“'Are we going to now govern by anecdote?’: Rhetorical constructions of welfare recipients in congressional hearings, debates, and legislation, 1992–1996”

Abstract

Through a rhetorical analysis of the welfare reform hearings and debates from the 102nd, 103rd, and 104th Congresses, all of which led to President Clinton's historical August 22, 1996 signing of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, P.L. 104–193, this essay contributes to our developing knowledge of deliberative hearings and debates as precursors to legislation. Relying on a narrative approach, this study challenges the liberatory and participatory functions of the narrative paradigm as conceived by Walter Fisher. The central argument developed in this essay is that some narrative forms facilitate elite discourse, discourage the inclusion of alternative public views, and delegitimize particular public voices.

Key words:

• welfare reform
• public policy
• narrative
• depiction
• hearings
• debates
• Walter Fisher
• Michael Osborn