Preliminary Syllabus
Government 374
MONEY IN AMERICAN ELECTIONS
Fall, 2006
Professor Clyde Wilcox
ICC 679
202-687-5273; fax=5858
wilcoxc@georgetown.edu
www9.georgetown.edu/faculty/wilcoxc
This is a seminar about the role of money (and its substitutes) in American
elections. The 2006 Congressional elections are only the second set of elections
since the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA), and we will closely follow the
flow of money in the 2006 campaigns.
This is the second time that this course has been taught, so I welcome student
feedback (and patience) as the course unfolds. This also means that the syllabus
may be revised once or twice once the semester starts.
This course is a seminar, not a lecture course. Students are expected to do the
readings before each class, and participate in class discussion. Note that class
discussion constitutes 25% of the final grade in the course. Believe it or not, I can
tell when you haven't done the readings, and if you consistently come to class
unprepared, your participation grade will suffer. In most class sessions, we will
combine some lecture material with a discussion of readings. We will also have
guest speakers in several sessions, for usually about 1/2 of the class.
Guest speakers will represent diverse points of view. Students are permitted to
ask tough questions and to challenge the positions of speakers but I do require
that you do so politely. Speakers give of their time freely, and they are entitled to
respect.
This course works best when students actively seek information outside of class -from web sites, newspapers, and other sources, and share them with other
students.
GRADING:
Final Exam 30%
Paper 35%
Class Discussion 25%
Book Review 10%
Grades are based on a final exam (which will either be open book or take home), a
research paper, a written book report, and class discussion. There is a fair amount
of reading per class session, but the class only meets once a week.
Students will prepare one 3-4 page critical book review. Students may review
books on the list at the end of the syllabus, or suggest others to the instructor for
approval. Book reviews are due Nov 3.
Students will also write one medium length (15-20 page) paper on a research topic.
All topics must be cleared with the instructor. Research papers are not literature
reviews -- I expect you to actually gather information about a topic. I am willing to
look at outlines of papers, and even comment on drafts, but I do not require that
you submit these. The Washington community is a rich source of information on
this topic, and I urge you to take advantage of it. You will waste a wonderful
opportunity if you wait to the last minute and then merely research through the
internet. Papers are due the last day of class.
I understand that computer hard drives freeze and printers die, so it is important
that you back up your paper on floppy disk from time to time. Also please note
that I will enforce the university’s policy on plagiarism. Familiarize yourself with
university policy at
http://www.georgetown.edu/undergrad/bulletin/regulations6.html
There are many sources that you should consult; below are a few web sites that
you can explore.
Campaign Finance Institute
http://www.cfinst.org/
Center for Responsive Politics
http://www.opensecrets.org/
Federal Election Commission
http://www.fec.gov/index.html
Stanford Law School archive for McConnell v. FEC
http://lawschool.stanford.edu/library/campaignfinance/ (This is a monster
site)
Texts
The following books are available for purchase at the bookstore. This course is
overenrolled, so it is possible that the bookstore may not have enough copies.
Please order copies from Amazon.com or some other source if this is the case.
Bradley A. Smith, Unfree Speech Princeton University Press, 2006.
David Magleby, Financing the 2004 Election. 2006, Brookings.
Michael J. Malbin, The Election After Reform. Rowman & Littlefield, 2006.
David Schultz, Money, Politics, and Campaign Finance Reform Law in the States.
Carolina Academic Press, 2002.
Bruce Ackerman & Ian Ayres, Voting with Dollars. Yale University Press, 2002.
Recommended but not required:
Anthony Corrado, Thomas Mann, Daniel Ortiz, and Trevor Potter, The New
Campaign Finance Sourcebook. Brookings, 2006. (note that this is not at the
bookstore, but Brookings is in town and sells it at their store. You can also buy this
used at Amazon.com). Note that we will have several chapters accessed through
the internet, but it is easier to just buy the book and be done with it.
Topics and Readings
September 1: Introduction
September 8: Money in Elections, an Overview


“Financing Politics: A Global View” M. Pinto-Duchinsky. Journal of
Democracy. - Blackboard
Ackerman and Ayres, Part 1 (ch 1-4)




Rose-Ackerman, Corruption and Government Ch 8.*
Schultz, Introduction
Bailey, “The Two Sides of Money and Politics” – Blackboard
Magleby, et al, Ch 1
September 15: A History of Campaign Finance Regulation in the US
 Smith, Ch 2
 Corrado,Chapter 1 of Handbook
http://www.brookings.edu/gs/cf/sourcebk01/InternetChap1.pdf
 Potter, Chapter 2 of Handbook
http://www.brookings.edu/gs/cf/sourcebk01/InternetChap2.pdf
 Malbin, “Thinking About Reform” in Malbin, ed Life After Reform
 Corrado, “The Legislative Odyssey of BCRA” in Malbin, ed. Life After
Reform
 Magleby et al., Ch 2
(Note: some of this will be redundant, so skim as needed).
September 22: The Supply of Money – Who Gives and Why?
 Individuals – Francia et al, Ch 2, 3*
 Interest Groups – Boatright et al, “BCRA’s Impact on Interest Groups
and Advocacy Organizations.”*
 Interest Groups – Magleby, et al, ch 8
 Interest Groups -- Stephen Stephen Ansolabehere, et al. “Are PAC
Contributions Linked to Lobbying? Blackboard
 Parties – Magleby, et al., Ch 7
September 29: The Demand for Money
 Francia, et al., Ch 4
 Herrnson, Congressional Elections (4th edition), Ch 5
 Stephen Ansolabehere, et al. “Why is there so little money in
American Campaigns?” Blackboard
 Magleby, Ch 4-6
October 6: Is Disclosure Enough?
 Wilcox, Transparency and Disclosure in the US Blackboard
 Campaign Finance Institute: Website Woes -http://www.cfinst.org/disclosure/pdf/websitewoes.pdf
Potter, Campaign Finance Dislosure Laws, Ch4 of Handbook
http://www.brookings.edu/gs/cf/sourcebk01/InternetChap4.pdf
 Go to FEC web page, track the contributions from a PAC
 Go to the Center for Responsive Politics web page, track contributions
to a candidate
Note: there is repetition in this, skim as needed

October 13: Enforcement: Guest Speaker Wesley Joe
 Wilcox, Campaign Finance Law Enforcement in Canada and the US*
 http://www.citizen.org/documents/BCRATables.pdf
 Thomas Mann, Enforcing Campaign Finance Law
http://www.brookings.edu/gs/cf/sourcebk01/InternetChap8.pdf
October 20 The Impact of BCRA
 Malbin (entire)
 Magleby, et al, Ch 1 (review), Ch 9
October 27 Interest Groups in Elections, A Broader View (Guest Speaker
Chuck Cunningham, NRA)
November 3: The effects of money
 Dennis Thompson, Ethics in Congress, pp 34-48. *
 Brooks Jackson, Honest Graft pp 82-94 *
 Smith, Ch 7
 more readings to follow
November 10: The Deregulatory alternative
 Smith, (entire)
November 17: Other Reforms
 Ackerman and Ayres, Voting with Dollars (entire)
 Paying for Politics, Blackboard
 Thomas Mann, Chapter 10 of Handbook, The Reform Agenda
http://www.brookings.edu/gs/cf/sourcebk01/InternetChap10.pdf
 Magleby, Ch 9 (review)
December 1: The Presidential Campaign System and Reform. Guest speaker,
Michael Malbin.
NOTE: We will meet at the Campaign Finance Institute, 1990 M Street, NW,
Suite 380 Washington, DC 20036. Phone: 202-969-8890. This is relatively
close to the Foggy Bottom metro, and to GWU.


Review Malbin, Ch 11
CFI Small Donor Grant Proposal, on Blackboard
Books for potential review:
Note that this is a suggested list, but that other books are entirely
acceptable, if cleared by me.
Thomas Gais: Improper Influence: Campaign Finance Law, Political Interest Groups,
and the Problem of Equality. University of Michigan Press, 1998.
Rodney A. Smith, Money, Power, and Elections: How Campaign Finance Reform
Subverts American Democracy. Louisiana State University Press, 2006.
Joel Thompson and Gary Moncrief. Campaign Finance in State Legislative Elections.
CQ Press, 1998.
Michael J. Malbin and Thomas Gais, The Day After Reform: Sobering Campaign
Finance Lessons from the American States. The Rockefeller Institute Press, 1998.
David B. Magleby and J. Quin Monson, The Last Hurrah: Soft Money and Issue
Advocacy in the 2002 Congressional Elections. Brookings, 2004.
Peter Francia, The Future of Organized Labor in American Politics. Columbia
University Press, 2006.
David B. Magleby, J. Quin Monson, and Kelly D. Patterson, Dancing without
Partners: How Candidates, Parties, and Interest Groups Interact in the
Presidential Campaign. Rowman & Littlefield, 2007.
J. Tobin Grant and Thomas J. Rudolph, Expression vs. Equality: The Politics of
Campaign Finance Reform. Ohio State University Press, 2004.
Jennifer A. Steen. Self-Financed Candidates in Congressional Elections.
University of Michigan Press, 2006.
Anthony Corrado, Thomas E. Mann, and Trevor Potter. Inside the Campaign
Finance Battle. Brookings: 2003.
Mark J. Rozell, Clyde Wilcox, and David Madland. Interest Groups in American
Campaigns (2nd edition). CQ Press, 2006.
Clifford Brown, Lynda Powell, and Clyde Wilcox. Serious Money: Fundraising and
Contributing in Presidential Campaigns. Cambridge University Press, 1997.
Peter Francia, Paul Herrnson, John Green, Lynda Powell, and Clyde Wilcox. The
Financiers of Congressional Elections: Investors, Ideologues, and Intimates.
Columbia University Press, 2005.
Gerald Lubenow, A User’s Guide to Campaign Finance Reform, Rowman and
Littlefield, 2001.
Diana Dwyre and Victoria Farrar-Myers, Legislative Labyrinth: Congress and
Campaign Finance Reform. CQ Press. 1998.