Essay 1 - PS365 -The Legislative Process
Professor Renka
Thursday, February 14, 2008

Essay 1 (100 points):  Write an essay of approximately 1000 to 1200 word length on one of these three options.  The essay is due by midnight Tuesday, February 19 at the Drop Box.
    For direct use of evidence or quotes, cite the appropriate readings simply by author names, publication year and page.  For the text or Jacobson, this would produce something like "Stewart 2001, 81-88."  For articles in the reader co-edited by Dodd and Oppenheimer, cite the article author as author; don't mix that up with the Reader's coeditors Dodd and Oppenheimer.  So it is "Sinclair 2005, 111-112” or “Hibbing and Larimer 2005, 52-58”; and the first article is by Dodd and Oppenheimer themselves, so "Dodd and Oppenheimer 2005" is correct when using that.
    You can use MLA style instead if you prefer.  I'm happy with any standard style so long as the reader can locate your references easily.  Of course all styles require use of the full links at conclusion.  Don't forget the publisher information.  You can see some standard ones re the course texts in the Syllabus under the list of readings (but not in the Itinerary).
    On using website material, remember to cite the author and the filename rather than the URL if you use APA-styled references.  If you use my Forum posts, just cite me as author, include the filename, and cite the pub date.  Then in your biblio, do include the URL itself plus the date or dates of access.

Your options:

1.  Stewart insists that every legislative body must seek ways to curb or control the problem of chaos (expressed in the “McKelvey chaos theorem”).  Why is this so?  When in history and in terms of issue content has potential chaos been a special problem for the Congress?  And finally, there is Stewart's "structurally induced equilibrium."  What means have been employed to curb the chaos problem?

2.  Stewart describes progressive ambition as the prevalent thinking of professional politicians.  What are the operating assumptions of progressive ambition?  Does progressive ambition adequately describe the behavior of Members of Congress nowadays?  And finally:  what is the effect of progressive ambition on the design of term-of-office provisions for presidents, vice-presidents, state governors, U.S. senators, and U.S. representatives?

3.  Success of incumbents is a fundamental part of the modern Congress.  What is the relevant evidence showing that congressional incumbents are difficult to defeat?  Why do House members have higher success rates than incumbent Senators?  Specify one or more means to reduce incumbent success and boost competitiveness of elections; and be sure to show why this remedy ought to work.