Pushing the Agenda: Presidential Leadership in US Lawmaking, 1953–2004

Today's presidents enter office having campaigned on an ambitious policy agenda, eager to see it enacted, and willing to push so that it is. The central question of presidents' legislative leadership, therefore, is not a question of resolve; it is a question of strategy: by what means can presidents build winning coalitions for their agenda? Pushing the Agenda uncovers the answer. It reveals the systematic strategies presidents employ to influence Congress and the conditions that determine when those strategies work - or don't. Drawing on an eclectic array of original evidence - spanning presidents from Dwight Eisenhower to George W. Bush - Matthew N. Beckmann finds modern presidents' influence in Congress is real, often substantial, and, to date, largely underestimated.

Matthew N. Beckmann is Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Irvine.