American Politics and Society (CourseSmart) - Softcover

McKay, David

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1405188421 ISBN 13: 9781405188425

Publisher: Wiley–Blackwell, 2009

Synopsis

A fresh and updated look at the social background to American political and economic life, the institutions and processes of government, and the most recent and dramatic events in the political arena.

• Fully updated to take into account the many political changes of the past four years and includes new chapters on environmental politics and the presidency
  
• Includes commentary of the 2008 presidential election, with the historic election of Barack Obama, and issues such as the changing balance of support for the Democrats and Republicans and the recent decline in the global reputation of the United States
  
• Student friendly style and design, with illustrations throughout
  
• Uses common examples across chapters
  
• Includes a range of pedagogical features, including definition boxes, biographies, chronologies, and more controversies than before

About this title

Review:

"This text is a lucid introduction to how American politics works but it offers so much more by providing the social, economic and historical context that shapes the American polity allowing us to understand how politics changes in the United States."
John G Francis, University of Utah

"There′s simply nothing like this text on the market. McKay has been consistently up to date in terms of dealing with the changes in US politics, up to the mark in integrating the best scholarship on US politics and up to the job of meeting both tutor and student demands. Authoritative, accessible and sophisticated, this book has become an integral foundation for teaching US politics"
Paul Taggart, University of Sussex

From the Back Cover:

American Politics and Society is a clear and concise introduction to US politics which explains, analyses, and interprets the processes of US government and, crucially, appraises them from a non–US perspective.

This completely revised new edition takes in the many changes which have occurred in US politics and explores the political and ideological polarization which some commentators see as a significant characteristic of US politics and society today. Engaging with such issues as the rapidly changing balance of support for the Democrats and Republicans, and the continuing decline in the global reputation of the United States, the book provides an up–to–date survey of the views and criticisms of leading political commentators, including commentary on the 2008 presidential election.

Written in an accessible style and packed with illustrations and pedagogical features, this book offers a fresh look at the social background to American political and economic life, the institutions and processes of government, and the most recent and dramatic events in the political arena.

An accompanying website containing additional support for lecturers and students is available at www.blackwellpublishing.com/mckay/

About this edition

• Publisher: Wiley–Blackwell
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 1405188421
• ISBN 13: 9781405188425
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 528