SAT II US History : U.S. Political History from 1899 to the Present

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for SAT II US History

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Example Questions

Example Question #41 : U.S. Political History From 1899 To The Present

All of the following groups were key elements of Bill Clinton's winning coalition in 1992 EXCEPT __________.

Possible Answers:

Southern Democrats

moderate suburbanites

urban liberals

young voters

racial minorities

Correct answer:

Southern Democrats

Explanation:

Bill Clinton won the Presidential Election in 1992 with a plurality of the votes, as a three way race between Clinton, President George Bush, and Texas billionaire Ross Perot created odd electoral coalitions. Clinton's coalition did see a new Democratic Party base emerge, however, by keeping urban liberals and African-Americans who had voted for Democrats in previous elections, and also appealing to moderate voters and young voters who felt lost in either party previously.

Example Question #42 : U.S. Political History From 1899 To The Present

Barry Goldwater's 1964 Presidential campaign saw the first Republican electoral success since the Civil War in __________.

Possible Answers:

the former Confederacy

New England States

the Pacific Coast

Mid-Atlantic

the Midwest

Correct answer:

the former Confederacy

Explanation:

From the formation of the Republican Party in 1860, as the abolitionist party of Abraham Lincoln, through to the mid-twentieth century, the Southern states that made up the Confederacy became known as "the Solid South" because of their consistent voting for Democratic candidates at all levels. By 1964, circumstances had changed, as more liberal Democrats became the champions of Civil Rights for African-Americans, and Republicans began embracing more conservative economic ideas. Barry Goldwater, an Arizona Senator and arch-conservative with a limited view of government, became the first Republican to break the Solid South, thanks to his opposition to Lyndon Johnson's "Great Society" programs and the 1964 Civil Rights Act. Goldwater lost handily to Johnson, but began to reshape the Republican Party by winning the electoral votes of former Confederate states.

Example Question #43 : U.S. Political History From 1899 To The Present

The first Red Scare (1919–1920) was encouraged by all of the following except __________.

Possible Answers:

electoral success of the Communist Party in America

the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia

strikes by organized labor

increased nationalism in the wake of World War I

episodes of violence, including riots and bombings

Correct answer:

electoral success of the Communist Party in America

Explanation:

In the immediate aftermath of America's victory in World War I, a panic developed over spreading communism. In all actuality, organized political Communism never gained much strength in America, but many events gave an impression to politicians and society at large that communism was a growing threat. Chief among these was the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia, which broke out in 1917. In 1919 in America, however, increased labor activity such as strikes, led fear of rising communist influence, which was exacerbated by a series of bombings against capitalists and riots in major cities.

Example Question #44 : U.S. Political History From 1899 To The Present

President Theodore Roosevelt referred to the presidency as a "bully pulpit" meaning that __________.

Possible Answers:

it was a good place for a person to listen to the ideas of others

it was a good place for a person to get their agenda to the masses

it was a good place for a person to harass those below him

it was a good place for a person to look powerful

the president is subject to being pushed around by a lot of different people

Correct answer:

it was a good place for a person to get their agenda to the masses

Explanation:

President Roosevelt used the term "bully pulpit" to refer to the president's ability to pass his/her agenda on to the public. Roosevelt himself expanded the power of the presidency by taking issues directly to the people, and thus succeeded in fulfilling his own agenda while president.

Example Question #45 : U.S. Political History From 1899 To The Present

Which of the following was NOT part of New Deal legislation?

Possible Answers:

Social Security

Works Progress Administration

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

Environmental Protection Agency

Tennessee Valley Authority

Correct answer:

Environmental Protection Agency

Explanation:

President Franklin Roosevelt implemented a lot of agencies, administrations, committees, and acts during as part of the New Deal (may of which still exist today), however, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was signed in to being by President Richard Nixon in 1970 due to increasing public concern about human interactions with the environment.

Example Question #46 : U.S. Political History From 1899 To The Present

What was the outcome of Brown v. Board of Education (1954)?

Possible Answers:

People are allowed to marry whomever they want, regardless of race.

As long as separate facilities are equal, they are allowed under the Constitution.

Segregating facilities based on race is inherently unequal.

Burning the flag is a protected act of free speech.

Mandatory prayer in public schools is prohibited by the 1st Amendment of the Constitution.

Correct answer:

Segregating facilities based on race is inherently unequal.

Explanation:

Brown v. Board of Education (1954) is one of the most significant court cases in United States history, separate but equal, the doctrine established by Plessy v. Ferguson (1896), was overturned. The justices unanimously found that separate facilites are inherently detrimental to African Americans and were not protected by the Constitution under the 14th Amendment.

Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) established the separate but equal doctrine.

Loving v. Virginia (1967) ruled that laws agains interracial marriage were unconstitutional.

Texas v. Johnson (1989) found that flag burning is protected free speech.

Abington School District v. Schempp (1963) ruled that mandatory prayer is prohibited in public schools.

 

Example Question #47 : U.S. Political History From 1899 To The Present

Hubert Humphrey's pro-Civil Rights speech at the 1948 Democratic National Convention helped create the third party popularly known as __________.

Possible Answers:

the Dixiecrats

the Know Nothings

the Reform Party

the Socialists

the Modern Whigs

Correct answer:

the Dixiecrats

Explanation:

Humphrey, who was the Mayor of Minneapolis and the Democratic Candidate for Senator from Minnesota in 1948, gave a rousing opening speech that stated "the time has come for the Democratic Party to get out of the shadow of states' rights and walk forthrightly into the bright sunshine of human rights!" Immediately, many conservative Southern delegates, led by South Carolina's Strom Thurmond, stormed out in protest. These delegates formed the short-live "States' Rights Party," better known as the "Dixiecrats," for their typically Southern position on Civil Rights. Thurmond would win three states as a Presidential candidate in 1948, but the Dixiecrats never held much political influence after, and Thurmond became a Republican in 1964 due to his opposition to the Civil Rights Act.

Example Question #48 : U.S. Political History From 1899 To The Present

The ____________ Scandal occurred during President Warren G. Harding’s administration.  In it, Secretary of the Interior Albert B. Fall leased Naval petroleum reserves to private oil companies without competitive bidding at extremely low rates. The Secretary of the Interior was later convicted of accepting bribes from the oil companies in question. 

Possible Answers:

Whitewater

Iran-Contra

Teapot Dome

Fall of Albert

Watergate

Correct answer:

Teapot Dome

Explanation:

The Teapot Dome Scandal was the name given to Albert B. Fall's criminal involvement with the leasing of the petroleum reserves in Wyoming and California.

Example Question #49 : U.S. Political History From 1899 To The Present

In the United States Presidential Election of 1948, Strom Thurmond ran under the banner of which segregationist political party?

Possible Answers:

Prohibition

American Independent

America First

Dixiecrat

Progressive

Correct answer:

Dixiecrat

Explanation:

Strom Thurmond ran on the 1948 presidential ticket under the banner of the short-lived segregationist States' Rights Democratic Party, better known as the Dixiecrats.

Example Question #50 : U.S. Political History From 1899 To The Present

What is the significance of the phrase "return to normalcy" in US history?

Possible Answers:

It was a popular World War II propaganda slogan.

It was a popular rallying cry by activists during the Industrial Revolution.

It was a campaign promise made by Presidential candidate Warren G. Harding, promising a return to the American way of life before World War I.

It was a campaign slogan by Presidential Candidate Calvin Coolidge expressing his intent to guide America culturally back to traditional values during the libertine 1920s.

It is a famous line from a Supreme Court decision.

Correct answer:

It was a campaign promise made by Presidential candidate Warren G. Harding, promising a return to the American way of life before World War I.

Explanation:

President Harding used the term in his campaign for the 1920 election to emphasize that he intended to prioritize getting the country back to "normal" after the disruption caused by World War I. And no, "normalcy" is not a word, a fact that has frequently been used to ridicule Harding both at the time and in the years to come.

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