Michael D. Minta - Oversight: Representing the Interests of Blacks and Latinos in Congress

REPRESENTING THE INTERESTS OF BLACKS AND LATINOS IN CONGRESS

Michael D. Minta

PRINCETON UNIVERSITY PRESS PRINCETON AND OXFORD

Copyright 2011 by Princeton University Press

Published by Princeton University Press, 41 William Street, Princeton, New Jersey 08540 In the United Kingdom: Princeton University Press, 6 Oxford Street, Woodstock, Oxfordshire OX20 1TW
press.princeton.edu

Mother to Son from The Collected Poems of Langston Hughes, by Langston Hughes, edited by Arnold Rampersad with David Roessel, Associate Editor, copyright 1994 by the Estate of Langston Hughes. Used by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House, Inc./David Higham Associates/Harold Ober Associates.

All Rights Reserved

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Minta, Michael D., 1969

Oversight : representing the interests of Blacks and Latinos in Congress / Michael D. Minta.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-0-691-14925-7 (hardcover : alk. paper) ISBN 978-0-691-14926-4 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. African American legislators. 2. Hispanic American legislators. 3. African AmericansPolitics and government. 4. Hispanic AmericansPolitics and government. 5. United States. Congress. 6. Representative government and representationUnited States. I. Title.

JK1321.A37M56 2011

British Library Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available
This book has been composed in Galliard

Printed on acid-free paper.

Printed in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

The great author and poet Langston Hughes wrote a famous poem, Mother to Son, where a mother gives powerful motivational advice to her son. In the poem the mother tells him:

Life for me aint been no crystal stair.
Its had tacks in it, and splinters, and boards torn up.
And places with no carpet on the floor
Bare. But all the time Ise been a-climbin on,
And reachin landins,
And turnin corners,
And sometimes goin in the dark...

Writing an academic book has been filled with some tacks and splinters along the way, but I have had many colleagues, friends, and family members who provided the invaluable support and guidance necessary to finish a project of this magnitude. Although this book has changed significantly in scope and substance from its dissertation form, I owe a debt to my former graduate school advisers, Richard Hall, Vincent Hutchings, Elisabeth Gerber, and Hanes Walton Jr. Their support and guidance were instrumental in my early growth and development as a social scientist. They allowed me to take intellectual risks and follow my own lead, even if the risks sometimes outweighed the benefits. They did not want to produce someone who did exactly what they did but someone who could find his own way and provide knowledge in areas that were not yet explored. I am glad that they were my advisers, and more important, I am glad to call them my friends.

I have met many other colleagues along the way, who have greatly assisted me in making this project better. Frank Baumgartner and Christopher Parker have provided tremendous support and feedback to me. Both have read every chapter of the book and provided detailed and insightful comments that have no doubt made this project more accessible to a broader audience than congressional scholars. In my writing, Frank pushed me to find my voice and once I did to let everyone know that I had something important to say. Chris pushed me to think about how my findings related to broader theoretical constructs that extend beyond congressional and bureaucratic politics. Claudine Gay and Katherine Tate read significant portions of the manuscript and urged me to be more precise in my claims but still make the book appealing to a general audience. I want to especially thank Princeton University Presss executive editor of political science and law, Charles Myers, for his patience, encouragement, and guidance throughout the development and writing stage of the manuscript. I have received wonderful advice on the project through conversations, meetings, or various presentations from Matt Barreto, Cristina Beltran, Barry Burden, David Canon, Daniel Carpenter, Grace Cho, Richard Fenno, Morris Fiorina, Katrina Gamble, Lisa Garcia Bedolla, Christian Grose, Kerry Haynie, Mariely Lopez-Santana, Jane Mansbridge, Benjamin Marquez, Harwood McClerking, Kristina Miler, Gary Miller, Irfan Nooruddin, Ifeoma Okwuje, Matthew Platt, Andrew Rehfeld, Beth Reingold, Lynn Sanders, Mark Sawyer, Gary Segura, Itai Sened, Charles Shipan, Gisela Sin, Valeria Sinclair-Chapman, Jae-Jae Spoon, Dara Strolovitch, and Carol Swain. I also would like to thank the Weidenbaum Center for financial support provided to this project.

I am indebted to many talented people who provided research assistance to this project. Some, such as Kim Dorazio and Brooke Thomas Allen, have worked with me for many years. Both Kim and Brooke served as managers for the data collection and coding of the congressional hearings. Words cannot express the gratitude I have for their talents and hard work. I am also grateful for the hard work and research assistance provided by Rachel Cohen, Brittany Coleman, Ashleah Gilmore, Hana Greenberg, Deborah Grohosky, Steven Marcus, Annasara Purcell, Dominick Volonnino, and Shelby Washington. Additionally, I want to thank Ruth Homrighaus for copyediting and formatting the initial draft of this manuscript and Margery Tippie for copyediting the final draft. The book is much better because of their efforts.

None of my efforts would be possible without the love and support of my immediate and extended family. My parents, David and Dorothy Johnson, have instilled in me a fierce work ethic and the good moral values that are necessary to be a good professional and person. I can never repay them for all that they have done for me. My in-laws, Spurgeon and Esther Lofton, have continued to provide love and support for my family. Trips to annual political science conferences and presentations would not have been possible without their help. This is truly amazing, considering they live in Houston and we live in St. Louis. The support, love, and encouragement of my wife, Janell Lofton-Minta, made the completion of the manuscript possible. She listened to my many ideas and read multiple iterations. When I had to work late writing or go to work-related events, Janell always picked up the slack for me. This was not an easy task, considering that she has a demanding career and is the mother of our three children, two who were born while I was completing this project. Most important, my wife and my children, Kendall, Braden, and Bryson, provide the balance between family and work that I need to be a complete person. I am truly blessed to have them in my life.

OVERSIGHT

In 2005 Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast region of the United States, causing major flooding and displacing many residents in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. The storm was responsible for more than a thousand deaths, most of them in Louisiana. Many people were left homeless and with no place to turn for help. Although Louisiana state and local officials, such as Governor Kathleen Blanco and Mayor Ray Nagin, received much of the blame from the national press and policymakers for not adequately responding to the disaster, the bulk of the criticism was directed toward the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Only weeks after President George Bush had praised FEMA director Michael Brown for the agencys response to the Hurricane Katrina disasterBrownie, youre doing a heck of a job, he saidintense criticism by the public and by both Democrats and Republicans in Congress led to Browns resignation.