It's hard to imagine the US Senate today being a cooperative, civil body which was in any way useful, especially in any period in recent memory. Their current approval rating is roughly comparable to British Petroleum during the oil spill disaster, Nixon during Watergate, polygamy, and a Communist takeover.

Our author, a former top Democratic aide, the period between 1976-1980 was one of the most astonishing and productive periods in Senatorial history. It almost beyond belief. Republicans who support basic welfare! Democrats who support small and efficient government! Bipartisanship! Negotiation! The 'class of 1962', a group of ambitious and reformist senators of both parties, made up the core of this movement.

Of course this period, the Carter administration, was no halcyon day. It was still convulsing under both foreign policy and economic dilemmas. The narrative here is that Carter was well-meaning, but had extremely bad luck, and often ignored any legislative input. So they acted independently of him.

Although it would be a mistake to attribute all good things to this Senate (such is separation of powers), it tried hard to prevent things from getting worse. It did negotiate complex policies and laws with astonishing levels of success, and on a variety of issues. Oil, labor laws, foreign treaties, environmental issues, nuclear disarmament, saving New York City and Chrysler, and so forth.

A handful of the senators who were in that senate have survived to the present day. Inouye, Leahy, Levin, Hatch, Lugar. Many others still have names that ring out - Ted Kennedy, Moynihan, Javitz, Rabinoff. But after the 1980 election and the rise of the Neoconservative movement, the spirit of bipartisanship began to melt away, and the parties drifted further apart. Now compare our Senate. Other, younger senators who were moderating forces (Bayh, Snowe) have resigned out of frustration.

The Senate can reach astonishing lows (beating up Charles Sumner, McCarthy, filibustering civil rights). Perhaps we can work to vote in better replacements, and create the 'world's greatest deliberative body' once again. ( )

This is a long and dry read, delving into the minutae of senatorial activities. The author is clearly coming from the left side of the political spectrum. While he usually overcomes his personal bias, he doesn't totally succeed. Its not a polemic by any means, but it is somewhat partisan. I do think that there are some important lessons to be learned in this text, and the author effecitvely makes his case that the nature of our government has changed, and that change has been to the detriment of all Americans, not just Democrats. ( )