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Can Congress curb its spending?
Congress recently approved legislation to suspend the federal debt ceiling and increase spending above levels currently allowed in law. In doing so, its members challenged our assumptions regarding the efficacy… Read More
Should we rename the Office of Technology Assessment?
Over the past year or so, there’s been growing … Read More
Congress and primaries
https://www.legbranch.org/app/uploads/2019/06/Episode-2-Primaries.mp3 Should the electoral college be abolished? Prof. Julia Azari (Marquette University), Lee Drutman (New America), and James Wallner (R Street Institute) debate and discuss the primaries and… Read More
Is Majority Leader McConnell blocking elections security legislation?
Democrats want the Senate to debate legislation that they say is needed to secure American elections against outside interference. But they say Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., is standing… Read More
Reclaiming Congress’ war powers
July 29, 2019 The Honorable Mitch McConnell Senate Majority Leader 317 Russell Senate Office Building Washington, D.C. 20510 The Honorable Nancy Pelosi Speaker of the House… Read More
ICYMI: Top Reads on Congress
James Wallner, “The Senate is gridlocked but not for the reason you might think,” LegBranch Blog, July 31, 2019: “Given this, gridlock, properly understood, only arises in those situations… Read More
Pelosi’s ruled out of order, Democratic chaos, and a historic moment
Source: Kevin Lamarque, Reuters The other week, the House passed a resolution denouncing President Trump’s racist tweets. But what stole some headlines were the events surrounding Speaker… Read More
Congress and political realignment
https://www.legbranch.org/app/uploads/2019/06/Episode-4-Realignment.mp3 Should the electoral college be abolished? Prof. Julia Azari (Marquette University), Lee Drutman (New America), and James Wallner (R Street Institute) debate and discuss the electoral college… Read More
The Senate is gridlocked but not for the reason you might think
The Senate is gridlocked. But not in the way we think. Gridlock arises whenever senators choose not to act- to debate legislation in committee and on the floor, offer amendments,… Read More
Why is the Senate gridlocked?
The Senate is gridlocked. Political scientists do not fully understand why. More than twenty years ago, Keith Krehbiel observed that “no existing theory or school of thought provides a… Read More