Blog #4 Electoral Connection

Mayhew’s Argument

In The Electoral Connection by David R. Mayhew, Mayhew argues that members of congress are single minded seekers of reelection. To facilitate the goal of reelection, the author describes three types of activities that congressmen engage in: advertising, credit claiming and position taking. Each of these activities is important for congressmen to stay connected with their constituents and seen in a favorable image. Their reward is reelection.  

Advertising

Mayhew defined advertising in congress as an effort to disseminate a name, create a favorable image, and do so without much content. Congressman Ed Perlmutter advertises by sending out bi-monthly newsletters to his constituents. The newsletter consists of current issues as well as how Perlmutter is representing Colorado’s 7^th District on these issues. Furthermore, the newsletter contains upcoming events such as town halls and ceremonies at which Perlmutter will be in attendance. http://perlmutter.house.gov/news/email/

In 2016, Perlmutter spent $17,217.38 on franked mail. Around 3 percent of his total budget was spent mailing out letter and flyers for advertising. He also spent $24,171.54 on travel expenses— flying back and forth between Washington D.C. and Colorado. Below is a statement of his total disbursements in 2016.

FRANKED MAIL .......................................................................................................17,217.38

PERSONNEL COMPENSATION ..............................................................................433,791.22

TRAVEL .....................................................................................................................24,171.54

RENT, COMMUNICATION, UTILITIES .................................................................59,045.86

PRINTING AND REPRODUCTION ........................................................................16,932.49

OTHER SERVICES ...................................................................................................12,465.00

SUPPLIES AND MATERIALS .................................................................................12,833.31

EQUIPMENT .............................................................................................................1,327.50

OFFICIAL EXPENSES OF MEMBERS TOTALS: 577,784.30

OFFICE TOTALS: 577,784.30

http://disbursements.house.gov/2016q2/2016q2_singlevolume.pdf

Credit Claiming

The definition of credit claiming is creating the belief that an individual is personally responsible for a result that is considered important to voters. Congressman Perlmutter claimed credit for bipartisan legislation that “clarifies the sharing of information between federal and state regulator that license, supervise or examine consumer financial products or services”. As a member of the Financial Services Committee, Perlmutter drafted the legislation and helped get it signed into law. Membership on the committee as well as active participation on the bill allows Perlmutter to claim credit to his constituents. http://perlmutter.house.gov/committees/financial-services-committee.htm

Position Taking

Simply put, position taking is an individual taking a stance. A recent example of Rep. Perlmutter position taking can be found in a press release on January 25, 2017 in which Perlmutter responds to Trump’s Anti-Immigration Executive Orders. Perlmutter criticizes the Trump administration and says that…   

“Instead of building walls we should be building economic opportunity in our communities. We should be focusing on comprehensive immigration reform which creates American jobs, lowers our deficit, strengthens our borders, and gives millions of undocumented Americans an earned pathway to citizenship.” http://perlmutter.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=1579

Perlmutter’s stance on immigration is predominately supported by the 7^th district. It is also a safe political stance considering the backlash that was triggered in Colorado following the signing of the executive order.

Quiz:

Can you guess who is Rep. Ed Perlmutter and who is actor Jason Lee (star of tv series "My name is Earl")?

  

Here is a link to a Denver post article describing multiple time that Ed Perlmutter has been referred to as "Earl" Perlmutter in the news.

http://blogs.denverpost.com/thespot/2010/09/07/perlmutter-my-name-is-not-earl/14451/