FantasyLaw 2009: The Season, the Stars, and the Statistics

Abstract

A few weeks ago we wrapped up the first season of FantasyLaw, which was held during the first session of the 111th Congress of the United States. What follows below is a summary of the statistical performances of each member of Congress during that season, plus comments on a few highlights. We would like to think that this report will prove useful not only to people who are trying to win in FantasyLaw in 2010, but also to people who are trying to understand the behavior of legislators and the worlds in which they work. More realistically, perhaps, we hope that as ever-more-complete-and-comprehensive sequels to this report follow in the years to come, the resulting pile of information will eventually reach some kind of critical mass. Then, students of Congress will be able to find some useful insights into the ways and means of our national legislature and the people who work in it.

Keywords: Barney Frank, baseball, beta-testing, bills, Colbert Report, Congressional Record, Congressman, Daily Show, Harry Blackmun, House, John McCain, John Stewart, legislation, Nancy Pelosi, passed, press releases, publication appearances, ranking, reported, Senator, sponsorship, tracking, voting

JEL Classification: D20, D40, L10, L11, L26, L86, M31, M37, N71, N81