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Two-tiered political entrepreneurship and the congressional committee system

Public Choice volume 154, pages 21–37 (2013)Cite this article

Abstract

Theories of political entrepreneurship usually focus on the construction of coalitions necessary to change policy. We argue that political entrepreneurs who are unable to secure favored policies may redirect their efforts to a “higher tier,” attempting to change the rules of the game to enable the exploitation of future political profit opportunities. We present a taxonomy of three levels of political rules—pre-constitutional, constitutional, and post-constitutional—and identify the salient characteristics of institutional entrepreneurship that targets rules at each level. The development of the congressional committee system is explored as a case study in entrepreneurship over post-constitutional rules.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Development Research Institute, Economic Department, New York University, 19 W 4th St, 6th Floor, New York, NY, 10012, USA

    Adam Martin

  2. Department of Economics and Finance, Utah State University, 3565 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT, 84322-3565, USA

    Diana Thomas

Authors
  1. Adam Martin
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  2. Diana Thomas
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Correspondence to Diana Thomas.

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Martin, A., Thomas, D. Two-tiered political entrepreneurship and the congressional committee system. Public Choice 154, 21–37 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11127-011-9805-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11127-011-9805-z

Keywords

  • Entrepreneurship
  • Congressional committee system
  • Collective action
  • Institutions

JEL Classification

  • L26
  • D71
  • D72
  • D02