Syllabus for Legislative Practicum Seminar
Professors Yeomans, Flug, and Goodstein
Welcome to the Legislative Practicum. The class will meet Thursday evenings from 7:00
p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
The goal of the seminar will be to complement the field experience of students in the
practicum with classroom experience that will broaden their practical and theoretical
understanding of Congress and the democratic process.
Seminar Structure
Each session of the seminar will begin with a presentation by a student regarding the major
developments related to Congress that have occurred since the last class. Each student will
present at least once during the semester. Readings will be assigned for each session of the
seminar. Students will be expected to do all of the reading and come to class prepared to discuss
the readings. Active class participation will be a central component of the seminar. Some
classes will feature role-playing exercises for which students will be assigned roles. Some
classes will feature outside guests. Finally, each class will include a session during which
students will break into small groups to discuss their externships with their faculty supervisor.
Each student will be assigned a faculty member as direct supervisor for the semester. Both at the
sessions at the end of each class and at other appropriate times, students should raise with their
direct supervisor any problems or concerns arising during their field experience.
Seminar Requirements
1. At the first class, each student will be assigned a week for which he or she will be responsible
for reporting on developments in Congress during the preceding week.
2. Students will maintain a journal in which they will write each week about their externship
experiences.
3. Students will be expected to do the reading for each class and participate in classroom
discussion.
4. Each student will be expected to participate in role-playing exercises.
5. Finally, each student will be required to write a 15-20 page paper on a topic approved by his
or her faculty supervisor.
Performance on each of these tasks will factor into the final grade. The final paper will count for
60% of the grade. Each of the other activities will count equally toward the remaining 40%.
Attendance at the seminar is mandatory unless excused. If you must miss a class, please contact
your faculty supervisor in advance of the class.
Readings
The assigned readings will include a variety of primary material, including hearing statements,
transcripts, speeches, and judicial decisions. They will also include secondary materials,
including law review articles, policy papers, and journalism. You can expect that new readings
will be assigned to incorporate recent events and literature as the class progresses. Unless
otherwise indicated, the readings will be posted on MyWCL. You are, of course, free to find
them on your own, but many of the posted readings will be edited for class use.
Schedule of Classes and Readings:
Week 1 (Jan. 10)
Introduction to Congress
Readings: Thomas Mann & Norman Ornstein, It’s Even Worse Than It Looks,
(Basic Books, 2012), pp. 1-30
Ira Shapiro, The Last Great Senate, (2012), pp. 3-23.
Walter Oleszky, Congressional Procedures, Chapter 1.
Week 2 (Jan. 17)
Senate Dysfunction
Readings: George Packer, The Empty Chamber, New Yorker
Common Cause v. Biden, Case 1:12-cv-00775-EGS, complaint filed 5/14/2012
Sen. Tom Udall, “The Constitutional Option: Reforming the Rules of the Senate,”
5 Harv. L. Pol. Rev. 115 (2011)
Sen. Udall Resolution regarding reforming the Rules of the Senate
EMK Letter to Rules Committee
Week 3 (Jan. 24)
Legislation
Readings: Material on Gun Control (to be posted)
Week 4 (Jan. 31)
The Budget Process and the Debt Ceiling
Readings: CRS Report
Commentary
Week 5 (Feb. 7)
Congress and the Other Branches
Readings: Citizens United v. FEC
NFIB v. Sibelius
Shelby County v. Holder
Week 6 (Feb. 14)
Nominations
Readings: Statement of Sen. Kennedy regarding Robert Bork
Elena Kagan, “Confirmation Messes Old and New,” 62 U. Chicago L. Rev. 919
(1995)
Opening remarks of Sens. Leahy and Sessions, May 27, 2010
Alliance for Justice Report on Judicial Nominations, 112th Congress.
SCOTUS confirmation hearing transcript excerpts
Week 7 (Feb. 21)
Supreme Court Nomination Hearing
Week 8 (Feb. 28)
Oversight of the Executive Branch – Guest Speaker
Readings: Harold Koh, The National Security Constitution, pp. 11-37
U.S. v. Nixon, 418 U.S. 683 (1974)
Congressional Oversight Manual, pp. 1-6, 15-17, 20-28, 32-55
Statement of Attorney General Holder, February 2, 2012
Letter from Attorney General Holder, October 7, 2011
Statement of Ronald Weich, June 15, 2011
Week 9 (March 7)
Constituents, Lobbyists, Staffers, and the Role of Money – Guest Speaker
Readings: CRS Report, “Lobbying Congress: An Overview of Legal Provisions
and Congressional Ethics Rules,” 2007
Statements from Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing on Citizens United
Material Regarding Disclose Act
Week 10 (March 21)
Committee Mark-up Exercise -- DISCLOSE Act
Week 11 (March 28)
Legislative Drafting
Readings: To be assigned
Week 12 (April 4)
Is it Time to Update the Constitution?
Readings: Slate’s rewrite of the Constitution by scholars and readers
Week 13 (April 11)
Current Issues and Future Directions
Readings: To be assigned
Week 13 (April 11)
Presentation of Student Papers