This book examines how legislators have juggled their passions over abortion with standard congressional procedures, looking at how both external factors (such as public opinion) and internal factors (such as the ideological composition of committees and party systems) shape the development of abortion policy. Driven by both theoretical and empirical concerns, Scott H. Ainsworth and Thad E. Hall present a simple, formal model of strategic incrementalism, illustrating that legislators often have incentives to alter policy incrementally. They then examine the sponsorship of abortion-related proposals as well as their committee referral and find that a wide range of Democratic and Republican legislators repeatedly offer abortion-related proposals designed to alter abortion policy incrementally. Abortion Politics in Congress reveals that abortion debates have permeated a wide range of issues and that a wide range of legislators and a large number of committees address abortion.

‘This book proposes a new understanding of why political actors with extreme opinions might support only marginal adjustments to existing policies. The case of abortion would seem to preclude half-way positions, but Ainsworth and Hall’s ‘strategic incrementalism’ explains what previously appeared a puzzle. The work will have a major impact on how we think of how politicians stake out their public positions on issues of controversy.’

Frank Baumgartner - University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

‘This book raises intriguing possibilities about representation and lawmaking, and it holds together nicely. Ainsworth and Hall have woven together a coherent account of policymaking that brings in two sides of the story: the representational side, how members of Congress relate to their constituents, and the organizational side, how Congress passes legislation. It will gain attention from scholars and students of American politics across a range of subfields.’

Ken Kollman - Professor of Political Science, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

‘With this book, Ainsworth and Hall make a significant and compelling contribution to our understanding of issue politics, the legislative process, and ideological trends over time. Their innovative theory and use of sophisticated modeling to study this issue forges a new path for students of congressional politics.’

Wendy Schiller - Brown University

'The authors' analysis is nuanced and yields robust and substantively significant findings.'

Source: Political Studies