Partisan Policymaking: Research and Advocacy in an Era of Polarization

University of Massachusetts Amherst ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst Doctoral Dissertations Dissertations and Theses July 2019 Partisan Policymaking: Research and Advocacy in an Era of Polarization Zachary Albert University of Massachusetts Amherst Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_2 Part of the American Politics Commons Recommended Citation Albert, Zachary, "Partisan Policymaking: Research and Advocacy in an Era of Polarization" (2019). Doctoral Dissertations. 1571. https://doi.org/10.7275/3pfx-my30 https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_2/1571 This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Dissertations and Theses at ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. It has been accepted for inclusion in Doctoral Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. For more information, please contact [email protected]. PARTISAN POLICYMAKING: RESEARCH AND ADVOCACY IN AN ERA OF POLARIZATION A Dissertation Presented by ZACHARY ALBERT Submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Massachusetts Amherst in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY May 2019 Department of Political Science c Copyright by Zachary Albert 2019 All Rights Reserved PARTISAN POLICYMAKING: RESEARCH AND ADVOCACY IN AN ERA OF POLARIZATION A Dissertation Presented by ZACHARY ALBERT Approved as to style and content by: Raymond J. La Raja, Chair Brian Schaffner, Member Jesse Rhodes, Member Bruce A. Desmarais, Member Brenda K. Bushouse, Member Jesse Rhodes, Chair of the Faculty Department of Political Science DEDICATION To my parents ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The dissertation process is long and daunting, and even more so without the generosity of colleagues, family, and friends. I was lucky enough to be surrounded by people willing to give their time and encouragement throughout this process. I hope to thank some of them here. First and foremost my dissertation chair, Ray La Raja, has been integral to my scholarly development and the evolution of this project in particular. Ray was one of the first to welcome me to UMass, and he has been a mentor, sounding board, and guide ever since. His contributions to this project are countless, but if I were to single out one it would be the fact that he frequently pushed me to think about the broader importance and contributions of this work. In the process of writing a dissertation it is easy to lose sight of the bigger picture, so I am incredibly thankful that Ray was there to help pull my head out of the weeds. I also want to thank the other members of my committee, who each devoted their precious time and feedback to this project. Brian Schaffner provided methodological guidance, detailed comments, and mentorship throughout my time at UMass. I have significantly benefited from his insights in this project and others. Jesse Rhodes helped me develop the original research design for this dissertation and has been a source of guidance ever since. His breadth of knowledge and generosity with his time have been greatly appreciated. Bruce Desmarais contributed his expert knowledge v on the topics of web scraping and network analysis, and the ability to work with him throughout my graduate career instilled in me the importance of rigorous analysis and allowed me to develop the concrete methodological skills used here. Finally, Brenda Bushouse introduced me to the study of the policy process and has been an indispensable source of guidance on this topic. She frequently encouraged me to engage with new literatures and questions, and the project benefited significantly from her involvement. Other colleagues have also been integral parts of this process, providing feedback and guidance throughout. I especially want to thank David Barney, Scott Blinder, Paul Collins, Mia Costa, Justin Gross, Paul Musgrave, Tatishe Nteta, and Doug Rice. Much of this feedback took place in our American Politics Working Group meetings, an incredibly beneficial and collegial forum for scholarship. I also want to thank Lindsey Cormack for her feedback, data, and interest in this project. This dissertation relies on a great deal of original data collection and cleaning, and it would not have been possible without the help of the following research assistants: George Armstrong, Max Burt, Clara Baumgarten, Ambyr Braxton, Saige Calkins, John Coakley, Olivia Izzi, Noah Kersting-Mumm, Sahar Khan, Brittni Larcom, Jenny Matrobattista, Allie McCandless, Lilian McGlynn, Carolyn Merriam, Kyle Moynihan, Mallika Nagan, Seni Nkeng, Liam O'Sullivan, Stephen Powers, Jaita Richon, Oliver Sablove, Meghna Sarmah, Rhianna Seidenberg, and Nihal Warawdeker. These stu- dents were eager to learn about the research process and generous with their time. Crystal Paul deserves a special mention for her administration of this excellent research assistantship program. vi In addition to Crystal, the entire Political Science department staff has helped me navigate the complex dissertation process. As much as anybody, they have been generous with their time and extremely helpful. I would especially like to thank Hind Elkalai, Jenny Southgate, Aaron Tauscher, Mikayla Viscione, and Emily White. Grants from the UMass Department of Political Science, UMass Graduate School, and the Dirksen Congressional Center were essential in the funding of in-person in- terviews, data collection, and a range of other activities. I am incredibly thankful to these organizations and the staff that processed my applications. Last but certainly not least, I am incredibly indebted to the friends and family that have supported me in my graduate career and beyond. My time at UMass was infinitely more enjoyable thanks to the friendship of Mia Costa, David Barney, Mary MacKie, Bryce McManus, Matt Ross, and Brian Schaffner. My friends outside academia have also been essential in maintaining my sanity during graduate school. And now, my family. My parents, Rick and Susan Albert, have always been my fiercest advocates and my greatest cheerleaders. They have supported me in countless ways throughout my life, and their encouragement in graduate school has been particularly important. I could not have finished this project without their support, not to mention the leftover dinners and the knowledge that at least two people assume (wrongly, I'll add) that I am amongst the best scholars in the world. Alongside my parents has been my soon-to-be wife, Kaytlyn, whose friendship and encouragement has kept me sane. She has been my rock in life and my career. Despite the fact that she has no interest in political science, she has listened to me talk about my research, endured my complaints about graduate school, and watched vii on with encouragement as I presented at conferences (most likely for the trips to New Orleans). I am excited and grateful to move forward with you by my side. Her family, especially her parents Jim and Wendy Richard, have also provided support and encouragement throughout, and I am incredibly thankful to them. Finally, my sister Megan and brother Jake, two of my best friends, have been indispensable allies throughout my life. Their humor and kindness helped me through the most frustrating times, and their joke of calling me \doctor" since my first graduate school acceptance letter kept me, ironically, grounded. viii ABSTRACT PARTISAN POLICYMAKING: RESEARCH AND ADVOCACY IN AN ERA OF POLARIZATION MAY 2019 ZACHARY ALBERT B.A., FAIRFIELD UNIVERSITY Ph.D., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Directed by: Professor Raymond J. La Raja In recent decades, partisan polarization has not only grown but also extended to a wide variety of political processes. Despite this fact, we lack a strong understanding of the policy process under conditions of relatively extreme polarization. The roles of interest groups and think tanks in this environment are particularly understudied. How have research producing institutions changed in response to partisan polarization? And which types of organizations are most influential under the current system? Existing theories often lack an appreciation of the role of partisanship and assume relatively unstructured pluralistic competition in the development and debate of pub- lic policy. To help rectify this limitation, I view actors in the policy process as part of a system structured mainly by partisan dynamics. This changing \marketplace for ideas" has incentivized some interest groups and think tanks to invest in a single political party to enhance their influence and accomplish their goals. The result is a ix policy system defined by two competing extended party networks, or loose coalitions of formal party members and outside research institutions. Under such conditions, influence accrues to those organizations that engage in relatively partisan research and advocacy efforts. In the first empirical chapter, I use interview results to show that members of Congress require information, ideas, and talking points from outside actors. These politicians seek out resources that will help further their individual and partisan goals (which are increasingly distant from the opposing party). This decision-making calculus has downstream effects on research institutions, incentivizing many to be- come party allies across a range of issue areas. Not all groups have responded this way, though. There still exists a cohort of academic and/or politically moderate organizations that have changed more slowly in response to increased polarization. Problematically, groups that are both

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