Monday, February 15, 2010
Contrary to popular belief, bipartisanship is not dead in Congress—it’s just been relegated to the less prominent echelons of political commingling. In a political body where the number of lawmakers totals 535, Congress somehow has organized approximately 300 caucuses that bring together different groupings of senators or representatives around a common interest.
In some instances, lawmakers have joined around a trade or industry, such as the Shellfish Caucus, Beef Caucus, Peanut Caucus, Organic Caucus, Coal Caucus or Cement Caucus. But other gatherings have formed around personal interests, like Representative John Yarmuth’s (D-KY) establishment of the Bourbon Caucus.
Yarmuth’s caucus consists of both Republicans and Democrats, offering political opponents a chance to find common ground and realize the other side isn’t so bad after all.
“It’s gotten harder for people on the Hill to talk with each other. The old days of slugging it out on the floor and sharing a bourbon and branch water later are gone,” Donald Kettl, dean of the University of Maryland School of Public Policy, told the Los Angeles Times. “If a member of Congress can find a fellow Norwegian or soccer lover, there’s at least a decent chance they can talk without fighting.”
“It’s gotten harder for people on the Hill to talk with each other. The old days of slugging it out on the floor and sharing a bourbon and branch water later are gone,” Donald Kettl, dean of the University of Maryland School of Public Policy, told the Los Angeles Times. “If a member of Congress can find a fellow Norwegian or soccer lover, there’s at least a decent chance they can talk without fighting.”
Other caucuses include the Congressional Baby Caucus, the Congressional Caucus on Qatari-American Economic Strategic Defense, Cultural and Educational Partnership, the Congressional Friends of Liechtenstein Caucus, the Congressional Horse Caucus, the Congressional Motorcycle Caucus, the Congressional Songwriters Caucus, and the House Small Brewers Caucus.
And, yes, there is a Soccer Caucus and Friends of Norway Caucus.
-Noel Brinkerhoff
If There's a Cause, There's a Caucus on Capitol Hill (by Richard Simon, Los Angeles Times)
111th Congress Congressional Member Organizations (Committee on House Administration)
25 New Caucuses Register in the House of Representatives, August-November 2009 (That’s My Congress)
For 435 Lawmakers, 250 Groups to Align With (by Andrea Fuller, New York Times)
Comments