Early Returns: Power Suits and Shiny Objects

[BloombergView]( [Early Returns]( Jonathan Bernstein]( 1. Dave Hopkins on [partisan polarization plus factionalism](. 2. Christina Wolbrecht and David Campbell at Vox on [women running for office](. 3. Amanda Clayton, Diana Z. O'Brien and Jennifer M. Piscopo at the Monkey Cage on how people react to [all-male panels](. 4. Excellent Bruce Bartlett piece on [how Congress used to be](. He puts the blame squarely on Republicans, especially Newt Gingrich, which is entirely correct. It's worth mentioning, however, that one of the consequences of (Democratic) House reforms of the 1960s and early 1970s was that minority-party members were squeezed out of meaningful legislative roles, and that Democratic speakers Tip O'Neill and (especially) Jim Wright pushed that trend along. In other words, Gingrich -- and Republican willingness to support him -- didn't come out of nowhere. That's not to excuse what Republicans have done from 1994 on, though. 5. Meanwhile, House Republican staff are [losing confidence in Speaker Paul Ryan](. Roll Call's Shawn Zeller reports. 6. Marcy Wheeler suspects Susan Rice may be a "[shiny object](." 7. Fred Kaplan doesn't see much there in [the "unmasking" story](, either. 8. And a wonderful item from Sam Jefferies at Washington Monthly on [Washington's true power suit](. Excellent, and yes, we do really need a companion piece for women in Washington. Get Early Returns every morning in your inbox. Click [here]( to subscribe. Bloomberg L.P. ● 731 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10022 [Web]( ● [Facebook]( ● [Twitter]( [Feedback]( ● [Unsubscribe](