Member of Congress’ Website Content
Attached Files:
Instructions are here, and in the attached PDF. Click on the assignment link (above) for submission.
Assignment 2: The Re-Election imperative and MCs Behavior: The Web Site
American National Government
Prof. Preuhs
The following short assignment is worth 100 points of your overall course grade. Grading is discussed below, but in general will be based on how well you cover all the elements of the assignment, as well as your ability to incorporate the reading material into the assignment where applicable (Chapter 12 on Congress).
Technical Aspects:
1) This assignment is to be typed, double-spaced and in 12-point font.
2) 1 inch margins
3) Spelling and grammar count. Always check for spelling and read through a draft before turning in your paper.
4) Use professional and formal language.
5) Approximately 3-4 pages for an adequate response are expected.
The Details:
One prominent explanation for why Members of Congress (MCs) behave the way they do, from voting on issues to relations with constituents, is that they are motivated by re-election. Credited to the work of David Mayhew and his seminal book, Congress: The Electoral Connection, the re-election imperative has been well-established in the empirical literature and explains why members of congress advertise their accomplishments, claim credit for policies (even though they rarely are solely responsible for passage), engage in case work (constituent services) and support/oppose policies and subsequently vote the way they do.
The re-election motivation is empirical in that it explains how MCs actually behave. It does not make a normative claim about how MCs should behave. However, while it may seem at first glance to be somewhat offensive to our normative ideals (we distrust MCs who seem to only seek re-election), it may be worse for democracy if they did not. Elections are the institution that link politicians to the public. It is not a perfect mechanism, but without elections and the motivation for re-election, then MCs might behave very differently from their constituents’ preferences. That is, without worrying about re-election, they could simply ignore the citizens within their district. This aside, the key point of this assignment is to examine one MC and see how well their behavior (as reflected in the content of their website) fits with the re-election motivated MC explanation of behavior. Do MCs seem to behave as if they are motivated by re-election and does an MC’s website provide some evidence of this?
To examine the big question, you are to choose an incumbent Member of the House of Representatives (MC) or U.S. Senate and describe them, their constituency, and the messages and content they display on their website in light of how they represent their district/state, their background, how they go about communicating their record to their constituents, the casework in which they engage, and generally, any evidence that they are helping their re-election bid via their website. You can, of course, find evidence from the website that might undermine this re-election imperative. Whether the evidence supports or undermines the re-election motivation thesis should be discussed where appropriate. Your assignment must identify the following:
1) What district or state does the MC represent and what are the basic characteristics of the district/state (rural, urban, liberal, conservative, etc)? Most websites also say something about the basic characteristics that reflect the district (rural, urban, etc). The characteristics may be a bit more general for states if you are examining a U.S. Senator.
2) With which party does the MC affiliate?
3) Summarize the basic policy positions of the MC? Do these fit with the general characteristics of the district/state? Why might this help in re-election?
4) Do they provide a link for helping constituents with case work or constituent services? How does this help with re-election?
5) What aspects of public policy and the MC’s position on those policies are highlighted on the website and do these fit with a general ideological orientation of their party? Is there a difference between their party, the district and their policy positions?
6) Is there evidence of credit-claiming or advertising? For instance, are lists of federal funds coming to the district/state provided? Do they claim to have helped pass/defeat a particular piece of legislation that was favored/opposed by the district/state?
7) Overall, how does the website’s content fit with the idea that members represent their districts and are continually concerned about reelectiona general theme in terms of an explanation for why MCs do what they do?
To complete this assignment, you will utilize the House of Representatives Website at www.House.gov or the Senate’s Website http://www.senate.gov. Once there, follow the link to Member Offices and choose a MC. All of the information needed for this assignment should be available on their website (from party affiliation to a brief biography to statements about policy and how the members have helped their district/state). Upload the assignment via Blackboard as an attachment in Word, PDF or RTF format.
Grading:
Are each of the specific points/questions covered? (50 points total possible)
Is the discussion of the re-election motivated MC linked to specific pieces of evidence from the book and the website? (30 points possible)
Is the essay written in a formal professional manner with correct grammar and spelling? (20 points possible)
