James Wallner is a senior fellow at the R Street Institute, where he researches and writes about the theory and practice of democratic politics with an emphasis on Congress, political parties, and the policy process. He is also a Professorial Lecturer in the Department of Government at American University and a fellow at its Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies. He is the the author of two books, The Death of Deliberation: Partisanship and Polarization in the United States Senate (Lexington Books, 2013), and On Parliamentary War: Partisan Conflict and Procedural Change in the United States Senate (University of Michigan Press, 2017). He has a Ph.D. in politics from the Catholic University of America.