POSC 101 Chapter Notes - Chapter 1: Unanimous Consent, Supermajority, Christian Right
30 Sep 2018
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*how and why the senate changed from 1950 to now. Impacts of intensified partisanship & continuing individualism on how the senate functions as well as legislative outcomes* 1950 senators were more limited in the use of their prerogatives: courtly older gentleman, conservative southern democrat, white haired, white linen suit, working in committee behind closed doors. Contemporary rules are exploited to pursue partisan advantage: partisan warrior, acting as a member of a party team, fighting the opposing party publicly and on the senate floor, uses all procedure and. High partisan polarization + non-majoritarian rules = potential policy gridlock (pretty often) Typi(cid:272)al (cid:1005)(cid:1013)(cid:1009)(cid:1004)"s se(cid:374)ator was a spe(cid:272)ialist that fo(cid:272)used o(cid:374) the issues that (cid:272)a(cid:373)e to their committees. The institutional structure of the senate and the political environment rewarded a senator like that ^ Dominant southern democrats had a strong constituency-based interest in restricting the filibuster for their one big issue opposition to civil rights.
