Political Science 540, American National Institutions,
Spring 2000
Prof. Frank Baumgartner
Questions and discussion topics for week 7, February 22:
Readings: Cox and McCubbins, Legislative Leviathan
Choose one of these topics for a five page paper if you
choose to do one this week. In any case, come to class prepared to discuss the
following:
- In Part I of their book Cox and McCubbins lay out the
subgovernment thesis. State this thesis clearly. What is the alternative
to this model of policymaking that they provide? List the tests that they
devise to distinguish between the two. Which of these tests are most
convincing.
- Consider question one. Rather than listing the tests
they provide, think more broadly: Are there only two models of
policymaking (subgovernment or party control), or do the authors ignore
some other possibilities? What would those be? Would any of these be
normatively more appealing to the other two? More accurate?
- Consider question one again. Are the tests that Cox
and McCubbins provide the only logical ones, or are there other ways to
get at this? Propose some alternative empirical tests.
- Thinking of the literature we’ve been reading lately
(Aldrich, Krehbiel, articles on committees last week), discuss the
emphasis on what Cox and McCubbins call the subgovernment model (or
committee power) v. its supposed antidote: party government. Why is this
laid out as the choice? Is it normatively clear which alternative is
better? Are these the only alternatives? Don’t only give your opinion, but
also discuss why the literature has been framed in this manner.
- As Cox and McCubbins describe, political scientists
have long had a love affair with strong political parties. Explain what
they mean by this, and explain why this is so.
- Getting back to the specifics of Cox and McCubbins,
explain why this book has been so influential. After giving them credit
and explaining the reasons for this impact, give a detailed suggestion for
how the next author could do better. I emphasize a detailed proposal, not
just a general idea.