University of California, Santa Barbara

Eric Smith
Office: 3711 Ellison
Phone: 893-4328
E-mail: smith@polsci.ucsb.edu

In this course, we will intensively review the literature on Congress. Most of our readings and discussions will focus on the internal workings of Congress--the committee system, the party system, how members make roll call voting decisions, etc. We will also discuss how congress has changed over time and some questions about representation. We will not, however, discuss other topics such as congressional-bureaucratic relations or congressional elections. The course will consist of a mixture of short lectures and longer open discussions of class readings.

The course requirements are: (1) a short [5-10 pp], critical analysis of some aspect of one of the books-due at the class meeting in which we discuss the book; (2) a term paper, which may be either a research paper or a critical review and synthesis of the literature; and (3) participation in class discussions. Please note that the last opportunity to write the short paper is in the 8^th week of class. The critical analysis papers will be assigned to students so that each book receives roughly equal attention. The first paper will be worth 25%; the second will be worth 60% each; participation will be worth 15%. I expect you to come to class having completed all the assigned readings for that meeting.

All of the readings are on reserve at the library. A collection of the articles is available at the Alternative Copy Shop, and the following books are available at the UCSB Bookstore:

• Douglas Arnold, The Logic of Congressional Action
• Gary Cox & Mathew McCubbins, Legislative Leviathan
• Chris Deering and Steve Smith, Committees in Congress, 3^rd ed.
• Richard Hall, Participation in Congress
• Keith Krehbiel, Pivotal Politics
• Eric Schickler, Disjointed Pluralism: Institutional Innovation and the Development of the U.S. Congress
• Michelle Swers, The Difference Women Make: The Policy Impact of Women in Congress

Readings marked with an "o" and indented are recommended. The following abbreviations are used for journals:

APSR: American Political Science Review
JOP: Journal of Politics

1. Introduction (Sep 25)

If you did not take an undergraduate course on Congress, you might consider buying a used copy of a basic text on Congress. You need not worry about getting the most current edition because Congress changes slowly. However, you should try to get an edition written after the GOP won the majority in 1994.

• Roger Davidson & Walter Oleszek, Congress and Its Members, 8/e
• Steven Smith, The American Congress

2. Congressional Committees (Oct 2)

• Christopher Deering and Steven Smith, Committees in Congress, 3^rd ed
• Richard Fenno, Congressmen in Committees

3. Power and Influence in Congressional Committees (Oct 9)

• Kenneth Shepsle & Barry Weingast, "The Institutional Foundations of Committee Power," APSR, 81:85-104 (March '87)
• Keith Krehbiel, K. Shepsle and B. Weingast, "Why are Congressional Committees Powerful?" [An exchange] APSR, 81:929-45 (Sep '87)
• C. Lawrence Evans, "Influence in Congressional Committees." In Chistopher Deering (ed), Congressional Politics

4. Participation in Congress (Oct 16)

• Richard Hall, Participation in Congress
• Richard Hall & Frank Wayman, "Buying Time: Moneyed Interests and the Mobilization of Bias in Congressional Committees." APSR, 84 (Sep '90):797-820

5. Party Leadership in the House (Oct 23)

• Cox and McCubbins, Legislative Leviathan
• Charles O. Jones, "Joseph G. Cannon and Howard W. Smith: An Essay on the Limits of Leadership ..." JOP, 30:617-46 (1968)
• John Kingdon, Congressmen's Voting Decisions

6. Evolution and Change in Congress (Oct 30)

• Eric Schickler, Disjointed Pluralism: Institutional Innovation and the Development of the U.S. Congress (reviewed Sep 2002 APSR)
• Joseph Cooper & David Brady, "Institutional Context and Leadership Style: The House from Cannon to Rayburn." APSR, 75:411-25

7. Theories of Congress: The Electoral Connection (Nov 6)

• Douglas Arnold, The Logic of Congressional Action
• David Mayhew, Congress: The Electoral Connection

8. Theories of Congress: Pivotal Politics (Nov 13)

• Keith Krehbiel, Pivotal Politics
• Steven Smith, "Positive Theories of Congressional Parties." Legislative Studies Quarterly, 25: 193-215.
• John Kingdon, Congressional Voting Decisions?
• Keith Krehbiel, Information and Legislative Organization
• Keith T. Poole and Howard Rosenthal Congress : A Political-Economic History of Roll Call Voting

9. Representation in Congress (Nov 20)

• Michelle Swers, The Difference Women Make: The Policy Impact of Women in Congress
• Georgia Duerst-Lahti & Rita Mae Kelly, eds. Gender Power, Leadership, and Governance
• Sue Thomas, How Women Legislate
• Robert Singh, The Congressional Black Caucus

• Colton Campbell & Nicol Rae, The Contentious Senate,
• Roger Davidson, The Postreform Congress
• Lawrence Dodd & Bruce Oppenheimer, Congress Reconsidered, all editions
• Steven Shull, Presidential-Congressional Relations
• Barbara Sinclair, The Transformation of the U.S. Senate
• James Sundquist, The Decline and Resurgence of Congress
• James Thurber, Rivals for Power: Presidential-Congressional Relations