Traces the development and structure of U.S. Congress, looks at congressional electioneering and policy making, and discusses the influence of committees, staff, and speical interest groups on congressional decisions.

Product Description: MySearchLab provides students with a complete understanding of the research process so they can complete research projects confidently and efficiently. Students and instructors with an internet connection can visit www.MySearchLab...read more

Product Description: Updated for the 2004 Presidential Election season, this collection of essays provides a fascinating tour of the history, development, and current day issues facing the American Presidency. Constitutional Origins of the Presidency; Historical Perspectives on the Presidency; Selecting Presidents: Campaigns, Elections, and Mandates; The Public Presidency: Press, Media, and Public Approval; The Institutional Presidency; The Separation of Powers; Domestic Policy Leadership; Commander-in-Chief and National Security; Evaluating Presidents: Greatness and Abuse of Power...read more

The war on terrorism has raised profound questions of domestic governance—not primarily about power or policy, but about the capacities of government agencies, their personnel, procedures, work habits and styles, and ability to interface with each other. These are the "workways of governance." As the aftermath of the tragic events of September 11, 2001, made very clear, shortcomings and defects in the workways of governance are all too often manifested only in times of crisis or scandal—after the damage is done. How much better it would be to design for government a version of the periodic physical examination, where tests of various types, together with the physician's observations and the patient's own testimony, combine to help define the patient's status and prospects. The Workways of Governance project, sponsored by the Governance Institute, was begun in 1997 in response to a growing concern that institutions of national government have evolved into structures and developed procedures and customs that constrain their workers and hamper their collective effectiveness. A unique feature of the project is the development of a periodic review of the quality of institutional life and work in government. Guidelines for evaluating and monitoring governmental entities will be established, and implemented annually or biennially. The resulting reports consist of both objectively measured data and subjective evaluation, with the ultimate aim of generating positive change toward improving the capacity of government. In this first volume of analysis arising from the Workways of Governance project, contributors apply these general guidelines to evaluate the leading institutions of the federal government, as listed in the first three articles of the Constitution: the House of Representatives, the Senate, the presidency (focusing on White House organization and staffing), the executive branch (focusing on the civil service), and the federal judiciary.

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Product Description: Much of this nation's political life and public policy have been shaped by a handful of powerful people—the leaders of the U.S. House of Representatives. Masters of the House identifies enduring patterns of House leadership, explaining the effects of such factors as party strength, White House–Congressional relations, leaders' formal prerogatives, members' expectations, public attitudes, shifts in the policy agenda, and leaders' personal attributes and style...read more

Product Description: "The Postreform Congress" comprises 15 original essays that address different aspects of contemporary legislative politics in America. Written specifically for a student audience, the essays are contributed by policy analysts, presidential and parties scholars, formal theorists and voting analysts...read more

Book by Baker, Richard A.

Product Description: Marking the 200th anniversary of the US Constitution and the 40th year of the West German "Grundgesetz" this book examines the lawmaking bodies of the two countries and their constitutional duties and limitations. This first ever joint US-German parliamentary study compares and contrasts two of the democratic West's most powerful legislatures...read more

Product Description: Book by Patterson, Samuel C., Davidson, Roger H., Ripley, Randall B.

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