The silliness isn’t really a factor.
Why? What constructive purpose was served by that study that she had your help with? Why should those who do not have your help be denied the same opportunities?
She and I saw it as more of a competency test, ability to remember things about your country and giving you some idea of what the government does/days/etc
Competency for what?! Making tacos? Picking ocre? Doing factory work? Writing computer software?
at best it is the federal government imposing a standard onto society.
Is there a problem with that? Why are standards of a society, a bad thing to want?
They are not the "standards of society". I never voted on any test, let alone the questions. There hasn't been an public quorum on these tests. There's been no public committee open to public response. You just assert that it's a "societal standard" that everyone knows the wrong answer about who the first president of the United States was.
Why should the US allow anyone who wants to, become a citizen in the first place?
Two reasons. First, you're an idiot to ask why the government should not impose a standard. Second, it's unconstitutional. Naturalization is a power granted to Congress. But immigration is not. It is a power reserved for the states. So although Congress has the authority to not grant citizenship, the federal government does not have the authority to bar entrance to anyone, or to deport anyone. I'm going to go out on a limb, and assume you're a strict constitutionalist...? Except, of course, on this issue.
It’s weird to assume that just because you meet requirement xyz, you should be guaranteed access to be a citizen of the country.
And it's weird to think that if you meet requirement xyz, you should be arbitrarily delayed from being the rights that - by those standards - you have every reason to have. If someone has demonstrated that the "standards of a society", we want them to be a citizen, why should we not make them a citizen?! And the reverse is true as well. If by the "standard of society" we determine we do not want someone in this country, why would we delay in denying citizenship?
It's really fucking simple. If you go to a store to buy groceries, why would you want them to be delivered in a few months, with no particular reason for the wait? If you go to college, and graduate, why would you want to wait for years before getting the diploma? If you want to drive to work, why would you be willing to wait a couple hours for your car to start?
why couldn’t it could say those that do should be highly specialized/smart/have something to offer XYZ expertise to the US
Why would we? I mean, sure, if we had had those standards prior to the 1960's, presumably your idiot ancestors wouldn't have had idiot children in America. But those idiot ancestors of yours had to live somewhere, as do you. Why not on a piece of dirt marked "America" on a map? I make the presumption that even though you are a simple-minded ignorant tool, you are still productive. But even if you aren't, I'm not so egotistical as to measure your self-worth by the standard of what you do for me.