The tension between Congress as a lawmaking institution and Congress as a collection of re-election-minded politicians has proven to be a powerful and effective way to understand Congress and the legislative process. Over nine editions, thousands of students have benefited from Davidson and Oleszek's tightly organized framework, as well as from their engaging and vivid narrative. Helping students understand the institution's evolution, Congress and Its Members paints broad brush strokes, while effectively showing enough color and detail to ground students in important concepts.
Each chapter of the tenth edition will feature new analysis of the most recent and important scholarship. While the authors discuss the overall position and prospects for congressional government, they will include up-to-the-minute details on:
- the 2004 congressional elections and ongoing party realignment indicating Republican dominance for the foreseeable future;
- the state of campaign finance, including performance under the McCain-Feingold legislation;
- the majority leader's efforts to strengthen his powers and the role of the new Democratic leaders in challenging the GOP's agenda;
- party realignment from the standpoint of floor voting, including the decline of the middle;
- the consequences of war for the legislative branch and for the separation of powers, as well as reorganization due to homeland security and intelligence reform;
- the new rules for the 109th Congress, with the possibility of changes in the Senate's filibuster rule and unusual procedures to pass legislation;
- the outlook for a second term president and the role of the minority party in challenging an assertive White House;
- big government conservatism, new regulatory trends, the rules and tools for effective oversight, and the shadow government of contractors;
- legislative-judicial conflicts, including controversies in naming judges to the federal bench;
- the return of deficits, the growing use of earmarks, congressional budget reforms, and the conflict between discretionary versus entitlement spending.
