When former Indiana Congressman Lee Hamilton awarded a dozen scholarships at Indiana University Southeast last month, he praised the 12 civic-minded students receiving the awards, saying, “We see so much cynicism today. Involvement in your community is the best possible antidote for cynicism. The person I like is the person who steps forward and says, 'I like it here. I can make a contribution."
By all accounts, Hamilton has been just that sort of person throughout his political career. After 34 years in Congress, he is now director of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington , D.C. as well as director of the Indiana University Center on Congress (www.congress.indiana.edu). He's the author of the recent IU Press book How Congress Works and Why You Should Care , and most notably, he served in the public limelight as vice chairman of the bipartisan National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (the 9/11 Commission), whose final report not only drove the reorganization of federal intelligence agencies but also became a best-selling book.
Last year, Hamilton was named one of Time Magazine's "People Who Matter." This year, he received the 2005 “Citizen of the Year Award” from the National Conference on Citizenship.
In a time when indictments pile up and at least 57 percent of Americans disapprove of the way Congress is doing its job--according the Center on Congress's 2005 survey of public attitudes-- Hamilton 's passion for communicating about the role and work of Congress is stronger than ever. At the Center on Congress, he says, "my aim is to help ordinary people—as I tell the staff, the folks who eat breakfast at McDonald's. I'm concerned that ordinary people understand Congress better so they can learn how to use it to advance their interests." The center's message, he says, is simple: "We want people to see how important Congress is in running the country and dealing with things that affect their lives—health care, jobs, the education of their children, the environment."
The findings from the center's survey--which focused on congressional approval, citizens' understanding of civic duty, civic engagement, where people get information about Congress, and public preferences regarding how Congress should handle various contemporary issues--raised a number of questions that will be studied in subsequent surveys, Hamilton says, because “it really does matter what people think about Congress. In our representative democracy,” he continues, “Congress must reflect the views and interests of the American people as it frames the laws of the land. It's crucial that we understand what is at the core of the public's negative views of Congress, and that we develop strategies for combating public cynicism and disapproval of the institution.”
Listen here to hear Lee Hamilton comment on Congressional ethics. More commentaries plus the full report on the survey conducted by the Center on Congress are available at http://www.centeroncongress.org .
