Semester Finale

To begin, I have been involved in politics for about a year now and although I thought I knew a lot about Congress going into this course I was definitely introduced to many new elements and viewpoints never considered before. This course allowed me to not only further my understanding of Congressman Dent and Senator Toomey but also enlightened me on many different political viewpoints possessed by my classmates. Those different political viewpoints, namely more liberal ones, only reaffirmed by belief that bi-partisanship and compromise are key to the American congressional system. My posts encompassed synthetic drug legislation, oil exportation, veterans affairs, and the electoral process among others. I was also very glad that I was assigned a democrat during our Senate simulation. Studying Senator Cory Booker has allowed me to further my understanding of the Democratic Party and understand that there are in fact many different active ideological sects present.

It is hard not to mention the sudden and chaotic resignation of John Boehner in this post. I am very happy that I was taking a class centered around congress when some as historic as a Speaker of the House resignation occurred. All of the powers at play from moderates republicans to the tea party had different reaction to the resignation. However, it was very reassuring and refreshing that Paul Ryan was ultimately chosen for and elected to the position of speaker. In regard to my posts, I investigated the attempt made by congressman Dent to counter the massive synthetic drug problem the Lehigh Valley and other parts of the nation are facing. I also discussed the possibility of the exportation of American oil to overseas countries.

On an ending note, my congressional knowledge has definitely increased. I will continue to be politically active and follow congressional updates weekly moving forward. With an election year coming up I will only further be involved in congressional campaigns and fundraising and will take some of the knowledge I gained from your course with me. I look forward to taking more of your classes in the future. Have a good holiday.

Final Blog Post Entry

After the work I've done this semester I have learned a lot more about the "people's branch" of government than I had ever known before. Learning how to think critically about the functionality of Congress as well as getting to participate in a simulation where I was able to actively participate in the fundamental processes of the branch itself were extremely beneficial towards my complete understanding of Congress and the U.S. government as a whole. It's very easy to only learn and retain the things about Congress that you're taught in high school: Congress is the law-making branch, and it's bicameral. But Congress in its function, Congress in practice, is so much more than that.

I have learned that there is a lot more to being a representative in Congress than just law-making. I've truly come to understand the responsibilities of a Congressman/woman, the concept of the "Two Congresses", and how important interacting and knowing the constituency is for a representative. I also found David Mayhew's "Electoral Connection" thesis along with Richard Fenno's "Theory of Congressional Committees..." thesis to be extremely thought-provoking. The midterm exam, which allowed for exploration of thought on these two theories, was an opportunity for me to piece together the way these two theses worked together, comparatively and contrastingly, and helped me to learn how to begin to analyze the future of Congress and how its productivity could be improved. While it seemed like a simple partisan solution to me at first, I was able to open up my thought process to a lot more factors (as mentioned above, constituency, Two Congress theory, etc.) that have contributed to my critical thought about the productivity of Congress.

Studying the Senate in particular, during the simulation, was a mind-opening experience as well. I already knew a fair amount about my home senators, Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, Democrats of NY, I had never really paid too much attention to Senators of other states and constituencies. Having to role play as Lindsey Graham, Republican Senator of South Carolina, I was exposed to many ideologies that do not align with my own personal beliefs. However, being forced to think critically about themes such as the economics of small businesses, education, and healthcare allowed for an analyses of human difference and variation among constituencies that I had never had to think about before.

At the close of the semester, I am confident that I can think critically about Congress in ways that more confidently analyze its functionality and productivity. 

Final Blog Post

Prior to taking US Congress I had a very basic and elementary understanding of how our Legislative Branch worked. Through this class I have learned the complexities and struggles that our law makers face both in terms of passing legislation and in maintaining a positive relationship with their constituents. One of the more fascinating and reoccurring themes throughout the course is the idea behind reelection being one of, if not the most important factor in decision making among congress makers. Each member must be focused on upcoming elections in one way or another because in order for them to able to get anything done they must remain in office. Understanding the reasoning behind the actions of the members of congress provides an interesting insight to how our and why our government functions the way it does. 

Many of the themes we discussed in class were consistently present in our weekly blog entries following the current congress. It was evident that congressmen and women for focused on their constituencies and were extremely careful with what they said and when they said. We witnessed a historical moment with the ousting of former Speaker John Boehner and we also observed the struggle to find and select a new Speaker to fill the empty seat. Bipartisanship was and is one of the most defining characteristics of Congress today. It is near to impossible for anyone to reach middle ground as both parties strongly encourage individual members to vote along party lines. This has caused the inability to pass any important legislation or really any legislation for that matter. We discovered this frustration for ourselves through the simulation where it was near to impossible to convince members to vote across party lines, but we also saw the power of a majority to push legislation through Congress. 

Overall this class has given me a much greater understand and respect for our countries representatives. They face many obstacles and struggles in balancing their multiple responsibilities of forming and passing legislation and voicing the opinions of their constituents. I have also grown frustrated with the way in the condition of the current congress. Our country needs strong, yet rational leaders that are willing to take risks and find compromise, but the current congress has thrown compromise out the window and now features two parties in constant gridlock. Our focus is almost solely on who is to be the next president, but rather than considering the effect of one individual our focus should turn to our representatives and seek to fix and restore the power of Congress. Turning our attention to mending Congress could help provide a path and a starting point to helping address the many issues that our country currently is faced with. 

Final Blog Post

This semester has made tremendous progress in increasing my interest and active seeking of information about politics. Specifically, these blog posts as well as the class simulation have given me a greater appreciation for the ideal of Congress as well as understanding the true processes and inner workings of the congressional body. Admittedly, congress along with other aspects of politics have never been particular interests in the past with me because I have always found that people would rather argue and yell without an end in sight instead of listening and discussing issues and making progress.
Taking this class and learning so much about the Two Congresses and the way their processes work has allowed me to understand the process better and see it from a different point of view. The work and the goals of Congress are so intricate and so difficult to make headway on, that it is very often almost impossible to reach a consensus and solve issues in ways that could satisfy all involved parties. Goals such as constituency satisfaction and community improvement drive many politicians who only desire to make the country better for their state and its people. There are unfortunately also many politicians who are driven by less noble, but understandable goals like re-election. These politicians make each of their political, public, and private moves all contribute towards their efforts for the upcoming election. One could argue that working for the primary purpose of getting re-elected is selfish or greedy but it makes sense. It may not be as helpful or as compassionate as working for your constituents but it is a realistic goal to acquire higher social/economic class, make social changes they or like minded individuals want, or to gain more power. The goals and motivations of the two Congresses have been great insights as to how I look at politicians.
Learning about Congress has been great, but I think I have gotten the most out of reading and listening to my classmates throughout the semester. Through their point of views and their enthusiasm and hard work I was able to think more critically as well as more personally about the types of issues and the politicians that we addressed in the course. A good example of this would be the simulation and the efforts from all the students to make progress for their side. The enthusiasm and determination given off by my classmates gave me great energy to do my best and to try and help to make changes in our mock Congress. I especially enjoyed trying to convince our committees to accept or support different bills and pieces of legislation that we were all proposing. This task really put us in our senator's shoes and forced us to not only research our bills, but also care about them and fight for their approval. We looked at each issue as if we had our own constituents, as if our hometowns really needed the bills we were promoting (although some we knew we did not agree with and some we even had to push when we completely hated the idea) and we were there best shot at progress. I am upset that I was not able to get my Partnerships Act passed, but I could not find a compromise on cost that would have been found acceptable by some of my colleagues.
I believe that as a more visual and hands on learner, this class has been great in keeping my interest toward Congress up. I have enjoyed learning about the Two Congresses and I have a newly reinvigorated enthusiasm to keep up with the current local, national, as well as international news and the ways that our government addresses them. It has been a long semester with a lot of information, but through these blog posts and the hands on learning techniques like the simulation, I am confident that I was able to learn a lot about Congress and our country.

Final Blog Post

While I did not work on the Hill this past summer, I was able to experience politics in Washington D.C. up close and personal as a legislative intern for the Religious Action Center. My work there definitely was eye-opening and reminded me why Congress is an integral branch that shouldn't be overshadowed by the President. However, it was this class and specifically this blog, that really showed me what Congress does, on an institutional level as well as on an individual level. While I did follow political news before doing this blog, I was not following it as thoroughly as possible.

Unlike some of my classmates, I made the decision to follow a specific member of Congress, specifically my favorite Senator, Senator Gillibrand. Not only did I have to constantly analyze news coming from the Hill to keep up to date with what my classmates were posting about, so I could create informed comments on their posts, but I also had to focus on the stories that featured Gillibrand. Often times, these stories were not featured in national news coverage but rather in local New York papers and news channels. This meant that I had to spend a lot of time finding different, sometimes obscure, sources. In order to do this. I set up a Google Alert. This way, I would receive an email from Google every night with a list of every online news story that Gillibrand was mentioned in. It was from this list that I would choose my topic for the weekly post. Another way I was able to find out what Gillibrand was doing was by checking her Senate page for updates as well as following her on Twitter (@SenGillibrand, you should all follow).

When I first started working on my blog, I focused on the idea of the Two Congresses, like many other people. For me, I found this to be easy because a lot of the research I did came from local news stories. Finding stories from these sources gave me the opportunities to hear/read from the perspective of Gillibrand's constituency. These sources provided me with a closer look on what the reaction was to Gillibrand's actions and legislation she supported. For example, Gillibrand left D.C. and returned to her home state to showcase the FIT Kids Act. However, the posts that I found more interesting focused on why Gillibrand made the decisions she did.

My favorite lecture in class focused on the primary motivations that shape congressional behavior, so it was exciting when I had a chance to explore Gillibrand's motivations as seen through her stances on gun control. When Gillibrand first started her political career, she had a seat as the representative to the 20th district of New York. As a Congresswoman for that district, she represented a majority of conservatives. In order to adequately represent this constituency, Gillibrand took the position against gun control, with the NRA giving her an A rating. However, once she took Hillary Clinton's spot as Junior Senator, Gillibrand had to change her position to one that supported gun control. She had to make this change in stances because as Senator, she represented a more diverse constituency. Her politics have to reflect her constituency, and I think it is this idea that showcases one of many motivations that shape congressional behavior. Without the support of the constituency, there is no possible way to be re-elected.

Overall, I think this assignment was a great aide and complement to the class. Writing weekly blog posts helped me develop my critical thinking skills regarding Congress and just in general. While my view on how Congress works and how individual members work has changed, my view on Congress as a whole has not. Instead of just saying that Congress is a failing branch and leave it at that, I feel comfortable enough to defend that statement. I now can hold a discussion regarding the efficiency of Congress just in time for the holidays.

Final Blog

The goal of this blog was to not only keep me up to date with what was going on in congress but also got me thinking about things beyond the main point of the topic. As blog helped me a great deal when it came to understanding our most democratic branch of the US government. I was never one to really follow politics not because I'm not concerned as to the direction our country will go but I find other forms of news more entertaining and my political knowledge before this class was most through presidential debates.

Following Representative Jim Himes (D-CT) was not what I would call a highlight. Although he is my representative of the 4th District of Connecticut my views on some issues were drastically different than his. One topic in particular was the Iran Nuclear Deal because being an Obama Liberal of course he was going to support the deal but I had my concerns. For one thing it didn't change the fact that four American Hostages held in Iran were not freed and were not even part of negotiations to me is saddening. Also the fact that we can't go into Iran's nuclear facilities and inspect them ourselves is crazy. However some of the best moments in the blog is taking big news headlines and going beyond the words within the article. For example when John Boehner resigned I looked into not only why he resigned but also shed light into how far right and tea party some Republicans can be and being a moderate Republican Boehner just didn't pass the eye test with many in his own party. I also thought how congress could go if certain candidates were elected.

So in conclusion while my interest in politics compared to other forms of media is still very low this blog not only helped me shape my own political views but also let me get a better understanding of my classmates and their stances as well. Not everyone will think the same even if they affiliate themselves within the same party so it was great to read such a diverse collection of blogs and opinions. Before taking US Congress I was what you would call a political novice in that my political experience was through the mouths of others whether it was through television or my family. Now I have some sort of a mindset that is uniquely mine.

Final Blog Post

Coming into U.S. Congress this semester, I- like most other Americans- thought of our Congress as a bunch of boring, useless politicians sitting on Capital Hill.  Over the course of this semester, however, I've truly learned to appreciate the work Congress men and women do, and have found that, the further you delve, the more interesting Congress becomes to study and observe.

Our blog this semester has been a useful tool in helping me gain a greater appreciation of Congress. At the beginning of the semester, I got to know my own Congressmen, exploring different facets of their campaign and delving into the work they do both in Washington and in Pennsylvania. Sadly, I never knew much more about my Congressmen than their names, and learning about them has helped me to become more invested in the politics of my own district, instead of just focusing on national and international politics.  

Our blog has also allowed me to study the inner-workings of Congress, both through my own research and writing, and through the research and writing of my peers. We were incredibly lucky to be in this class during such a historical moment in Congress' history. John Boehner's resignation caused a huge stir in Washington, and the information I learned in our class and in the blogposts written by my classmates was vital to my overall understanding of the situation. This information allowed me to create informed opinions about former Speaker Boehner, the near impossible task he was handed, and his ultimate decision to step down.

The simulation was another activity that truly enhanced my understanding of Congress. Since we are writing a separate paper on the simulation, I won't get too into it, but I will say that if our simulation taught me anything, it's that a Senator's job is a tough one. With so many complicated steps in passing legislation, and with so many methods of preventing a bill from being passed, it is easy to see why Congress has issues getting anything done!

Ultimately, this class has truly changed my opinion of Congress. Though I wish that they could be more productive, I now understand why Congress seemingly accomplishes so little. Congress men and women have an extremely complicated job, balancing their work between the two Congresses (both by serving at home and in Washington, and by doing work for both their constituents and their party) and going through the seemingly impossible task of making a bill a law. After this course ends, I will certainly be keeping more up-to-date on Congressional news and will be more appreciative of all of the work that Congress does.

The Two Congresses: The One I See vs. The One I Saw

I think that most people—who do not have a formal education regarding the institution of Congress—tend to look at Congress on a personal level. They could view their party as the party that deserves power, as the party that keeps things under control, while the other party is the cause of the dysfunction and ineffectiveness that many people identify in Congress. Similarly, many people may view their congressman positively, but view Congress as a whole negatively, even if their respective congressman is partaking in the same sort of activities as any other congressman (that they would readily criticize). I think this is the natural gut reaction of any American citizen who doesn’t study Congress—we think about Congress on a personal level because it is meant to be the most personal institution (the peoples branch), which in way, shows that Congress is functioning (at least in some respect) how it should. We consider our congressmen personally because we feel we personally played a role in electing them (and if you are one of the 30% of Americans who voted in the midterm elections—you did!) and, our natural propensity to strongly favor our political party and criticize the other, not only stems from increasing partisan polarization, but also demonstrates some sort of hint of political engagement, which is not such a bad thing. 

I think that I went into this course with the same sort of mindset—I judged Congress on a personal level. My gut reaction was always to just criticize the Republican party for causing dysfunction, leading to gridlock, or just grinding my gears in general. However, from day one we discussed Congress as a whole, as a complex political institution with a complex history. This challenged my original mindset and forced me to think of Congress on more objective and removed terms. We began to discuss Congress as outsiders viewing and analyzing congressional processes, rather that insiders, directly affected by the actions of Congress on a daily basis.

Specifically, we began by discussing the concept of the two Congresses, which I think can work to humanize any congressmen. It demonstrates that each congressmen experiences a similar struggle of balancing the needs of both their constituents, and the nation as a whole. I think we can all agree that this is no easy feat. From the start, I think discussing this aspect of congressional behavior deeply changed how I looked and Congress and reflected on it. I recall writing the first blog post about our own respective congressmen, mine being Mike Fitzpatrick, and feeling nervous about the assignment because we were advised directly to not judge the congressmen on partisan or personal grounds, and rather analyze the congressman’s behavior. Given the knowledge that I had at that point—mainly surrounding the phenonmenon of the two Congresses and the affect it has on governing—I tried to remain impartial when studying Mike Fitzpatrick, and behave as a political scientist rather than a partisan political actor. My main point of this blog post was to demonstrate that Mike Fitzpatrick’s method of governing—where he sets priorities that he repeatedly tries to accomplish—may be a fruitful method. Although I dislike Fitzpatrick for a few partisan and personal reasons, he continuously strives to send home benefits to his constituents and demonstrate that he is working for them (even if that work would—in theory—positively affect the country as a whole). This allows his constituents to know what to expect from his leadership.

However, I think that if I went back and relooked at Fitzpatrick, his programs, the policies and bills he supports, his major donors, etc., I would see a different and more complex story. I would see Mike Fitzpatrick within a historical framework of fluctuating party polarization, power margins, party leadership; I would see him as claiming credit, as taking positions, as advertising himself, as having a so called “hill style” and a “home style,” within a political system fraught with money and monetary influence. I originally analyzed Fitzpatrick as using the system to his advantage, as acknowledging the limitations of the system and working his best within the framework that is provided for him. However, looking at Fitzpatrick with the congressionally analytical eyes I now have, I think I would be able to view Fitzpatrick in a more holistic light.

I can see Fitzpatrick clearly engaging in the electoral actions that Mayhew identifies—he sends home as many benefits as possible to his constituents, and works hard to promote legislation that would positively impact his district (this could be viewed as credit claiming). Additionally, Fitzpatrick clearly takes strong stances on issues both on his website (for, like many other Congressmen he has an entire section devoted to outlining his positions on education, foreign policy, health, economy, jobs, defense, etc.), as well as through votes on high profile bills. I also know that Fitzpatrick does a pretty top notch job at advertising himself with little to no issue content. He attends fourth of july parades, visits public schools, and even plans his own public events and programs specifically for the district (for example, the PA-8 small district boot camp). He does a good job of disseminating his name among the district 8 masses that encourages them to think of him positively, and as a congressmen that works for them. These actions are logical in that Fitzpatrick has won continuously won his seat by fairly small margins (as the district is nearly evenly split between those who identify as democrat and republican) and even lost his seat in 2006. His electoral behavior is necessarily exacerbated by the thin margin that divides him from maintaining the seat, and losing it.

So, in a sense, Congressmen Fitzpatrick is working within a framework and excelling—but as my knowledge regarding Congress and the factors that influence its function has increased, I have began to be able to identify Fitzpatrick’s behavior within a variety of different frameworks, the electoral connection just being one of them. I think this what I have gained most from this course, and my ability to look at Congress within a variety of different frameworks—regarding party polarization, committee systems, party leadership, campaign finance, as I have demonstrated through rethinking my original blog post in a different light. I have gained more tools to make analysis more complex when viewing Congress as an institution, rather than just a group of frustrating shmucks who appear to make political life difficult. I am able to look at the current Congress as representing a point in time within the historical congressional framework—knowing and understanding the fluctuations and changes that have defined Congress in the past and will define Congress in the future.

Final Blog Post: Reexamining the Two Congresses

I’ve always prided myself on someone that is relatively in the know when it comes to current events and the state of the world. Yet, the reality is, we no longer live in a day and age in which people commonly read the paper or watch the news. As much as I try to stay up to date on current events I did so in ways that were convenient for a college student. Like most people of my generation I get my news through Twitter, Facebook, and an occasional browse of the New York Times home page. I really thought I was doing enough to keep myself up to date, even as a Political Science student. However, these blog posts were a long overdue awakening. I might have been up to date on the headline political stories that made it to my newsfeed on Facebook but I certainly wasn’t aware of the inter-workings and day-to-day work happening at the core of our government, Congress. As this semester wraps up, I find myself frequently scrolling through Roll Call even after we’ve finished the blog posts. I’ve gotten in the habit of reading the New York Times a few times a week and paying special attention to the Politics section. Our weekly blog posts have really forced me to do so and pushed me to a point where I consciously think to read up on what is happening in Congress.

For obvious reasons, my newfound dedication to current events is a good thing. But on a deeper level, the blog posts and following what was happening in Congress really allowed me to conceptualize what we learning in class. During this course we have really focused on how there are Two Congresses and what exactly that means. The members of Congress have two jobs; they must serve their constituents as representatives and also serve the nation as lawmakers. In many ways these are competing interests and we learned about many scholars that have attempted to make sense of these competing jobs and how they have created the Congress we have today. I know personally, I struggled to comprehend things like the Congressional Party Government Theory or the important roles of fundraising. However, the blog really helped me to grasp these concepts better, both by writing my own posts and reading my classmates’ post.

Behind the concept of the Two Congresses is the idea that all members of Congress share a single goal, re-election. I used this idea throughout many of my blog posts to help me rationalize and understand the behavior of members of Congress. One thing I really focused on in my blog posts is the influence of interests groups. I wrote two blog posts on EMILY’s List and the candidates they chose to endorse. When I looked at the PACs endorsement of Kathleen Matthews and Ann Kirkpatrick I was seeking to understand why these types of endorsements are so important to people seeking office for the first time. I cam to the conclusion that it’s because PACs like EMILY’s List offer credibility and access to fundraising for new, unknown political hopefuls. This realization helped me to better understand the goal of re-election in Congress. Incumbents don’t need these endorsements as much because re-election is their primary goal. When re-election becomes a primary goal, fundraising is one of the most important things a member can do. The members that seek re-election spend everyday of their term fundraising and pushing legislation that aligns with large donors. Those that have never held political office don’t have the same resources, which is why they heavily rely on the support of interested groups to be elected.

I also examined interest groups in regard to my own representative, John Larson. My research of John Larson and the interests groups that support him also gave me a lot of insight into the way the Two Congresses function with one another. I found that Larson wasn’t a huge fundraiser and that actually his fundraising decreased in later years in office. Clearly, for Larson, in a small district like the 1^st Congressional District of Connecticut, after a number of years in office name recognition goes a long way towards re-election. Rather than spend a lot of time fundraising, Larson spent time with constituents and at local events, which is one of the ways Feno argued that members seek re-election. When I looked into the interest groups that supported Larson I found that the industry that supported him the most was the insurance industry, which makes sense since Hartford is the insurance capitol of the world. I also found that the majority of bills Larson sponsored involved taxes, which aligns with the interest groups supporting him and his constituents. This was a helpful case study that allowed me to better understand how the Two Congresses play a role in the day-to-day responsibilities of Congress. Because of the Two Congresses, Larson shaped his behaviors in a way that mad him likely to be re-elected. He fulfilled is role as a representative while also assuring he could continue to make laws by align in with the interests groups that support him.    

In general, it is never enough to simply learn from a test book. Had it not been for the blog assignment and our discussions of current events I would not have the understanding of Congress and how members seek re-election that I know have. My understanding of how Congress works has not only expanded but also changed. I know recognize why our Congress sometimes fails to be productive, why incumbency is so high, and much more. The Two Congresses is a theory that is helpful in explaining all the behavior of the members of Congress, something our class blog made very evident.

Final Blog Post

            I think that the purpose of writing these blog posts was to encourage us to keep up to date on the current news not only in congress but also within the American government in general.  Before this class, I really didn’t know what was going on in our country.  I never followed politics or what was happening within Congress.  Being enrolled in this class and learning the layout and history of Congress and simultaneously watching real life examples play out in the real world allowed me to fully emerge myself in the class material. 

            I enjoyed writing about a new topic every week instead of following the same stories because it allowed me to touch on as many different issues as I could get my hands on.  The topic that interested me the most were the two blogs I wrote on the cyber security situation between the United States and China.  The cyber security controversy allowed me to not only look into legislation on that topic but it also allowed me to understand how foreign relations may work when issues such as cyber security arise.  I knew very little on how we as a country deal with outside threats such as cyber hacks from other countries.  It was interesting to see how China originally said that they were not to blame for the attacks but later confessed and we as a country had to take their word that they would not do something like that again.  Another aspect that I learned from writing about cyber security was the fact that scheduling within Congress is so difficult.  The Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act continuously got pushed aside on the agenda of important things to work on even though this was a major issue and concern for many American citizens.  This brought in the aspect of the two congresses.  It was possible that many constituents were concerned about their personal information being safe when word got out about the government system hacking but within Congress this seemed like a lesser issue in comparison to things like terrorist threats.  Congress members have to deal with balancing situations like this on a daily basis.  

            Overall, I think that writing these blog posts and this class as a whole has opened me up to many new realms of government that I had never really focused on before.  Congress was always just a chapter in many government classes but really being able to go into the many different aspects (ex: women in Congress, structure of Congress, campaigns, and interest groups) of Congress that I really didn’t know anything about was very useful for me.  It was helpful to be able to dive into something and be surrounded by people that were so thoroughly interested in this class.  Even though our blog posts are over, I will do my best to keep up with news sources like The Hill so that I know what is going on in Congress as well as my individual representatives and Senators. 

Reflection

Over the course of this semester the blog posts have encouraged me to pay closer attention to the happenings of Congress and form greater opinions about the institution and the legislation they bring about. As we learned about the branch of government in class, it was great to apply the textbook knowledge to real world scenarios. I always tried to be informed with what was occurring in the government, but could never get too involved in the issues. By analyzing the news, I was forced to look deeper into the matters and procedures of Congress.

                Many important things happened in Congress this semester that I feel I would have overlooked if I did not need to form my own opinions, and look to the opinions of my colleagues. An event that I found myself very interested with was the papal visit. As I did more research regarding his stay in America, I was able to gain a better knowledge of where I stand in relation to matters involving the separation of church and state. Not only did these blog posts open my eyes to the inner workings of Congress, but it helped me grow as a political scientist and encouraged me to be more engaged in the information I obtain and the opinions I create. The blog posts not only taught me about the legislative branch of government but they taught me about myself and the positions I take regarding certain matters.

In addition to finding out more about myself and where I stand in the political spectrum, I also learned how to look at things from both sides of the party line. Instead of looking at just one news source, I researched multiple sources to ensure that the information I was looking at was not biased towards one party or another. I used politico and rollcall in order to find most of the topics I discussed, but then would look at many other news sources such as CNN and the Washington Post to see how the events were discussed elsewhere.

I am pleased with the progress that I have made as the semester progressed. I started the semester with very little knowledge on Congress and congressional matters. However blog post after blog post, I found myself engaging in more political conversations with friends and family and actually being confident in the matters I was discussing outside of the blog and of the classroom. Overall I found these posts to be very beneficial, and I hope that even though it will no longer count for a grade, I will continue to be actively aware of the happenings of the people’s branch of government. 

Final Blog Post Entry

This blog was one of the many things that helped contribute to my general knowledge of what Congress is currently like this semester.  While I followed political news before this semester started, following more in-depth works more frequently along with writing these blog posts allowed me to have a greater and more detailed understanding current issues facing the American Legislature.

Following Senator Schumer's (D-NY) political career throughout the semester enabled me to learn about how difficult it is to pass legislation due the wide variety of issues Congress faces today such as party polarization and how proposing bills is now more of a way to keep issues alive until the next election rather than means of taking action on whatever issue is at hand.  It's exceedingly difficult to be a Senator today that aims to make any sort of significant legislative change.  It was also wonderful to see how the class tackled topics such as John Boehner's sudden resignation and the threat of another government shutdown.  Their variety of analyses on these topics also contributed to my better understanding of the people's branch of government.

Overall, I think this was a great assignment that really helped develop different ways to look at Congress today.  My earlier posts mainly revolved around the 'two Congresses' we discussed during the beginning of the semester.  As the semester continued, my posts evolved into discussing other concepts such as lobbying and campaign financing.  While mainly following Senator Schumer's political career might not of been as dynamic as following only major events happening with Congress, I definitely thought it was interesting perspective looking at Congress through the lens of a particular Senator and his actions throughout the course of a few months.  It was also very rewarding commenting on my classmates's work and having my own work critiqued.  The critiques on my work were one of the driving forces that encouraged me to think about Congress in ways that I wouldn't of normally thought of by myself.  Again, this blog was a wonderful opportunity for us to learn about one of the least flashy, and yet one of the most important, aspects of our government.

Final Blog Post Entry

Over the course of the semester, these blog posts have been a useful way of observing Congress as we learned about its structural and historical development.  Not only did they 'encourage' us to sit down and read several articles regarding congressional activity, but by requiring us to comment on our classmate's posts we were able to see how other members of the class were interpreting the information being learned in class and applying it to their individual perceptions of Congress.  Commenting on other posts also gave us an opportunity to learn about issues that we didn't really pay much attention to, and even while writing our own posts we often had to read multiple articles on multiple issues/events to familiarize ourselves with the current situation in order to figure out what we were going to write about (or at least I know I did).  

"The Two Congresses" seemed to be the theme of most of our posts.  In my own posts, I tended to focus on the electoral focus of each action.  I seemed to tie most policy decisions of members of the House of Representatives to potential reactions from their constituencies, and potential electoral benefits.  For a few of them I even ignored the repercussions their decisions/actions had on policy and instead focused solely on their electoral goal; how they were only acting in such a way for the additional votes.  

Writing these blog posts was also a good way to keep us involved in what was happening within Congress.  Because we were, in a sense, forced to pay attention to what was happening, we were really able to follow the internal problems between the House Freedom Caucus and the more moderate House Republicans.  We also were able to see for ourselves and discuss in class the problems that arose around the election of a new Speaker after John Boehner announced his resignation.  

Though these posts allowed me to further develop my understanding of Congress, they didn't necessarily change the way I view the branch.  Before taking the class, I thought that a member of Congress' primary mission to gain reelection, and his/her main means of doing so was through his/her actions as a lawmaker.  Now that I've had the opportunity to study and really pay attention to what is happening in Congress, I still hold the same belief, but I understand the dynamics of the voter-politician relationship better, and even the relationship amongst politicians as they balance their obligations in Washington and their responsibility to maintain the support of their supporters.  The ways in which they balance these relationships is even interesting and entertaining to watch, and I do think that I will take my new understanding of the branch and new news-reading habits and continue to say up to date on Congress and its relationship with both other branches and the people.    

Blog Reflection Post

First and foremost, this blog assignment definitely forced me to be much more aware of the happenings within Congress on a regular basis.  While I try to follow political news as often as possible, I often did not focus on [detailed] coverage of legislative issues and events; consider especially that, in the current political atmosphere, news of the 2016 Presidential race dominates the media.  Writing these blog posts not only made me pay more attention to Congressional news but also gave me the opportunity to analyze and more deeply understand these issues.  I think one of the things I am most pleased with, in retrospect, about my posts and the blog more generally is that many of us posted on a wide variety of Congressionally-relevant topics.  For example, my posts ranged from the electoral process to specific issues being pushed to the change in House leadership.  This post will serve as a reflection on the ways in which my understanding and knowledge of Congress has shifted, as evidenced through my past posts.

One of the most significant things that I gained from this blog is a better understanding of the internal workings of Congress, and I think the House leadership chaos caused by Boehner's sudden resignation greatly aided in increasing the visibility of some of these processes.  Three of my blog posts centered on the pressures faced and decisions made by Boehner in his final month or so as Speaker, allowing me to take a far more detailed look at the responsibilities required of the position.  For example, I knew very little about how the Speaker must deal with factions in the House, something that I was able to explore when the Freedom Caucus was staging a coup against Boehner.  I questioned if he would even last much longer as Speaker, and I received an answer two days later when he announced his retirement.  This was a fantastic opportunity to analyze the forces at work that pressure the leadership, as well as what happens when a party leader resigns unexpectedly.  On a different note, writing posts for this blog also allowed me to think more critically about the electoral processes and factors that influence whether or not Congressional candidates even make it to office.  Investigating Katie McGinty's current Senate run against Pat Toomey was by far one of the most interesting posts to write, as I was able to learn more about electoral factors in practice while also examining issues related to gender (one of my main academic and political interests).  Perhaps the ability to choose the specific topics that were of most interest to me was one of the best parts of this blog assignment, as it allowed me to enhance my understanding of Congress in a way that was both interesting and personally meaningful.

Overall, I think this assigment was a great tool to help me develop my thinking about Congress.  We started off the semester talking about the basic principle of the 'two Congresses,' and my posts have evolved from highlighting this principle to also including such concepts as Congressional procedures and processes, interest group involvement, campaign finance, and ideology.  I got into the habit of reading Congressional news every Wednesday morning before class as a way to prepare for writing my weekly post, which I often did on Wednesday afternoons.  Even though we stopped posting to the blog about a month ago, I still find myself perusing Congressional news every Wednesday morning—it's become a part of my weekly routine, and I am now better able to understand the events happening in Congress.  As I mentioned earlier, it's easy to get caught up in the flashy news surrounding the President and the Presidential race, but researching for this blog has given me a new appreciation for the happenings of Congress and I hope to continue following Congressional news even after the class ends.

Looking back on The Two Congresses

This blog, along with the discussions had in class and my experience interning for Senator Casey during the course of the semester all contributed heavily to my developing knowledge and opinions regarding congress and the workings of congress. Throughout the course of the semester, I frequented websites like Roll Call and The Hill, which allowed me to be much more up to date on what was going on in our government than I had been previously. I was able to find out more about legislation that I cared about, such as the Dark Act, both through researching and reading about, and also through my experience with constituents of Senator Casey in his office.

Like many of my classmates, the events revolving around Boehner's resignation and Senator Paul Ryan becoming the new speaker was intriguing to learn about, and I spent a great deal of my time within this blog learning about many perspectives and situations regarding the Speakership. It was very interesting to develop a thorough understanding of politics within parties, as I had come into the class more used to trying to explain things through a bipartisan lens, but was able to learn that there are stark differences within each party as well, which can lead to congressional gridlock, as well as rare events like the resignation of the Speaker of the House. Instead of trying to concentrate however on the big news stories surrounding congress, I tried to be more broad in my reading, and I think I was able to gain a more developed understanding of congress and the way it acts today by doing so. The class as whole shined light on how congress developed over time, becoming more about the parties than the individuals, and an event like the resignation of John Boehner was a huge example of just that.

Further, it was fitting that I took this class at the same time as having an internship with Senator Casey because I was able to see many of the things we discussed in class about how politicians act and deal with their constituents first hand. I even became a part of that process, being a liaison for the Senator when people would call asking about his positions on issues such as the Iran Nuclear Deal, or Planned Parenthood. At the same time, I was also able to gain an understanding of what the constituents in Pennsylvania cared about, or called to discuss with the office. Developing this knowledge, I truly learned how difficult and time consuming being a congressman or senator would be. Senator's and Congressman all over the country frequently have to balance their time in DC with their time at home with their constituents, trying their best to represent their state as best as they can whilst also making an impact politically in an effort to better the country. The newer era of congress that makes parties more important than the individual has thrown a curveball into that situation, making these senators and congressman also have to be careful in their states and in DC not to upset the party agenda too much, in fear they may lose support from their own party, and in the long run lose election. It was a very rewarding experience to be able to connect the class, my research for this blog, and my experience as a legislative staff intern, as I learned a lot more than I ever could have imagined.

Final Reflection Blog

What the blog assignments forced me to do was not just keep up with the news on the Hill, which I did before. Instead, I had to continually process what was going on and constantly analyze news coming from Congress. I spent a lot of time researching stories, getting multiple angles, and looking at background information that was important. I think it really helped me understand a bit how Members of Congress think and how they go about their business.

I think I got the most out of studying and analyzing the news about the Speaker of the House, especially concerning the uncertainty that would happen next. Four of my last five blog posts were about the outgoing Speaker Boehner, his presumed successor McCarthy, and the actual new Speaker Paul Ryan. I really spent a lot of time trying to get inside get inside Boehner and McCarthy's surprise decisions and Ryan's reversal because the Speaker of the House is an incredibly important position in Congress, and how the Speaker decides to go about running the House is going to have a huge effect on the next year and the 2016 presidential and congressional elections. I felt like I learned a lot about the GOP's strategy and what they wanted to accomplish over the coming months in order to give themselves the best shot at the White House. I definitely had a better understanding of what it really takes to become Speaker and how strong of a candidate and leader one must be. McCarthy was absolutely going to have the support to be elected, and his fall from shoo-in to announcing he would not be seeking the position was rapid and caused seemingly by nothing in particular. But the criticisms of how he handled the Benghazi hearings and his remarks undercut his ability to lead effectively, and thus he stepped back without a definite plan b for the party.

I preferred following one thread of news throughout the semester instead of picking random bits to talk about. I thought I could dive a bit deeper into the hows and the whys and the what's next, instead of doing a lot of research every time just to find who and what. However, I liked the flexibility I had to jump around if I needed to. I didn't want to start the semester stuck writing about one specific topic that might not have a lot going on throughout the fifteen weeks or so. I wanted to be able to find something that I felt interested in and passionate about, and that was going to be topical and important in the time period I would be writing blog posts in. It worked out that Boehner announced his resignation and then McCarthy made it interesting. I definitely learned a lot about Boehner, what made him tick, his struggles, his successes, and his House. I also learned how important the position of the Speaker is, especially to a party that doesn't have the White House. Picking the right candidate became a crucial decision, and one that almost became a disaster considering their options and the time-crunch of Boehner's resignation date.

Paul D. Ryan

The Speaker of the House position has caused much drama over the past month. First, current Speaker John Boehner seemingly out of nowhere announced he would be stepping down by October 30 from the position. Then, frontrunner and consensus successor Kevin McCarthy made some controversial remarks about the purpose of the Hilary Clinton's Benghazi hearings, suggesting that they have been so prominent and long-lasting in order to hurt her campaign. Then he announced he was dropping out of the race, leaving a void with no clear answer. One suggestion was Paul Ryan, but he publicly denied the position. With the October 30th mark looming, the GOP was in disarray.

The circus ended this week. Everything changed when Ryan went back on his previous statement and announced his intention to accept the position, if elected. He was nominated on Wednesday and the House elected Paul D. Ryan Thursday, October 29, as Speaker of the House, finally taking over for John Boehner. As Jeffrey noted, Ryan is the youngest Speaker in over a century. This, plus his moderate stances on a multitude of issues (also noted by Jeffery) may give Ryan the energy and enthusiasm to deal with stubbornness on both sides of the aisle that drove Boehner to his eventual resignation. But Ryan has not accepted the position with any excitement. He has reservations about the conflict in Congress and how it will affect his job. He does not want to give up his "family weekend time" and says that other Republican leaders must help with fundraising. Because the Republicans needed him to take the job more than he needs the job, his demands will likely be met by the rest of the GOP. 

What kind of leader will Paul Ryan be? Some say that he will be strong because of his background as a Congressional staffer. Being a staffer, some argue, gives Ryan a better understanding of what goes into the job, like dealing with members, deadlines, process, and a love of the job. Others believe that he will not get support from certain Republicans despite his plea for party unity. Ryan has supported a number of Republicans financially since 2010, and his SuperPAC has given thousands of dollars to campaigns of members who then did not vote for him Thursday. There isn't total unity behind him, even on the right where he needs a strong consensus. His youth may also be a negative, especially when dealing with more experienced members and trying to keep both sides in check. Being Speaker requires a Congressman to use a diverse set of skills, which Ryan may not have. He has mostly spent his time and energy in financial and budget issues. Can Ryan assert himself as a leader immediately? The GOP led Congress may depend on it.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/29/us/politics/house-speaker-job-requires-many-hats-paul-ryan-has-never-worn.html?ref=politics&_r=0

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/29/us/politics/republicans-paul-ryan-house-speaker.html?ref=politics&_r=1

http://atr.rollcall.com/ryan-donated-thousands-voted-speaker/?dcz=

http://blogs.rollcall.com/hill-navigator/why-a-former-staffer-could-make-a-good-speaker/?dcz=