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with state legislatures, for instance, has been made available as a result of the efforts of these scholars and countless others.
But even though scholars have focused on systematically examining the internal policy-making efforts and powers of governors, relatively little research has been dedicated to understanding the ways in which governors work to influence policy outside the borders of their home states. On its face, the lack of focus on external gubernatorial powers may not seem like a significant point of weakness in the literature. After all, governors derive their authority and political power from the voters who place them in office, and they must work with the legislatures that is directly elected by those same voters in each state. Thus, it is only logical that scholars study governors as they work in that particular context, and it is likewise imperative that researchers examine governors in that environment. But by ignoring the ability of governors to shape policy outside the borders of the states they preside over, researchers fail to capture one of the most important aspects of the modern governorship. As governors regularly testify in front of Congress, provide input on the development of rules and procedures being adopted by federal agencies, and actually implement many federal policies within their states, they are provided with ample opportunities to shape policy and are given effective control over the direction of considerable sums of federal resources.
The purpose of this study is to contribute to the scholarship on the office of the American governor by examining the ability of governors to shape federal policy using their national organization—the National Governors Association (NGA)—as a conduit to organize state interests as interpreted and represented by the governors. Specifically, this book examines the NGA’s efforts to lobby Congress (and, to some extent, the executive branch) for policies beneficial to the states and