Congress and the American Political System II
This MIT OpenCourseWare course examines the U.S. Congress through competing theoretical lenses, comparing sociological and economic models of legislative behavior. Topics include floor decision-making, committee behavior, political parties, relations between Congress and other branches of the federal government, and elections. The course is pitched at graduate level, with students expected to deepen their understanding through assigned readings and individual research projects. Materials include the syllabus, reading lists, and assignments as posted by MIT OpenCourseWare, free to access under a Creative Commons license. No certificate is offered, consistent with OCW's self-study format, but the full set of course materials lets a learner reconstruct the seminar's arguments about how legislatures actually function, from committee assignments to roll-call votes.