Congress and its members

s:1414:"Incorporating the crucial updates and new research you expect, the thirteenth edition of Congress and Its Members remains a trusted resource for introducing students to the legislative branch. As thousands of undergraduates have learned, focusing on Congress as not only a legislative body, but also as a group of reelection-minded politicians, is an extraordinarily effective way to understand the institution and the law-making process. In addition to featuring new examples and cases drawn from recent congressional politics-including the battles over health care reform, financial regulations, economic stimulus, fiscal management, and tax policy-the authors also integrate new scholarship on representation, congressional elections, lobbying influence, and the relationship between Congress and the Court. The thirteenth edition also features analysis of: * the 2010 congressional campaigns and elections; * party and leadership changes for the 112th Congress; * executive-legislative relations under President Obama; * new procedures in the House and Senate; * budgeting in an era of huge deficits; * the heightened importance of lobbyists in legislative policymaking; * public attitudes about Congress as dysfunctional, even corrupt; and * the courts and their impact on the interpretation of congressional statutes, the scope of congressional power, and the reach of statutory campaign finance regulations.";