Updated with complete information for the 107th Congress, this volume features profiles on every member of Congress. Each profile examines the member's performance in Congress and major accomplishments.

What makes for a "good" legislature? In Heavy Lifting, Alan Rosenthal traveled to five states, interviewing and shadowing legislators to find out the answer. Through this engaging narrative, the author first establishes the most important aspects of American state legislatures--what they are and how they do their jobs--and then graduates to the book’s central thesis: Rosenthal argues that, on the whole, the American legislature must be evaluated on the basis of its processes, not its products. He breaks down the legislative process into three principal functions: representing, lawmaking, and balancing the executive, and covers each in turn in the remainder of the book.

Provides an analysis of every lawmaker in the 111th Congress, including biographical data, contact information, election results, and committee assignments.