America's Democratic Republic (Penguin Academics Series)

by Greenberg, Edward S.; Page, Benjamin I.

• ISBN13: 9780321198211
• ISBN10: 0321198212
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-01-01
• Publisher: Longman

Summary

Written in a lively, narrative style and presenting a provacative point-of-view, this book gets to the heart of Americans' frustrations with our government. Acknowledging that cynicism tends to make people withdraw from civic life, this book examines why our government can seem so unsatisfactory, identifying the heart of the American political system: strong democratic aspirations among our citizens conflicting with the republican constitutional foundations on which the country is based. DEMOCRATIC ASPIRATIONS, REPUBLICAN CONSTITUTIONAL FOUNDATIONS; POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS: A HELP OR HINDRANCE TO DEMOCRACY?; GOVERNMENT INSTITUTIONS; WHAT GOVERNMENT DOES: PUBLIC POLICIES. Anyone interested in understanding our government and why Americans are cynical about government.

Table of Contents

Preface	xi
Part One Democratic Aspirations, Republican Constitutional Foundations	1	(140)
The American Democratic Republic	3	(22)
Eighteenth-Century Republicanism	6	(6)
Democracy	12	(8)
The American Democratic Republic	20	(3)
Key Terms	23	(1)
Suggestions for Further Reading	23	(1)
Internet Sources	24	(1)
The Constitution	25	(25)
The Articles of Confederation: The First Constitution	27	(3)
The Democratic Challenge	30	(2)
The Constitutional Convention	32	(5)
What the Framers Created	37	(6)
The Struggle to Ratify the Constitution	43	(2)
The Changing Constitution and the American Democratic Republic	45	(3)
Key Terms	48	(1)
Internet Sources	48	(1)
Suggestions for Further Reading	48	(2)
Federalism	50	(31)
Federalism as a System of Government	52	(3)
Federalism in the Constitution	55	(3)
The Evolution of American Federalism	58	(11)
National Grants-in-Aid to the States	69	(5)
U.S. Federalism: Pro and Con	74	(3)
Federalism and the Democratic Republic	77	(1)
Key Terms	78	(1)
Internet Sources	79	(1)
Suggestions for Further Reading	79	(2)
Civil Liberties	81	(31)
Civil Liberties in the Constitution	84	(2)
Rights and Liberties in the Nineteenth Century	86	(2)
Nationalization of the Bill of Rights	88	(19)
Civil Liberties and the War on Terrorism	107	(2)
Civil Liberties and the Democratic Republic	109	(1)
Key Terms	110	(1)
Suggestions for Further Reading	110	(1)
Internet Sources	111	(1)
Civil Rights	112	(29)
Civil Rights Before the Twentieth Century	115	(5)
The Contemporary Status of Civil Rights for Racial Minorities	120	(9)
The Contemporary Status of Civil Rights for Women	129	(4)
Broadening the Civil Rights Umbrella	133	(4)
Civil Rights in the Democratic Republic	137	(2)
Key Terms	139	(1)
Internet Sources	139	(1)
Suggestions for Further Reading	139	(2)
Part Two Political Institutions	141	(172)
Public Opinion and Political Learning	143	(37)
Democracy and Public Opinion	146	(1)
Finding Out What People Think	147	(3)
Learning Political Beliefs and Attitudes	150	(13)
Are the People Fit to Rule?	163	(12)
Is Government Responsive to Public Opinion?	175	(2)
Public Opinion and the Democratic Republic	177	(1)
Key Terms	178	(1)
Suggestions for Further Reading	179	(1)
Internet Sources	179	(1)
The News Media	180	(35)
Roles of the News Media in a Democracy	182	(3)
The Media Landscape	185	(5)
How the News Media Work	190	(7)
Interpreting the News	197	(6)
Effects of the News Media on Politics	203	(3)
Government Regulation of the Media	206	(6)
Democratic and Republican Encounters	212	(1)
Key Terms	213	(1)
Suggestions for Further	213	(1)
Internet Sources	214	(1)
Interest Groups	215	(31)
The Role of Interest Groups: Contrasting Views	217	(3)
Factors in the Formation of Interest Groups	220	(3)
Interests Represented by Groups	223	(4)
What Interest Groups Do	227	(6)
Political Inequality: Flaws in the Pluralist Heaven	233	(5)
The Special Place of Business Corporations	238	(3)
Curing the Mischief of Factions	241	(1)
Interest Groups and the Democratic Republic	242	(2)
Key Terms	244	(1)
Suggestions for Further Reading	244	(1)
Internet Sources	245	(1)
Political Parties	246	(27)
The Role of Political Parties in a Democratic Republic	249	(3)
History of the Two-Party System	252	(4)
Why a Two-Party System?	256	(4)
The Parties as Organizations	260	(8)
The Parties in Government and the Electorate	268	(2)
Political Parties and the Democratic Republic	270	(1)
Key Terms	271	(1)
Suggestions for Further Reading	272	(1)
Internet Sources	272	(1)
Elections and Citizen Participation	273	(40)
The Place of Elections in Democratic and Republican Theories	277	(5)
Political Participation	282	(7)
Patterns of Participation	289	(3)
Campaigning for Office	292	(12)
Election Outcomes	304	(6)
Elections and Participation in the Democratic Republic	310	(1)
Key Terms	311	(1)
Suggestions for Further Reading	311	(1)
Internet Sources	312	(1)
Part Three Government Institutions	313	(136)
Congress	315	(41)
The Republican Constitutional Foundations of Congress	319	(3)
Representation and Democracy	322	(11)
How Congress Works	333	(18)
How Effective Is Congress?	351	(1)
Congress and the Democratic Republic	352	(2)
Key Terms	354	(1)
Suggestions for Further Reading	354	(1)
Internet Sources	355	(1)
The Presidency	356	(34)
The Expanding Presidency	360	(5)
The Powers and Roles of the President	365	(6)
The President's Staff and Cabinet	371	(5)
The President and the Bureaucracy	376	(2)
The President and Congress: Perpetual Tug of War	378	(4)
The President and the People: An Evolving Relationship	382	(4)
The Presidency and the Democratic Republic	386	(2)
Key Terms	388	(1)
Suggestions for Further Reading	388	(1)
Internet Sources	389	(1)
The Federal Bureaucracy	390	(27)
The Bureaucracy in Democratic and Eighteenth-Century Republican Doctrines	393	(1)
Transformation of the Bureaucracy	394	(4)
How the Executive Branch Is Organized	398	(2)
What Do Bureaucrats Do?	400	(2)
Who Are the Bureaucrats?	402	(4)
Political and Governmental Influences on Bureaucratic Behavior	406	(5)
Reforming the Federal Bureaucracy	411	(3)
The Federal Bureaucracy and the Democratic Republic	414	(1)
Key Terms	415	(1)
Suggestions for Further Reading	415	(1)
Internet Sources	416	(1)
The Courts	417	(32)
Constitutional Powers	421	(3)
The Federal Court System: Organization and Jurisdiction	424	(5)
Appointment to the Federal Bench	429	(2)
The Supreme Court in Action	431	(5)
The Supreme Court as a National Policy Maker	436	(6)
Outside Influences on the Court	442	(3)
The Supreme Court and the Democratic Republic	445	(1)
Key Terms	445	(1)
Internet Sources	446	(1)
Suggestions for Further Reading	446	(3)
Part Four What Government Does	449
Domestic Policy	451	(29)
Why Government Is Involved in the Economy and Social Welfare	451	(4)
Economic Policy	455	(4)
The Federal Budget and Fiscal Policy	459	(5)
Regulation	464	(3)
Social Welfare	467	(9)
Domestic Policies in the Democratic Republic	476	(2)
Key Terms	478	(1)
Suggestions for Further Reading	478	(1)
Internet Sources	479	(1)
Foreign Policy and National Defense	480
Foreign Policy and Democracy: A Contradiction in Terms?	483	(1)
The Superpower Status of the United States	484	(7)
Problems of the Post-Cold War World	491	(10)
Who Makes Foreign Policy?	501	(7)
Foreign and Defense Policies and the Democratic Republic	508	(2)
Key Terms	510	(1)
Suggestions for Further Reading	510	(1)
Internet Sources	511
Appendix	1	(1)
The Declaration of Independence	1	(3)
The Constitution of the United States	4	(16)
The Federalist Papers, Nos. 10, 51, and 78	20	(11)
Presidents and Congresses, 1789-2009	31	(7)
Chief Justices of the Supreme Court, 1789-2005	38
Glossary	1	(1)
Endnotes	1	(1)
Credits	1	(1)
Index	1