Find out how the Supreme Court is able to sit through speeches by taking our latest Week to Week news quiz.
Here are some random but real hints: there must be a quota before it's sin; they can spend it on Russian gas; talk about war powers; and bottoms up! Answers are below the quiz.
1. What did ISIS militants attack in Iraq this week?
a. A U.S. military base
b. The Iraqi president's compound
c. The headquarters of The League of Middle Eastern Christians
d. The Saudi Arabian embassy
2. For what job did the U.S. Senate approve Ashton B. Carter?
a. Secretary of defense
b. Secretary of Homeland Security
c. Ambassador to China
d. Senate chaplain
3. Who said he begins his day with "a thick book full of death, destruction, strife, and chaos"?
a. Pope Francis
b. Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi
c. President Obama
d. Cuban President Raúl Castro
4. Former Obama aide David Axelrod writes that during the 2008 election, the president lied about his views on what?
a. Attacking Syria
b. Clean energy
c. Same-sex marriage
d. Immigration reform
5. How did former IMF managing director and French politician Dominique Strauss-Kahn defend himself in court against "pimping" charges?
a. He has since converted to strict Catholicism and deserves to have his past wiped clean
b. He only attended orgies "four times a year for three years, nothing more"
c. His activities were only discovered because Google didn't "forget" his past like it was supposed to under law
d. "et alors?"
6. Who announced plans to quit hosting a daily program later this year?
a. Brian Williams
b. Kathy Griffin
c. Jon Stewart
d. Maury Povich
7. Following a new ceasefire, what country is expected to receive a new $17.5 billion bailout package from the International Monetary Fund?
a. Syria
b. Nigeria
c. Myanmar
d. Ukraine
8. President Obama offered to limit authorization to three years if Congress lets him do what?
a. Take military action against ISIS
b. Raise taxes for people in upper-income levels
c. Sign a free-trade deal with ASEAN member nations
d. Start smoking again
9. CBS News correspondent Bob Simon was killed this week in a car accident. Which one of the following is not true?
a. He was held prisoner in Iraq for 40 days during the first Persian Gulf War
b. During his career, he won three Peabody Awards and 27 Emmys
c. While at ABC, he co-hosted 20/20
d. He was aboard one of the final U.S. helicopters to leave Vietnam in the fall of Saigon
10. What did probate judges in about 45 of Alabama's 67 counties refuse to do?
a. Say the pledge of allegiance
b. Issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, despite federal rulings overturning the state's ban on same-sex marriages
c. Allow mixed-race couples to register to vote
d. Appear as mandated at the governor's state-of-the-state speech due to a dispute over pay
BONUS. How did U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg explain falling asleep during the State of the Union address?
a. She was protesting the president's assault on judicial powers
b. She was drunk
c. Her medications always put her to sleep by 8 p.m.
d. She wasn't asleep, she was leaning over so she could surreptitiously tweet on her smartphone
Want the live news quiz experience? Join us Tuesday, February 17 in downtown San Francisco for our next live Week to Week political roundtable with a news quiz and a social hour at The Commonwealth Club of California. Panelists include Carla Marinucci, Debra J. Saunders, and Bill Whalen.
ANSWERS:
1) a.
2) a.
3) c.
4) c.
5) b.
6) c.
7) d.
8) a.
9) c.
10) b.
BONUS) b (she said she was not "100% sober" due to a pre-speech dinner thrown by Anthony Kennedy).
Explanations of the hints: there must be a quota before it's sin: DSK thought people were making too much about him attending a few orgies a year; they can spend it on Russian gas: Ukraine got the deal, part of an effort to repair its economy; talk about war powers: Obama is asking for authorization for something he has been doing for months; and bottoms up! Ginsburg admitted to being a lightweight when it comes to wine.