VDM Verlag "STRONG" PRESIDENCIES, "WEAK" CONGRESSES?: A STUDY OF THE EXECUTIVE-LEGISLATIVE RELATIONS IN BRAZIL, 1985-1996

Challenging the perception that the Brazilian legislatures of the post-transitional period constitute a marginal institution in policy and decision-making, this study takes into account the politics of executive-legislative relations as an analytically distinct research target. It departs from the proposition that, in contexts of low degree of institutionalization, the limits and reaches of congressional-executive powers rely upon variations of time and is relational to the issue and policy-area at stake. In this vein, by developing an appropriate methodology that combines a classificatory scheme of legislation initiated by both branches, from 1985 to 1996, with extensive interviewing, and a survey questionnaire, this study aims at contributing to further our understanding of a crucial factor that affects the institutionalization of democracy in Brazil: the way presidents and congresses interact in practice. About the Author Ph.D. in Political Science, University of Notre Dame (USA). Professor of Management in Public Policies at the School of Arts, Sciences and Humanities of the University of Sao Paulo (EACH/USP). Fellow at the Center of Public Policies Study (NUPPs/USP). Recent Publication: Políticas Públicas (São Paulo, SP: Publifolha, 2010).