Gridlock and the three bears

Critical Analysis

1. Congressional Gridlock is measured using the total volume of national legislative policymaking, weighted for importance. In other words, when gridlock is high, little of importance gets passed through Congress. When gridlock is low, lots of important legislation passes through congress. Based on the data from the graph above, what year had the highest level of congressional gridlock?

2. Based on the data from the graph above, what year had the lowest level of congressional gridlock?

3. Describe the trend in Congressional gridlock since 1990.

4. In general, when congress is gridlocked it does not produce much important legislation and thus big problems like the climate crisis, rising health care costs, rising college costs, soaring inequality, don’t get solved. Explain whether gridlock is a good thing.

5. For whom is gridlock generally a good thing?

6. Did the Framers who established a system of checks and balances between the three different branches intend for the Congress to be gridlocked and become a graveyard of legislation?

7. Imagine we livied in a time of less gridlock where Congress passed laws to deal with problems shared by many Americans. What is one example of a law that would likely be passed..

8. The chart below is a view of American inequality, The higher the line the greater the inequality, Describe the level of inequality in American today in a historical context.

9. Describe the connection between the gridlock in the chart above and the inequality in the chart below.

10. Explain the connection between the ruling in Citizens United v. FEC and both of the charts.

Visual Extension*

Learning Extension

Read more about the connection between inequality and Congressional gridlock.

Action Extension

Register to vote online (it will take only 2 minutes) and vote for legislators who will enact important legislation.