Brademas Names Political Realities Influencing Congressional Action

"You talk about articulate public opinion, but I have seen no public opinion. During the entire controversy (over the Un-American Activities Committee) one person came to see me about it, and he wasn't even from my district. You have been concerned about the NDEA affidavit, but I'm on the committee that deals with the bill, and in two years I haven't received a dozen letters about it."

Speaking last night in the Lowell House Junior Common Room, Rep. John Brademas '49 (D-Ind.) ranged from amusing anecdotes to sharp lecturing tones as he explained in detail the political realities of Congressional action.

Kennedy Is A Moon

"In the Congressman's universe, your district is your sun, and if you are a Democrat, John F. Kennedy is your moon," Brademas said. But he listed half a dozen other "planets:" party chairmen, mayors, the press, pressure groups, Congress itself, and the Congressman's own committee.

Despite these conflicting pressures, Congressmen seldom have to choose between principle and expediency, for without general agreement of principle, they would not be elected. Brademas added that mail matters only when the issue is not one of personal principle. Quoting a colleague's paraphrase of Burke, he said, "If they wanted decisions made by weighting mail, they would have elected a butcher."

More often, Brademas stated, he would go to a man whose opinion he respected and ask how he should vote on an issue with which he was not familiar.

Money Brings Problems

The real conflicts are not those of principle, but of time, influence, and money. Brademas described a campaign almost as wide as that for election in order to gain a committee assignment, a schedule occupying virtually every moment, and, finally, "the most serious political problem I have--money."