Description
Evaluate your representative on three dimensions: the ethics, stewardship and civic engagement that he/she has shown in their tenure as your representative. Using your evaluation of your representative’s ethics, stewardship and civic engagement, assess his/her job performance overall—how well he/she represents the interests of his/her constituents and whether his/her behavior in office fulfills his/her various responsibilities as a member of Congress.
Be sure to have an introduction, a body and a conclusion.
Feel free to use subheadings to help you structure your essay.
While you are certainly welcome to incorporate your opinion into this essay, this essay should not be based on your opinion alone. Instead, you need to make an argument about the representative's performance that is based on a convincing interpretation of evidence. The point is not just to state what you think, but to try to make a strong case built on evidence and reason that could convince someone that your argument is valid.
You should evaluate your representative's performance using concepts we learned about in class. You will be discussing your representative's ethics, civics, and stewardship at length, but many good papers use more concepts and key terms from the textbook and lecture. Pay attention to what we learn about the different models of representation—delegate, trustee, and politico—as well as the various roles and responsibilities of representatives, and incorporate some of these concepts into your analysis.
Here are some questions to help you think about ethics, stewardship, and civic engagement:
Is there any evidence that your representative is ethical or unethical?
How has your representative done in terms of stewarding the nation’s resources, including fiscal and environmental?
How engaged has your representative been in working with and being responsive to constituents?