AGENDA Mon 11/14 & Tues 11/15 RAP# 24: Effective Legislator The Opposition The Outcome Power, Politics & You: Voting Age Congress Overview Review Congress Profile Reminder HW: Congressmember Profile Project Part D & E

RAP #24: Effective Legislator Overall, do you think Joe Schwarz was an effective legislator? Why or why not? Of all the topics you investigated, which do you think contributed most to his being effective or ineffective? Did Congressman Joe Schwarz win reelection in 2006?

1.8 volunteers will each have one copy of Placards A–H. 2.Volunteers come to the front of the classroom, hold up their placard, and say which topic it represents. 3.In pairs, discuss which of the topics you think is most important for being an effective legislator. 4.While the class is discussing, the volunteers will place themselves in order from Most Important to Least Important. 3 Placard A represents selecting congressional office space.

4 One student in the audience nominates a topic as most important to being an effective legislator and explains why. The student holding that topic moves closest to the Most Important end of the spectrum.

5 Other students can debate if that topic is the most important or if another topic is more important and give their supporting reasons. Volunteers should reposition themselves along the spectrum after each speaker.

Reelection Results In your “caucus,” review your notes from orientation topic “H.” Study the data on the 2006 election in the Congressman’s district. Answer the questions about the data.

7 1.What interesting details do you see in the bar graph? In the circle graph? 2.How would you categorize voter turnout for the 2006 Michigan Seventh District Republican primary?

8 1.Do you think this turnout will benefit the incumbent or the challenger? Why? 2.Do you think Congressman Schwarz is represented by Candidate A or Candidate B in the circle graph? Why?

Biographical information on opposing candidate: Tim Walberg Tim's previous work includes service as a pastor for nearly 10 years. He was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives in 1983 and served until During his time in the State Legislature, Tim gained a reputation as a principled voice for less government spending, lower taxes, and fewer regulations, as well as a compassionate voice for the culture of life and traditional values. Following his 16 years in the Michigan House, he worked to create local community betterment programs throughout south-east Michigan as President of the Warren Reuther Center for Education and Community Impact. Tim has also served as a division manager for the Moody Bible Institute, before retiring in January of 2006.

Social Studies Skill Builder 10 On primary election night, the Schwarz campaign was back at Schuler’s Restaurant in Marshall, Michigan... Key staffers once more gathered in an upstairs conference room... The mood was anxious. Everyone who had worked on the campaign expected a tight race, much like the primary two years earlier that had ended in celebration... So, what happened to Joe Schwarz in the 2006 election?

Social Studies Skill Builder 11 Rebecca Schneider, the congressman’s district director, recounted, It was kind of eerie. There was a weird energy in the room... It was pretty clear that if you were not directly involved with gathering election returns, you were not welcome in there. It was tense. As the numbers came in, it grew more tense, and it became clear that the folks inside the war room did not want noise or distraction... But I could see in... the boss’s face, that things were not going well.

Social Studies Skill Builder 12 As the evening wore on, the congressman spent more and more time in the office off the lobby of the war room... Eventually, Joe did go downstairs and indicated to the crowd his sense that things were not going well for the campaign... A short time later, Joe went downstairs again, and, flanked by his daughter and his chief of staff, conceded the race...

Social Studies Skill Builder 13 The final vote tally of the Republican primary in Michigan’s 7 th District was 53 percent (33,244 votes) for Walberg and 47 percent (29,349 votes) for Schwarz. Joe was disappointed by the turnout, which was less than 15 percent in his home county, and less than 20 percent district- wide... “Anybody who studies elections, and understands them, knows that well- organized, aggressive minorities do well in low-turnout elections.” Matt Marsden was a bit less circumspect... : “I’m guessing a lot of people woke up after the election and said... ‘Maybe I should have gotten out and voted.’”

Social Studies Skill Builder 14 On September 7, 2006, Congressman Schwarz reflected on his defeat in the Sunday edition of the Washington Post, beginning, “I am the political equivalent of a woolly mammoth, a rarity headed for extinction... Yes, I’m a moderate.”

Social Studies Skill Builder He voiced his concern for the political center, noting that “fewer and fewer sensible... candidates will have any chance of being elected,” although “politics needs a middle” for effective public policymaking. “Somehow, some way,” Joe concluded, “moderates must... learn to fight as hard for the policies of the sane and rational center as the far right and far left fight for the extremes.” —from Freshman Orientation by Edward I. Sidlow (Washington, D.C.: CQ Press, 2007)

Read “Power, Politics, and You” What factors affect how members of a legislature decide to vote? How would a typical legislator likely vote on a bill to lower the voting age in state and local elections from 18 to 16? What factors would he or she consider? Do you agree with how a typical legislator would vote on this issue? Explain.

Senator Barbara Boxer Committees: B Senator Boxer sits on many important committees. She votes on issues that support our state. Casework: C Senator Boxer’s staff is inefficient in handling casework and only accepts 34% of requests. Reelection: A Senator Boxer has been reelected in every year she has run. Special Projects: B Overall Grade: B Senator Boxer is a career politician who does a great job of keeping her job.

Chapter 4 Types of Constitutional Powers

Chp 10 Sec 1 Congress & House of Representatives

Chp 10 Sec 3 and 4 The Senate and Congress