More moms in Congress could mean more attention on children and families
The 2018 election has brought in the most diverse Congress in its history. There has been much attention already on the so-called Pink Wave of women, the Rainbow… Read More
McConnell follows in Reid’s footsteps
Back when he was the Senate’s minority leader, Mitch McConnell, R-Ky, disagreed profoundly with how Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., managed the institution. McConnell even accused Reid of doing “tremendous damage… Read More
What LBJ can teach new Congress members about gaining power in the House
Robert Caro’s recent article on secrets he uncovered while digging through Lyndon Johnson’s archives provides fascinating glimpses into how political power is wielded in Washington. The ability… Read More
Mitch McConnell said the 115th Congress was ‘the best,’ but it’s more dysfunctional than ever
A top spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., summed up the legislative achievements of the Republican-controlled 115th Congress as such: “The most accomplished Congress in decades.” McConnell … Read More
Partisan competition is not the cause of Congress’s dysfunction
Speaking at the annual meeting of Harvard’s Phi Beta Kappa society in 1837, Ralph Waldo Emerson maintained that it was the scholar’s duty to show people “facts amidst appearances.”… Read More
In border dispute, focus should be on Congress
President Trump is increasingly going public in an effort to secure funding for his border wall. On Tuesday, Trump gave his first ever prime-time Oval Office address, and yesterday, he… Read More
The Fall of Jim Wright—and the House of Representatives
Those of us seeking to understand what has gone wrong with Congress are always on the lookout for characters who can be cast as villains in the institution’s history. Read More
Congress in 2019: The 2nd most educated and least politically experienced House freshman class
As we outlined in an earlier article, the 116th Congress is going to look a lot different than its predecessors thanks to a younger, more female, less white new… Read More
How divided government affects lobbyist influence in Congress
As a result of November’s mid-term elections, the national government will transition from a unified government, in which members of the Republican Party control the House, Senate, and the White… Read More
Why are members leaving Congress?
The 116th Congress will have the largest, most diverse incoming freshman class in a generation. But this milestone wasn’t achieved just because a bunch of incumbents lost. Well before November 6, more… Read More