Purpose

The United States Congress is the most open of the national branches of government and therefore the most closely studied, both by academicians and journalists. The purpose of this subject is to find ways to deal with the vast array of information we have about Congress. The two basic questions we will be asking are the following: (1) what does Congress do and why? and (2) What are the various ways of studying congressional behavior?

To accomplish these goals, this subject is organized around two major learning modes: lecture/discussion and group project/presentation. The lecture/discussion part will expose you to the basic social facts about Congress: what it takes to get elected, how Congress works internally, and how the relationships between Congress and the rest of the federal government are organized. The project will focus on the 2000 congressional election, and allow you to analyze the outcomes of this important national election in light of the research on elections you will learn about.

This subject introduces students to Congress, primarily undergraduates, but graduate students who have never studied Congress are welcome, too. It is more empirical than theoretical, although theory encroaches here and there. The second subject in this sequence, which will be offered next year, is a seminar that is more theoretical than empirical, and is aimed toward graduate students and advanced undergraduates.

Having an introductory subject in American politics or policymaking is a prerequisite to taking 17.251. At MIT, these include 17.201, 17.241, 17.273, 17.301J, and 17.319.

Subject Requirements

Readings

I am finishing up writing a textbook for W.W . Norton, which will be the first "rational choice" textbook about Congress. I will photograph page proofs and distribute them to the class. I will pay you $1 for every typographic error you find. I will lecture about most, but not all, of the topics in the book. I would appreciate any and all comments you have about the book, so that the second edition (let's hope!) will be better than the first.

In addition to the textbook, there are several assignments that will augment the lectures and the text. You will do all the readings to coincide with the schedule at the end of the syllabus. I will photocopy and make available to you the few articles that are assigned. The following books are available for purchase at the Coop:

Lectures

The lectures serve two purposes . First, they will fill in basic material which the readings presuppose. Second, they will put the readings in their larger contexts and, I hope, set the stage for discussions of the readings. I especially encourage you to ask questions during the lectures, either to have me clarify points or to explore topics of interest to you.

Examinations

There will be a midterm and a one-hour final. The final will be held during the final examination period.

Project

Overshadowed by the upcoming presidential election, the congressional election will be at least as important, from the perspective of the national policy trajectory over the next several years. Depending on enrollments, I will likely break the class into groups to do a larger research project on the 2000 congressional election. Topics that the project will focus on will include patterns of PAC spending, campaign finance generally, membership turnover, congressional redistricting, and the performance of statistical models in predicting the 2000 outcome. More on this assignment once the class gets going.

Problem Sets

There are two problem sets associated with the course - one in the first half and the other in the second half. Late assignments will be docked.

Class Attendance

You must come to class. In addition to taking pleasure in gazing out on your clean-scrubbed faces, the way I teach relies on you participating in discussions. In relatively small classes, as much learning goes on in discussion and give-and-take between the professor and student as it does in standard lecture format. Therefore, when you don't come to class, you are diminishing the educational experience of your colleagues. If you can't come to class because you are sick, dead, or out of town, e-mail or call me ahead of time and let me know.

Congressional Roundtable

Each Wednesday, we will start the class with a brief (15 minutes?) informal discussion about that week's developments in Congress. Everyone will be required to come into class with a newspaper/magazine/web page clipping to talk about. On Tuesdays I will e-mail the class and suggest some agenda items for this discussion. Come prepared to talk. (If you are externally motivated, participating in the roundtable will count toward your class participation grade.)

Grading Distribution

• Class attendance and discussion 15%
• Midterm examination 15%
• Final examination 30%
• Problem sets 15%
• Project 25%
  

Lecture/Reading Schedule