Who broke Congress?
According to the article, Mann and Ornstein argue that the Congressional decline started after the Republican Party won the majority seats in 1994 (Mann & Ornstein, 2006). The two scholars explain that the Democratic Party had ruled for 40 undisrupted years in a decentralized manner that had proven successful in managing the congress. However, the success of the Republic Party ultimately changed congress and eventually brought it to failure by weakening the system of checks and balances.
Mann and Ornstein’s evidence of their argument has been visible through the poorly crafted laws that have caused a bitter rivalry between the two parties. The failed Congress has been referred to as a broken branch since it is nothing compared to what the founding fathers had aspired. The majority and minority congress members have had growing indifferences in leadership that results in an imbalance in lawmaking.
The evidence provided supports the argument that congress is indeed failing under the superiority of Republicans over the years. According to research, the congress is very slow on passing bills which lowers its productivity. Congress is an executive branch that shares its power with the president to perform legislative duties for the people. However, the division of powers among the members has resulted in wrangles and misunderstandings in the house that limits their effectiveness.
The argument can be considered partisan because the scholars, Mann and Ornstein seem to be in support of the Democratic Party. In their argument, they strongly oppose the actions of the Republics in the Congress and term the party as the reason behind the downfall of the Congress. Mann and Ornstein explain that regular order was lost after the Republican Party won the majority share in Congress.
Reference
Mann, T.E., & Ornstein, N.J. (2006). The broken branch: How Congress is failing America and how to get it back on track. Oxford University Press.