William_T._Bianco,_David_T._Canon]_American_Polit

396 Chapter 11 | Congress

as members of Congress found ways to secure funding for their district or state. The late

senator John McCain (R-AZ), Senate Armed Services Committee chairman, called it a

last-minute mess full of “wasteful, unnecessary, and inappropriate pork-barrel projects.”^27

The norm of specialization is also important, both for the efficient operation of Congress

and for members’ reelection. By specializing and becoming an expert on a given issue,

members provide valuable information to the institution as a whole and also create a basis

for credit claiming. This norm is stronger in the House, where members often develop

a few areas of expertise, whereas senators tend to be policy generalists. For example,

Representative John Lewis (D-GA) has dedicated much of his decades-long House career

to the issue of civil rights, while Senator John McCain (R-AZ) had his hand in a variety of

issues, including campaign finance and lobbying reform, tax policy, telecommunications

and aviation issues, national defense, foreign policy, and immigration policy.

The seniority norm also serves individual and institutional purposes. This norm holds

that the member with the longest service on a given committee will chair that committee.

Although there have been numerous violations of this norm in the past 30 years, whereby

the most senior member has been passed over for someone whom the party leaders

favored, the norm benefits the institution by ensuring orderly succession in committee

leadership.^28 The norm also benefits members by providing a tangible reason why voters

should return them to Congress year after year. Many members of Congress make this

point when campaigning, and the issue is more than just posturing. Committee chairs are

better able to “bring home the bacon” than a junior member who is still learning the ropes.

Formal Structures

Formal structures also shape members’ behavior in Congress. Political parties, party

leadership, the committee system, and staff provide the context within which members

of Congress make policy and represent their constituents (see Nuts & Bolts 11.2).

Parties and Party Leaders Political parties are important for allocating power

in Congress. Party leaders are always elected on straight party-line votes, with the

seniority

The informal congressional norm of

choosing the member who has served

the longest on a particular committee

to be the committee chair.

Representative Bill Flores (R-TX)

poses with Faye, a potbellied pig, after

a news conference held by Citizens

Against Government Waste at the

Phoenix Park Hotel to release the

2017 Congressional Pig Book, which

identifies pork-barrel spending in

Congress.

Full_12_APT_64431_ch11_374-417.indd 396 16/11/18 10:30 AM