The State of Democracy in America (Essential Texts in American Government series) - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0878408614 ISBN 13: 9780878408610

Publisher: Georgetown University Press, 2001

Synopsis

In this wide-ranging assessment of democracy in America today, fifteen respected scholars of American politics chart the strengths and weaknesses of the nation's democratic mechanisms and outline the challenges that lie ahead. They focus not on specific policies or elections but on the quality of American political life, the representativeness of its governing institutions, and the issues of racial and economic equity. The contributors cover a broad spectrum of the American political process. Topics include the extent and nature of political participation, the relevance of political parties, political fundraising and its policy consequences, demographic change and its likely effect on the national political agenda, and the future of racial politics. Others explore how representative Congress really is today, how the market economy affects public policy, the use of impeachment as a political weapon, and the degree of corporate influence on the political process. A final chapter explores the circumstances likely to shape policy agendas over the course of the twenty-first century. Taken together, these essays provide a clear picture of political evolution during the past fifty years and discuss possible problems and issues of the future. Written for advanced undergraduate and graduate students, this book is a thoughtful, well-documented, critical analysis of contemporary American democracy.

About this title

About the Author

William J. Crotty is Thomas P. O'Neill Chair in Public Life, director of the O'Neill Center for the Study of Democracy, and professor of political science at Northeastern University. His books include The Politics of Presidential Selection (HarperCollins, 1996) and the four-volume Political Science: Looking to the Future (Northwestern University Press, 1991).

Edition details

• Publisher: Georgetown University Press
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0878408614
• ISBN 13: 9780878408610
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 250
• Editor: Crotty William J.