ABSTRACT
This part introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters. The part deals with the extent and manner in which some local business communities were or were not organized on the issue of foreign-trade policy in 1953–1955. American politics as a whole is rooted in local politics. The set-up of Congress and particularly of the House of Representatives gives priority to the representation of local interests. Congress has freed itself from much local pressure by yielding up to the executive branch the power of setting specific rates. The individual representative can placate a local industry by writing to the Tariff Commission about an escape-clause proceeding or to the Committee on Reciprocity Information when a trade agreement is about to be negotiated. If the congressman thinks of himself as a representative of local interests, then the most effective communications will be those from his district.
