New Majority or Old Minority: The Impact of the Republicans on Congress

(Paperback)

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The elections of 1998 bear out the thesis of this book: so far, the Republicans in Congress are operating more like an old minority party than the new majority party they've become. Still, Congress has changed under Republican leadership and the Republicans have changed, too. This volume of original essays by leading congressional scholars explores the impact of the Republican majority on Congress with attention to the history of the institution and party characteristics present and future. For students and scholars alike, the new majority of an old minority provides a laboratory for political analysis that demonstrates lasting effects. As Republicans learn to govern, the country will no doubt learn something, too.

Reviews

The volume . . . examines the results of the change in majority party from the standpoint of new styles in leadership, changes in congressional committees, changes in legislatives processes and procedures, and the effects of majority status on the Republican party. . . . This work will interest all students of the modern-day Congress. * Choice Reviews *
. . . Rae and Campbell have assembled a rich commentary on the Congress of the nineties from some of the leading congressionalists. . . . They present a comprehensive analysis of the Republican Revolution and its implications for public policy and institutional norms. * APSA Legislative Studies Section Newsletter, Book Notes *
If you are teaching a class on Congress in the near future, get Rae and Campbell's highly readable edited volume. It is . . . the best book so far on how Republicans have redirected the legislative and institutional direction of Congress. * H-Net: Humanities and Social Science Reviews Online *
A dozen of the countrys leading legislative scholars have collaborated here to examine and explain four historic, roller-coaster years of the U.S. Congress under Republican rule. For an up-to-date analysis of how the new majority and the old institution have affected one another, and why, this stimulating and original volume must be read and savored. -- Richard F. Fenno, University of Rochester

Author Bio

Nicol C. Rae is professor of political science at Florida International University.

Colton C. Campbell is assistant professor of political science at Florida International University.