Democracy in America, Chapter VIII - The Federal Constitution--Part IV quiz

Questions and answers

1. 1

   Question 1. According to Tocqueville, why is the judicial power naturally weak in confederations?

   • Because confederate courts lack written constitutions to interpret
   • Correct answer: Because confederate courts must oppose a fraction of the nation rather than an isolated individual
   • Because confederate judges are typically elected for very short terms
   • Because confederate citizens regard foreign tribunals as more legitimate

   Tocqueville argues that in unitary states a court speaks for "the entire nation" against an individual, but in a confederation it speaks against a fraction of the nation — a State — which diminishes its moral authority and physical strength.

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2. 2

   Question 2. What does Tocqueville call the framers' decision to have Federal courts act only on parties "in an individual capacity"?

   • A constitutional accident
   • A regrettable concession to the States
   • Correct answer: A master-stroke of policy
   • A temporary expedient

   He praises it as "a master-stroke of policy" because it lets the Union's courts confront single citizens — a manageable adversary — rather than entire States.

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3. 3

   Question 3. When the Union levies a tax, who is the Supreme Court empowered to enforce it against?

   • The State legislature that resists collection
   • The governor of the offending State
   • Correct answer: The private American taxpayer
   • The federal customs office

   Tocqueville notes the Court "exerts its influence not upon a refractory State, but upon the private taxpayer" — an antagonist of the Union's own choosing, naturally feeble.

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4. 4

   Question 4. How does Tocqueville describe the effect of Supreme Court decrees on State laws that conflict with the Union?

   • They formally abolish such State laws
   • Correct answer: They enervate but do not destroy them
   • They suspend them for a renewable seven-year term
   • They remand them to the State courts for reconsideration

   The chapter heading and text emphasize that the decrees "enervate but do not destroy" provincial laws — they weaken the law in its consequences without striking it down in principle.

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5. 5

   Question 5. According to Tocqueville, in whose hands does the existence of the Union ultimately rest?

   • The President and his cabinet
   • The members of Congress
   • Correct answer: The seven Federal judges of the Supreme Court
   • The State governors collectively

   He writes that "the peace, the prosperity, and the very existence of the Union are vested in the hands of the seven judges," giving the Court a uniquely heavy political responsibility.

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6. 6

   Question 6. On what does Tocqueville say the Supreme Court's enormous power ultimately depends?

   • Its ability to deploy federal marshals
   • The personal wealth of the justices
   • Correct answer: The authority of public opinion
   • Its alliance with the President

   He argues the Court's power "is clothed in the authority of public opinion" — formidable while the people respect the law, but "impotent against popular neglect or popular contempt."

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7. 7

   Question 7. Which Federalist paper does Tocqueville quote in this chapter, and on whose authority?

   • Federalist No. 10, by James Madison
   • Correct answer: Federalist No. 71, by Alexander Hamilton
   • Federalist No. 78, by Alexander Hamilton
   • Federalist No. 51, by James Madison

   He cites Federalist No. 71, where Hamilton defends the executive's duty to resist "every sudden breeze of passion" and serve the people's true interests rather than their momentary inclinations.

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8. 8

   Question 8. Why does Tocqueville consider the Federal Constitution superior to the State constitutions?

   • Because it was ratified by a larger number of voters
   • Correct answer: Because the framers had unusual patriotism and intelligence and resisted the dangers of legislative concentration
   • Because it allowed unrestricted judicial review of State laws
   • Because it abolished the State constitutions entirely

   Tocqueville credits the framers' character — "esteem rather than affection" — and their deliberate resistance to legislative omnipotence and to popular caprice.

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9. 9

   Question 9. Which of the following does Tocqueville actually describe as features of the Federal Constitution in this chapter?

   • A four-year fixed term for the President.

     Happened

   • A salary for the President that cannot be altered during his term of office.

     Happened

   • A guarantee that federal judges' salary shall not be altered and their functions shall be inalienable.

     Happened

   • A requirement that Federal judges be elected by popular vote every two years.

     Didn't happen

   • Direct popular election of the Senate by universal suffrage.

     Didn't happen

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10. 10

    Question 10. Tocqueville contrasts the American Union with earlier confederations. Which of the following claims does he make in this chapter?

    • Earlier confederations levied taxes on member States rather than on individual citizens.

      Happened

    • In the Germanic Confederation, Austria and Prussia exercised great influence in the name of the Diet.

      Happened

    • The American Confederation of 1789 acts directly on private citizens, not on member States.

      Happened

    • Switzerland's confederation already levied direct taxes on individuals long before America did.

      Didn't happen

    • Tocqueville claims the new American form already has a precise name in political science.

      Didn't happen

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11. 11

    Question 11. What does Tocqueville mean by a "refractory State" when he says the Court enforces taxes against "the private taxpayer, not a refractory State"?

    • A State whose finances are insolvent
    • Correct answer: A State that stubbornly resists federal authority
    • A State that has recently been admitted to the Union
    • A State governed by a single political party

    "Refractory" means stubbornly resistant to control or authority. Tocqueville's point is that the Court avoids confronting such a State directly by acting on the citizen instead.

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12. 12

    Question 12. When Tocqueville says federal court decrees "enervate but do not destroy" provincial laws, what does "enervate" mean?

    • To formally repeal
    • To translate into another language
    • Correct answer: To weaken or drain of force
    • To publicly denounce

    To enervate is to weaken or sap of strength — the Court drains a State law of practical effect through individual cases without abolishing it outright.

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13. 13

    Question 13. Tocqueville writes that public opinion is "the most intractable of agents." What does "intractable" mean here?

    • Easily directed and persuaded
    • Correct answer: Difficult to manage or control
    • Indifferent to political affairs
    • Constantly moving from place to place

    "Intractable" describes something stubbornly hard to manage. Public opinion's exact limits, Tocqueville says, cannot be defined, which makes it especially dangerous to defy or to undershoot.

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