CSPAN - Washington Journal Brad Fitch

Jan. 27, 2026 12:29-12:31 - CSPAN

01:58

Washington Journal Brad Fitch

Brad Fitch, author of Citizens Handbook for Influencing Elected Officials, insists Americans still wield more influence than they credit, despite his 2010 claim, as the book’s expanded second edition refines tactics—not Congress’s responsiveness. While headlines focus on divisive issues like taxes or abortion, Fitch reveals lawmakers shape policy through granular debates: $3M for Alzheimer’s research or banning horse transport on double-decker trucks. C-SPAN’s live gavel-to-gavel coverage underscores how direct constituent engagement often trumps partisan spectacle, proving influence thrives in quiet, persistent advocacy. [Automatically generated summary]
[Read More]

Transcriber: nvidia/parakeet-tdt-0.6b-v2, sat-12l-sm, and large-v3-turbo Source

Speaker	Time	Text
Big Debates vs. Real Influence 00:01:58
unidentified		filtered.
	C-SPAN shop dot org is C-SPAN's online store.
	Browse through our latest collection of C-SPAN products, apparel, books, home decor, and accessories.
	There's something for every C-SPAN fan, and every purchase helps support our nonprofit operations.
	Shop now or anytime at C-SPANSHO.org.
	Washington Journal continues.
greta brawner ▲ ● ▼		At our table this morning, Brad Fitch.
	He's the author of Citizens Handbook for Influencing Elected Officials.
	Mr. Fitch, in 2010, your first appearance on the Washington Journal for the first edition of your book, you said that Americans have more influence over their elected officials than they realize.
unidentified		That's right.
	Has that changed?
	No, it hasn't.
	It's interesting.
	The book is in two parts, and the second edition is twice the size, and all the changes came in the second part, which is about how to influence them.
	Congress, in terms of how it interacts with constituents, hasn't changed that much in terms of what motivates them, what influences them.
	And I realize this is a bit of a counter argument from what people see, but the challenge is that most people don't see most of what the Congress does because you see the big debates over taxes and immigration and abortion and sometimes health care.
	Most members of Congress, frankly, are not involved in those big debates.
	That's leadership or committee chairs.
	Most members of Congress are meeting with constituents to determine whether or not to increase funding for research on Alzheimer's or whether horses should be transported on double-decker trucks.
	We are going to lead this here to keep our over 45-year commitment to live gavel-to-gavel coverage of Congress.
	The U.S. House is meeting today for what we expect to be a brief session.

Speaker

Time

Text

Big Debates vs. Real Influence 00:01:58

unidentified

filtered.

C-SPAN shop dot org is C-SPAN's online store.

Browse through our latest collection of C-SPAN products, apparel, books, home decor, and accessories.

There's something for every C-SPAN fan, and every purchase helps support our nonprofit operations.

Shop now or anytime at C-SPANSHO.org.

Washington Journal continues.

greta brawner ▲ ● ▼

At our table this morning, Brad Fitch.

He's the author of Citizens Handbook for Influencing Elected Officials.

Mr. Fitch, in 2010, your first appearance on the Washington Journal for the first edition of your book, you said that Americans have more influence over their elected officials than they realize.

unidentified

That's right.

Has that changed?

No, it hasn't.

It's interesting.

The book is in two parts, and the second edition is twice the size, and all the changes came in the second part, which is about how to influence them.

Congress, in terms of how it interacts with constituents, hasn't changed that much in terms of what motivates them, what influences them.

And I realize this is a bit of a counter argument from what people see, but the challenge is that most people don't see most of what the Congress does because you see the big debates over taxes and immigration and abortion and sometimes health care.

Most members of Congress, frankly, are not involved in those big debates.

That's leadership or committee chairs.

Most members of Congress are meeting with constituents to determine whether or not to increase funding for research on Alzheimer's or whether horses should be transported on double-decker trucks.

We are going to lead this here to keep our over 45-year commitment to live gavel-to-gavel coverage of Congress.

The U.S. House is meeting today for what we expect to be a brief session.

Washington Journal Brad Fitch

Participants

Clips

greta brawner