Synopses & Reviews
The American Congress provides the most current treatment of congressional politics available in an undergraduate text. Informed by the authors' Capitol Hill experience and scholarship, this book presents a crisp introduction to major features of Congress: parties and committee systems, leadership, voting, and floor activity. This text contains discussions of the importance of presidents, courts, and interest groups in congressional policy making. Recent developments are also discussed within the context of congressional political history. The seventh edition includes complete coverage of the first Congress of the Obama presidency, the 2010 midterm elections, healthcare reform, and an early perspective on the 112th Congress with a Republican majority.
Synopsis
The American Congress provides the most up-to-date treatment of congressional politics available in an undergraduate text.
About the Author
Steven S. Smith is a Professor of Political Science, the Kate M. Gregg Distinguished Professor of Social Science and Director of the Murray Weidenbaum Center on the Economy, Government, and Public Policy at Washington University in St. Louis. He has chaired the Legislative Studies Section of the American Political Science Association and has served on the editorial boards of American Journal of Political Science, The Journal of Politics and Legislative Studies Quarterly.Jason M. Roberts is an associate professor of political science at the University of North Carolina. He co-edited the book Why Not Parties? Party Effects in the U.S. Senate (2009). His articles have been published in American Political Science Review, American Journal of Political Science and Legislative Studies Quarterly.Ryan J. Vander Wielen is an assistant professor of political science at Temple University. His articles have appeared in Political Analysis, Legislative Studies Quarterly and Public Choice.
Table of Contents
1. The American Congress: modern trends; 2. Representation and lawmaking in Congress: the constitutional and historical context; 3. Congressional elections and policy alignments; 4. Members, goals, resources, and strategies; 5. Parties and leaders; 6. The standing committees; 7. The rules of the legislative game; 8. The floor and voting; 9. Congress and the president; 10. Congress and the courts; 11. Congress, lobbyists, and interest groups; 12. Congress and budget politics.