Reforming Congress – Alexander Furnas, Northwestern University

0:14 – Background
1:35 – Sunlight Foundation
2:44 – What did you study in your masters?
3:28 – Broad areas of research interests
8:20 – Staff and Capacity in Congress
13:11 – What other questions did you have around staffers?
14:49 – Did you look into committee staff and the trends there?
16:14 – What are the driving factors for the change in personal offices?
19:00 – What questions were asked about think tanks and other organizations giving information to Congress?
24:24 – Are all the information sources ideologically aligned?
27:27 – Is there external trust on think tanks?
30:40 – Does Congress tend to have more trust in the organizations that do not side with one side or the other?
33:05 – What is the function of think tanks in Congress?
37:33 – Is it possible that think tanks do not have an impact?
43:24 – Science information flow in Congress
52:30 – Expertise in Congress
[Lightning Round]
57:56 – What do you think congressional representation should mean?
1:01:41- How would your ideal Congress allocate its time?
1:06:53 – How should debate, deliberation, or dialogue occur or be structured in Congress?
1:10:02 – What fundamental institutional improvement should Congress make within 50 years?
1:10:58 – What book or article most shaped your thinking with respect to congressional reform?
1:12:15 – Long term plans