Voting behavior on selected issues during the 90th and 95th sessions of Congress is used to determine whether important generational differences altered congressional behavior during the 1970s. Voting differences between newer and older members are examined on issues concerning social welfare, government management, foreign policy, civil liberties and rights, and public interest issues such as environmentalism and consumerism. Some seniority-related differences were expressed in the 90th and 95th sessions. While the younger members of Congress are more likely to reflect the temper of the times, the longer Democrats are in Congress, the more conservative they become.
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