Reed Rules

views updated

REED RULES

REED RULES, adopted by the House of Representatives on 14 February 1890, marked the successful conclusion of the protracted fight by Speaker of the House Thomas B. Reed for more efficient procedures in that body. The new rules permitted the suppression of dilatory tactics, substituted a "present" for a "voting" quorum, reduced the size of the Committee of the Whole, and provided sundry changes in the order of business. These measures brought an immediate increase in efficiency but greatly increased the power of the speaker; and the title of "czar" was promptly bestowed upon their author.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Cheney, Richard B. Kings of the Hill: Power and Personality in the House of Representatives. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1996.

McCall, Samuel W. The Life of Thomas Brackett Reed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1914.

Pyle, Christopher H. The President, Congress, and the Constitution: Power and Legitimacy in American Politics. New York: Free Press, 1984.

Robinson, William A. Thomas B. Reed: Parliamentarian. New York: Dodd, Mead, 1930.

William A.Robinson/a. g.

See alsoBlocs ; Colonial Assemblies ; Delegation of Powers ; Majority Rule ; Rules of the House .