Reference no: EM132329957

Political science

Consider what you've read about representation theory in the text (and the course notes). Then read the four articles on the arguments about the issue of expanding the size of the House of Representatives (see the links under the "Supplemental Resources" in Unit Four).

Consider the effects of such a change on how members would be more (or less) representative of their constituent's views. Also consider what the effect would be on party leaders.

Respond to the following questions:

(a) In what ways would expanding the House make Members of Congress MORE representative of the American public? Make sure you provide an explanation as to WHY you think so.

(b) In what ways would expanding the House make Members of Congress LESS representative of the American public? Make sure you provide an explanation as to WHY you think so.

(c) What effect would such a change have on party leaders' influences over how the Congressmen/women in their party vote? (By "party leaders here, we're talking about the Speaker, Majority and Minority Leaders, Majority and Minority Whips, as well as Committee Chairs and Ranking Members).

P.S. Any arguments about COST are off the table for this one (it's about REPRESENTATION of the American public, NOT COST). Besides, the cost of running Congress, in relation to the rest of the federal budget, is miniscule (it's about 12/100th of ONE percent [so, 0.12%], of the total federal budget).

P.P.S. When answering this, assume that the METHOD of election won't change (we'd still elect our House members from single-member districts, using the first-past-the-post/plurality system). Of course, there will be a lot more districts per state. Some of the articles I've posted for your consideration also talk about the advantages of coupling expansion of the House with some other reform (such as Proportional Representation) - forget about those proposed reforms. Let's just look at the issue of how more MEMBERS would affect how the House operates, and how its members represent the voters of their districts.