• Professor, Political Science
• Director, Weidenbaum Center on the Economy, Government and Public Policy

Steven Smith

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• Ph.D. at University of Minnesota

News Stories & Tip Sheets:

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Switch hitter Despite move to Democrats, Specter likely to vote outside the fold April 28, 2009 -- Smith Download Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter's decision to switch his allegiance to the Democratic Party will likely raise further questions about the Republican Party's ability to appeal to moderate voters, but Democrats should realize that Specter will remain fairly independent in his voting on key issues, including ongoing opposition to pro-union "card check" provisions, suggests Steven S. Smith, a congressional expert at Washington University in St. Louis.

Smash and grab? 'Politics as usual' complicate push for bi-partisan stimulus bill, expert says Feb. 4, 2009 -- Smith As the White House pleads for bipartisan support of a massive federal stimulus plan, congressional Democrats and Republicans are maneuvering, strategizing, nervously seeking partners in an awkward legislative first dance that may determine whether Barack Obama makes good on his promise to bring change to Washington, suggests Steven S. Smith, a congressional expert at Washington University in St. Louis.

Is this any way to elect a president? Iowa's special role in primaries may end in 2008, expert suggests Jan. 3, 2008 -- Steven Smith Today's Iowa Caucuses may be the last in which the largely rural, sparsely populated and predominately white conservative Midwestern state exerts such a huge influence on the presidential nomination process, predicts Steven S. Smith, a political expert at Washington University in St. Louis.

Politics of privilege Bush power struggle with Congress poses messy constitutional, political issues, expert says July 27, 2007 -- Steven Smith By claiming far-reaching and unprecedented executive privilege in its power struggles with the U.S. Congress, the Bush White House has roiled the political waters, forcing both Democrats and Republicans to weigh near-term political consequences of their response against a real and tangible threat to the long-term constitutional powers of Congress, suggests a congressional expert from Washington University in St. Louis.

Congressional Showdown? White House will likely dodge congressional contempt charges, expert suggests July 13, 2007 -- Steven Smith While members of the U.S. House and Senate are threatening to hold White House officials in contempt of Congress over the administration's efforts to withhold testimony in an ongoing investigation of the controversial firings of U.S. attorneys, the dispute is likely to fizzle without much of a showdown, suggests a congressional expert from Washington University in St. Louis.

State of the Union Bush's speech will play to Congress focused on 2008 Jan. 22, 2007 -- Steven Smith Download President George W. Bush's State of the Union address on Jan. 23 may be remembered as one of the least consequential State of the Union addresses in a generation, but its presentation could open the door on a period of real legislative compromise as both parties struggle to boster reputations in advance of the 2008 elections, suggests Steven Smith, an expert on congressional politics at Washington University in St. Louis. Video Available

Sway the course Post-election Democrats will push popular agenda, appeal to moderates, expert says Nov. 10, 2006 -- Steven Smith Download If Democrats want to expand their House and Senate majorities, they need to protect new members who were elected from Republican-leaning districts while showing they can govern by passing a limited popular agenda: "Satisfying the base while appealing to moderates is squarely the central strategic problem for both parties in the new Congress," suggests Steven S. Smith, a congressional expert at Washington University in St. Louis.

Warning shot fired Democrats' closing of Senate session offers taste of tactics for battling Supreme Court nomination Nov. 2, 2005 -- Smith Download By invoking a little known procedural rule to force a closed session of the Senate on Tuesday, Democratic Minority Leader Harry Reid put Republicans on notice that Democrats are prepared to use similar tactics, such as the filibuster, in pending Supreme Court nomination battles, suggests WUSTL congressional expert Steven Smith. Reid's move "was a shot across the bow," says Smith.

Fettering filibusters Republican threats of "nuclear option" put United States at brink of parliamentary war, suggests congressional expert Steven Smith Feb. 2, 2005 -- Smith Download Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist is playing with fire when he suggests that Republicans will deploy the so-called "go nuclear" option to prevent Democrats from using filibusters to block controversial judicial nominations expected to reach the floor in mid-to-late February, says congressional expert Steven S. Smith.

Senate talk-a-thon Republicans have nothing to gain from planned 30-hour Senate debate, says congressional expert Nov. 12, 2003 -- Smith Download Senate Republicans and Democrats are preparing for a 30-hour marathon debate on judicial nominations starting about 6 p.m. Nov. 12 and running as long as early morning on Friday, Nov. 14. Republican senators say they want the country to know that Democrats are stalling judicial nominations made by President Bush. Democrats have filibustered on four recent Bush appeals court nominations and may use similar tactics on future nominees. Congressional expert Steven Smith says this is business as usual in Congress and that Republicans have used the same tactics in the past.

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Books:

• The American Congress (Houghton Mifflin, 1995, 1999)
• Committees in Congress (CQ Press, 1984, 1990, 1997), with C.J. Deering
• Call to Order: Floor Politics in the House and Senate (Brookings, 1989)
• Managing Uncertainty in the House of Representatives: Adaptation and Innovation in Special Rules (Brookings, 1988), with S. Bach
• Politics or Principle: Filibustering in the United States Senate (Brookings, 1997), with S. Binder
• The Politics of Institutional Choice: The Formation of the Russian State Duma (Princeton University Press, 2001), with T. Remington
• The Principles and Practice of American Politics (CQ Press, 2000), with S. Kernell

Recent Articles:

• "The Supreme Court at the Bar of Political Science," Yale Law Review (forthcoming), with P. Frickey
• Positive Theories of Congressional Parties," Legislative Studies Quarterly (May 2000), Rod Kiewiet, special editor
• "Last Among Equals: The Presiding Officer of the Senate," in B. Loomis, ed., Esteemed Colleagues: Civility and Deliberation in the United States Senate (Brookings Institution, 2000), with G. Gamm
• "The Emergence of Senate Party Leadership," in B. Oppenheimer, ed., Senate Exceptionalism (Ohio State University Press, forthcoming), with G. Gamm
• "The Dynamics of Party Government in Congress," in L. Dodd and B. Oppenheimer, eds., Congress Reonsidered, 7th ed. (CQ Press, forthcoming), with G. Gamm
• "The Consequences of Senate Party Leadership," in D. Brady and M. McCubbins, eds., Studies in the History of Congress (University of California Press, forthcoming), with G. Gamm
• "Decrees, Laws, and Inter-Branch Relations in the Russian Federation," Post-Soviet Affairs 14 (1998): 287-322, with T. Remington and M. Haspel
• "Political Goals and Procedural Choice in the Senate," Journal of Politics (May 1998), with S. Binder
• "Electoral Institutions and Party Cohesion in the Russian Duma," Journal of Politics (May 1998), with T. Remington
• "Theories of Legislative Institutions and the Organization of the Russian Duma," American Journal of Political Science (April 1998), with T. Remington