Welcome to The Dirksen Congressional Center's Communicator - a web-based e-newsletter providing educators with news and ideas to improve the understanding of Congress -- http://www.webcommunicator.org.

1. People Who Served in Congress
2. Congress Defined
3. Editorial Cartoon Collection
4. Role of Congress in Formulating Policy
5. Staff Pay & Congressional Travel
6. Congress In The Classroom® 2007 A Success!
7. Fantasy Congress: Where People Play Politics
8. Postscript Information

1. PEOPLE WHO SERVED IN CONGRESS
Sketches of famous and not-so-famous Senators and Representatives

Edward Brooke. Of the five African Americans who have served in the Senate, Brooke was the first elected by popular vote. The Republican from Massachusetts served two full terms, from 1967 to 1979. Born in Washington, D.C. in 1919, Brooke graduated from Howard University and received a law degree from Boston University. He was the chairman of Finance Commission of Boston from 1961 to 1962, was elected Attorney General of Massachusetts in 1962, and was re-elected in 1964. In this position, he gained a reputation as a vigorous prosecutor of organized crime, and coordinated with local police departments on the Boston strangler case.

During his Senate career he championed the causes of low-income housing and an increased minimum wage, and promoted commuter rail and mass transit systems. He also worked tirelessly to promote racial equality in the South.

He was a member of the liberal wing of the Republican Party and often had conflicts with President Richard Nixon, particularly in 1970, when Brooke helped lead the movement to stop the Senate confirmation of the President's nominee to the Supreme Court, Harold Carswell.

Brooke lost a bid for a third term in the Senate elections of 1978 to Democratic Representative Paul Tsongas. After leaving the Senate, he was the head of the Low Income Housing Coalition.

His memoir, Bridging the Divide: My Life (New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press), was published last year.

Sources:

http://www.loc.gov/rr/mss/text/brooke.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Brooke

http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=B000871

http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/people/A0809073.html

2. CONGRESS DEFINED
Words and phrases that describe congressional processes

Companion Bills. Identical or similar bills introduced in both houses of Congress. Like-minded representatives and senators often introduce companion bills on the theory that this will spur action on them in their respective chambers.

Source: Congressional Quarterly’s American Congressional Dictionary, 3rd edition, ed. Walter Kravitz (Washington DC: CQ Press, 2001):53.

3. EDITORIAL CARTOON COLLECTION

The Dirksen Congressional Center is pleased to announce the completion of their Editorial Cartoon Collection project: http://www.congresslink.org/cartoons/index.htm

The editorial cartoons and related lesson plans from The Dirksen Center will teach students to identify issues, analyze symbols, acknowledge the need for background knowledge, recognize stereotypes and caricatures, think critically, and appreciate the role of irony and humor.

- About the Collection -

Editorial cartoonists loved Everett Dirksen (1896-1969)-his position of influence as Minority Leader in the Senate (1959-69), his way with words, and, of course, his distinctive appearance. Over the years, Senator Dirksen's staff compiled a scrapbook containing more than 300 editorial cartoons. Topics covered include Vietnam, civil rights, Republican Party politics, the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, reapportionment, Taft-Hartley 14(b), school prayer, Dirksen's recording career, Senate procedures, congressional pay, presidential appointments, and Dirksen's legacy. Naturally, cartoonists also used these topics to depict Dirksen's relationship with President Lyndon Johnson, with his Democratic colleagues in the Senate, and with the Supreme Court. In addition, cartoonists sent Dirksen between 50 and 60 original sketches on equally diverse topics.

Among the scores of cartoonists represented in the collection are Herblock, Gib Crockett, Hugo, Bill Mauldin, Gene Basset, Pat Oliphant, Al Capp, Wayne Stayskal, Jim Berry, Guernsey LePelley, Tom Engelhardt, Paul Conrad, and Jim Berryman.

There are only six of the original 300 plus cartoons posted at this time. Not all will lend themselves to lesson plans, though we will add to the list as time permits -- we're working on 14 additional lesson plans at the moment. We do plan to post all of the cartoons on the Web site. As you can imagine, it takes time and we wanted to start small and adjust as necessary.

We welcome you to take a look and let us know what you think!

4. ROLE OF CONGRESS IN FORMULATING POLICY

During our annual Congress in the Classroom® workshop –– http://dirksencenter.org/print_programs_CongressClassroom.htm –– participants are asked to introduce the lesson plans, resources, and techniques that have proven successful in teaching about Congress in their classrooms. A 2005 participant, Bill Penberthy, Ironwood High School, Glendale, AZ, presented his lesson entitled, Role of Congress in Formulating Policy. Background information for this lesson follows:

In the modern world, most people associate the policies that the United States pursues with the President and forget that Congress plays a major role in how those policies are formulated and carried out. Historically, there have been times when Congress has played a very strong role vis-à-vis the Executive Branch, and at other times, it has been willing to let the President carry the ball. In both situations, there have always been strong members of Congress who felt they had a constitutional duty to do more than 'rubber stamp' or just sit by idly. This may mean that they proposed legislation, tried to significantly change proposed or already enacted legislation, or in some cases, fought to prevent passage. Whatever their approach, they were instrumental in the formulation of foreign and domestic policy.

The overall objective of this lesson is to help students learn that Congress plays a major role in how policies are formulated and carried out. Find Role of Congress in Formulating Policy at: http://www.congresslink.org/print_lp_roleofcongress.htm.

5. STAFF PAY & CONGRESSIONAL TRAVEL

Now you can find congressional staff salaries from 2003 through 2006. LegiStorm, a non-profit organization devoted to transparency in government, has compiled the salary data. Expect frequent updates and the addition of historical data, too. Find Staff Pay at: http://www.congresslink.org/print_index5.htm.

LegiStorm also provides a travel database containing roughly 27,000 trips and a unique window into how private organizations are trying to gain influence in Washington. You can perform full searching, view each original disclosure form, and check out maps of the trips. Find Congressional Travel at: http://www.congresslink.org/print_index5.htm.

6. CONGRESS IN THE CLASSROOM® 2007 A SUCCESS!

The key element to The Dirksen Center's national, award-winning education program, Congress in the Classroom® is the participation and collaboration among the teachers who attend the program.

Congress in the Classroom® is dedicated to the exchange of ideas and information on teaching about Congress. The 2007 program featured a broad overview of Congress with special attention to the new 110th Congress with the Democrats in charge for the first time in more than a decade.

Read what our 2007 participants had to say about the workshop: http://www.dirksencenter.org/print_programs_CongressClassroom.htm#say.

7. FANTASY CONGRESS: WHERE PEOPLE PLAY POLITICS

Fantasy Congress™ offers you the power to "play politics." As in other fantasy sports, you - the Citizen - draft a team of real-life legislators from the U.S. Congress who will score points for your team based on their performance. Join and compete against a league of friends or form a league of your own! You earn points based on the productivity of your chosen Members of Congress and can trade, bench or even drop underperformers.

Find Fantasy Congress™ at: http://www.congressforkids.net/games/houseofrep/2_legislativebranch.htm.

Trivia:

Since the Civil War, which state has given its electoral votes to a third party candidate the most times?

A. Mississippi
B. Louisiana
C. Wisconsin
D. Florida

*Find the answer in next month's issue.

Answer to July's Fun, Facts, and Trivia: http://www.webcommunicator.org/classroom%20resources/funfactstrivia_ans0707.htm

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