FCLE Articles of Confederation and the Constitutional Convention

Question 1

Under the Articles of Confederation, Congress could NOT do which of the following?

Accepted Answer

Levy (collect) taxes directly from citizens

Answer

Declare war on foreign nations

Answer

Negotiate treaties with foreign countries

Answer

Request troops from state militias

Question 2

The Constitutional Convention of 1787 was originally called to:

Accepted Answer

Revise and improve the Articles of Confederation

Answer

Draft a formal declaration of war against Britain

Answer

Create a Bill of Rights for the new nation

Answer

Elect the first President of the United States

Question 3

The Great Compromise reached at the Constitutional Convention resolved a dispute over congressional representation by:

Accepted Answer

Creating a bicameral Congress — equal representation in the Senate, population-based in the House

Answer

Giving all legislative power to the President

Answer

Allowing only property-owning citizens to vote for representatives

Answer

Requiring unanimous state consent to pass any federal law

Question 4

The Three-Fifths Compromise reached at the Constitutional Convention determined that enslaved people would be counted as:

Accepted Answer

Three-fifths of a person for both representation and direct taxation

Answer

Full persons for both taxation and representation purposes

Answer

Not counted at all for any federal purpose

Answer

Full persons for taxation but not for representation

Question 5

Which of the following was a major weakness of the Articles of Confederation that led to calls for a new Constitution?

Accepted Answer

It required unanimous consent of all 13 states to amend, making reform nearly impossible

Answer

It gave the President too much power to veto state laws

Answer

It allowed the federal government to interfere in state affairs too freely

Answer

It established a federal court system that overruled state courts

Question 6

The document that governed the United States between 1781 and 1789, before the current Constitution took effect, was called:

Accepted Answer

The Articles of Confederation

Answer

The Mayflower Compact

Answer

The Northwest Ordinance

Answer

The Virginia Plan