The U.S. Senate: Fundamentals of American Government($19.93Value)

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The second entry in the civics series clearly and concisely explains how the United States Senate works. The U.S. Senate is the second book in the Fundamentals of American Government civics series, exploring the inner workings of this important part of the legislative branch. As with Selecting a President , this book is written for all audiences, but voiced toward high school seniors and college freshmen―or any citizen interested in a concise yet authoritative exploration of this representative entity. Written by former Senator Tom Daschle, and co-written by acclaimed journalist Charles Robbins, this compelling and digestible book carefully examines and explains exactly how the Senate operates. From its electoral process to voting procedure, historic beginnings to modern day issues―there is no area of this governmental body left un-revealed. Told with an insider's perspective there is not a more defining or easily accessible compendium detailing the U.S. Senate. "A useful primer for a broader audience interested in learning about a government institution that is suffering from record-low approval ratings."― Kirkus Reviews Tom Daschle is a former U.S. Senator and Senate majority leader from South Dakota. He is currently a special policy advisor at the law firm Alston & Bird LLP, a visiting professor at the Georgetown Public Policy Institute, and a Distinguished Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress. CHARLES ROBBINS served as Senator Specter’s communications director in his Senate office and on his presidential campaign. He is the author of the forthcoming novel The Accomplice as well as coauthor, with former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, of the forthcoming The U.S. Senate , and coauthor of Senator Specter’s Passion for Truth . A former newspaper reporter and Navy reserve officer, he is a graduate of Princeton University, the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, and the master of fine arts program at Queens University of Charlotte. He lives in Washington, D.C. The U.S. Senate Fundamentals of American Government By Tom Daschle Thomas Dunne Books Copyright © 2013 Tom Daschle All right reserved. ISBN: 9781250011220 1. A CHAIN OF HISTORY     When a newly elected member arrives in the Senate, he or she gets a number corresponding to that person’s place in the line of all senators who have served since the body was created. As of this writing, 1,931 senators have served. Robert Morris and William Maclay of Pennsylvania—who grew to detest each other—got numbers one and two because their state was the first to elect its senators. The first group of twelve senators arrived at the same time, April 6, 1789. When I joined the Senate in 1987, I was both amazed and delighted at the number I was given: 1776, the year the American colonies declared independence from Britain. From the moment a new senator first steps onto the Senate floor, most are powerfully aware that we are links in an extraordinary chain of history going back to the Founders, the heirs and guardians of a miracle. And that miracle is the ideal of the United States, which we embrace, and whose great freedoms we swear to protect. Eight years after I arrived, the senators of my party elected me their Leader, and one of my strongest supporters and most loyal and dedicated friends, Dick Reiners, invited me to dinner back home in South Dakota. Dick, then in his eighties, was a farmer. Over meat and potatoes at Dick’s farmhouse in Worthing, I asked him for advice. He paused and looked at me and said, “There are two things that I would hope for you. One is that you never forget where you came from. Come home. Remember us.” Then he pointed to some photos on the wall that I recognized readily, of his grandchildren. He said, “You’ve held each one of those grandkids, as have I. Give them hope. Every day you walk onto the floor, give them hope.” We hugged, and I left. Hours later, in the middle of the night, I got a call that Dick had passed away. I’ve never gotten better advice in all the years before or since, and it has stayed with me. From across America, since our country was founded, voters have chosen neighbors to represent them in the Senate, and sent them to Washington with great goals. A senator’s challenge is to focus on those goals and not lose sight of them amid the daily bustle and battles. That can be particularly challenging in today’s tough times. One touchstone, in particular, helped me remember my purpose: the Senate Leader’s desk, at the front of the chamber. The desks, made in 1819, each have an ink well and a snuff box. You pull open the drawer, and you see the names of all the Leaders carved in it, and other senators, all those who used the desk before you. As they sit at those desks, senators take on the challenge to safeguard our freedom, the same challenge that American soldiers have met for more than two centuries, and for which more than a million men and women have given their