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. Congressional Research Awards Winners
4. How a Bill Becomes a Law
5. U.S. Citizenship: Do You Qualify?
6. Ongoing Project: The Congressional Hearing
Toolkit
7. Who is That? and Trivia: Do You Know Your
Rights?
8. Notice Regarding E-mail Addresses
1. PEOPLE WHO SERVED IN CONGRESS
Sketches of famous and not-so-famous Senators and Representatives
Trent Lott. Trent Lott is entering his 33rd year of service
in the United States Congress (16 years in the House and 16 years
in the Senate) on behalf of the people of the State of Mississippi.
On November 15, 2006, he was elected Minority Whip in the Senate,
the Republican Party’s No. 2 leadership position, by a
single vote. He previously served as Senate Majority Leader from
1996 to June 6, 2001, interrupted only by a brief period in January
2001, in which he held the position of Senate Minority Leader.
After Jim Jeffords of Vermont left the Republican Party to become
an independent in June 2001, giving the Democrats control of
the Senate, Lott served as Minority Leader until his resignation
from that position in December 2002.
His Web site offers this summary of his personal life:
“Born on October 9, 1941, the only child of Chester and
Lona Lott, in the little town of Grenada, Mississippi, Trent
Lott’s early years were shaped by the no-nonsense values
of hard-working parents in hard-working times. More than once,
his family moved to take advantage of a job opportunity and a
chance at a better life. He grew up in a home where frugality
countered economic uncertainty and where personal advancement
had to be based on personal achievement.
“When his family set down roots in the port city of Pascagoula,
where his father was a pipefitter and his mother taught elementary
grades, Trent Lott attended a public school that would later
bear his name. He received his Bachelor of Science in Public
Administration in 1963 and his Juris Doctorate in 1967 from the
University of Mississippi in Oxford.
“He is married to Patricia (Tricia) Thompson Lott, his
college sweetheart. They have two children – Chester Trent
Lott, Jr. and Tyler Lott Armstrong – and have been blessed
with four grandchildren, Chester Trent Lott III, Lucie Sims Lott,
Shields Elizabeth Armstrong and Addison States Armstrong.”
His Senate site is http://lott.senate.gov/.
The URL for the Republican Leader’s site is http://republican.senate.gov/public/?CFID=15927084&CFTOKEN=81364918.
Project Vote Smart’s entry for Lott is located at http://www.vote-smart.org/bio.php?can_id=S0471103.
2. CONGRESS DEFINED
Words and phrases that describe congressional processes
Whip. The majority or minority party member in each house who
acts as assistant leader, helps plan and marshal support for
party strategies, encourages party discipline, and advises the
leader of how their colleagues intend to vote on the floor. In
the Senate, the Republican whip’s official title is assistant
leader. Whips are elected by their party caucuses and often appoint
deputies or assistants to help them.
Source: Congressional Quarterly’s American Congressional
Dictionary, 3rd edition, ed. Walter Kravitz (Washington DC: CQ
Press, 2001):277.
3. CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH AWARDS WINNERS
Congratulations to the following Congressional
Research Awards winners for the 2006–2007 round of competition:
- Michael John Berry*, University of Colorado, Legislative
Oversight Continued: The Post-Chadha Legislative Veto – funded
at $3,500
- Michael D. Bowen, University of Florida,
Fight for the Right: The Quest for Republican
Identity in the Postwar Period – funded
at $1,925
- Grace Eunha Cho*, University of Michigan, Congressional
Representation of Noncitizens: A Case Study of Immigrants – funded
at $3,400
- Joshua D. Clinton, Princeton University,
Lawmaking and the U.S. Congress, 1935-2006 – funded
at $3,475
- Benjamin Koch*, University of Texas, The
House Impeachment Inquiry of President Richard Nixon – funded
at $3,263
- Burdett A. Loomis, University of Kansas, The
Fight of His Life: Bob Dole and the 1974 Kansas U.S. Senate
Election – funded
at $3,500
- Beth A. Rosenson, University of Florida,
Does the Ethics Process Strengthen or
Harm Congress and American Democracy? – funded
at $3,070
- Brandon Rottinghaus, University of Idaho, Rethinking “Shared
Powers”: “Informal” Covert Legislative Lobbying
of the Executive Branch – funded at $2,878
- Michael
W. Tofias, University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee,
Parties and Leaders in the Congressional
Network: Positioning Within the Social Network of Member-to-Member
Campaign Contributions – funded
at $3,465
- Antoine Yoshinaka, University of California,
Riverside, The Rise of Incivility in the
Senate – funded
at $3,400
*PhD. Candidate
Learn more about these grant projects and others at: http://www.dirksencenter.org/print_grants_CRAs.htm#Grntrecipient00
For more information about how to submit a Congressional
Research Awards grant proposal, please visit: http://www.dirksencenter.org/print_grants_CRAs.htm.
Since 1978, the Congressional Research
Awards (formerly the
Congressional Research Grants) program has paid out $680,000
to support over 350 projects. The Dirksen Congressional Center
intends to award $30,000 in 2008, with February 1 the deadline
for proposals. If you have questions about the Congressional
Research Awards, contact Frank
Mackaman.
4. HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAW
This project creates an interactive "bill becomes law" flow
chart that can serve as a stand–alone activity or as the
basis of classroom instruction. Each stage of the legislative
process is accompanied by a video clip example, a textual description,
a discussion of alternative methods to accomplish that step,
and a statistical summary (how many bills are introduced, how
many roll call votes per year, etc.). The deliverables include
a PowerPoint presented with video insertions, the content for
textual descriptions, and an instructor's guide.
The introduction to this project reads, "German politician
Otto Von Bismarck allegedly asserted that 'If you like laws and
sausages, you should never watch either one being made.' Despite
his admonition, How A Bill Becomes A Law will tempt fate by looking
behind the scenes at the legislative process in Congress."
Take a look! Link to Bill Becomes a Law at: http://www.congresslink.org/print_index5.htm.
5. U.S. CITIZENSHIP: DO YOU QUALIFY?
Verify if you legally qualify for citizenship and apply for
your U.S. citizenship online. USCitizenship.info provides you
with what you need to prepare, complete, and file your application
with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (formerly
known as the INS).
USCitizenship.info wants to help people handle their own everyday
legal matters and learn everything they need to know about applying
for United States citizenship, whether they are applying themselves
or working with a lawyer. They have created this easy–to–use,
online service for customers to achieve their American citizenship
goals.
Find USCitizenship.info at: http://www.aboutgovernment.org/print_citizenship.htm
6. ONGOING PROJECT: THE CONGRESSIONAL HEARING
TOOLKIT
In 2005, Stephanie Vance, of Advocacy Associates, LLC, received
a Michel Special Projects Grant for her project –– The
Congressional Hearing Toolkit. He project will help students
understand the role of the congressional hearing in the policy
process, i.e., how committees operate and influence legislation,
through an interactive model. The deliverables will include written
materials, video of committee hearings, and two committee hearing
simulation models for student use.
What do we plan to do with this project? We will transform these
deliverables into the most efficient communication tool possible –– a
Web site for teachers! We will keep you updated.
The Michel Special Projects Grants are intended to fund work
that advances the public understanding of the federal legislature
through research and teaching. Examples of eligible projects
include conferences that bring together congressional scholars,
the collection or publication of resources useful for research,
efforts by teachers to develop creative ways to teach about Congress,
and publications, especially those with appeal beyond academia.
IMPORTANT: The projects must have as their central focus the
U.S. Congress. We particularly value innovative endeavors that
have the potential to reach a broad audience.
Learn more about the Michel
Special Project Grants by visiting:
http://www.dirksencenter.org/print_grants_specialprojects.htm.
The application process is simple and the requirements are minimal.
We encourage you to apply!
7. WHO IS THAT? AND TRIVIA: DO YOU KNOW
YOUR RIGHTS?
Play Who is That? You will be shown a portrait of a president
with a clue. For each screen, identify the correct president
and click on their name. Find Who is That? at: http://www.congressforkids.net/games/executivebranch/2_execbranch.htm
Trivia: Do You Know Your Rights?
Which of these were the last to gain the right to vote?
A. Immigrants
B. African Americans
C. 18–year–olds
D. Women
*Find the answer in next month's issue.
Answer to April's Fun, Facts, and Trivia: http://www.webcommunicator.org/classroom%20resources/funfactstrivia_ans0407.htm
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