Spotlight: Affluence and Influence: Economic Inequality and Political Power in America
Martin Gilens
Princeton University Press
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From the publisher: As this book demonstrates, America's policymakers respond almost exclusively to the preferences of the economically advantaged. Affluence and Influence definitively explores how political inequality in the United States has evolved over the last several decades and how this growing disparity has been shaped by interest groups, parties, and elections.
With sharp analysis and an impressive range of data, Gilens looks at thousands of proposed policy changes and the degree of support for each among poor, middle-class, and affluent Americans. His findings are staggering: when preferences of low- or middle-income Americans diverge from those of the affluent, there is virtually no relationship between policy outcomes and the desires of less advantaged groups. In contrast, affluent Americans' preferences exhibit a substantial relationship with policy outcomes whether their preferences are shared by lower-income groups or not.
At a time when economic and political inequality in the United States only continues to rise, Gilen raises important questions about whether American democracy is responding to the needs of all its citizens.
Martin Gilens is professor of politics at Princeton University. He is the author of Why Americans Hate Welfare: Race, Media, and the Politics of Antipoverty Policy.
Spotlight: An Argument for Same-Sex Marriage: Religious Freedom, Sexual Freedom, and Public Expressions of Civic Equality
Emily R. Gill
Georgetown University Press
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From the publisher: The relationship between religious belief and sexuality as personal attributes exhibits some provocative comparisons. Despite the nonestablishment of religion in the United States and the constitutional guarantee of free exercise, Christianity functions as the religious and moral standard in America. Ethical views that do not fit within this consensus often go unrecognized as moral values. Similarly, in the realm of sexual orientation, heterosexuality is seen as the yardstick by which sexual practices are measured. The notion that “alternative” sexual practices like homosexuality could possess ethical significance is often overlooked or ignored.
Gill contends that, just as US law and policy ensure that citizens may express religious beliefs as they see fit, the First Amendment should also ensure that citizens may marry as they see fit. Civil marriage, according to Gill, is a public institution, and the exclusion of some couples from a state institution is a public expression of civic inequality.
Emily R. Gill is Caterpillar Professor of Political Science at Bradley University. She is the author of Becoming Free: Autonomy and Diversity in the Liberal Polity and coeditor of Moral Argument, Religion, and Same-Sex Marriage: Advancing the Public Good.
Spotlight: Money and Banks in the American Political System Kathryn C. Lavelle Cambridge University Press
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From the Publisher: Debates over financial politics are woven into the political fabric of the state and contemporary conceptions of the American dream. The author argues that the political sources of instability in finance derive from the nexus between market innovation and regulatory arbitrage. This book explores monetary, fiscal, and regulatory policies within a political culture characterized by the separation of business and state, and mistrust of the concentration of power in any one political or economic institution. The bureaucratic arrangements among the branches of government, the Federal Reserve, executive agencies, and government sponsored enterprises incentivize agencies to compete for budgets, resources, governing authority, and personnel.
Kathryn C. Lavelle is the Ellen and Dixon Long Professor of World Affairs at Case Western Reserve University and author of Legislating International Organization: The US Congress, the IMF, and the World Bank and The Politics of Equity Finance in Emerging Markets as well as numerous chapters, articles, and book reviews.
Spotlight: Plato Verus Parmenides: The Debate over Coming-Into-Being in Greek Philosophy
Robert Roecklein
Lexington Books
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From the publisher: Plato versus Parmenides investigates the concept of genesis, or coming-into-being, a problem that has absorbed the greatest philosophical thinkers. Robert J. Roecklein focuses on two: Plato and Parmenides from Elea. Particularly interesting to Roecklein is how the respective arguments of the reality, or lack thereof, of coming-into-being function as a political barometer- as to how Plato and Parmenides sketch foundations for political regimes.'
“Robert J. Roecklein deals with perennial questions of philosophy by going back to the beginning. His erudite and provocative treatment of Parmenides and Plato is a welcome addition to the literature. His book should prove of interest for all students of political philosophy.”—Stephen Eric Bronner, Rutgers University
Robert Roecklein is a lecturer in political science and rhetoric at Pennsylvania State University, Erie.
Spotlight: Representing Red and Blue: How the Culture Wars Change the Way Citizens Speak and Politicians Listen
David C. Barker and Christopher Jan Carman
Oxford University Press
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From the publisher: What is a political representative's job? Are they supposed to figure out what “the people” want and deliver it, or are they charged to do what they think is best for their constituents—even if that means ignoring those constituents' wishes? The authors explore what people think about this question, why their answers vary, and why it matters. They observe that citizens of “Red America”—religious and cultural traditionalists, including most Republicans—often prefer lawmakers who challenge public opinion, whereas “Blue Americans,” or culturally progressive Democrats, typically prefer lawmakers who follow it.
David C. Barker is associate professor of political science at the University of Pittsburgh and director designate of the Institute of Social Research at California State University, Sacramento. He has authored many scholarly articles on public opinion and electoral politics.
Christopher Jan Carman is senior research lecturer in Government at the University of Strathclyde. He is also a co-author of Elections and Voters in Britain, 3rd ed. and served as a consultant for the Scottish Parliament and a psephologist for BBC News.
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