Week of August 17 - 24

Eight presidents are descended from passengers on the Mayflower. Name them.

This week's answer.

Week of August 24 - 31

President Obama is only the third president to have been elected directly from the Senate. Name the other two. And there has been only one president elected directly from the House of Representatives. Name him.

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Week of August 31 - September 7

Having served for 46 years, 9 months, and 19 days, Senator Edward Kennedy was the third longest serving senator in history. Name the six other senators who have served for more than 40 years.

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Week of September 7 - 14

This week the Supreme Court, in a rare September session, will hear what could turn out to be a landmark case on campaign finance regulation. What is the name of the case and what is the name of the movie at the foundation of the case?

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Week of September 14 - 21

In his first annual message to Congress and the shortest State of the Union, what state did George Washington welcome into the Union?

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Week of September 21 - 28

Which North Carolinian who signed the Constitution was later expelled from the United States Senate? This answer may be of interest to Raleigh Charter students because of his connection to a RCHS landmark.

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Week of September 28 - October 5

Name this grandson of a famous American. The grandson, like his illustrious grandfather, was a newspaper editor. In his newspaper The Aurora, he viciously attacked the Federalists, particularly George Washington and the Jay Treaty. He was arrested under the Sedition Act but died before the trial.

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Week of October 5 - 12

The Supreme Court opens this week, so it's time for a question on the Court. President Obama recently appointed Sonia Sotomayor to the Court. There is only one president who served at least a full four-year term and didn't get the opportunity to make any Supreme Court nominations. This is not including presidents who died before they could serve for four years. Name this president.

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Week of October 12 - 19

With the news of President Obama's being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, it is time to look back at other American winners of the Peace Prize. While many of the stories have mentioned the three other American presidents who have been awarded the prize, there have been other American political leaders who were Peace Prize recipients. Name the five American Secretaries of State who have been awarded the prize.

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Week of October 19 - 26

In honor of both Columbus Day from last week and the opening of the State Fair, identify this event which commemorated the 400th anniversary of Columbus's arrival in the New World. Westinghouse illuminated the fair with electricity thus demonstrating the superiority of alternating current. It was also notable for the first Ferris Wheel, and the introduction of Cracker Jack, Juicy Fruit and Wrigley's Spearmint gum, as well as a host of other products. It was also the setting of one of America's first serial murders as well as the assassination of the city's mayor.

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Week of October 26 - November 2

The Secret Service traditionally assigns code names to United States presidents and their families. Who had these nicknames: Deacon, Lace, Rawhide, and Starlight?

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Week of November 2 - 9

Since 1840, three former presidents have run unsuccessfully for the presidency as third-party candidates. Name those

1) three presidents

2) the years they ran as third-party candidates

3) the names of the parties whose tickets they ran on.

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Week of November 9 - 16

Of the 55 men who attended the Constitutional Convention, several returned home before the Constitution was finished. Of those remaining, three men present refused to sign. Name those three men. Two were from Virginia and one was from Massachusetts.

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Week of November 16 - 23

Although Rudy Giuliani's quest to become president was a dismal failure, three other former mayors have become president. Name these three former mayors who became president. One was mayor of Greeneville, TN, one of Northampton, MA, and the third was mayor of Buffalo, NY.

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Week of November 23 - 30

The Constitution specifies two methods of proposing an amendment and two methods of ratifying an amendment. We have only used the method of an amendment being proposed and approved by 2/3 of both houses of Congress. There is only one amendment that was ratified by state conventions instead of by the state legislatures. Which one was it?

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Week of November 30 - December 7

There are four men who lost a presidential election but then went on to win a rematch with the same man. Name them.

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Week of January 4 - 11

These days whenever a president is sick we get nauseating details about his colon and other organs we'd rather not contemplate. However, this was not always true. Which president lied to the pres and underwent a secret surgery for cancer aboard a yacht and had part of his jaw removed. All the press was told was that the President had undergone some dental work. At the time, the President feared to heighten an economic crisis that the country was in. Who was this president?

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Week of January 11 - 18

The assassination of which president led to two technological innovations: the metal detector to try to find the bullet lodged in his body and a primitive air-conditioning system to help him rest more comfortably in the Washington heat?

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Week of January 18 - 25

With so much public attention focused on the Massachusetts Senate race this week, here is a question from Massachusetts political history. When is the last time that Massachusetts had a Republican senator? Name that senator and what other political and demographic record his presence in the Senate represented.

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Week of January 25 - February 1

With Scott Brown's win last week, the partisan breakdown of the Senate is now 57 Democrats, 2 Independents, and 41 Republicans. The Democrats lost their supermajority of 60 senators. When was the last time that a party had a supermajority (60 or more seats) in the Senate?

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Week of February 1 - 8

In terms of State of the Union addresses, what was the significance of Lenny Skutnik? What tradition started with Mr. Skutnik?

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Week of February 8 - 15

Which president once gambled away an entire set of White House china?