Sharing the Wealth: Member Contributions and the Exchange Theory of Party Influence in the U.S. House of Representatives
While students of American politics are accustomed to thinking of members of Congress as recipients of campaign contributions,Sharing the Wealthshows that incumbents are increasingly active as contributors to their parties and other political candidates. As this provocative study shows, member contributions have grown exponentially in recent years to finance the fierce biannual battle for majority control of Congress. Utilizing both quantitative methods and case studies, Damon M. Cann examines arrangements designed to advance ambitions of individuals while ultimately strengthening parties, and also explores several important consequences of this growing phenomenon. More than a campaign finance study,Sharing the Wealthoffers a comprehensive examination of member-to-member and member-to-party contributions, and makes the connection between member contributions and the growing strength of political parties in Congress."A well-conceptualized, tightly argued, and short book,Sharing the Wealthis certainly worth one's attention." --Congress & the Presidency"This is a very important piece of research. Member-to-member campaign contributions are an increasingly important part of the electoral landscape, but we know relatively little about how they work. The theory is well thought out and the author's treatment of the statistics is excellent." -- Kristin Kanthak, University of Pittsburgh