“Why Congress Can’t Seem to Get Anything Done”
Wonkblog talks to my former Professor George Tsebelis about veto players.
Category Archives: legislation and legislatures
Charles Lane on Mancur Olson, Barack Obama, Collective Action, and the Rise and Decline of Nations
Interesting column:
The problem is not, as the president implied, the opposition of an implacable few to the manifest general interest.
Rather, it is that Washington is besieged by mutually offsetting lobbies representing almost every conceivable segment of society.… Continue reading
“Biotech Firms, Billions at Risk, Lobby States to Limit Generics”
“‘Hello, quid. Where’s the pro quo?'”
With all the focus on today’s DC Circuit recess appointment decision, it is easy to miss its other decision today in the Abramoff-related U.S. v Kevin Ring case. As BLT reports, it raises interesting questions about campaign contributions a… Continue reading
Why Did the Democrats Cave on Filibuster Reform?
“Senate leaders reach deal modifying filibuster rules, keep 60-vote hurdle”
WaPo reports.
The Fix: Why Filibuster Reform Didn’t Happen
Senator Reid tells Ezra Klein: “I’m not personally, at this stage, ready to get rid of the 60-vote threshold,” Reid (D-Nev.) told me this morning, referring to the number of… Continue reading
“Amgen Earns 9,900% Return on Investment (ROI) in Political Contributions; Taxpayer ROI Hits New Low”
Weak Tea
Cha-ching!
Ben Nelson earns $1 million (plus!) payday.
“Fiscal cliff, elections boost spending on lobbying”
“The Majoritarian Filibuster”
Timely student note in the Yale Law Journal by Benjamin Eidelson.
The debate over the Senate filibuster revolves around its apparent conflict with the principle of majority rule. Because narrow Senate majorities often represent only a minority of Americans, however,… Continue reading
“Senate Democrats Lack Votes for ‘Talking Filibuster’ Plan”
Roll Call: “Democratic senators favoring the most robust overhaul of the chamber’s filibuster rules do not have the votes to enact a ‘talking filibuster,’ even with a simple majority, according to the top Democratic vote-counter.’
“K Street Sings the Blues”
Politico: “K Street is living through lean times. The majority of big D.C. lobby shops have seen their revenues flat-line or decline during the last year of President Barack Obama’s first term — buffeted by a lingering global financial… Continue reading
“Republicans and the Filibuster Endgame”
Smart Jonathan Bernstein Post-Partisan blog post: “But overall, it’s really easy for me to imagine a large group of Republican senators loudly opposing Senate reform while privately wishing that Democrats will go nuclear. Which means that Democrats who really want… Continue reading