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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.
List of contents
1. The Drama of Representation
2. Congressional Decentralization in Design and Evolution
3. The Changing Environment of Congressional Politics
4. Congressional Elections: All for One and One for All?
5. Parties, Leaders, and Ideology in Congress
6. Presidential and Congressional Relations: Boundaries of Power
7. Policymaking in the House and Senate
8. The Individual Enterprise
9. The Competitive Congress: Centrifugal Forces in a Partisan Era
About the author
Burdett A. Loomis is professor of political science at the University of Kansas.Wendy J. Schiller is professor of political science at Brown University where she has taught since 1994. Before receiving her PhD from the University of Rochester, Schiller served on the staffs of the Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan and Governor Mario Cuomo. She has written extensively on the United States Senate, including her book Partners and Rivals: Representation in U.S. Senate Delegations, and Electing the Senate: Indirect Democracy before the Seventeenth Amendment. She is currently working on the effects of federalism on gender equality and human security across states. Schiller also provides political commentary on legislative politics to local and national news outlets.
Summary
In an era of heightened partisanship and increased polarization, the seventh edition of 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.
Foreword
From the award-winning author of All She Wants and the writer of Coronation Street and What Does the K Stand For? comes this big-hearted novel by Jonathan Harvey.
Additional text
Harvey is a constant pleasure: a serious comic writer whose books shine a light on our common humanity
