The Politics of Power: A Critical Introduction to American Government

by Katznelson, Ira; Kesselman, Mark; Draper, Alan

• ISBN13: 9780393933253
• ISBN10: 0393933253
• Edition: 6th
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-08-06
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company

Summary

This brief introduction to American government highlights the ongoing tension between capitalism and democracy. With recent political conflict over issues such as how to rein in Wall Street, expand access to health care, put Americans back to work, and plan for an increasingly globalized future, the time is ripe for a new edition of The Politics of Power .

Table of Contents

List of What Do You Think? Boxes	p. xiii
Preface	p. xv
Democracy's Challenge	p. 1
Introduction	p. 1
Constitutional Democracy and Capitalism	p. 6
Standards of Democracy	p. 11
Political Change	p. 15
Conclusion	p. 20
Chapter Summary	p. 21
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 22
Suggested Readings	p. 23
American Political Economy	p. 25
Capitalism and Democracy	p. 28
Introduction	p. 28
The Dilemmas of Markets	p. 29
The System of Corporate Capitalism	p. 33
The Mobilization of Bias	p. 37
The Changing Landscape of American Capitalism	p. 39
Who Owns America's Private Government?	p. 43
The Changing Structure of Employment	p. 45
America's Extreme Market Capitalism	p. 50
Capitalist Instability and Crisis	p. 54
Conclusion	p. 59
Chapter Summary	p. 60
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 62
Suggested Readings	p. 63
The History of American Political Economy	p. 64
Introduction	p. 64
Competitive Capitalism	p. 67
The Rise of Corporate Capitalism	p. 69
A New Deal	p. 71
The Rise and Fall of the Golden Age	p. 74
The Rise of Extreme Market Capitalism, 1980-2008	p. 76
The Crisis of Extreme Market Capitalism	p. 82
A New Foundation	p. 84
Conclusion	p. 88
Chapter Summary	p. 89
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 91
Suggested Readings	p. 91
Political Participation	p. 93
Political Parties, Elections, and Public Opinion	p. 95
Introduction	p. 95
The Origins of the Two-Party System	p. 96
American Parties in Comparative Perspective	p. 97
Critical Elections and Party Decay	p. 99
Turnout and American Voters	p. 104
Money and Elections	p. 106
The Rise and Fall of the New Deal and Reagan Coalitions	p. 110
The 2008 Presidential Election and the Challenge to Republican Dominance	p. 115
Polarization and American Politics	p. 121
The New Media and Public Opinion	p. 125
Conclusion	p. 128
Chapter Summary	p. 129
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 132
Suggested Readings	p. 133
Interest Groups and Social Movements	p. 134
Introduction	p. 134
Interest Groups	p. 138
David and Goliath	p. 141
The Changing Quality of Membership	p. 144
E-Media, Interest Groups, and Political Participation	p. 146
A Comparative Perspective on American Interest Groups	p. 148
Social Movements	p. 150
Conclusion	p. 167
Chapter Summary	p. 167
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 169
Suggested Readings	p. 169
Political Institutions	p. 171
The Presidency	p. 175
Introduction	p. 175
The Historical Presidency	p. 178
The Imperial President	p. 181
The Perils of Presidential Power	p. 186
Directing the Executive	p. 192
The Exercise of Presidential Power	p. 198
Conclusion	p. 205
Chapter Summary	p. 206
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 209
Suggested Readings	p. 209
The Congress	p. 210
Introduction	p. 210
The Origin of Two Legislative Chambers	p. 213
Congress: Past and Present	p. 216
Congressional Careers and the Electoral Connection	p. 220
Members of Congress	p. 227
Realignment and Polarization	p. 229
The Legislative Process	p. 233
Seeking Influence	p. 239
Conclusion	p. 242
Chapter Summary	p. 243
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 245
Suggested Readings	p. 245
The Courts	p. 246
Introduction	p. 246
A Dual Court System	p. 250
The Federal Court System	p. 253
The Supreme Court	p. 259
The Modern Court: From Warren to Roberts	p. 269
Politics by Lawsuit	p. 278
The Courts in Comparative Perspective: Incarceration Nation	p. 280
Conclusion	p. 282
Chapter Summary	p. 283
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 285
Suggested Readings	p. 286
Public Policy	p. 287
Economic Policy	p. 289
Introduction	p. 289
The Government and the Economy	p. 289
Fiscal Policy	p. 294
Taxes	p. 296
Spending	p. 300
Monetary Policy	p. 303
Regulation	p. 309
Conclusion	p. 314
Chapter Summary	p. 316
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 317
Suggested Readings	p. 318
Social Policy	p. 319
Introduction	p. 319
The Historical Welfare State	p. 323
The New Deal and Beyond	p. 325
The New Poverty	p. 330
The Great Society Program	p. 332
From Reagan to Clinton	p. 336
From Bush to Obama	p. 339
Conclusion	p. 345
Chapter Summary	p. 347
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 349
Suggested Readings	p. 349
Foreign Policy	p. 350
Introduction	p. 350
Making Foreign Policy	p. 352
American Foreign Policy before World War II	p. 353
American Foreign Policy after World War II	p. 355
A New Era of Globalization?	p. 361
The Military Establishment	p. 365
The Shift to Unilateralism	p. 368
The Obama Presidency: Continuity or Change?	p. 373
Declining Hegemony?	p. 374
Conclusion	p. 377
Chapter Summary	p. 378
Critical Thinking Questions	p. 381
Suggested Readings	p. 381
Democracy's Character and Future	p. 382
Introduction	p. 382
Capitalism, and Democracy Revisited	p. 384
American Democracy in Theory and Practice	p. 388
Conclusion	p. 391
Endnotes E-1
Glossary G-1
Credits C-1
Index I-1
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