There are few good biographies of members of Congress. Indeed, there are few biographies at all. Yet there are hundreds, thousands of telling stories, insightful anecdotes. Why not more, or better, biographies? Historians have expressed relatively little recent interest in political institutions, and political science scholarship, while becoming much historical, has not embraced biography at all. Given the genre's emphasis on a single case, perhaps we should not worry too much about the dearth of biographies. Yet the careful examination of a single individual - a Rayburn, a Rostenkowksi, a Dirksen, an Aldrich - may tell us as much as a data-rich, assumption-driven piece of analysis. Moreover, the absence of biographies means that we have given up the telling of stories to others, who may well develop more cynical, less understanding studies than those who best understand the legislative branch.

The authors represented here offer varied perspectives on the art and importance of biographical scholarship. In profiling Dan Rostenkowski, Richard Cohen has focused on a man at the end of a rich, controversial career, while Darrell West offers us a portrait of Representative Patrick Kennedy, who stands near the beginning of what may well be a long and distinguished life of public service. In dealing with living politicians, both have had to address issues of access and emphasis in producing the best work they could, given certain practical limitations. Conversely, Garrison Nelson's work on former Speaker John McCormack relies on more traditional historical methods, mixed with a detective's nose for sorting out the strands of a mystery.

Jeff Biggs' collaborative work with Tom Foley stands as a unique form - neither biography, memoir, or autobiography. Rather, he gives us the mix of voices of congressman, former staffer, and chronicler of events, and perhaps offers us the book that Ambassador Foley might never write. Finally, Betty Koed, the Assistant Historian in the Office of the Senate Historian provides us with a measured set of reflections on the virtues of political biography.

At present, neither publishers, the disciplines of political science and history, nor the public as a whole offer much encouragement for writing legislative biographies. Yet given the complexity of the legislative process, and its hidden nature, even in the era of C-Span (or maybe particularly in this era), we could profit from more and better stories that mix the personal with politics and policy making. Indeed, the story of deliberative democracy remains one of the most important, least understood tales of our time.

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