Author: Eric S. Heberlig
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
ISBN: 0472118137
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 319
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Book Description
Fundraising for the party has rapidly replaced more traditional criteria for advancement and other rewards in Congress
Author: David B. Magleby
Publisher: Brookings Institution Press
ISBN: 0815736606
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 393
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Book Description
Money and politics in an election that broke the mold Beginning with the 1960 election, readers could turn to one book for an authoritative and comprehensive examination of campaign finance at the federal level. Now, the latest in this respected series, Financing the 2016 Election, explores the role of money in one of the most unconventional elections in modern American history. A team of leading scholars has dug into the roles played by political parties and special interest groups (including their “Super PACS”) in the presidential and congressional elections of 2016. David Magleby and his team of experts examined Federal Elections Commission reports and interviewed dozens of key participants, including representatives of virtually all the major interest groups active in the 2016 election cycle. They place that election in the context of how U.S. elections have been financed during recent decades—a context that illustrates how dramatically different campaign finance is today from the past. Among the most important changes has been the growth of so-called Super PACS, which have become increasingly important both in the financing they provide candidates and in their ability to act independently, both for and against candidates. Overall, Super PACS doubled their spending in 2016 from four years earlier. Taking a comprehensive approach, this book helps readers understand how the financing of elections—including the increasing reliance by candidates on outside special interest groups—ultimately affects politics and public policy.
Author: Scott Meinke
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
ISBN: 047203734X
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 245
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Book Description
In recent Congresses, roughly half of the members of the U.S. House of Representatives served in whip organizations and on party committees. According to Scott R. Meinke, rising electoral competition and polarization over the past 40 years have altered the nature of party participation. In the 1970s and 1980s, the participation of a wide range of members was crucial to building consensus. Since then, organizations responsible for coordination in the party have become dominated by those who follow the party line. At the same time, key leaders in the House use participatory organizations less as forums for internal deliberations over policy and strategy than as channels for exchanging information with supporters outside Congress, and broadcasting sharply partisan campaign messages to the public.
Author: Raymond J. La Raja
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
ISBN: 047290003X
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 209
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Book Description
Efforts to reform the U.S. campaign finance system typically focus on the corrupting influence of large contributions. Yet, as Raymond J. La Raja and Brian F. Schaffner argue, reforms aimed at cutting the flow of money into politics have unintentionally favored candidates with extreme ideological agendas and, consequently, fostered political polarization. Drawing on data from 50 states and the U.S. Congress over 20 years, La Raja and Schaffner reveal that current rules allow wealthy ideological groups and donors to dominate the financing of political campaigns. In order to attract funding, candidates take uncompromising positions on key issues and, if elected, take their partisan views into the legislature. As a remedy, the authors propose that additional campaign money be channeled through party organizations—rather than directly to candidates—because these organizations tend to be less ideological than the activists who now provide the lion’s share of money to political candidates. Shifting campaign finance to parties would ease polarization by reducing the influence of “purist” donors with their rigid policy stances. La Raja and Schaffner conclude the book with policy recommendations for campaign finance in the United States. They are among the few non-libertarians who argue that less regulation, particularly for political parties, may in fact improve the democratic process.
Author: Jacob F.H. Smith
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
ISBN: 0472128523
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 213
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Book Description
This book examines the role of minority party status on politicians’ engagement in electoral politics. Jacob Smith argues that politicians are more likely to be engaged in electoral politics when they expect their party to be in the majority in Congress after the next election and less likely when they anticipate their party will be in the minority. This effect is particularly likely to hold true in recent decades where parties disagree on a substantial number of issues. Politicians whose party will be in the majority have a clear incentive to engage in electoral politics because their preferred policies have a credible chance of passing if they are in the majority. In contrast, it is generally difficult for minority party lawmakers to get a hearing on—much less advance—their preferred policies, particularly when institutional rules inside Congress favor the majority party. Instead, minority party lawmakers spend most of their time fighting losing battles against policy proposals from the majority party. Minority Party Misery examines the consequences of the powerlessness that politicians feel from continually losing battles to the majority party in Congress. Its findings have important consequences for democratic governance, as highly qualified minority party politicians may choose to leave office due to their dismal circumstances rather than continue to serve until their party eventually reenters the majority.
Author: John Dumbrell
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1134059159
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 209
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Book Description
This wide ranging book provides readers with a reliable and lively guide to contemporary American political practices, processes and institutions. Essays in the proposed volume will cover phenomena such as the Tea Party upsurge in the Republican Party, Obama’s health care reforms, recent changes to campaign funding emanating from the key Citizens’ United Supreme Court decision, US foreign policy after the War on Terror, Obama's presidential strategy and issues relating to polarisation and partisanship in US politics. This work is essential reading for all students of American Politics and US Foreign Policy.
Author: Burdett A. Loomis
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1538101572
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 257
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Book Description
In an era of heightened partisanship and increased polarization, The Contemporary Congress offers a clear and concise introduction to legislative processes. Perfect as a brief core or supplementary text for undergraduate courses, Loomis and Schiller construct a comprehensive portrait of the U.S. Congress, from defining congressional structures and procedures, to outlining the process of elections, and analyzing presidential-congressional relations. The seventh edition focuses on two parallel trends: an increasingly partisan and polarized Congress, and a growing executive power. In addition, the authors make some early observations of relations between the Congress and the Trump Administration. New coverage includes the art of electioneering, the pressures of campaign fundraising, and updated policy goals of the political parties that shape the congressional agenda. From a late night deciding vote by Senator John McCain (R-AZ), to the rise and fall of Freedom Caucus member Representative Tim Huelskamp (R-KS), a new “Spotlight” feature provides brief case studies of decisions made by individual members to illustrate the constant balance that they must strike between their party and their constituents, and what happens when they get that balance wrong.
Author: Jennifer Nicoll Victor
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0190228210
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 1011
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Book Description
Politics is intuitively about relationships, but until recently the network perspective has not been a dominant part of the methodological paradigm that political scientists use to study politics. This volume is a foundational statement about networks in the study of politics.
Author: Kathryn Pearson
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
ISBN: 0472121197
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 225
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Book Description
Political party leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives command greater loyalty than ever from fellow party members in roll call votes, campaign contributions, and partisan speeches. In return, leaders reward compliant members with opportunities to promote constituent interests and to advance their own political careers. Denial of such privileges as retribution against those who don’t fully support the party agenda may significantly damage a member’s prospects. Kathryn Pearson examines the disciplinary measures that party leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives employ to exact such loyalty, as well as the consequences for a democratic legislature. Drawing upon data from 1987–2010, Pearson identifies the conditions under which party leaders opt to prioritize policy control and those which induce them to prioritize majority control. She then assesses the ways in which these choices affect, on one hand, the party’s ability to achieve its goals, and on the other hand, rank-and-file members’ ability to represent their constituents. Astute party leaders recognize the need for balance, as voters could oust representatives who repeatedly support the party’s agenda over their constituents’ concerns, thereby jeopardizing the number of seats their party holds. In her conclusion, Pearson discusses the consequences of party discipline such as legislative gridlock, stalled bills, and proposals banned from the agenda. Although party discipline is likely to remain strong as citizens become more cognizant of enforced party loyalty, their increasing dissatisfaction with Congress may spur change.
Author: Robert G. Boatright
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317806018
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 307
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Book Description
Congressional primaries are increasingly being blamed for polarization and gridlock in Congress. Most American states adopted congressional primaries during the first decades of the 20th century as a means of breaking the hold of political "bosses" on the nomination of candidates. Yet now, many contend that primaries have become a means by which the most dedicated party activists choose candidates unrepresentative of the electorate, and so general election voters are forced to choose between two ideologically extreme candidates. Consequently, there have been recent instances in both parties where nominees were chosen who were clearly not preferred by party leaders, and who arguably lost elections that their parties should have won. This book is the first to focus solely upon congressional primary elections, and to do so for a student readership. Boatright organizes his text around the contention that there are important differences between types of primaries, and these differences prevent us from making blanket statements about primary competition. He focuses on explanations of two sources of difference: differences in electoral structure and differences brought about by the presence or absence of an incumbent seeking reelection. The first three chapters introduce these differences, explore how they came to exist, and outline some of the strategic considerations for candidates, parties, interest groups, and voters in primary elections. The subsequent four chapters explore different types of primary elections, and the final chapter evaluates actual and proposed primary reforms. Congressional Primary Elections is the first book to provide a history and analysis of congressional primary elections and will serve as a crucial part of courses on political parties and campaigns and elections. The book gives students the tools for understanding arguments for and against the reform of primary elections and for understanding the differences between types of primaries.
