Congress and Its Members

Dizzying change and momentous constitutional conflicts have consumed the U.S. Congress in recent months. For anyone who wants to keep pace with events on Capitol Hill and make sense of the complex business of lawmaking, the new Seventh Edition of Congress and Its Members is an invaluable resource.

Thoroughly updated with new material integrated throughout, the Seventh Edition sheds light on such essential questions as: What are the likely effects of the impeachment proceedings and "the politics of scandal"? Can the president and Congress govern effectively in the wake of such turmoil? Will citizens feel an impact from the recent changes in the budget process and the new era of surplus? As diversity emerges among the members of the House and Senate, are there accompanying changes in lawmaking and policy outcomes?

Davidson and Oleszek skillfully place these and other recent developments and trends in the broader historical context and analytical framework essential for understanding how Congress works. The book is lively and informative, and it includes an ab

Roger H. Davidson is professor emeritus of government and politics at the University of Maryland, College Park. Currently he is visiting professor of political science at the University of California, Santa Barbara. For the 2001-2002 academic year, he serves as the John Marshall Chair in political science at the University of Debrecen, Hungary Walter J. Oleszek is senior specialist in American national government at the Congressional Research Service. He is an adjunct professor of political science at American University and lectures frequently on political affairs in the United States and abroad

Preface

xi

Part 1 In Search of the Two Congresses

1

(40)

The Two Congresses

3

(10)

The Dual Nature of Congress

4

(5)

Divergent Views of Congress

9

(4)

Evolution of the Modern Congress

13

(28)

Antecedents of Congress

13

(4)

Congress in the Constitution

17

(9)

Institutional Evolution

26

(8)

Evolution of the Legislator's Job

34

(5)

Conclusion

39

(2)

Part 2 A Congress of Ambassadors

41

(120)

Going for It: Recruitment Roulette

43

(46)

Formal Rules of the Game

44

(4)

Districting in the House

48

(13)

Becoming a Candidate

61

(10)

Nominating Politics

71

(3)

The Money Factor

74

(12)

Conclusion

86

(3)

Making It: The Electoral Game

89

(38)

Campaign Strategies

89

(3)

Campaign Resources

92

(7)

Campaign Techniques

99

(5)

The Parallel Campaigns

104

(2)

Who Votes?

106

(2)

How Voters Decide

108

(13)

Election Outcomes

121

(4)

After the Election Is Over

125

(2)

Being There: Hill Styles and Home Styles

127

(34)

Hill Styles

127

(14)

Looking Homeward

141

(9)

Office of the Member, Inc.

150

(5)

Members and the Media

155

(5)

Conclusion

160

(1)

Part 3 A Deliberative Assembly of One Nation

161

(122)

Leaders and Parties in Congress

163

(34)

Leaders of the House

164

(13)

Leaders of the Senate

177

(6)

Selection of Leaders

183

(1)

Leadership Activities

184

(3)

Party Caucuses, Committees, and Informal Groups

187

(3)

Party Continuity and Change

190

(4)

Conclusion

194

(3)

Committees: Workshops of Congress

197

(30)

The Purposes of Committees

198

(2)

Evolution of the Committee System

200

(1)

Types of Committees

201

(5)

The Assignment Process

206

(7)

Committee Leadership

213

(1)

Policy Making in Committee

214

(5)

Committee Staff

219

(2)

Committee Reform and Change

221

(3)

Conclusion

224

(3)

Congressional Rules and Procedures

227

(30)

Introduction of Bills

229

(4)

Referral of Bills

233

(2)

Scheduling in the House

235

(8)

House Floor Procedures

243

(4)

Scheduling in the Senate

247

(2)

Senate Floor Procedures

249

(4)

Resolving House-Senate Differences

253

(1)

Conclusion

254

(3)

Decision Making in Congress

257

(26)

The Power to Choose

258

(1)

Types of Decisions

259

(7)

Determinants of Voting

266

(9)

Giving and Taking Cues

275

(2)

Legislative Bargaining

277

(4)

Conclusion

281

(2)

Part 4 Policy Making and Change in the Two Congresses

283

(139)

Congress and the President

285

(26)

The President as Legislator

286

(11)

Lobbying Congress

297

(4)

Sources of Legislative-Executive Cooperation

301

(3)

Sources of Legislative-Executive Conflict

304

(2)

The Balance of Power

306

(2)

Conclusion

308

(3)

Congress, the Bureaucracy, and the Courts

311

(24)

Congress Organizes the Executive Branch

312

(12)

Congressional Control of the Bureaucracy

324

(6)

Congress and the Courts

330

(3)

Conclusion

333

(2)

Congress and Organized Interests

335

(20)

A Nation of Joiners

335

(2)

Pressure Group Methods

337

(5)

Groups and the Electoral Connection

342

(4)

Groups and Legislative Politics

346

(2)

Informal Groups of Members

348

(2)

Regulation of Lobbying

350

(3)

Conclusion

353

(2)

Congress, Budgets, and Domestic Policy Making

355

(26)

Definitions of Policy

355

(1)

Stages of Policy Making

356

(3)

Types of Domestic Policies

359

(3)

Characteristics of Congressional Policy Making

362

(3)

Congressional Budgeting

365

(5)

The 1974 Budget Act

370

(1)

Changes in the Budget Process

371

(8)

Conclusion

379

(2)

Congress and National Security Policies

381

(26)

Constitutional Powers

382

(1)

Types of Foreign and National Security Policies

383

(1)

Structural Policies

383

(4)

Strategic Policies

387

(6)

Crisis Policies: The War Powers

393

(5)

Who Speaks for Congress?

398

(2)

The Ebb and Flow of Power

400

(4)

Conclusion

404

(3)

Conclusion

405

(2)

The Two Congresses and the American People

407

(15)

Congress-as-Politicians

408

(5)

Congress-as-Institution

413

(4)

Into the Third Century

417

(5)

Reference Materials

421

(1)

Appendix A. Party Control: Presidency, Senate, House, 1901--1999

422

(2)

Appendix B. Internships: Getting Experience on Capitol Hill

424

(2)

Notes

426

(49)

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Congress and Its Members

Summary

Author Biography

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials