1 Conversability and Collective Intention John Ferejohn Stanford University July, 2003 1. Introduction Suppose that Congress is deciding whether to enact a statutory scheme, such as, for example, establishing a cabinet department for Homeland Security. Presumably the reasons in favor of the statute would be more or less directed to considerations of welfare or public safety. But, the new department may be authorized to behave in ways that sometimes may infringe the rights of some people. Whether or not such an agency should be set up and authorized to suspend rights would seem to be a matter of balancing the advancement of our shared interest in public safety, against the particular rights violations that such advancement may entail. And, the appropriate balance should somehow be responsive to arguments, both on behalf of those whose rights are to be suspended as well as from those who think that public safety may be inadequately protected. Philip Pettit has termed this requirement of responsiveness to argument,