Principles and Practice of American Politics : Classic and Contemporary Readings

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ISBN: 9781568025766 | 1568025769
Cover: Paperback
Copyright: 5/1/2000

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Principles and Practice of American Politics is an engaging collection of readings that balances "classics" of political science with more contemporary analyses of current politics and public policy. Kernell and Smith have drawn from a variety of sources and schools of thought to present a coherent collection. In addition, many selections are drawn from rich political sources such as the CQ Weekly that comparable readers cannot offer.

Preface

xiii

Designing Institutions

(58)

From The Logic of Collective Action

(13)

Mancur Olson, Jr.

In an excerpt from his classic work of 1965, Mancur Olson explains why groups often have difficulty achieving their collective goals, even when agreement among their members is widespread

From Analyzing Politics

(11)

Kenneth A. Shepsle

Mark S. Bonchek

Kenneth Shepsle and Mark Bonchek present possible remedies to various collective action problem

Everything Must Go!

(5)

Beth Dickey

Beth Dickey illustrates the government's efforts to translate a principle into practice by privatizing various functions and agencies of NASA

The Tragedy of the Commons

(14)

Garrett Hardin

In another classic work, Garrett Hardin uses the idea of the ``tragedy of the commons'' to explain why public goods are so often misused

Quotas Might Save both Fish and Fishers

(4)

John McQuaid

In an article from a Pulitzer winning series, John McQuaid portrays a real-life manifestation of the tragedy of the commons---the overuse of ocean fisheries---and describes the efforts of federal and state governments to remedy the problem

The Prosperous Community: Social Capital and Public Life

(10)

Robert D. Putnam

Robert Putnam stresses the importance of mutual trust in solving collective action problems

The Constitutional Framework

(25)

James Madison Explains the Constitution to Thomas Jefferson

(12)

In a letter to Jefferson, Madison relates the most important conflicts and decisions at the Constitutional Convention

Trading Votes at the Constitutional Convention

(12)

William Riker

William Riker's story of regional economic conflict at the Constitutional Convention illustrates how self-interested politics, as well as political theory, played a role in the framing of the Constitution

Federalism

(50)

The Rediscovery of American Federalism

(25)

Samuel Beer

Samuel Beer examines the tension between the concept of federalism and the notion that Americans have constituted themselves into a single, national community

Federalism as an Ideal Political Order and an Objective for Constitutional Reform

110

(10)

James M. Buchanan

Nobel laureate economist James M. Buchanan makes a case for federalism based on a ``market'' model of governments

Beyond the Welfare Clock

120

(8)

Jonathan Walters

Walters evaluates the impact of devolution in the area of welfare policy

The Federalization of Criminal Laws

128

(6)

John J. Mountjoy

John Mountjoy, providing a contrast to the case of welfare policy, explores the growth of laws federalizing crimes formerly considered to lie within the jurisdiction of the states and local communities

Civil Rights

134

(33)

Understanding Whites' Resistance to Affirmative Action

135

(18)

Laura Stoker

Laura Stoker reports the results of a survey experiment testing whether white voters who favor ending affirmative action policies are motivated by ideas of fairness or by racism

Desegregation Is Dead

153

(12)

Megan Twohey

Megan Twohey examines the countervailing social forces that appear to be reestablishing segregated schooling in many communities

High Court Upholds Minority Districts

165

(2)

Caroline E. Brown

Caroline Brown reports on a recent Supreme Court ruling upholding the rights of states to create minority-majority congressional districts

Civil Liberties

167

(77)

The Mysterious Case of Establishment Clause Litigation: How Organized Litigants Foiled Legal Change

168

(33)

Joseph F. Kobylka

Joseph Kobylka investigates why the Supreme Court's religious establishment policy has not been responsive to its political environment

The Real World of Constitutional Rights: The Supreme Court and the Implementation of the Abortion Decisions

201

(34)

Gerald N. Rosenberg

Gerald Rosenberg examines the political and legal environment surrounding abortion policy, still a source of conflict thirty years after Roe v. Wade

Privacy, Please: Thinking about a Troublesome Concept

235

(9)

Richard A. Epstein

Richard Epstein argues against the extension of privacy rights by the courts on the grounds that those seeking the potentially restricted information often have a legitimate need to access it

Congress

244

(90)

The Senate in Bicameral Perspective

245

(27)

Richard F. Fenno, Jr.

Richard Fenno introduces the differences between the House and the Senate that originate in the Constitution and explores the implications of these differences for governing and campaigning

from Congress: The Electoral Connection

272

(10)

David R. Mayhew

In an excerpt from his classic work, David Mayhew argues that legislators' efforts to gain reelection produce predictable behavior while in office

Party Leaders and the New Legislative Process

282

(20)

Barbara Sinclair

Barbara Sinclair details recent changes in congressional policy making and provides a glimpse of how party leaders have adapted to the new policy-making environment

Toward More Accountable Members

302

(32)

Fred R. Harris

Former senator Fred Harris argues against imposing term limits on members of Congress

The Presidency

334

(51)

from Presidential Power

335

(24)

Richard E. Neustadt

Richard Neustadt shows that successful presidential leadership depends on the ability to persuade

from Going Public

359

(19)

Samuel Kernell

Samuel Kernell observes that modern presidents, in their efforts to persuade other politicians to adopt their policy preferences, often ``go public,'' a set of activities borrowed from presidential election campaigns

What Seemed Like a Good Idea Haunts the GOP Establishment

378

(7)

Gerald F. Seib

John Harwood

Gerald Seib and John Harwood describe how supporters of Texas governor George W. Bush's presidential bid adjusted the primary calendar and rules---in hopes of gaining an advantage for their candidate---and inadvertently created an opening for Sen. John McCain, nearly costing Bush the nomination

The Bureaucracy

385

(69)

from Bureaucracy: What Government Agencies Do and Why They Do It

386

(26)

James Q. Wilson

James Wilson shows the causes and consequences of discretion and arbitrariness, and of rules and inefficiencies, in modern bureaucracies

The Politics of Bureaucratic Structure

412

(17)

Terry M. Moe

Terry Moe argues that the federal bureaucracy is not structured on the basis of a theory of public administration but instead is the product of politics

from The True Size of Government

429

(25)

Paul C. Light

Paul Light shows that government-contracted, private sector jobs have replaced many traditional government positions and explains the political forces behind the creation of the ``shadow government.''

The Judiciary

454

(48)

from The Choices Justices Make

455

(14)

Lee Epstein

Jack Knight

In a case study of the internal politics of the Supreme Court, Lee Epstein and Jack Knight explain how the strategic actions of justices influence their decisions

from The Supreme Court

469

(29)

Lawrence Baum

Lawrence Baum argues that Supreme Court justices often account for the likely response of other political institutions as they craft their decisions, in order to improve the chance that their prescriptions will be implemented

Why It's Getting Harder to Appoint Judges

498

(4)

Stuart Taylor, Jr.

After examining partisan battles over judicial appointments, Stuart Taylor concludes that the presidency and Congress have reached new heights of political intransigence

Public Opinion

502

(96)

Analyzing and Interpreting Polls

503

(32)

Herbert Asher

Herbert Asher explains the common ways that polls are misinterpreted and misused

Gender and Public Opinion

535

(21)

Kristi Andersen

Kristi Anderson reviews the recent history of gender differences in political opinion and behavior and describes how women's groups exploited early polling results

Disconnected Politics: Public Opinion and Presidents

556

(22)

Lyn Ragsdale

Lyn Ragsdale evaluates the implications of her finding that, as the influence of polls has grown, presidents have found public opinion both more important and less manageable

Dynamic Representation

578

(17)

James A. Stimson

Michael B. Mackuen

Robert S. Erikson

This important and creative study measures the correlation between public preferences and government behavior

Poll Positions: Leaders' Over Dependence on Public Opinion

595

(3)

Jean Bethke Elshtain

Jean Bethke Elshtain analyzes the question of whether leaders are too responsive to public opinion polls

Voting, Campaigns, and Elections

598

(25)

from The Reasoning Voter

599

(8)

Samuel L. Popkin

Samuel Popkin argues that, in a world of imperfect and incomplete information, voters rely on shortcuts to make decisions. His depiction of the decision-making processes of voters helps to explain the character of campaigns and other features of American politics

Rules of the Game

607

(9)

James A. Barnes

James Barnes outlines the causes and consequences of the ``frontloading'' of presidential primaries

Should Election Day Be a Holiday?

616

(7)

Martin P. Wattenberg

In scrutinizing a proposal to make election day a holiday, Martin Wattenberg provides a useful introduction to the problem of low voter turnout

Political Parties

623

(61)

from Why Parties?

624

(14)

John H. Aldrich

John Aldrich describes the political problems that parties solve for candidates and voters

National Party Organizations at the Century's End

638

(33)

Paul S. Herrnson

Paul Herrnson explains how American political parties have adapted to the new world of candidate-centered campaigns

Of Political Parties Great and Small

671

(13)

Everett Carll Ladd

Everett Carll Ladd challenges the conventional wisdom that modern political parties have become too weak

Interest Groups

684

(57)

The Scope and Bias of the Pressure System

685

(10)

E. E. Schattschneider

In a still-relevant piece from the 1960s, E. E. Schattschneider argues that moneyed interests dominated midcentury politics by controlling the agenda and influencing policymakers

The Evolution of Interest Groups

695

(9)

John R. Wright

John Wright surveys the development of interest groups in America, emphasizing the conflicting forces of collective action problems and societal disturbances

From Big Bird to Bill Gates: Organized Interests and the Emergence of Hyperpolitics

704

(14)

Allan J. Cigler

Burdett A. Loomis

Allan Cigler and Burdett Loomis explore the implications of the explosive growth of interests groups and of fundamental changes in interest group organization

The Money Culture

718

(23)

Elizabeth Drew

Elizabeth Drew argues that the influence of money has had a corrosive effect on American government and politics

The News Media

741

(1)

Is Journalism Hopelessly Cynical?

742

(10)

Michael Schudson

Michael Schudson explains how market forces and recent changes in journalism's character have contributed to a possibly irreversible trend toward ever-increasing cynicism

Market Research and the Audience for Political News

752

(22)

Doug Underwood

Doug Underwood analyzes the decrease in political news reporting available to the American public, exploring both supply and demand side factors

Beaten: Washington Bureaus Have Largely Abandoned Agencies

774

(9)

John Herbers

James McCartney

John Herbers and James McCartney describe the decline of the institution of beat reporting as Washington bureaus move to softer, topical reporting

Low Score

783

James B. Kelleher

James Kelleher recounts an instance in which the beat system failed to alert the public to important changes in federal education policy

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Principles and Practice of American Politics : Classic and Contemporary Readings

Summary

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials