6.7 Interactive Knowledge Check: Separation of Powers and Federalism

1. With the new Constitution, the framers sought to create a balance between _______

2. In the founders’ view, the best way to protect the unalienable rights promised by the Declaration of Independence was ___________

3. Separation of powers refers to the fact that _________

4. What are the three different branches of government outlined in the Constitution?

5. The Constitution established a system of checks and balances, which grants ______

6. Federalism is the word used to describe the Constitution’s system of granting political power __________

7. The Spirit of the Laws, which articulated the importance of the separation of powers, was written by _________

8. According to Montesquieu, what happens when the legislative and executive powers are united in the same person, or in the same body of magistrates?

9. According to John Adams’s Thoughts on Government, what was the very definition of a republic?

10. James Madison outlined his explanation and defense of the Constitution’s separation of powers in which document?

11. According to Madison, in a good government, “__________ must be made to counteract ambition”?

12. What was true about the delegates to the Constitutional Convention?

13. What is the primary job of the legislative branch? (Article I)

14. What is the primary job of the executive branch? (Article II)

15. What is the primary job of the judicial branch? (Article III)

16. This series of essays defended the Constitution and the notion of separation of powers:

17. Which of these is a famous quote by James Madison?   

18. Which of these jobs exercises executive power?

19. Which of these functions of government is an example of checks and balances?

20. Which part of the federal government has the power to hear legal cases and strike down laws which are unconstitutional?