinion.


 * 2005 Exam - Question 3:** Initially, the United States Constitution did little to protect citizens from actions of the states. In the twentieth century, the Supreme Court interpreted the Constitution to protect the rights of citizens from state governments in a process referred to as incorporation.
 * Define selective incorporation
 * For two of the following, explain how each has been incorporated. Each of your explanations must be based on a specific and relevant Supreme Court decision.
 * Rights of criminal defendants
 * First Amendment
 * Privacy rights


 * 2007 Exam - Question 2:** The First Amendment includes two clauses relating to the freedom of religion.
 * Select one of the following cases and identify the First Amendment clause upon which the United States Supreme Court based its decision.
 * //Engel v. Vitale// (school prayer)
 * //Lemon v. Kurtzman// (state funding for private religious schools)
 * Describe the Supreme Court's decision in the case that you selected in the first bullet.
 * Select one of the following cases and identify the First Amendment clause upon which the Supreme Court based its decision.
 * //Reynolds v. United States// (polygamy)
 * //Oregon v. Smith// (drug use in religious ceremonies)
 * Describe the Supreme Court's decision in the case that your selected in the third bullet.
 * Many of these decisions have causes controversy in the United States. Describe two ways in whcih other political institutions might limit the impact of Supreme Court decisions.

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