The Crisis Congress: What is the legislature’s job in a national crisis?
Recent weeks have seen the U.S. Congress rise to the challenge of a public-health crisis in some impressive ways. In an era when the institution barely moves, and major bipartisan… Read More
Pandemic endangers American political activity, self-governance
The impact that COVID-19 has had on American public life over the past two months has been extraordinary. Millions of workers have lost their jobs or are furloughed without pay. Read More
New Congressional Research Service report on remote voting
The Congressional Research Service has released a new report on a very timely topic—remote voting. The report was written by Todd Garvey and published by CRS at https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/LSB/LSB10447… Read More
Hoyer and McCarthy issue dueling letters on online work and reopening Congress
Yesterday, Majority Whip Steny Hoyer (D, MD) released a letter advocating remote voting and deliberations. He wrote: “Beyond implementing the proxy voting as a first step, we ought… Read More
Governance poll: Pre-COVID-19 America had growing confidence in the economy and rising sexism
Presidential campaigns offer a unique opportunity to observe how individuals respond to political events and messages. The GW Politics Poll contained two separate cross-sectional studies that help us… Read More
Today at 12: Emerging legal issues in congressional oversight and investigation
RSVP for this online meeting The 116th Congress may rank with those of the Teapot Dome Scandal and Watergate in terms of its importance in defining the congressional… Read More
Podcast: Do ideas or interests drive our politics?
Listen in. Senator Mike Lee, R-Utah, joins Julia Azari, Lee Drutman, and James Wallner to discuss the role that ideas and interests play in our politics. Do ideas… Read More
Every congressional office should pivot to constituent service during COVID-19
Consider: The recently enacted Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) is 247 pages long and quite complex.The threat of coronavirus has led legislators in both the House… Read More
Governance poll: What does the public think?
In early February, 2020, George Washington University’s School of Media and Public Affairs, Department of Political Science, and Graduate School of Political Management sponsored a nationwide poll of 1,200… Read More
How do we measure what Congress has accomplished?
With approval ratings somewhere below Nickelback and root canals, Congress is hardly America’s favorite institution. The American public certainly seems to view gridlock and shutdowns dimly, and there’s a popular … Read More