Polarization, Budget Failures, and What to Expect Beyond 2014

Understanding how divided party control of the Senate and House affects the budget and appropriations process may help federal managers anticipate the challenges ahead.

Political grandstanding has largely replaced deal making on Capitol Hill. Every election bleeds into the next, and this ups the partisan rhetoric—especially when the margins between parties are so narrow and majority control is at stake every two years.

The swing between House Republicans and Democrats has hovered between