Issue Areas and Political Time

Issue Areas and Political Time: The Multiple Presidencies and Congresses of American Foreign and Domestic Policy Construction explores the complexities of executive-legislative relations in American policy construction. Anchored in empirical political science, the book scrutinizes the differing dynamics between the presidency and Congress across both foreign and domestic policy spheres.

The book explores functional sub-policies and issue areas, examining how variations in political time can shape the success and strategies of presidential and congressional powers. Central to its analysis are the concepts of the multiple presidencies thesis for foreign affairs, aligned with national-level and bipartisan politics, and the multiple congresses thesis for domestic policy, focused on local and regional concerns with partisan implications.

Issue Areas and Political Time is designed for advanced courses in American government, political science, and public policy, offering students a detailed understanding of the interplay between the executive and legislative branches in shaping U.S. policies. It is also suitable as supplemental reading for courses in U.S. history, given its historical perspective on policy construction in political time.