The structure of Congress 401parties. But in the most recent Congress, the two parties are almost completely
separated—that is, only a few Democrats are more conservative than the most liberal
Republican. At the same time, the parties are growing farther apart, which makes it
even harder for the Republicans and the Democrats to work together and compromise
to pass legislation.
This greater cohesiveness within parties and separation across parties means
that conditional party government (see Chapter 8) may be in play—that is, strong
party leadership is possible in Congress, but it is conditional on the consent of party
members.^31 That consent is more likely if there are strong differences between the
parties but unity within parties. Leaders’ chief responsibility is to get their party’s
legislative agenda through Congress, but they primarily have to rely on persuasion and
control over the timing of when bills come up for a vote rather than telling members
what to do. Leaders’ success largely depends on personal skills, communicative
abilities, and trust. Some of the most successful leaders, such as Lyndon Johnson
(D-TX), Majority Leader of the Senate from 1955 to 1961, and Sam Rayburn (D-TX),
Speaker of the House for more than 17 years, kept in touch with key members on a daily
basis. Another important tool of the leadership is agenda control: both positive (getting
bills to the floor that are favored by the party) and negative (preventing votes on bills
that would divide the majority party).If you want to get along, go
along.—Sam Rayburn, former Speaker
of the HouseSenate Majority Leader Mitch
McConnell (R-KY) joined Senator John
Barrasso (R-WY, left), Senator John
Thune (R-SD), and Majority Whip John
Cornyn (R-TX) to meet with reporters
following a closed-door Republican
strategy session on Capitol Hill in
Washington, Tuesday, March 20, 2018.
Lawmakers had to beat a midnight
Friday deadline to avert another
federal shutdown.A sitting president can be a powerful ally
in a campaign. Here, President Trump
campaigns for Marsha Blackburn (R-TN),
Leaders also must have the ability to bargain and compromise. One observer who won her bid for Senate in 2018.
noted, “To Senator Johnson, public policy evidently was an inexhaustibly bargainable
pro duc t .”^32 Such leaders find solutions where none appear possible. Leaders also
do favors for members (such as making campaign appearances, helping with fund-
raising, contributing to campaigns, helping them get desired committee assignments,
or guiding pet projects through the legislative process) to engender a feeling of
personal obligation to the leadership when it needs a key vote.
The party’s most powerful positive incentives are in the area of campaign finance. In
recent years the congressional campaign committees of both parties and the national
party organizations have been supplying candidates with money and resources in an
attempt to gain more influence in the electoral process. Party leaders may also help arrangeFull_12_APT_64431_ch11_374-417.indd 401 16/11/18 10:30 AM