Deck 5: Being There: Hill Styles and Home Styles

Question 1

Which of the following is an example of descriptive representation?

A) an African American member of the House representing a majority-minority district
B) a white Democrat sponsoring a bill to provide more funding to inner city schools
C) a former lawyer representing a small rural district and promising price supports for farmers
D) a moderate Democrat representing a district where a majority of registered voters are Republicans

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Which of the following groups are underrepresented in the Senate because of the "equal representation" rule?

A) business owners
B) ranchers
C) Ivy League graduates
D) African Americans

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Which of the following activities fits into a member's role as a legislator?

A) helping a constituent lodge a complaint with the Social Security Administration
B) raising money for the Democratic National Committee
C) writing a letter of recommendation for a constituent applying to the Naval Academy
D) introducing legislation on immigration reform

Answer 3

D

Question 4

What are the two stages of constituency careers?

A) Democratic and Republican
B) expansionism and protectionism
C) person-to-person and issue-oriented
D) fund-raising and legislating

Question 5

Which of the following activities is an example of constituency service?

A) introducing a bill that would fund the construction of a new bridge in the member's district
B) requesting membership on the Armed Services Committee because the member is a veteran
C) cosponsoring a bill that would make changes to education policy
D) making a floor speech in favor of a partial-birth abortion ban

Question 6

All of the following tend to be associated with procuring pork barrel projects for one's district EXCEPT ______.

A) lower chance of facing a strong challenger
B) higher chance of negative attack ads
C) improved name recognition
D) enhanced chance of reelection for vulnerable members

Question 7

Which of the following might happen during a party caucus meeting?

A) final vote on a bill to pass health-care reform
B) selection of a party's candidate for president
C) coordinating floor speeches to shape media coverage
D) the State of the Union address

Question 8

Which of the following is the widest type of constituency?

A) primary constituency
B) reelection constituency
C) personal constituency
D) geographic constituency

Question 9

Which of these individuals would be considered a member of a Senator's personal constituency?

A) her spouse
B) a voter who always votes for the Democratic Party candidate
C) a voter who shares the Senator's ethnic background
D) a donor from a neighboring state

Question 10

Which of the following activities would be typical of a "person-to-person" home style?

A) town hall meetings to address local issues
B) knowing constituents by name
C) highlighting the member's status as a decorated war veteran
D) emphasizing key issues in television ads

Question 11

Which of the following tasks would be part of the job of a legislative assistant?

A) run errands
B) drafting bills
C) making fund-raising phone calls
D) attend roll call on behalf of their representative

Question 12

The right of members to send out mail at no cost with their signature instead of a stamp is referred to as the ______.

A) executive privilege
B) franking privilege
C) congressional privilege
D) legislative privilege

Question 13

About half of the members of the House of Representatives are millionaires.

Question 14

Most news coverage about incumbents is uncritical and positive.

Question 15

Pork barrel spending is widely viewed negatively among constituents, even when it is secured for their own district.

Question 16

People with working-class backgrounds are underrepresented in Congress.

Question 17

Veteran members of Congress are more likely to be successful in getting their bills passed than are freshman members.

Question 18

Despite their strong support, members do spend time and attention on making sure their primary constituency (or loyalists) is happy.

Question 19

Members who are elected as independents must still organize with one of the two major parties in order to receive committee assignments.

Question 20

Compared to other minority racial and ethnic groups, African Americans are the most underrepresented in Congress.

Question 21

Because more populous states are more racially diverse, the Senate's equal representation rule acts to boost the voting power and representation of whites.

Question 22

Senate norms and procedures tend to be more formal than in the House of Representatives.

Question 23

Most Americans tend to want members of Congress to follow majority opinion rather than their own personal preferences.

Question 24

Because of the incumbency advantage and the creation of many safe seats, most members of Congress do not worry much about the threat of losing their reelection campaigns.

Question 25

Any campaign work by staff members must be done outside of the congressional office and without using any congressional office resources.

Question 26

All legislators have at least one staffer who serves as a press aide.

Question 27

What is the difference between substantive and descriptive representation? Provide an example of each type.

Question 28

What are some factors that could lead a member to change their home style?

Question 29

How does national and local news coverage of Congress and its members differ?

Question 30

What are the most important differences between a person-to-person and an issue-oriented home style?

Question 31

How does the equal representation rule in the Senate impact representation and political outcomes?

Question 32

Why do veteran members of Congress tend to be more effective than freshman members at getting their bills passed?

Question 33

What is collective representation? Give a specific example of how this might work in the modern Congress?

Question 34

Why would members work hard for their party even when they may disagree with some policy stances?

Question 35

What are the four major types of constituencies and who generally belongs to each?

Question 36

What are the three roles undertaken by most members of Congress? Briefly explain what each of these roles entails and give an example of each.

Question 37

How have Senate norms or folkways changed since the 1950s?

Question 38

How well does Congress reflect the American public demographically? Is this a problem for representation? Be sure to consider multiple demographic characteristics in your response.

Question 39

In making decisions about bills to sponsor or votes to take, should members follow the majority opinion in their constituency or follow their personal conscience?

Question 40

Explore the concept of home style by identifying a member of the House or Senate of particular interest to you. Using newspaper articles, campaign materials, and the member's website, try to identify which home style the member seems to use to present themselves. Does their home style seem to be driven by district/constituency qualities, personal preferences, or something else?