Free eBooks Why Washington Won't Work: Polarization, Political Trust, And The Governing Crisis (Chicago Studies In American Politics) Available To Downloads
Polarization is at an all-time high in the United States. But contrary to popular belief, Americans are polarized not so much in their policy preferences as in their feelings toward their political opponents: To an unprecedented degree, Republicans and Democrats simply do not like one another. No surprise that these deeply held negative feelings are central to the recent (also unprecedented) plunge in congressional productivity. The past three Congresses have gotten less done than any since scholars began measuring congressional productivity. In Why Washington Won’t Work, Marc J. Hetherington and Thomas J. Rudolph argue that a contemporary crisis of trust—people whose party is out of power have almost no trust in a government run by the other side—has deadlocked Congress. On most issues, party leaders can convince their own party to support their positions. In order to pass legislation, however, they must also create consensus by persuading some portion of the opposing party to trust in their vision for the future. Without trust, consensus fails to develop and compromise does not occur. Up until recently, such trust could still usually be found among the opposition, but not anymore. Political trust, the authors show, is far from a stable characteristic. It’s actually highly variable and contingent on a variety of factors, including whether one’s party is in control, which part of the government one is dealing with, and which policies or events are most salient at the moment. Political trust increases, for example, when the public is concerned with foreign policy—as in times of war—and it decreases in periods of weak economic performance. Hetherington and Rudolph do offer some suggestions about steps politicians and the public might take to increase political trust. Ultimately, however, they conclude that it is unlikely levels of political trust will significantly increase unless foreign concerns come to dominate and the economy is consistently strong.
Series: Chicago Studies in American Politics
Paperback: 256 pages
Publisher: University Of Chicago Press (September 14, 2015)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 022629921X
ISBN-13: 978-0226299211
Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.7 x 9 inches
Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #462,576 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #183 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > United States > Legislative Branch #435 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > Elections & Political Process > Political Parties #853 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Politics & Government > United States > National
This is a great book that would appeal to political junkies and students of politics alike. In fact, anyone who wants to know why things have gone so wrong should think about reading this book. It has very clear exposition, is engagingly written, and is backed up by solid evidence.
Full of good analysis but would be difficult reading for the average voter. The theme is easy to understand, but the prominent use of sophisticated statistics would not appeal to most readers
Why Washington Won't Work: Polarization, Political Trust, and the Governing Crisis (Chicago Studies in American Politics) Governing Sound: The Cultural Politics of Trinidad's Carnival Musics (Chicago Studies in Ethnomusicology) Why Parties?: A Second Look (Chicago Studies in American Politics) Elements of Crisis Intervention: Crisis and How to Respond to Them (HSE 225 Crisis Intervention) In Time of War: Understanding American Public Opinion from World War II to Iraq (Chicago Studies in American Politics) The Submerged State: How Invisible Government Policies Undermine American Democracy (Chicago Studies in American Politics) Arresting Citizenship: The Democratic Consequences of American Crime Control (Chicago Studies in American Politics) Polarization in the US Catholic Church: Naming the Wounds, Beginning to Heal Fire on the Prairie: Harold Washington, Chicago Politics, and the Roots of the Obama Presidency Distorting the Law: Politics, Media, and the Litigation Crisis (Chicago Series in Law and Society) How Policies Make Citizens: Senior Political Activism and the American Welfare State (Princeton Studies in American Politics: Historical, International, and Comparative Perspectives) Idaho Living Trust Handbook: How to Create a Living Trust in Idaho and Save $30k in Probate Fees Build Your Own Living Revocable Trust: A Guide to Creating a Living Revocable Trust The Timeline of Presidential Elections: How Campaigns Do (and Do Not) Matter (Chicago Studies in American Politics) The City in a Garden: A History of Chicago's Parks, Second Edition (Center for American Places - Center Books on Chicago and Environs) Trapped in America's Safety Net: One Family's Struggle (Chicago Studies in American Politics) We Won't Pay! We Won't Pay! And Other Works: The Collected Plays of Dario Fo, Volume One (Collected Plays of Dario Fo (Paperback)) We Won't Pay! We Won't Pay! And Other Plays: The Collected Plays of Dario Fo, Volume 1 Breach of Trust: How Washington Turns Outsiders Into Insiders Rights at Work: Pay Equity Reform and the Politics of Legal Mobilization (Chicago Series in Law and Society)
