Why Congressional Reforms Fail by E Scott Adler

Why Congressional Reforms Fail by E Scott Adler

For decades, advocates of congressional reforms have repeatedly attempted to clean up the House committee system, which has been called inefficient, outmoded, unaccountable, and even corrupt. Yet these efforts result in little if any change, as members of Congress who are generally satisfied with existing institutions repeatedly obstruct what could fairly be called innocuous reforms. What lies behind the House's resistance to change? Challenging recent explanations of this phenomenon, Scott Adler contends that legislators resist rearranging committee powers and jurisdictions for the same reason they cling to the current House structure - the ambition for reelection. The system's structure works to the members' advantage, helping them obtain funding (and favor) in their districts. Using extensive evidence from three major reform periods - the 1940s, 1970s, and 1990s - Adler shows that the reelection motive is still the most important underlying factor in determining the outcome of committee reforms, and he explains why committee reform in the House has never succeeded and probably never will.

E. Scott Adler is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Colorado, Boulder. His current research examines the factors that effect legislative activity and specialization by members of Congress over the course of their careers. He has published articles in the American Journal of Political Science, Legislative Studies Quarterly, and Urban Affairs Review, and is the author of Why Congressional Reforms Fail: Reelection and the House Committee System. John S. Lapinski is Assistant Professor of Political Science and Resident Fellow at the Institution for Social and Policy Studies at Yale University. His current research examines how preferences, environmental conditions, and institutional change affect lawmaking. He has published articles in the American Journal of Political Science, the Journal of Politics, and the British Journal of Political Science

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780226007564
ISBN 10	0226007561
Title	Why Congressional Reforms Fail
Author	E Scott Adler
Series	American Politics And Political Economy Series
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	University Of Chicago Press
Year published	2002-06-15
Number of pages	263
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.