How Congress Evolves

How Congress Evolves PDF Author: Nelson W. Polsby
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0195346076
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 272

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Book Description
From the end of the New Deal until quite recently, the U.S. House of Representatives was dominated by a conservative coalition that thwarted the Democratic majority and prevented the enactment of measures proposed by a succession of liberal Presidents. Today Presidents aren't necessarily liberal and the House of Representatives is not necessarily the graveyard of presidential proposals. What happened? Congress evolved. It all began with airconditioning. In this entertaining tale of one of our most august institutions, Nelson Polsby describes how the Democratic majority finally succeeded in overcoming the conservative coalition, changing the House. The evolution required among other things, the disappearance of Dixiecrats from the House Democratic caucus. Dixiecrats were replaced by the rise of the Republican party in the south. The Republican party in southern states was strengthened by an influx of migrants from the north, who came south to settle after the introduction of residential air conditioning, which made the climate more tolerable to Northerners. This evolutionary process led to the House's liberalization and concluded with the House's later transformation into an arena of sharp partisanship, visible among both Democrats and Republicans. A fascinating read by one of our most influential political scientists, How Congress Evolves breathes new life into the dusty corners of institutional history, and offers a unique explanation for important transformations in the congressional environment.

How Congress Evolves

How Congress Evolves PDF Author: Nelson W. Polsby
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0195346076
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 272

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Book Description
From the end of the New Deal until quite recently, the U.S. House of Representatives was dominated by a conservative coalition that thwarted the Democratic majority and prevented the enactment of measures proposed by a succession of liberal Presidents. Today Presidents aren't necessarily liberal and the House of Representatives is not necessarily the graveyard of presidential proposals. What happened? Congress evolved. It all began with airconditioning. In this entertaining tale of one of our most august institutions, Nelson Polsby describes how the Democratic majority finally succeeded in overcoming the conservative coalition, changing the House. The evolution required among other things, the disappearance of Dixiecrats from the House Democratic caucus. Dixiecrats were replaced by the rise of the Republican party in the south. The Republican party in southern states was strengthened by an influx of migrants from the north, who came south to settle after the introduction of residential air conditioning, which made the climate more tolerable to Northerners. This evolutionary process led to the House's liberalization and concluded with the House's later transformation into an arena of sharp partisanship, visible among both Democrats and Republicans. A fascinating read by one of our most influential political scientists, How Congress Evolves breathes new life into the dusty corners of institutional history, and offers a unique explanation for important transformations in the congressional environment.

The Evolving Congress

The Evolving Congress PDF Author: Congressional Research Congressional Research Service Library of Congress
Publisher: CreateSpace
ISBN: 9781512234244
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 490

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Book Description
For 100 years, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) has been charged with providing nonpartisan and authoritative research and analysis to inform the legislative debate in Congress. This has involved a wide range of services, such as written reports on issues and the legislative process, consultations with Members and their staff, seminars on policy and procedural matters, and congressional testimony. The Government and Finance Division at CRS took a step back from its intensive day-to-day service to Congress to analyze important trends in the evolution of the institution-its organization and policymaking process-over the last many decades. Changes in the political landscape, technology, and representational norms have required Congress to evolve as the Nation's most democratic national institution of governance. The essays in this print demonstrate that Congress has been a flexible institution that has changed markedly in recent years in response to the social and political environment.

Congress in Change

Congress in Change PDF Author: Norman J. Ornstein
Publisher: New York : Praeger
ISBN:
Category : U. S. Congress
Languages : en
Pages : 318

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Book Description


Congress, Keystone of the Washington Establishment

Congress, Keystone of the Washington Establishment PDF Author: Morris P. Fiorina
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 9780300046403
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 198

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Book Description
Exposes a self-serving game, typically played by congressmen to curry favor with constituents, that involves the creation and subsequent dissolution of government service agencies.

How Congress Gets Elected

How Congress Gets Elected PDF Author: Rhodes Cook
Publisher: CQ-Roll Call Group Books
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 156

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Book Description
Looks at how the process of electing members of Congress has evolved into its modern-day form.

Thinking about Congress

Thinking about Congress PDF Author: Lawrence C. Dodd
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780415991568
Category : United States
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Observing the polarized, debilitating politics of today's Congress, one wonders whether change is possible on Capitol Hill. In Thinking about Congress, Lawrence Dodd reminds us that Congress seemed equally intransigent at times the past, yet change and rejuvenation came. Reading his classic essays, one sees Congress move from Committee Government in mid-twentieth century to Liberal Democratic reforms in the 1970s to the 1994 Republican Revolution to Party Government today. Simultaneously, one proceeds with Dodd to an ever-deeper understanding of the dynamic character of Congress. Across forty years of watching paralysis give way to change, Dodd crafts a theory of congressional cycles - essay by essay - that explains why Congress evolves. However permanent periods of intransigency appear, the theory argues, they can and do give way to growing concern by legislators and parties for the collective public-interest; to citizen demand for change generated by social crises; and to innovative ideas about politics and policy. With these developments come policy breakthrough, institutional renewal, and enormous social progress. A rare book, Thinking about Congress holds out hope for the future while illuminating both the process and object of inquiry.

Congress and the People

Congress and the People PDF Author: Donald R. Wolfensberger
Publisher: Woodrow Wilson Center Press
ISBN: 9780801867262
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 324

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Book Description
Will some form of direct democracy supplant representative, deliberative government in the twenty-first century United States? That question is at the heart of Donald R. Wolfensberger's history of Congress and congressional reform, which runs back to the Constitution's creation of a popularly elected House of Representatives and forward to the surreal ending of the 105th Congress, featuring barrels of pork, resignation of the speaker, and impeachment of the president. The author's expertise comes from twenty-eight years as a staff member in the House, culminating in service as chief of staff of the powerful House Rules Committee. He was a top parliamentary expert and a principal Republican procedural strategist. Sensitive to the power of process, Wolfensberger is an authoritative guide to reform efforts of earlier eras. And as a participant in reforms since the 1960s, he offers a unique perspective on forging the "1970s sunshine coalition," televising House proceedings, debating term limits, and coping with democracy in an electronic age.

Congress

Congress PDF Author: Matthew D. McCubbins
Publisher: CUP Archive
ISBN: 9780521337502
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 580

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Book Description
First published in 1987, Congress: Structure and Policy is a review of congressional research from an institutional perspective. The selections blend theoretical material found in the fields of discussion theory, political economy, social choice and game theory, with classics on such standard topics as elections and campaigning, controlling the bureaucracy and oversight, norms of behaviour, committees and committee assignments reform, budgeting, presidential influence, and the party and its leadership. Together, these readings present an institutional theory of Congress. They are integrated in order to address both the short-run issue of how congressional institutions shape policy and the long-run question of why congressional organization has evolved the way it has. In their introductions to the chapters, the editors, Professors McCubbins and Sullivan, not only address the themes of the individual readings but place the chapters in the larger context of the political economy.

How Congress Works

How Congress Works PDF Author: Congressional Quarterly, inc
Publisher: CQ Press
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 204

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Book Description
Explains how the party leadership, the legislative process, and the committee system, affect the creation of legislation.

The American Congress

The American Congress PDF Author: Julian E. Zelizer
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 9780547345505
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 800

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Book Description
Congress is the heart and soul of our democracy, the place where interests are brokered, laws are established, and innovation is turned into concrete action. It is also where some of democracy's greatest virtues clash with its worst vices: idealism and compromise meet corruption and bitter partisanship. The American Congress unveils the rich and varied history of this singular institution. Julian E. Zelizer has gathered together forty essays by renowned historians to capture the full drama, landmark legislation, and most memorable personalities of Congress. Organized around four major periods of congressional history, from the signing of the Constitution to the creation of the Department of Homeland Security, this volume brings a fresh perspective to familiar watershed events: the Civil War, Watergate, the Vietnam War. It also gives a behind-the-scenes look at lesser-known legislation debated on the House and Senate floors, such as westward expansion and war powers control. Here are the stories behind the 1868 vote to impeach President Andrew Johnson; the rise of Jeannette Rankin, the first woman elected to Congress and a leading advocate for pacifism; and the controversy surrounding James Eastland of Mississippi, who carried civil rights bills in his pockets so they could not come up for a vote. Sidebars further spotlight notables including Huey Long, Sam Rayburn, and Tip O'Neill, bringing the sweeping history of our lawmaking bodies into sharp focus. If you've ever wondered how Congress worked in the past or what our elected officials do today, this book gives the engaging, often surprising, answers.