Even though they possess several power resources, Brazilian Presidents also elaborate their legislative proposals based upon bills already being processed in Congress through a phenomenon called Appropriation of the legislative agenda. In this paper I examine the conditions under which this phenomenon occurs by means of a typology and a qualitative comparative analysis (QCA). I conclude that Appropriation provides the President with the expansion of the formal support base by controlling the agenda of allied and opposition parties as well as obtaining the "paternity" of several policies already in motion in Congress, thus enabling a public association of the President's actions and his or her party with the possibility of social benefits. Be it in the pursuit of promising agendas or for the maintenance of their own dominance, Appropriation shows that Brazilian Presidents must go beyond coalition presidentialism.

O artigo analisa a estratégia de atuação de parlamentares que se dedicam e se destacam na articulação política na arena de produção de leis, denominados agenda holders. O objetivo é apresentar os marcos analíticos e o delineamento desse conceito no âmbito dos Estudos Legislativos e propor estratégias metodológicas para a observação e análise desses agentes políticos no Congresso Nacional. Foram empregadas três abordagens diferenciadas, cada qual formulada no sentido de selecionar casos em que os parlamentares foram protagonistas nos processos legislativos. Analisaram-se vários exemplos, entre os anos 2007 e 2011, que envolveram o fenômeno da apropriação da agenda do poder Legislativo, os processos legislativos realizados por meio das comissões especiais na Câmara dos Deputados e a participação dos relatores na tramitação das medidas provisórias. Tais abordagens metodológicas foram bem sucedidas, resultando em interessantes observações acerca dos requisitos compartilhados para a atuação do parlamentar como agenda holder, tais como sua experiência pregressa e possíveis especializações, a seniority no Congresso e sua capacidade de negociação. As análises também permitiram observar uma ligação consistente entre assumir a condição de agenda holder e sobrevivência política, bem como as diferenças de atuação entre deputados e senadores. Ademais, foi possível verificar a existência de parlamentares que podem assumir, de acordo com algumas circunstâncias, o papel de anti-agenda holders. Compreende-se que estudos sobre o comportamento dos agenda holders podem enriquecer as análises que abordam as ações do poder Legislativo, enfatizando, ainda, a necessidade de uma visão mais apurada sobre a dinâmica da relação entre o Congresso e o poder Executivo. Além disso, explora-se por outro prisma a construção de carreiras políticas, inserindo grau de relevância nas ações dos parlamentares no processo legislativo, a despeito de todas as dificuldades e limitações. Desse modo, também se resgata o lugar dos parlamentares na moldagem da agenda legislativa em senso estrito e na atividade primária de formulação das leis.

This paper analyzes the performance strategy of parliamentarians engaged and stand out at political articulation in the arena of law production, called agenda holders. The objective is to present analytical frameworks and the design of this concept in the context of Legislative Studies, and to propose methodological strategies for the observation and analysis of these political actors in Brazilian Congress. Three different approaches have been employed in this work, each one formulated in order to select cases that parlamentarians were protagonists in legislative processes. We analyzed several examples, between the years 2007 and 2011, involving the phenomenon of Appropriation of the legislative agenda, legislative procedures performed through special committees in the House of Representatives and the participation of the rapporteurs in the handling of provisional decrees ("medidas provisórias"). Such methodological approaches have been successful, resulting in interesting observations about the shared requirements for the performance of a parliamentarian as agenda holder, such as past experience and expertise, the seniority in Congress and his or her negotiating skills. The analysis also allowed to observe a consistent link between taking the condition of an agenda holder and political survival as well as the differences in performance between Deputies and Senators. Furthermore, it was possible to verify the existence of parliamentarians who can take, according to some circumstances, the role of anti-agenda holders. It is understood that studying the behavior of agenda holders can enrich analysis that address the actions of the legislature, emphasizing also the need for a more accurate view of the dynamics of the relationship between the Congress and the Executive Branch. In addition, this paper explores through a different prism the building of political careers, adding relevance to the actions of legislators in the legislative process, despite all the difficulties and limitations within the Brazilian political system. Thus, it also rescues the place of parliamentarians in shaping the legislative agenda and formulating laws.

Este trabalho estuda a atuação dos titulares da agenda, conceito que abrange os parlamentares que, em temas determinados, centralizam articulações políticas entre os demais parlamentares, o Poder Executivo e representantes do empresariado e da sociedade civil organizada. Por meio de estudos de processos legislativos, complementados com informações sobre a carreira política de parlamentares, o propósito é indicar caminhos para que se compreenda quem são os titulares da agenda, como eles atuam e qual a conexão com suas carreiras políticas. Os resultados apontam para a existência de vínculo relevante entre carreiras e a atuação de parlamentares como articuladores de atores governamentais e não governamentais.

This work studies the performance of the agenda holders, a concept that covers the parliamentarians that in certain themes, centralize political articulations among other lawmakers, the Executive and representatives from business and civil society organizations. Through studies of legislative processes, supplemented with details on the political career of parliamentarians, the purpose is to indicate ways in order to understand who are the agenda holders, how they act, and the connection with their political careers. The results indicate the existence of a significant relationship between careers and the role of parliamentarians as articulators of governmental and nongovernmental organizations.

Judiciary and regulatory policy. Increasingly, judges and the courts appear as actors capable of affecting the trajectory of the government decisions, as strategic agents in the policy process. This paper presents an analytical model able to clearly and objectively measure the impact of judicial review in the design of policies in the sphere of economic regulation. Underlying the model is the concept of transaction costs, through which one can raise the levels of intervention of the judiciary in regulatory policy. In addition to the analytical model, the article demonstrates that the interaction between the heterogeneity of preferences in the courts and institutional mechanisms of the justice system is capable of generating greater coordination and cooperation than expected.