The national committees of the major political parties inthe United States are symbols of party government. Theycarry forward a national heritage of peaceful change innational politics and administration. National committeesare substitutes for party ideologies, yet they are pretty muchheadless, drifting organizations. Cotter and Hennessy explainwhy this is the case, arguing that the vagueness of thecommittees' responsibilities between presidential electionsis one of the main sources of their limitations.

Politics without Power explains what the national committeesare, who belongs to them, where they are located inrelation to other politically oriented organizations, what theydo, and what steps might be taken to make better use of them.Although the authors' descriptions in this classic volume arestraightforward, their recommendations are sweepingly bold.A few have been instituted in part, but most have yet to beadopted. If they were, it would completely change the makeupof the two committees and the political processes.

Among their proposals are that the offi ces of nationalcommitteeman and committeewoman should be abolished,that the national chairman of the in-party continue to bechosen by the president or candidate, and the national chairmanof the out-party be the titular head of that committee.The out-party should have a party council to interpret theplatform and to recommend a platform to the national convention.There should be a tax credit for small contributionsto the national committee or state committees, and each nationalcommittee would have its own building shared withthe Congressional Campaign Committees. This book willinterest political scientists, politicians, and other studentsof American politics and elections.

Cornelius P. Cotter was professor of political science andchairman of the Department of Political Science at the WichitaState University. He has been a Republican National CommitteeFaculty Fellow and served as assistant to the chairman of theRepublican National Committee.

Bernard C. Hennessy was the director of the National Centerfor Education in Politics and professor of politics at the New YorkUniversity School of Law. He has been a Democratic NationalCommittee Faculty Fellow.