The Congress
of the United States: A Student Companion. (Third Edition.) Donald
A. Ritchie. New York: Oxford University Press, 2006. Pp. 414. $60.00, hardcover.
ISBN-13: 978-0-19-530924-9. TEL: 800-451-7556
This is an A-to-Z encyclopedia of the legislative branch, its
history, and its current operations. The third edition contains more than
200 articles that provide a concise and easy-to-use guide to the people, issues,
vocabulary, and activities of the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives.
Updates in this edition (some of which need to be updated again since the
November, 2006 mid-term election) include biographies of Senators William
Frist (now retired to consider a run for the presidency), Harry Reid (gone
from minority to majority leader), Trent Lott (recently moved from the back
bench to minority leader), Representatives Nancy Pelosi (now Speaker of the
House) and Dennis Hastert (former Speaker of the House). We even find a brief
biography of the once powerful but now disgraced Tom DeLay.
The book also contains new articles on the Government Accountability Office,
omnibus bills, the USA Patriot Act, recess appointments, and reconciliation.
We also find expanded articles on campaign finance, ethics, joint committees,
media coverage, voting, and war powers. Also included are helpful appendices,
tables and charts, and new lists of websites and resources for further reading.
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