Task Force on Negotiating Agreement in Politics
The breakdown of political negotiation within Congress today is puzzling in several important respects. The United States used to be viewed as a land of broad consensus and pragmatic politics in which sharp ideological differences were largely absent; yet, today, politics is dominated by intense party polarization and limited agreement among representatives on policy problems and solutions. Americans pride themselves on their community spirit, civic engagement, and dynamic society, yet we are handicapped by our national political institutions, which often-but not always-stifle the popular desire for policy innovation and political reforms. The separation of powers helps to explain why Congress has a difficult time taking action, but many countries that have severe institutional hurdles to easy majoritarian rule still produce political deals.
This report explores the problems of political negotiation in the United States, provides lessons from success stories in political negotiation, and offers practical advice for how diverse interests might overcome their narrow disagreements to negotiate win-win solutions.
Click here to learn about the book at Brookings Institution Press!
Task Force Members:
Jane Mansbridge, Harvard University, APSA President, 2012-2013, co-chair
Cathie Jo Martin, Boston University, co-chair
| Linda Babcock, Carnegie Mellon University André Bächtiger, University of Lucerne Max Bazerman, Harvard Business School Sarah Binder, George Washington University Emile Bruneau, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Max Cameron, University of British Columbia Andrea Campbell, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Simone Chambers, University of Toronto Thomas Edsall, Columbia and New York Times John Ferejohn, Stanford & New York University Morris Fiorina, Stanford University Robert Frank, Cornell University Fen Hampson, Carleton University Torben Iversen, Harvard University Alan Jacobs, University of British Columbia Robert Keohane, Princeton University Andrew Kydd, University of Wisconsin Geoffrey Layman, University of Notre Dame | James A. Leach, University of Iowa School of Law Frances Lee, University of Maryland Ashley Leeds, Rice University George Lowenstein, Carnegie Mellon University Julia Lynch, University of Pennsylvania Thomas Mann, Brookings Institution Nolan McCarty, Princeton University Michael Minta, University of Missouri Robert Mnookin, Harvard University Law School Andrew Moravcsik, Princeton University Kimberly Morgan, George Washington University Daniel Naurin, University of Gothenburg John Odell, University of California, Co-Chair David Rand, Yale University Christine Reh, University College London Laurie Santos, Yale University | Rebecca Saxe, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Eric Schickler, University of California, Berkeley Melissa Schwartzberg, Columbia University James Sebenius, Harvard University Janice Gross Stein, University of Toronto Cass Sunstein, Harvard University Law School Yael Tamir, Shenkar College of Engineering and Design Dennis Thompson, Harvard University Dustin Tingley, Harvard University, Co-Chair Sonia Wallace, Rutgers University Barbara Walter, University of California, San Diego Mark E. Warren, University of British Columbia Melissa Williams, University of Toronto Cornelia Woll, Sciences Po I. William Zartman, Johns Hopkins University Jonathan Zeitlin, University of Amsterdam |
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