True/False: Circle the best response (2 points each for a total of 40 points).
True False 1. The presidential election of 1968 saw a three-way race between
Richard Nixon, Hubert Humphrey, and independent candidate
George Wallace, the governor of Mississippi.
True False 2. The Arab oil embargo, was a temporary cessation
of oil shipments from the Middle East to the United States and
the Netherlands, imposed by oil-producing Arab countries in
October 1973 in retaliation for U.S. and Dutch support
of Israel during the Yom Kippur War.
True False 3. In his speech at the foot of the Lincoln Memorial, Dr. Martin Luther
King told Americans that one day white men and black men
would join hands and sing “Free at Last. . .Free at Last. . . Thank
God Almighty! We’re free at last.”
True False 4. The Watergate scandal began early in the morning of June
17, 1972, when several burglars were arrested in the office
of the Democratic National Committee, located in the
Watergate complex of buildings in Washington, D.C. This
was no ordinary robbery: The prowlers were connected to
President Richard Nixon’s reelection campaign, and they
had been caught wiretapping phones and stealing
documents.
True False 5. Harvey Milk, one of the nation’s few openly gay city
supervisor (San Francisco) spearheading a bill to ban
discrimination in employment, housing, and public
accommodations based on sexual orientation, one of the
nation’s strongest gay-rights measures of the 1970s.
True False 6. In the spring of 1975, the North Vietnamese army conquered all
of South Vietnam, and the following year North and South were
formally united in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
True False 7. During Ford’s presidency, both inflation and unemployment rose
to heights not seen in the post-World War II years. The rapid
growth of inflation, attributable to macro-economic issues as
well as to the escalation in federal outlays since 1965 and was
exacerbated by the rising price of oil.
True False 8. In his inaugural address as the Governor of Georgia in 1971,
Jimmy Carter announced that “the time for
racial discrimination is over” and proceeded to open Georgia’s
government offices to blacks—and to women.
True False 9. A onetime movie star and president of the Screen Actors Guild
(1947–1952), Ronald Reagan was originally a Democrat but
turned to the Republican Party and was elected to the first of
two terms as governor of California in 1966.
True False 10. Reagan came to the presidency in 1981 with a straightforward
and well-articulated domestic agenda. He promised to cut taxes,
curb government spending, provide federal dollars to combat
AIDS, mandate civil rights for all Americans including
immigrants, and balance the federal budget or at least reduce
the deficit.
True False 11. By 1983 AIDS became known as a “gay disease,” which led many
Americans to conclude it afflicted a minority of the population.
A smaller number of Americans who equated homosexuality
with deviancy saw AIDS as a form of divine or natural
retribution.
True False 12. Founded in 1979 by Jerry Falwell, an influential Baptist minister
and televangelist, the Moral Majority joined with other political
conservatives to promote the restoration of traditional moral
values in American society. Falwell and his followers played a
significant role in the election of Ronald Reagan to the
presidency in 1980, and in following years sought to focus
national attention on the controversial topics of abortion, gay
rights, pornography, the exclusion of prayer from public schools,
and the Equal Rights Amendment.
True False 13. In his inaugural address, George H. W. Bush spoke about the
plight of homelessness, crime, and drug addiction. He
advocated volunteerism and community involvement, pledging
to support “a thousand points of light, of all the community
organizations that are spread like stars throughout the Nation,
doing good.”
True False 14. The Persian Gulf War helped restore the morale of the U.S.
military and dampened memories of the Vietnam War. It also
showed the possibility of what Bush referred to as the “New
World Order,” breaking down Cold War alliances and using
peaceful nations to stand united against rogue states.
True False 15. The “Contract with America” proposed by President Bill Clinton
outlined legislation to be enacted by the House of
Representatives within the first 100 days of the 104th Congress
(1995–96). Among the proposals were tax cuts, a permanent
line-item veto, measures to reduce crime and provide middle-
class tax relief, and constitutional amendments requiring term
limits and a balanced budget, which was not forthcoming.
True False 16. Despite George W. Bush’s best intentions, his administration
encountered its share of challenges: the disputed 2000
presidential election, which initially undermined its political
legitimacy; the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, which
recast its focus and priorities, the natural disaster of Hurricane
Katrina in 2005; and finally, the 2008 financial crisis at the end
of Bush’s tenure.
True False 17. Bush II believed that faith-based organizations, charities, and
community groups could respond to people’s needs more
effectively than the Democratic led government.
True False 18. The No Child Left Behind Act expanded federal funding for
education, allowed more freedom for localities to spend federal
funds, set federal standards for school achievement, and
encouraged more freedom of choice between private and
public schools.
True False 19. Obama wanted to do more as president than put out the
economic fire he inherited on taking office. He also sought to
enact a major reform of the nation’s health care system. Health
care reform had been a leading Republican Party goal since the
presidency of Harry S. Truman.
True False 20. Just 75 years ago, and sometimes even more recently, women
in much of the advanced industrial world, including the United
States, Europe, and Australia, did not have equal pay legislation,
access to equal credit, no-fault divorce, access to abortion,
access to birth control, equal access to higher education
Listing (1 point each for a total of 16 points)
1. Name five pandemics that has influenced American history since 1900.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
2. Identify five television shows of the 1950s and1960s presenting a standardized
version of the white middle-class suburban family.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
3. The 1950s saw a surge of toys in the market, as post war indulgence changed the way that people spent. Identify six toys that affected the Baby Boomers.
- e.
- f.
c.
d.
Multiple Choice (Two points each for a total of 44 points). Circle the best response.
1. When taking office in 1961, President John Kennedy tried to stimulate
the sluggish economy through:
A. a massive foreign-aid program.
B. an increase in the military budget.
C. reducing expenditures in the space program.
D. a tax cut for the middle class.
E. stimulus packages for manufacturers and banks.
2. John Kennedy moved slowly in the area of racial justice because he:
A. did not support civil rights.
B. needed the support of southern legislators to pass his economic
and social legislation.
C. had not pledged any action in this area during his campaign.
D. believed that help in this area must come from the states, not the
federal government.
E. planned to pass this issue on to the next president.
3. The common use of poll taxes to inhibit black voters in the South was
outlawed by the:
A. Civil Rights Act of 1964.
B. 14th Amendment.
C. War on Poverty.
D. Voting Rights Act of 1965.
E. Brown Case in 1954.
4. As president, Lyndon Johnson called his package of domestic reform:
A. the Great Society.
B. the New Frontier.
C. the Old Deal Society.
D. the Great Crusade.
E. a Damn Aggravation.
5. The most serious blow to Johnson’s Vietnam policy was:
A. the bombing of Cambodia and Laos .
B. the invasion into Thailand.
C. when J. Edgar Hoover was commissioned by Congress to investigate
the on-going war.
D. the Tet Offensive of 1968 and the investigation into the war by
CBS News led by Walter Cronkite.
E. they all were blows of Johnson’s Vietnam policy.
6. Substantial opposition to America’s commitment to Vietnam between
1965 and 1968 came from:
A. America’s European allies. B. liberal congressional members.
C. college students. D. the American public.
E. all of the above began to protest the war in Vietnam.
7. What really fueled the growth of the American economy after World
War 2 to the early 1970s was:
A. low-cost energy.
B. the space programs.
C. the interstate highway system.
D. foreign trade alliances.
E. the expansion of manufacturing jobs.
8. The high inflation rate of the 1970s stemmed primarily from:
A. the Middle East oil embargo.
B. high taxes.
C. deregulation policies to remove Roosevelt era regulations.
D. spending on social-welfare programs and the Vietnam War.
E massive investment and revitalization of major industry.
9. During the Vietnam War, the United States lost:
A. respect in the eyes of foreigners.
B. confidence in its military prowess.
C. economic power.
D. respect from the oil producing nations.
E. all of the above.
10. President Jimmy Carter’s most spectacular foreign-policy achievement
was the:
A. Panama Canal Treaty.
B. Helsinki Accords.
C. Camp David Accords.
D. speech he gave at the opening of the Moscow Olympic Games.
E. Iranian Crisis.
11. The “new right” activist that helped to elect Ronald Reagan was
spearheaded by:
A. fiscal conservatives influenced by Richard Nixon.
B. moral minded evangelical Christians.
C. liberal Midwesterners.
D. the Radical Republicans.
E. the arrival of fundamental Muslims during the 1980s.
12. Ronald Reagan’s major goal as president was to:
A. cut military spending.
B. continue the antiquated New Deal policies of FDR.
C. reduce the size of the federal government and dismantle
expanding welfare programs.
D. expand the federal budget for education and child welfare.
E. end the Truman Doctrine.
13. The 2000 presidential election was decided when:
A. The Florida recount concluded that George W. Bush had received
863 more votes.
B. The Supreme Court ruled that the automatic recount had to cease
immediately.
C. Al Gore conceded privately to George W. Bush.
D. A recalculation of electoral college votes from Pennsylvania tipped
the scale.
14. What was the primary rationale used to justify the Iraq War?
A. The expansion of democracy and alleviation of human rights abuses.
B. The defeat of al-Qaeda cells.
C. Saddam Hussein’s alleged possession of weapons of mass
destruction.
D. Reduction of global gas prices.
15. Which of the following instigated the First Gulf War, also known as
Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm?
A. This was not a war as Congress never authorized military action.
B. Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait.
C. Soaring gas prices.
D. All of the above.
16. Why was the federal government slow to respond to the AIDS crisis?
A. Concerns about the deficit discouraged new research spending.
B. The disease was portrayed as an international problem, not an
American problem.
C. The issue disproportionately affected gay Americans, a marginalized
group.
D. The surgeon general opposed allocating research funding, believing
that it would be better used to fight cancer.
17. Which leader of the Soviet Union advocated the projects of glasnost and
perestroika?
A. Leonid Brezhnev.
B. Yuri Andropov.
C. Konstantin Chernenko.
D. Mikhail Gorbachev.
18. The Kerner Commission explained urban riots as the result of which of
the following:
A. Poor parenting by African Americans.
B. The provocation of racist urban police departments.
C. Black frustration with the hopelessness of urban poverty.
D. Anger over the failures of the Civil Rights Movement.
19.What initially sparked the 1973 energy crisis?
A. OPEC’s embargo of oil exports to the United States in retaliation for
American intervention in the Middle East.
B. Price manipulation by American oil companies.
C. Environmental legislation that eliminated old coal-fired power plants.
D. Public panic over the Watergate scandal.
20. What was the primary guiding principle of Carter’s foreign policy
during his early years in office?
A. Realpolitik.
B. Human rights.
C. Domino Theory.
D. Isolationism.
21. Which of the following resulted from American commitments to free
trade?
A. Rising prices on international goods.
B. Increased diplomatic conflict with other wealthy nations.
C. Increased dominance of American exports.
D. The relocation of American manufacturing oversees.
22. The Stonewall incident that catalyzed the gay rights movement occurred
when:
A. A prominent gay politician was murdered in San Francisco.
B. A gay teenager was tortured and murdered in the Midwest.
C. Bar patrons in New York City protested a police raid.
D. Media leaders began to focus on the experience of gay and lesbian
Americans.
