Rep. Issa Raises Money; Ellie Powell Raises Concern

Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA), Chairman of the Oversight Committee, and his ability to raise money from small donors largely because of the IRS and Benghazi controversies, raises concern for ISPS’ political science Professor Ellie Powell. In an article in USA Today, Powell says, “Having the Oversight Committee chairman as a prodigious fundraiser could further polarize Congress by giving the party in power an incentive to be even more aggressive.”

Ellie Powell studies U.S. Congress and political parties, paying particular attention to the role of money in politics. She is currently working on a book, Where Money Matters in Congress, and her latest paper on congressional policy-making, “Congressmen in Exile: The Politics and Consequences of Involuntary Committee Removal” (co-authored with Justin Grimmer), is forthcoming in Journal of Politics 75.4, Oct. 2013.