Representation, Continued

How can you ensure that MC’s pay attention to their constituents?

• Choose people of good character

• Strict anti-corruption rules

• Align their personal interests with the interests of their constituents by forcing them to go before the voters on a regular basis to keep their job

General representational behaviors

Visiting the district

Communicating with constituents (media, newsletters, advertising)

Legislative behaviors

VotingIntroducing bills

Working in committeeOverseeing the executive

Purely Electoral Behaviors

Raising Money

Campaigning

Behavior Electoral Reward

Raising Money Better campaign, more votes

Behavior Electoral Reward

Raising Money Better campaign, more votes

Campaigning More votes

Behavior Electoral Reward

Raising Money Better campaign, more votes

Campaigning More votes

Visiting the district Advertising more votes

Behavior Electoral Reward

Raising Money Better campaign, more votes

Campaigning More votes

Visiting the district Advertising more votes

Communicating with constituents

Advertising more votes

When a member of Congress has to cast a roll-call vote, what does

she think about?

How do members of Congress make decisions?

Determinative Major importance

Minor importance

Not important

Constituents 7% 31% 51% 12%

Fellow MC’s 5% 42% 28% 25%

Party leaders 0% 5% 32% 63%

Interest groups 1% 25% 40% 35%

Administration 4% 14% 21% 61%

Staff 1% 8% 26% 66%

Who does an MC worry most about?

• Potential opponents (“Instigators”)

• BOTH Attentive and Inattentive publics

Attentive and Inattentive Publics

• Attentive Publics: citizens who know about an issue and have firm preferences about how Congress should act

• Inattentive Publics: have neither firm policy preferences nor knowledge of what Congress is doing

So WHEN will a member of Congress pay attention to the

“median voter” (inattentive public) in the district?

(And when will she pay attention to the “attentive publics”?)

When will an MC pay attention to the inattentive public?

• When the inattentive public might notice what they do.

• Which is?

• When voting on bills that get a lot of media attention

• When voting on symbolic issues

What about the attentive publics? When do they win?

• On votes that are complex• On votes that are not covered by the media• On tax and regulatory bills more than spending

bills• On committee votes• On procedural votes• They can also affect how hard a member

works

Behavior Electoral Reward

Voting on the floor Vote with constituents, don’t miss too many votes don’t antagonize a potential opponent

Behavior Electoral Reward

Voting on the floor Vote with constituents, don’t miss too many votes don’t antagonize a potential opponent

Introducing bills Look like you’re working hard, without putting in all that much effortplacate active publics

Behavior Electoral Reward

Voting on the floor Vote with constituents, don’t miss too many votes don’t antagonize a potential opponent

Introducing bills Look like you’re working hard, without putting in all that much effortplacate active publics

Working in committee

Can be a lot of effort, might be able to claim credit for some piece of a bill, someday one more line on the website???

Behavior Electoral Reward

Overseeing the executive

Placates extremely attentive publics; extreme publics, but electoral reward???

So does Congress do a good job representing our collective

preferences?

Does it do a good job governing?

Given re-election motive, Congress as an institution will…

• Be an ombudsman

• Expresses constituency preferences, not necessarily national preferences (common good)

• Pass legislation that contains particularized benefits

• Pass legislation that will not impose large, direct costs on constituents

Given re-election motive, Congress as an institution will…

• Pass legislation that embodies a good “end” even if means are poorly tailored to achieve it

• Balance attentive with inattentive publics on high profile issues

• Serve attentive publics on low profile issues• Express symbolic policy preferences, not

necessarily follow through • Not check and/or balance the executive branch