American Political Science

These days it seems that nobody is satisfied with American democracy. Critics across the ideological spectrum warn that the country is heading toward catastrophe but also complain that nothing seems to change. At the same time, many have begun to wonder if the gulf between elites and ordinary people has turned democracy itself into a myth. The urge to defend the country’s foundations and to dismantle them coexist—often within the same people. How did we get here? Why does it feel like the country is both grinding to a halt and falling to pieces?

This book explores the idea that America has only one political party, the Republican Party....

The first Thanksgiving at Plymouth in 1621 was a powerfully symbolic event and not merely the pageant of abundance that we still reenact today. In these early encounters between Indians and English in North America, food was also symbolic of power: The venison brought to Plymouth by the Indians, for example, was resonant of both masculine skill with weapons and the status of the men who offered it. These meanings were clearly understood by Plymouth's leaders, however weak they appeared in comparison.

As both a religiously observant person and a veteran of forty years in elective office, Senator Joe Lieberman is uniquely prepared to answer this question. In fact, he is the first person with political experience to pose and answer such a question in response to the current crisis of political division and governmental dysfunction in America. Lieberman breaks down the causes of our political problems—including partisanship, incivility, and refusal to compromise—and then describes what the monotheistic faith that Christians, Jews, and Muslims share calls on us to do to overcome those problems.

Oligarchy is a threat to the American republic. When too much economic and political power is concentrated in too few hands, we risk losing the "republican form of government" the Constitution requires. But as Joseph Fishkin and William Forbath show in this retelling of constitutional history, a commitment to prevent oligarchy once stood at the center of a robust tradition in American political and constitutional thought.

Most Americans agree that our political system is fundamentally broken. It is increasingly clear that politicians are dedicated not to the public's welfare but to their own reelections, which are dependent on unbending loyalty to party leaders and perpetual fund-raising. The justice system is entangled with electoral machinations, perverting the checks and balances. But the electoral system can be mended. Douglas E. Schoen lays out a series of provocative yet highly achievable solutions that will compel politicians to be responsive to citizens rather than to special interests.

The suburbs have become too liberal and diverse for many white American conservatives, so "exurbia"—areas outside the cities and their suburbs—are becoming the staging ground for the radical right extremist insurgency . . .

Taking stock of our fragmented political landscape, Michael Patrick Lynch delivers a trenchant philosophical take on digital culture and its tendency to make us into dogmatic know-it-alls. The internet - where most shared news stories are not even read by the person posting them - has contributed to the rampant spread of "intellectual arrogance". In this culture, we have come to think that we have nothing to learn from one another; we are rewarded for emotional outrage over reflective thought; and we glorify a defensive rejection of those different from us.

In this essential new book, Vali Nasr argues that the Obama administration had a chance to improve its relations with the Middle East, but instead chose to pursue its predecessor's questionable strategies there. Nasr takes listeners behind the scenes at the State Department and reveals how the new government's fear of political backlash and the specter of terrorism crippled the efforts of diplomatic giants, like Richard Holbrooke and Hillary Clinton, to boost America's foundering credibility with world leaders.

Featuring current information and challenging perspectives on the latest issues and forces shaping the American educational system, with scholarship that is often cited as a primary source, the author introduces listeners to the historical, political, social, and legal foundations of education and to the profession of teaching in the United States.

America is broken. America is divided. 80% of Americans believe the country is on the wrong track. And everything you need to know about the divided states of America can be explained by two relentless forces: hyper-individualism and hyper-capitalism. This book explores how both hyper-individualism and hyper-capitalism are what is fundamentally ripping our country apart. Traditional solutions and status quo politicians can’t help us.

This is the epic story of how African-Americans, in the six decades following slavery, transformed themselves into a political people - an embryonic black nation. As Steven Hahn demonstrates, rural African-Americans were central political actors in the great events of disunion, emancipation, and nation-building. At the same time, Hahn asks us to think in more expansive ways about the nature and boundaries of politics and political practice.

The Bill of Rights is a concise yet profound collection of documents that shaped one of the most vital cornerstones of American democracy. This book presents the complete text of the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution, collectively known as the Bill of Rights, alongside influential writings that inspired their creation.

In this explosive book, New York Times bestselling author and president of Judicial Watch Tom Fitton explains how the Radical Left and the Deep State destroyed the Trump presidency.

Over the last generation, the United States has undergone seismic changes. Stable institutions have given way to frictionless transactions, which are celebrated no matter what collateral damage they generate. The concentration of great wealth has coincided with the fraying of social ties and the rise of inequality. How did all this come about? In Transaction Man, Nicholas Lemann explains the United States’ - and the world’s - great transformation by examining three remarkable individuals who epitomized and helped create their eras

New York Times best-selling author David Talbot and New Yorker journalist Margaret Talbot illuminate “America’s second revolutionary generation” in this gripping history of one of the most dynamic eras of the 20th century - brought to life through seven defining radical moments that offer vibrant parallels and lessons for today.

The first significant book on the history and impact of the ADA - the "eyes on the prize" moment for disability rights. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is the widest-ranging and most comprehensive piece of civil rights legislation ever passed in the United States, and it has become the model for disability-based laws around the world. Yet the surprising story behind how the bill came to be is little known.

Russia and China are increasingly revisionist in their regions. The Middle East appears to be unraveling. And many Americans question why the United States ought to lead. What will great power competition look like in the decades ahead? What impact will geopolitics have on globalization? And what strategy should the United States pursue to succeed in an increasingly competitive world? In this book, Thomas Wright explains how major powers will compete fiercely even as they try to avoid war with each other.

A social activist, journalist, public theologian, and international speaker who has become a powerful and brilliant voice of her generation offers a bold path to liberation and healing for people of African descent struggling in the shadows of the American Dream.

The year 2020 was a tumultuous time in American politics. It brought a global pandemic, protests for racial justice, and a razor-thin presidential election outcome. It culminated in an attack on the US Capitol that attempted to deny Joe Biden's victory. The Bitter End explores the long-term trends and short-term shocks that shaped this dramatic year and what these changes could mean for the future. Ultimately, instead of the country coming together to face national challenges—the pandemic, George Floyd's murder, and the Capitol riot—the challenges only reinforced divisions.