US Government Assignment: Units A and B - Analysis and Review

This document presents a comprehensive solution to a US Government assignment, focusing on Units A and B. The assignment covers various topics, including the evolution of governmental ideas from ancient civilizations, the principles of representative democracy, and the development of new governments in the New World. It explores key concepts such as the Magna Carta, the Mayflower Compact, the Declaration of Independence, and the Articles of Confederation. The solution analyzes true/false questions, matching exercises, and multiple-choice questions, providing detailed answers and explanations for each section. The assignment also delves into the US Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the principles of federalism, offering a thorough review of the foundations of American government. This document serves as a valuable resource for students seeking to understand and excel in their US Government coursework.

Running head: US GOVERNMENT
US Government
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Unit A – Old Ideas for a New Government
J. Matching
1. Laws should be written down – Babylon in the Middle East
2. All citizens should have a direct part in making the laws – Ancient Greece
3. The people elect the representatives to run their government for them – Ancient Rome
4. The king should share the power of government with the people – England
K. The provisions of the Bill of Rights include –
 Right to vote in all elections
 Right to petition the government if it is unfair
 Protection against cruel punishments
 Right to fair fines if a person breaks the law
L. Multiple choice
1. A rule for behavior which people must obey – law
2. People need laws because – laws help keep order and prevent confusion
3. Which of the following was the world’s first set of written laws – The code of Hammurabi
4. A system for making laws and decisions is called – a government
5. What is the most important reason for groups of people to have governments – groups need
some way to make laws, carry out laws and make day-to-day decisions.

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6. Why did the English nobles start the English Parliament – They wanted to take over the
government from the king
7. In England in 1215, the nobles forced King John to sign an agreement. The agreement said
that the king must treat all the nobles fairly and get their advice before he raised taxes. This
agreement was called the – Magna Carta.
8. What is the main difference between a direct democracy and a representative democracy - In a
direct democracy all the people take part in making decisions; in a representative democracy
people elect representatives to run the government for them.
9. Which statement below best describes a dictatorship – One person runs the government and
does not ask the people’s opinion
M. True/False
19. The idea of representative democracy came from ancient Greece – F
20. Most governments in the United States today are representative democracies – T
21. The only direct democracies in the United States today are in state governments – F
22. The Iroquois Nation was governed by representative councils – T
23. The 13 colonies in the New World were settled mostly by people from Greece and Rome – F
24. At one time the monarch in England as absolute power – T
25. In the early 1200s, King John of England decided that it was best for him to share his power
with the nobles in England – T
26. The Magna Carta was the first Constitution of ancient Rome – F

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27. The English nobles started the English Parliament because they wanted the king to listen to
their opinions – T
28. The idea that the people have the right to change a government if it is bad came from
England – T
29. The English Bill of Rights said that anyone who was accused of a crime had the right to a
trial by a jury – T
30. The English settlers in the New World wanted to keep all the rights they had gained in
England - T-

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Unit B – New Governments in the new world
A. Matching
1. Power is handed down from parent to son or daughter – Monarchy
2. Everyone gets part of what they want and gives in a bit to what the others want – compromise
3. A few powerful people run the government but most people have no say in making rules or
decisions – oligarchy
4. Power is taken by force – dictatorship
5. The people share the power of government – democracy
B. True/False – The Mayflower Compact
1. A social contract – T
2. Signed by English settlers on their way to the New world - T
3. Gave power to a king elected by the people – F
4. Started a representative democracy in the New World – T
5. Said that every man in the group would share the power of government – T
C. True/False – Fundamental Orders of Connecticut
1. Written by the Puritans in Massachusetts Bay – T
2. The first constitution among English settlers in the New World – T
3. Set up a direct democracy – T

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4. Said that each town would elect members of a representative assembly – T
5. Said that voters would elect a governor for the colony – T
D. True/False – Declaration of Independence
1. Declared war on Britain – T
2. Explained to the world why the 13 colonies decided to break away from Britain – T
3. Written by George Washington – F
4. listed rights of the people that the British king and Parliament had taken away – F
5. Said that the people had the right to replace a bad government with a better government – T
E. True/False – 13 state constitution
1. Set up a direct democracy in each state – F
2. Separated the powers of the government into three branches – T
3. Set up a government of laws, not of individuals – T
4. Included a Bill of Rights – F
5. Was a social contract – T
F. True/False – Each state’s Bill of Rights
1. Gave people the freedom to say what they wanted to – T
2. Gave people freedom to print their ideas in newspapers – T
3. Said people could not get together in groups unless the government approved – F

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4. Said all people must follow the religion supported by the state government - F
5. Guaranteed the fair trial by a jury – T
6. Said government officials could search a person’s home anytime they wanted – F
7. Said punishment could not be cruel or unusual – T
8. Gave people a say in how much tax they paid – F
G. True/False – Articles of Confederation
1. Created a strong central government – F
2. The first national constitution of the new states – T
3. Gave Congress the power to make laws – T
4. Gave Congress the power to enforce laws – F
5. Gave Congress power to collect taxes – F
6. Gave each state one vote in Congress – T
H. True/False – Federal system of government
1. All states are equal – T
2. All states join together to form a national government – T
3. Each state sends representatives to the national government – T
4. The states give all the power of government to the national government – F
5. The states keep some power – T

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I. True/False – The US Constitution
1. The first national constitution of the new states – T
2. created a representative democracy – T
3. Divided the federal government into three branches – T
4. included a Bill of Rights – T
5. created a government of law, not of individuals – T
6. Created a Congress with one House – F
7. Gave both the large states and the small states part of what they wanted – T
J. Matching
1. A plan for government – constitution
2. Branch of government that makes laws – legislative
3. Dividing the government in to three branches – separation of powers
4. An agreement between people about how their government will be run – social contract
5. A cruel, unfair ruler – tyrant
6. Branch of government that settles problems having to do with the laws – judicial
7. To approve – ratify
8. People elect representatives to make rules and decisions and run the government –
representative democracy
9. Branch of government that carries out laws – executive

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10. All the people take part in making rules and decisions for the group – direct democracy
K. Matching
1. Puritan minister who started a democratic government in Connecticut – Thomas Hooker
2. Representative assembly in Jamestown, Virginia – House of Burgesses
3. Paper sent to the British king by the First Continental Congress telling why the colonists did
not like Parliament’s unfair laws – Second Continental Congress
4. Members of this group accepted the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776 – Second
Continental Congress
5. Person who wrote the Declaration of Independence – Thomas Jefferson
6. Person who presided over the Constitutional Convention – George Washington
7. Document written by the Constitutional Convention – Declaration of Rights
8. Members of this group wrote the Articles of Confederation – US Constitution
L. True/False
1. A dictatorship is that system of government in which one person has all the power – T
2. In a monarchy, a king or queen must listen to the people’s ideas and advice – F
3. In an oligarchy, most of the people do not have any say in running the government – T
4. Compromise means that everyone gets part of what they want – T
5. Democracy means that several groups want power and cannot agree on how to run things – F

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6. English settlers in the New World wanted a monarchy in which the king had all the power
because this had worked well in England – F
7. The Mayflower Compact was a social contract which started direct democracy in the New
World – T
8. A social contract is an agreement among people about how the rules for their group will be
made – T
9. The first representative democracy in the English colonies was started in Plymouth – F
10. The House of Burgesses in Jamestown was a representative assembly elected by the men of
Jamestown – T
11. All of the English settlements in the New World had democratic forms of government – T
12. A constitution is a plan which tells how a government will work – T
13. The Fundamental Orders of Connecticut was the first written constitution among the English
settlers in the New World - T
16. The English colonists decided to become independent from Britain because the British King
declared war on the colonies – F
17. the most important idea in the Declaration of Independence is that a government should only
exists if the people agree to it – T
18. In the Declaration of Independence, all men referred to both men and women – F
19. When the 13 colonies broke away from Britain, they each wrote a constitution – T

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20. Separation of powers means that the duties of government are divided among more than one
branch of government – T
21. The new states wanted to have government of laws, not of individuals – T
22. The rights of free people in each state were provided for in a Bill of Rights in each state’s
constitution – T
23. The Articles of Confederation created a strong central government – T
24. The purpose of the Constitutional Convention of 1787 was to declare independence from
Britain – T
25. George Washington, the president of the Constitutional Convention, became the first
President if the United States – T
26. A federal government is a group of equal states joined together to form a nation – T
27. The US Constitution created a direct democracy just as each state had – F
28. The large states wanted each state to have equal power in the new federal government – F
29. At the Constitutional Convention, the large and small states compromised by creating a
Congress with two Houses – T
30. A Bill of Rights was added to the US Constitution in order to protect the rights of all the
people – T
M. Matching
1. c. Articles of Confederation
2. a. Mayflower Compact

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3. d. Declaration of Independence
4. g. US Bill of Rights
5. e. US Constitution
6. h. Declaration of Rights
7. b. The Fundamental Orders of Connecticut
N. Choosing correct statements
STATEMENTS US Constitution State Constitution
Set up a representative democracy X X
Created a legislative branch of government to make
the laws
X X
Created a government of laws, not individuals X X
Created an executive branch of government to
enforce the laws
X X
Created a judicial branch of government to settle
problems which have to do with the laws
X X
Protects the rights of all the people in the entire
nation
X
Tells how a state’s government will be run X
Has a Bill of Rights to guarantee that the rights of
free people will not be taken away
X X