by jpitney | Jun 4, 2022 | Congress, House of Representatives, Uncategorized
Kevin Kosar at AEI: About 70 percent of congressional staff say they would or likely would accept requests for meetings from constituents, according to a survey led by Profs. Alexander Furnas and Timothy LaPira. (Disclosure: I helped design this survey.) And this...
by jpitney | May 19, 2022 | Congress, Deliberation, House of Representatives
Gary Schmitt at American Purpose: Today, the Speaker’s “paper” authority is less impressive than it seems. Without real party discipline, ambitious House members are more likely to invest their time and resources into how to grandstand politically than to build up a...
by jpitney | May 17, 2022 | Civility, Congress, House of Representatives
At The Hill, former Rep. Steve Israel (D-NY) remembers the late Tim Johnson (R-IL) We created the House Center Aisle Caucus and invited colleagues from both parties for dinners at a Chinese restaurant (chosen for its proximity to the Capitol and ease on our...
by jpitney | Apr 21, 2022 | Civility, Congress, House of Representatives, Insurrection, Ukraine
From the JFK Library: For the first time ever, the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award will honor five individuals — President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, U.S. Representative Liz Cheney, Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, Arizona Representative Russell “Rusty”...
by jpitney | Apr 13, 2022 | Congress, Debate, Deliberation, House of Representatives, Senate
Kevin Kosar at The Hill: . The citizen who dares to turn on C-SPAN 2 to watch our national representative democracy at work is all but certain to be disappointed. John Q. and Jane Q. Public will see committee hearings wherein legislators are bickering with one another...
by jpitney | Apr 12, 2022 | Civility, Congress, House of Representatives, Violence
Brian Baird and Jim Gerlach at The Hill: Unfortunately, in the past few years, the conduct of far too many members of the House and Senate and in legislative bodies across the land has devolved into angry exchanges and name-calling that serves no other purpose than to...