Legislative Logrolling

Review
What

do you remember about the legislative branch?

House: Senate:

Review
What

do you remember about the legislative branch?

House: 435 members, 2 year terms, based on population of district Senate:

Review
What

do you remember about the legislative branch?

House: 435 members, 2 year terms, based on population of district Senate: 100 members, 6 year terms, two per state

How it Works
You

are a member of congress up for reelection. However, you have a few key issues left to vote on before election day. How you vote can determine whether or not you get reelected.

Types of Representatives
Trustee:

Delegate:
Partisan: Politico:

Types of Representatives
Trustee:

votes based on conscience Delegate: votes based on what their constituents wants, represents the people Partisan: loyal to their political party Politico: combination of two or more

The Cards
Defense

Appropriation Bill: Increasing funding to an area of the country that aids in defense (military, FAA) Closing Guantanamo Bay: Holding suspected terrorists in a prison in Cuba Offshore Oil Rights: Giving states the right to allow companies to drill just beyond their coastline Federal Park: Building a park in your town/constituency

The Cards
Legalize

Marijuana: Legalizing marijuana in your constituency Healthcare Bill: Providing affordable healthcare to everyone in the U.S. Federal Aid to Education: Increasing the funding given to states by the federal government for education

The Rules
Log

Roll Sheet

Record your interest scores under the appropriate columns next to my interest score To calculate your interest score: take the difference between the positive score and negative score on each of your cards

Interest Scores
For

Example:

O Persons for and 100 Persons against an issue gives you an interest score of -100 (0 - 100 = -100) which means you want Congress to vote against the issue. 75 Persons for and 25 Persons against an issue gives you an interest score of +50 (75-25 = 50) which means you want Congress to vote for the issue.

What Interest Scores Mean

A

score of -100 means that you want Congress to vote against the issue, if they do, you get a score of +100 and if they vote for it instead, you get a score of -100. In order to get reelected you need to get a positive score. If you get a negative score you dont get reelected.

Recording Interest Scores

Each

member of Congress is going to tell every one else whether their score is positive or negative, but not the score associated with it. The scores you didnt get a card for mean that your constituents dont really have an opinion about that issue and you can vote however you seem fit.

Making Agreements
In

order to get reelected, youre going to need to make agreements with other members of Congress to swing them to vote the way you want them to. To swing others members of Congress, you can agree to vote their way on an issue in exchange for them voting your way on an issue.

Reality Check
Just

like real life, people dont always tell the truth and politicians are no exception. Be sure to watch how the fellow Congressional members youve made agreements with vote to see if they are fulfilling their end of the bargain.

The Results
Who Who For

got reelected? didnt get reelected?

those who were reelected, what strategies did you use to get others to vote for your issues? Why did you use those strategies?

For

those who werent reelected, what strategies did you use to try to get others to vote for your issues? What would you change next time?

Connecting to Real Life

What

aspects from this activity do you think play a role when Congress votes on issues? does campaign financing affect voting patterns?

How

Where

do Congress members get their financing?