FOCUS: Friends in High Places

Several University alumni make names for themselves on Capitol Hill On November 9, 1994, the morning after the so-called Republican revolution, professors gripped their lecterns a little more fiercely, and students watched the news with trepidation. While many in the mainstream cheered, academia was bracing for a storm of uncertain magnitude. College and university administrators looked at each other and at their balance sheets, trying to determine how Newt Gingrich's new leadership on Capitol Hill and his party's Contract with America would impact their institutions during the 1996 fiscal year. Now, three months after taking office, the 104th Congress -- dominated by conservatives -- is indeed embroiled in a battle over higher education appropriations. But the University, with five alumni currently serving on Capitol Hill, may have a hidden edge as negotiations continue. Representatives Phil English (R-Pa.), Chaka Fattah (D-Pa.), Benjamin Gilman (R-N.Y.), Joseph McDade (R-Pa.) and Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) together constitute a group of lawmakers diverse in both experience and viewpoint, yet all aiming to create change. "They're people who understand the University and they have an affinity for the kind of institution that Penn is," said David Morse, assistant vice president for policy planning and federal relations. "That generally is very beneficial." University President Judith Rodin, agreeing with Morse's assessment, said she receives good, fair advice from alumni legislators. "It's wonderful for us as an institution to have those allies in Congress for our institution," she said. Still, the University is not as well-represented on the Hill as fellow Ivy League universities Columbia, Harvard, Princeton and Yale, according to Morse. Schools like the University of Michigan, Penn State and the University of California system also outrank the University in number of alumni serving in Congress because of their sheer size. Morse added that University alumni serving on Capitol Hill are more aware than their peers about the quality of the University's students, the public service work students and faculty perform, and the regional and national economic implications of the University's activities. "For these people, the learning curve is a lot shorter than it would be if they didn't know us," he said. "Does that give us a comparative advantage relative to other institutions? I don't think a great one, but it helps." Just as University administrators appreciate having sympathetic ears in the halls of power, there seems to be a genuine affection for the University from alumni with offices inside the Beltway -- no matter how long the ink on their diplomas has been dry. "I think the Penn experience for me, particularly the graduate school experience, was very helpful in reshaping the work I was able to accomplish as a legislator," said Fattah, the Congressman from Pennsylvania's second district, which includes West Philadelphia. Fattah participated in the Community Wharton Education Program as an undergraduate and, while serving as a state legislator, completed a master's degree in government administration through the Fels program in 1986. Nonetheless, he claims to have had "a fairly normal experience on campus," even finding time to hang out in Houston Hall's pool room. Although he no longer has much time to play games, Fattah maintains close ties to the University because it falls squarely into his district. In fact, his district office is located near the corner of 41st and Walnut streets, and the University is his landlord. Fattah credits the University with forcing him to learn about computers, despite his initial difficulty with them. He added that he is grateful to Fels faculty members who guided his interest in urban policy. A Philadelphia native, Fattah said his goal is to create a more comprehensive approach to solving the problems of major urban centers, incorporating a significant investment of fiscal and cultural resources and political will. "We just don't have a national commitment to cities," he explained. "That's an effort of my work here in the Congress." The local press has pegged Fattah as "the next Bill Gray," a reference to the former House Majority Whip from Philadelphia who left politics in 1991 to head the United Negro College Fund. Fellow freshman English may also have big shoes to fill, as the first first-term Republican appointed to the House Ways and Means Committee since 1967, when George Bush was in the same position. A 1978 University graduate, English majored in political science and was involved with multiple college-level organizations sponsored by the Republican party during his time on campus. Since graduation, English has been elected to one term as city controller in his hometown of Erie. He has also served as chief of staff to Republican State Sen. Melissa Hart and has assumed various directorships with the State Senate Finance, Transportation and Labor and Industry Committees. Having authored a study of "learn-fare" -- the requirement that families receiving welfare benefits continue their education until they receive high school diplomas -- for the Commonwealth Foundation in 1993, English figured prominently in the House Human Resources Subcommittee's drafting of its welfare reform bill this spring. He has already pushed for legislation to reclassify central Pennsylvania wetlands to "promote economic development, protect land rights and give compensation for landowners at the highest level possible," according to The Meadville Tribune. And on March 20, 1995, The Bond Buyer reported that English is working on a bill designed to "ease curbs on small-issue industrial development bonds." As a Congressional neophyte, English has a supporting role in the Ways and Means Committee -- known as one of the House's most powerful committees because it has near-total control over revenue matters. Conversely, Gilman -- because of his seniority and reputation as a moderate Republican eager to encourage bipartisan cooperation -- has been awarded the chairmanship of the House International Relations Committee. An industrial management major who received his Wharton degree in 1946, as an undergraduate Gilman was a member of the crew team and president of Phi Sigma Delta fraternity, the forerunner of Zeta Beta Tau. "I think my education at Penn in economics and management served me well throughout the years and helped me to be more productive," he said. Gilman also said a newspaper editor in his hometown of Middletown, New York, sparked his interest in politics when the editor encouraged young G.I.'s returning from World War II to reorganize a local Young Republicans Club. "From that point on, I became more and more involved," he said, adding that as he begins his 12th term representing Orange, Rockland, Sullivan and Westchester counties, he is not in favor of term limits. But Gilman said he realizes Congress has definitely become a more intense place to work. "We have so many more problems each and every year than [in] prior years, and there have been so many critical worldwide issues that have taken up our time," Gilman said, citing hunger, drug trafficking, health programs and education as his priorities. With the advent of CNN and C-SPAN, Gilman said Congress is more accessible to the public -- and more likely to be criticized for its failings, instead of lauded for its achievements. Cynicism, particularly among the youngest members of the electorate, is a negative by-product of the constant media attention. "[The] cynical attitude doesn't serve our nation well," Gilman said. "We need young blood and we need young ideas." McDade would not fit Gilman's desire for young blood, though -- having been elected for the first of his 17 terms in 1962. Currently, McDade -- who graduated from the University's Law School -- is the senior member of the House Appropriations Committee, the group in charge of funding the departments, agencies and programs of the federal government each year. Like English, McDade got his political feet wet in city government, serving as Scranton's city solicitor prior to his election to Congress as the representative of Pennsylvania's 10th District, the Scranton and Williamsport areas. His priorities have been defense, alternative energy sources and environmental protection, housing rehabilitation and community economic development. But in May 1992, McDade was indicted on charges of conspiracy, racketeering and taking bribes from defense contractors. His trial is expected to begin soon. Specter's ethics were questioned as well in the fall of 1991, when he indelicately grilled University of Arkansas Law Professor Anita Hill during the Senate Judiciary Committee's confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. But on the whole, Specter -- who squeaked past Democrat Lynn Yeakel to win a third term in 1992 and is now running for President -- is known as a moderate Republican, similar in stance to Gilman. Specter has further shown his willingness to break with his party on controversial issues such as abortion and health care. Specter graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University in 1951, served in the Korean War and then attended Yale Law School. Since his election, he has been a consistent supporter of labor and industry and has introduced legislation designed to combat drugs, crime and terrorism. After working on the Warren Commission and developing the "single-bullet" theory with respect to President John F. Kennedy's assassination in 1964, Specter was elected Assistant District Attorney of Philadelphia. He later served two terms as District Attorney.