SAGE

To better understand the dual role that politicians must play as representatives in Congress, we spoke with Walter J. Oleszek and Frances E. Lee, two of the four authors of Congress and Its Members, a CQ Press text which just entered its 17th edition. Oleszek is a senior specialist ("I like to refer to myself as the senior generalist," he admits) in the legislative process at the Congressional Research Service, while Lee is a professor of government and politics at Princeton University. "We're always thinking about the next edition and seeing ways in which our current edition is already heading out of date," Lee says. "It's an ongoing enterprise. At no point do you think, 'I put this to bed, it's all done.'" Congress and Its Members' fi rst edition arose when former House of Representatives staffers Oleszek and Roger H. Davidson, having co-written a book about reform of congressional committees, teamed up for a book on Congress that could serve as a textbook for students, but also as a guidebook for the public. The theme they decided on—the "two Congresses" concept—has carried though the series since. "It's real Joe Crowley's surprising defeat by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez underscores the dual nature of Congress. Members must continually inhabit two very different but closely linked worlds. There is the diverse world of New York's Fourteenth Congressional District, one that encompasses both white-ethnic and young hipster communities in Queens as well as Latino and African American communities in the Bronx. Then, there is the world of Washington policy making, where Crowley had cultivated a reputation as one of the Democratic Party's up-and-coming leaders. The balance is often diffi cult to strike. Such tensions highlight the dual character of the national legislature—Congress as a lawmaking institution and Congress as an assembly of local representatives. simple to understand, which is always useful," says Oleszek. "It's how law making and representation interact constantly on Capitol Hill." That context is vital: various binaries always have shaped Congress. It's important to contextualize what's going on, to understand what's different, what's changing, and what's the same. What does research reveal about the 116th Congress? Bestselling authors Walter J. Oleszek and Frances E. Lee share insights for encouraging students to think critically about the dual nature of Congress. Congress 6

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