U.S. Senators on Twitter: Asymmetric Party Rhetoric in 140 Characters

• Published date: 01 July 2018
• Date: 01 July 2018
• DOI: 10.1177/1532673X17715619
• Author: Annelise Russell
• Subject Matter: Articles

https://doi.org/10.1177/1532673X17715619

American Politics Research

2018, Vol. 46(4) 695 –723

© The Author(s) 2017

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DOI: 10.1177/1532673X17715619

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Article

U.S. Senators on

Twitter: Asymmetric

Party Rhetoric in 140

Characters

Annelise Russell1

Abstract

The U.S. Senate is a party-polarized institution where divisive political

rhetoric stems from the partisan divide. Senators regularly chastise political

opponents, but not all senators are equally critical. Research finds that elite

party polarization is asymmetrical with greater divergence by Republicans,

so I expect Republican senators to mimic that trend with higher levels of

partisan rhetoric. To assess the variance in partisan rhetoric, I catalogue

senators’ Twitter activity during the first 6 months of the 113th and 114th

Congresses, and find that Republicans are more likely to name-call their

Democratic opponents and to make expressions of intraparty loyalty,

particularly when they are the minority party.

Keywords

Congress, Twitter, parties, polarization

Partisan rancor in the U.S. Senate reached a tipping point November 21,

2013, as the chamber went “nuclear” and nixed the filibuster for judicial- and

executive-branch nominees.1 The Democratic majority championed the

reform, sparking heated backlash and promised retaliation by Republicans:

1University of Texas at Austin, TX, USA

Corresponding Author:

Annelise Russell, University of Texas at Austin, Batts Hall 2.116, 158 W 21st ST STOP A1800,

Austin, TX 78712, USA.

Email: anneliserussell8892@gmail.com

715619APRXXX10.1177/1532673X17715619American Politics ResearchRussell

research-article2017

696 American Politics Research 46(4)

“Some of us have been around here long enough to know that sometimes the

shoe is on the other foot,” Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said before the

vote, telling Democrats, “You may regret this a lot sooner than you think.”2

The contentious vote is nothing new for a partisan Senate where compromise

and bipartisan cooperation are increasingly outdated conceptions rather than

political realities. Roll call votes and amendments are well-researched venues

for measuring partisan behavior (Harbridge, 2015; Sinclair, 2006; Theriault,

2013), but this party-driven culture extends beyond the institution. Senators’

media activity and communications with constituents are equally appealing

public venues to politically attack opponents (Grimmer, 2013; Prior, 2013),

but reaching a broader audience is not limited to press releases and CNN

appearances. The normalization of social media, specifically Twitter, as a

communication alternative bypasses traditional media, and gives senators an

unfiltered and unedited opportunity to attack their political opponents.

Twitter’s relatively minimal costs, user control, and networked audience put

politicians in control of their partisan message (Gainous & Wagner, 2014;

Straus, Shogan, Williams, & Glassman, 2016).

Twitter’s open platform may be ideal for partisan gamesmanship, but

accessibility does not mean that Senators communicate partisan messages

equally. Gainous and Wagner (2014) offer a seminal study of social media

technologies by political candidates, and find that party identification is asso-

ciated with the type of messages sent. Republicans, in addition to challengers

and those in competitive races, are most likely to use Twitter for negative

campaigning. The diverging rhetoric between the two parties goes beyond

the campaign and is reflected in their behavior while in office. Party polariza-

tion is often asymmetric (Barber & McCarty, 2015; Hacker & Pierson, 2006;

Theriault, 2013), as the increased polarization is tilted to the right at the

national level. The Republican Party, at least at the elite level, has moved

further to the right than the Democrats have moved to the left (Hacker &

Pierson, 2006; Mann & Ornstein, 2012; McCarty, Poole, & Rosenthal, 2006;

Skocpol & Williamson, 2012). Ura and Ellis (2012) find this similar pattern

among the public. Some attribute this pattern to differing electoral narratives

or party functions, while others suggest party leaders intentionally drive

Republicans to more conservative positions (Buchler, 2015; Grossman &

Hopkins, 2016; Hacker & Pierson, 2006).

Given the Republicans’ greater shift toward partisan extremes, I expect a

similar asymmetric pattern of partisan communications by Republicans on

Twitter. Despite research that suggests too much deference to the party line is

electorally risky (Canes-Wrone, Brady, & Cogan, 2002), members are regu-

larly championing their party on Twitter at the expense of their political

opponents.