Party and Procedure in the United States Congress

Jacob R. Straus

Bloomsbury Publishing PLC, Mar 15, 2012 - Law - 300 pages

Understanding how Congressional political parties utilize floor procedure to advance a legislative agenda is fundamental to understanding how Congress operates. This book offers students and researchers an in-depth understanding of the procedural tools available to congressional leaders and committee chairs and how those tools are implemented in the House of Representatives, the Senate, and during negotiations between the chambers. Divided into four sections (Leadership, House of Representatives, Senate, and Legislative Reconciliation between the Chambers), the contributors present relevant examples of procedure throughout the legislative process.

While other volumes provide the party or the procedural perspective, this book combines these two features to create a robust analysis on the role that party can play in making procedural decisions. Additionally, the contributors provide an opportunity to take a holistic look at Congress and understand the changing dynamics of congressional power and its implementation over time. A concluding chapter, “Legislative Sausage-Making: Health Care Reform in the 111th Congress,” summarizes the book’s major themes through an examination of this highly controversial legislative battle.

Contents

• Chapter 1 Navigating Congress: 1
• Section I LEADERSHIP: 13
• A Resource Perspective: 15
• Section II HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES: 33
• Understanding Innovation in House Practice: 35
• A Case Study on Party Politics and the House Floor: 61
• Chapter 5 Minority Party Strategies and the Evolution of the Motion to Recommit in the US House: 85
• The Rise and Impact of Roll Call Votes in the Age of Electronic Voting: 101
• Chapter 7 The Caucus Process as a Catalyst for Democracy: 125
• Section III SENATE: 137
• Party and Procedure in the Modern United States Senate: 139
• Exploring the Procedural Toolkit of the Majority Party in the United States Senate: 173
• The Senates Last Best Hope: 195
• Chapter 11 Filibustering and Partisanship in the Modern Senate: 217
• Section IV LEGISLATIVE RECONCILIATION BETWEEN THE CHAMBERS: 229
• Party Leaders and PostPassage Procedural Choice: 231
• Health Care Reform in the 111th Congress: 253
• Index: 287
• About the Contributors: 297

About the author

Jacob R. Straus is an analyst with the Congressional Research Service at the Library of Congress. His research focuses on Congress, lobbying and ethics, public policy and American political development.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Party and Procedure in the United States Congress; G - Reference,Information and Interdisciplinary Subjects Series
• Editor: Jacob R. Straus
• Edition: illustrated
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC, 2012
• ISBN: 1442211733, 9781442211735
• Length: 300 pages
• Subjects: Law / Government / General; Political Science / American Government / General; Political Science / American Government / Legislative Branch; Political Science / Constitutions; Political Science / Political Process / Political Parties