CONGRESS: WE THE PEOPLE
CONGRESS: WE THE PEOPLE
08.34.26-Newman-hundreds of votes take place in each session, and lawmakers need quick information on many minor votes. Rep. BARBER CONABLE (R-NY) talks about getting information from trusted lobbyists and staff on votes he doesn't know well himself. Shots of Rep. CONABLE rushing to vote, riding in the underground tramway to the Capitol. 08.36.18-Newman-discussion of patterns of voting, dependent on party lines, the President, and interests involved, notably in the longstanding coalition of Conservative Republicans and Conservative Southern Democrats. Still of FDR speaking to press microphones, audio of an FDR radio address discussing the New Deal. Stills of FDR and of the Congressional chamber. V.O.-Southern Democrats rebelled against the New Deal after FDR's first term. Rep. JIM WRIGHT recalling the hard struggles faced by speaker Sam Rayburn to keep all the Democrats in line. Shot of 1960 JFK inauguration. Rep. RICHARD BOLLING (D-MO) discussing the problems faced by President Kennedy in getting his domestic agenda approved. Cartoon illustrating the Southern desertions from the Democrats under Kennedy. Still of JFK with Civil Rights leaders including Martin Luther King. 08.38.32-Shot of LBJ at inaugural announcing the Great Society and the Civil Rights initiatives. Stills of LBJ. Still of RICHARD NIXON. V.O.-NIXON resurrected the southern conservative coalition on issues like LAW AND ORDER and the Vietnam War. Shot of Jimmy Carter. Rep. TOM FOLEY says that there were never any formal Conservative Democratic Caucuses under Carter, but there was a solid bloc under Reagan. Still of Conservative Democrats in meeting with Reagan, all having a good laugh about screwing over the bleeding heart liberals. Shot of PHIL GRAMM, says the Conservative Democrats are founded on economic issues, says that this is different than previous conservative Democrat movements that were based on Southern regionalism and racism [Gramm calls racism "the race issue" to suggest that there are two equally valid sides to it]. Shots of meetings of the Conservative Democratic Forum. V.O.-this bloc was recognized as the key voting bloc in Congress during Reagan's first term. Rep. SAM HALL Jr. says that the group speaks for the majority of the people. 08.41.30