Incumbents are safe, but party majorities are not. This fosters symbolic votes, message politics and little serious legislating in Congress.

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• Thomas E. Mann:

  The country has sorted itself ideologically into the two political parties, and those partisan atta

• Thomas E. Mann:

  Democrats do best in urban centers, Republicans in outer suburbs and rural areas.

• Thomas E. Mann:

  Private sector labors unions continue to suffer losses in their membership while public sector and

• Deborah Tannen:

  For most women, the language of conversation is primarily a language of rapport: a way of establish

• Deborah Tannen:

  Communication is a continual balancing act, juggling the conflicting needs for intimacy and indepen

• Deborah Tannen:

  Each underestimates her own power and overestimates the other's.

• Deborah Tannen:

  We all know we are unique individuals, but we tend to see others as representatives of groups.

• Deborah Tannen:

  Relationships are made of talk - and talk is for girls and women.

• Deborah Tannen:

  We tend to look through language and not realize how much power language has.

• Deborah Tannen:

  The biggest mistake is believing there is one right way to listen, to talk, to have a conversation