The U.S. Congress: A Very Short Introduction - Paperback

by Donald A. Ritchie (Author)

Donald A. Ritchie, a congressional historian for forty years, takes readers on a fascinating, behind-the-scenes tour of Capitol Hill, pointing out the key players, explaining their behavior, and translating parliamentary language into plain English. He also explores the essential necessity of compromise to accomplish anything significant in the legislative arena. However, recent events show that political polarization has hardened and produced gridlock, as Ritchie explains in this new edition. The 2020 election also produced a more diverse membership in terms of gender, ethnicity, religion, and ideology, with primary elections resulting in the defeat of moderate candidates by opponents ranging from socialists on the left to conspiracy theorists on the right, making bipartisan compromise harder to achieve.

Author Biography

Donald A. Ritchie is Historian Emeritus of the U.S. Senate. He worked for forty years at the Senate Historical Office, where he conducted an oral history program and did historical editing, such as the previously closed hearings of Sen. Joseph R. McCarthy. A former president of the Oral History Association, he has also been a member of the councils of the American Historical Association and the International Oral History Association. His other books include Our Constitution, The Oxford Guide to the United States Government, Press Gallery: Congress and the Washington Correspondents, Reporting from Washington: The History of the Washington Press Corps, Electing FDR: The New Deal Campaign of 1932, and The Columnist: Leaks, Lies, and Libel in Drew Pearson's Washington.