The "Most Connected" on Capitol Hill

April 13, 2005

The "Most Connected" on Capitol Hill

Inside the Beltway reports on political scientist James Fowler's attempt to determine the "most connected" legislators in the 108th Congress. "Specifically, higher-ranked individuals tend to be much more successful at getting their own amendments passed on the floor."

Top 5 Senators: John McCain R-AZ); Orrin Hatch (R-UT); Jeff Bingaman (D-NM); Charles Grassley (R-IA); Russell Feingold (D-WI).

Top 5 Representatives: James Saxton (R-NJ); Ron Paul (R-TX); Christopher Smith (R-NJ); Juanita Millender-McDonald (D-CA); Charles Rangel (D-NY).

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Taegan D. Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country, including the Washington Post, USA Today, Boston Globe, San Francisco Chronicle, Chicago Tribune, Philadelphia Inquirer and Christian Science Monitor.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

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April 13, 2005