To Vote The Views Of Your Constituents - Or Not

"You have asked me to express my views with respect to the importance and effectiveness of writing to your member of Congress.  I consider it very important.  It is also effective in that it is one of the many ways a member stays in touch with his constituents and is informed of their views on the issues.

Inherit in your question is also the classic question:  should a member of Congress vote his true beliefs or merely reflect the views of his constituents?  As with most things, the answer is neither simply one of the other.  It is both/and.

On most things a member usually reflects both or they would not have been elected in the first place.  And if a member doesn't mostly reflect both, he or she will not be long in office.  But if a member feels strongly about an issue, they may vote their real views and simply 'take the heat' from their constituents.  This cannot happen too often, however, and remain in office.  In the end, the people do have the final say." -Congressman Jesse L. Jackson, Jr., 2nd District, Illinois

House of Representatives - "The Peoples' Body"

"When the Founding Fathers created the House of Representatives, they envisioned it as being the 'people's body.'  It was to be the chamber in the Congress where citizens could most directly influence the direction of their government.

James Madison once said, "public opinion sets bounds to every government and is the real sovereign in every free one."  Keeping that in mind, I will continue to keep close ear to my constituents' concerns." -Congressman Trent Franks, 2nd District, Arizona

Dwight D. Eisenhower Quotes

"Politics ought to be the part-time profession of every citizen who would protect the rights and privileges of free people and who would preserve what is good and fruitful in our national heritage." -Dwight D. Eisenhower, 34th President of United States

"Here in America we are descended in blood and in spirit from revolutionists and rebel men and women who dare to dissent from accepted doctrine.  As their heirs, may we never confuse honest dissent with disloyal subversion." -Dwight D. Eisenhower, 34th President of United States

Capitol Designer Dr. William Thornton

(1793, ca. 1797)

The model to the right shows how the Capitol would have looked if it had been completed according to the designs of Dr. William Thornton, the first architect of the Capitol, as shown in his architectural drawings.

An amateur architect from the British West Indies, Dr. Thornton was awarded $500 and a city lot for his design of the Capitol. A domed rotunda based on the ancient Roman temple called the Pantheon is the central feature of Thornton's composition. It is flanked by identical wings; one for the Senate and one for the House of Representatives. This model shows how the original Capitol would have looked if Thornton's design had been carried out unaltered by those in charge of it construction.

The principal feature of Dr. Thornton's design for the Capitol's West Front was a central circular conference room placed between the north and south wings. Around 1797 Thornton decided that the conference room would be topped by a circular colonnade and dome intended as a "Temple of Fame." While the flanking wings were built according to Thornton's design, the conference room and "Temple of Fame" were never constructed.