State governments are often called the “laboratories of democracy” because they

Question

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

Question restatement: State governments are often called the “laboratories of democracy” because they

Option 1: "employ more scientists and medical researchers than the federal government."
- This is not the primary reason the label is used. The phrase refers to testing policies in practice, not comparing the number of researchers across levels of government. The idea is about policy experimentation, not the focus of employment in science fields.

Option 2: "allow governments to experiment with many different policies"
- This option captures the essence of the metaphor. State governments can enact, test, and evaluate a variety of policies on a smaller scale before they might be considered at the national level. The diversity of policies across states serves as a living lab, allowing observation of outcomes in different contexts and contributing to broader lessons about governance.

Option 3: "invest more money in basic scientific research than the private sector and federal government combined."
- This statement confuses the metaphor with funding magnitudes. While governments fund research, the idea of the laboratory of democracy emphasizes policy testing and experimentation rather than a claim about overall investment levels compared to the private sector and federal government collectively.

Option 4: "are given the constitutional responsibility of regulating the health care industry."
- This is incorrect as a general description. Regulation of health care is largely a mix of federal and state responsibilities, but the moniker about laboratories of democracy is about policy experimentation, not about a specific constitutional grant to regulate health care.

Additional notes:
- The correct understanding centers on state-level policy experimentation and the ability to try different approaches in different jurisdictions, which provides comparative experience for evaluating what works and what doesn’t in governance.
- Misconceptions in the other options tend to either overstate the role of state laboratories in scientific employment, misstate funding dynamics, or misstate constitutional powers related to health care regulation.

GOVT2305 16709 - US Government Congress President and Courts Chapter 3 WTP Quiz

State governments are often called the “laboratories of democracy” because they

View Explanation

Log in for full answers

Similar Questions

Federalism can best be described by which of the following statements?

In areas such as licensing, morality, or the legal drinking age, the only way the national government can influence the states is through

Federalism can best be described by which of the following statements?

Which of the following constitutional principles best explains why there is variation among states on the use of capital punishment?

Question at position 14 According to the Constitution, all of the following powers are reserved to the States, EXCEPTIssuing licenses (such as hunting and driving)Establishing treaties with foreign nationsProvide schooling and educationProvide police protection

What is "new federalism"?

More Practical Tools for Students Powered by AI Study Helper

Homework AI Solver

Stylized AI Paper Writer

Plagiarism Checker Assistant

Citation AI Academic Writing Tool

In-Class Translation Assistant

AI Note Generator

AI Quiz Answers

Past Exam Questions from University Test Bank

Smart Practice Assistant

Adaptive Practice

Making Your Study Simpler