THE CONGRESS: The Crack in the Constitution

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Udall attacked the system as giving "national power to people who are responsible to a limited constituency; Wilbur Mills, one of the most able men in Congress, is not chairman for Little Rock, but for Los Angeles and Long Beach and Prescott, Ariz." Udall has proposed a plan for the majority-party caucus to elect committee chairmen from among the three senior members on each committee, and by secret ballot. In sum, it may well be necessary to drop or at least modify the seniority system in order to encourage more legislators to develop expertise, with the expectation of gaining influence sooner.

RE-ELECTION PRESSURES. The need for Congressmen to be constantly seeking re-election was deplored, although some scholars argued that it actually keeps them better informed on the desires of their constituents than any other federal officials. Also assailed was the dependence of many legislators on campaign contributions from donors with potential special interests. Mondale termed this "the dark side of the political moon, tragic and dangerous." Saxbe said a donor almost always expects a return favor. "It is like the boy who buys a girl a beer and then expects the right to squeeze it out of her." There is a strong need for public funding of campaigns.

SECRECY. While deploring the spreading use of Executive privilege by recent Administrations, the panelists could suggest little that Congress can do to check it.

Another problem, of course, is the excessive secrecy of Congress itself. The House Appropriations Committee opened only 33 of its 399 meetings last year, the House Ways and Means Committee closed 48 of its 76 sessions, the Senate Finance Committee held 85 of its 110 meetings behind closed doors and the Senate Armed Services Committee went into secret session in 109 of its 152 meetings. It is at committee meetings that most of the key decisions of Congress are made. Declares John Gardner, head of Common Cause: "These matters are secret only to the public. The Public Works Committee holds no mysteries for the highway lobby, nor the Agriculture Committee for agribusiness. The deliberations of the Ways and Means or Finance Committee are accessible to a whole swarm of loophole lizards." More of the crucial committee deliberations should be opened to the press in order to improve public understanding of congressional action and problems.

THE PRESS. Panelists criticized the press for its overconcentration on the White House, its relatively superficial coverage of Congress and its oversimplification of the reforms necessary to make Congress more effective. "If Hen ry Kissinger is the best national journalists can do for a sex symbol in national politics," noted Jones, "then they have not completed the search." Mon dale claimed that reporters follow a "star system," and fail to spot talented and courageous newcomers, many of whom quit politics when they see no one supporting their efforts.