Getting Tough on China: Are Campaign Ads a Signal of Future Policy or Just Cheap Talk?

Authors

Amber Wichowsky, Marquette UniversityFollow
Jessica Chen Weiss, Cornell University

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

8-2021

Publisher

Wiley

Source Publication

Legislative Studies Quarterly

Source ISSN

0362-9805

Abstract

Is tough-on-China campaign rhetoric cheap talk or a signal of policy attention? Analyzing China-related campaign advertisements during the 2010 midterm elections and subsequent cosponsorship of China-related bills, we find that campaign ads are a noisy predictor of legislative attention. Challengers who attacked on China were more likely to cosponsor China-related legislation, while incumbents who were attacked for being soft on China took tougher positions on China after reelection. By demonstrating the correspondence between anti-China campaign appeals and subsequent legislative attention, our findings add to a growing body of evidence linking campaign rhetoric to members’ legislative agendas. This research note provides the first evidence demonstrating the connection between campaign appeals and legislative attention on a foreign policy issue like China.

Comments

Accepted version. Legislative Studies Quarterly, Vol. 46, No. 3 (August 2021): 637-652. DOI. © 2021 Wiley. Used with permission.

Recommended Citation

Wichowsky, Amber and Weiss, Jessica Chen, "Getting Tough on China: Are Campaign Ads a Signal of Future Policy or Just Cheap Talk?" (2021). Political Science Faculty Research and Publications. 124.
https://epublications.marquette.edu/polisci_fac/124