2 Points
How do political parties in the United States help citizens engage with their
government?
A. By constantly challenging the two-party system in order to better
represent citizens' interests
B. By convincing citizens to ignore national issues and focus on
those specific to a city or state
C. By making it easier for voters to identify candidates who share
their general beliefs and values
D. By encouraging citizens to remain open to all viewpoints rather
than taking partisan stances

This is hard to answer. Today's political parties are so divided that they definitely do not encourage citizens to remain open to all viewpoints rather than taking partisan stances, so D is out. I would also say B is out, because they don't convince citizens to ignore national issues at all. That leaves us with A and C. Because the parties are so divided, they are constantly challenging the two party system. That is just a fact. However, my instinct tells me they are looking for answer C to be the correct answer, because it sounds politically correct, which is how the parties portray themselves. By making it easier for voters to identify candidates who share their general beliefs and values. And my fingers are crossed that this is the answer they want.

Explanation:

during the debate over his landmark energy policy proposal, president jimmy carter failed to consult one of the most powerful senators, louisiana’s russell long, who would have a big say over whether the legislation moved through the upper chamber. this was classic carter. with a strong distaste for congressional politics, the president simply refused to do what most other presidents would consider routine, such as courting key senators. long became so irate with the president that when he was finally invited to a white house dinner, he stood up to ask a question and, before doing so, proceeded to sarcastically introduce himself: “i’m russell long, chairman of the senate finance committee.”

this interaction is a revealing moment in stuart e. eizenstat’s fascinating new history of carter’s presidency. the former peanut farmer from georgia was a president who, according to conventional wisdom, didn’t care much for party politics; nonetheless, in eizenstat’s view, carter’s legacy on domestic and foreign policy has been vastly underappreciated. the author paints carter as a “bold and determined” leader who bravely attacked the challenges of his time. eizenstat goes so far as to argue that carter might very well be the most successful one-term president in american history.