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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. When O'Rourke paints a cynical picture of the concept of "majority rule," what does he say will be the only thing on the shelves at libraries?

2. What is the name of the agency that dealt with an outbreak of "runaway car syndrome"?

3. O'Rourke visited the Department of Transportation and was surprised to discover that many of the workers were fans of what?

4. How long did Jesse Jackson propose to freeze military spending?

5. Who did O'Rourke credit with George H. W. Bush's meteoric rise to popularity?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does O'Rourke depict Washington journalists?

2. How does O'Rourke describe the partnership between Dukakis and Bentson?

3. Why does O'Rourke say that George H. W. Bush's popularity plummeted?

4. Who does O'Rourke blame for the perceived poor state of the nation, and who does he let off the hook?

5. Describe O'Rourke's experience with the Young Americans Ball.

6. How does O'Rourke describe the Republican and Democratic platforms during the 1988 elections?

7. What did Ted Kennedy mean when he said "Where was George?"

8. What does O'Rourke say is the best way to truly understand the function of government?

9. How does O'Rourke feel that the American political system is like a Mexican Christmas fiesta?

10. Why does O'Rourke believe that the United States government remains unchecked?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Explore O'Rourke's view of special interest groups. What does the author dislike about special interest groups? How does he characterize them? How does he characterize the people who are involved in them? What specific groups does he talk about? What problems does he see with them? What role does he believe special interest groups play in the politics?

Essay Topic 2

How does O'Rourke say the government essentially put itself into debt? How does the government spend its money, according to the author? What does O'Rourke say is the main reason the country is in debt? What techniques does the author use to express his feelings about the government's spending habits? What point is O'Rourke trying to make about the government and the citizens?

Essay Topic 3

How does the author describe journalists? How does he seem to feel about these people? What techniques does the author use to show his opinions of Washington journalists? Why might his feelings about journalists be ironic? Does he address this irony?

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