Keeping the Republic: Power and Citizenship in American Politics / Edition 5

by Christine Barbour, Gerald C. Wright

Overview

A consistent and compelling narrative is crucial to student engagement with any book. But sadly, so many brief editions are mere cut-and-paste versions of their comprehensive selves. Not the case with Keeping the Republic?s brief edition. Carefully condensed by Barbour and Wright, this text gives your students all the continuity and crucial content of the full version, just in a more concise, value-oriented package. And now, your students benefit from a new full-color interior design. Photos jump off the page and colorful charts, tables, and maps enhance students? data literacy. Repeatedly praised for engaging students to think critically about ?who gets what and how? in American politics, Barbour and Wright show them how institutions and rules determine who wins and who loses in the political arena. The authors carefully craft each graphic, boxed feature, and vignette to develop students? analytic capabilities. By introducing them to the seminal work in the field and showing them how to employ the themes of power and citizenship, this proven text builds confidence in students who want to take an active part in their communities and government?so they play their part in keeping the republic.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781452220154
Publisher:	SAGE Publications
Publication date:	12/20/2012
Edition description:	Fifth Edition
Pages:	640
Product dimensions:	7.40(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Christine Barbour teaches in the political science department and the Honors College at Indiana University, where she has become increasingly interested in how teachers of large classes can maximize what their students learn. At Indiana, Professor Barbour has been a Lilly Fellow, working on a project to increase student retention in large introductory courses, and a member of the Freshmen Learning Project, a university-wide effort to improve the first year undergraduate experience. She has served on the New York Times College Advisory Board, working with other educators on developing ways to integrate newspaper reading into the undergraduate curriculum. She has won several teaching awards at Indiana, but the two that mean the most to her were awarded by her students: the Indiana University Student Alumni Association Award for Outstanding Faculty (1995-6) and the Indiana University Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists Brown Derby Award (1997). She is currently working on a book about local politics, development and the fishing industry in Apalachicola, Florida.

Gerald C. Wright has taught political science at Indiana University since 1981. He is an accomplished scholar of American politics, his books include Statehouse Democracy: Public Opinion, and Policy in the American States with co-authors Robert S. Erikson and John P. McIver, and he has published over 40 articles on elections, public opinion, and state politics. He has long studied the relationship between citizens, their preferences and public policy. He is currently conducting research with a grant from the National Science Foundation on what influences the character of policy representation in the states and the U.S. Congress, and he is writing a book about representation in the American legislatures. He has been a consultant for Project Vote Smart in the last several elections. Professor Wright is a member of the Freshmen Learning Project at Indiana University, a university-wide effort to improve the first year undergraduate experience by focusing on how today?s college students learn and how teachers can adapt their pedagogical methods to best teach them.

Table of Contents

Preface xvii

To the Student xxii

Ch 1 Power and Citizenship in American Politics 1

What's at Stake … in Taking It to the Streets? 1

What Is Politics? 4

Political Systems and the Concept of Citizenship 12

Democracy in America 18

Who Is a Citizen and Who Is Not? 20

What Do American Citizens Believe? 22

How to Use the Themes and Features in This Book 31

Citizenship and Politics 33

Let's Revisit: What's at Stake… 36

Profiles in Citizenship: Meagan Szydlowski 8

Don't Be Fooled by … Political Argument: CLUES to Thinking Critically About Politics 34

Summary With Key Terms 38

Ch 2 The Politics of the American Founding 41

What's at Stake … in Challenging the Legitimacy of the Government? 41

The Split From England 44

The Articles of Confederation 52

The Constitutional Convention 54

The Constitution 59

Ratification 65

Citizenship and the Founding 69

Let's Revisit: What's at Stake… 70

Profiles in Citizenship: Newt Gingrich 46

Don't Be Fooled by … Your Social Networks 50

Summary With Key Terms 71

Ch 3 Federalism 73

What's at Stake … When States Try to Prevent Undocumented Immigrants From Entering the United States? 73

What Is Federalism? 75

American Federalism Over Time 80

Federalism Today 85

Citizenship and Federalism 93

Let's Revisit: What's at Stake… 93

Don't Be Fooled by … the Op-Ed Pages 84

Who Are We? How we differ from state to state 92

Summary With Key Terms 95

Ch 4 Fundamental American Liberties 99

What's at Stake … in Requiring Employers to Provide Health Care Coverage for Contraception? 99

Rights in a Democracy 102

The Bill of Rights and the States 103

Freedom of Religion 105

Freedom of Expression 111

The Right to Bear Arms 121

The Rights of Criminal Defendants 123

The Right to Privacy 129

Citizenship and Civil Liberties 132

Let's Revisit: What's at Stake… 133

Who Are We? Religion in America 108

Profiles in Citizenship: Bill Maher 114

Summary With Key Terms 135

Ch 5 The Struggle for Equal Rights 137

What's at Stake … in the Adoption of Marriage Equality? 137

The Meaning of Political Inequality 140

Rights Denied on the Basis of Race 143

Rights Denied on the Basis of Race and Ethnicity 154

Rights Denied on the Basis of Gender 162

Rights Denied on Other Bases 169

Citizenship and Civil Rights Today 173

Let's Revisit: What's at Stake… 174

Don't Be Fooled by … the World Wide Web 160

Summary With Key Terms 175

Ch 6 Congress 177

What's at Stake … When the Use of the Filibuster Becomes Routine? 177

Understanding Congress 179

Congressional Powers and Responsibilities 183

Congressional Elections 187

Congressional Organization 194

How Congress Works 202

Citizenship and Congress 210

Let's Revisit: What's at Stake… 212

Profiles in Citizenship: Jon Tester 192

Who Are We? Our representatives in Congress 195

Summary With Key Terms 213

Ch 7 The Presidency 217

What's at Stake … in Expanding Executive Power Through Signing Statements? 217

The Double Expectations Gap 220

The Evolution of the American Presidency 222

Presidential Politics 232

Managing the Presidential Establishment 238

The Presidential Personality 245

Citizenship and the Presidency 248

Let's Revisit: What's at Stake… 248

Profiles in Citizenship: Joe Biden 242

Summary With Key Terms 250

Ch 8 The Bureaucracy 253

What's at Stake … in Federal Regulation of the Organic Food Industry? 253

What Is Bureaucracy? 255

The American Federal Bureaucracy 258

Politics Inside the Bureaucracy 265

External Bureaucratic Politics 270

Citizenship and the Bureaucracy 277

Let's Revisit: What's at Stake… 278

Who Are We? The federal bureaucrats 266

Summary With Key Terms 278

Ch 9 The American Legal System and the Courts 281

What's at Stake … When the Supreme Court Gets Involved in Partisan Politics? 281

Law and the American Legal System 283

Constitutional Provisions and the Development of Judicial Review 287

Federalism and the American Courts 289

The Supreme Court 295

Citizenship and the Courts 308

Let's Revisit: What's at Stake… 310

Profiles in Citizenship: Sandra Day O'Connor 304

Summary With Key Terms 311

Ch 10 Public Opinion 315

What's at Stake … When We Move to More Direct Democracy? 315

The Role of Public Opinion in a Democracy 317

Citizen Values 319

What Influences Our Opinions About Politics? 321

Measuring and Tracking Public Opinion 327

Citizenship and Public Opinion 337

Let's Revisit: What's at Stake… 340

Don't Be Fooled by … Public Opinion Polls 328

Who Are We? The demography of opinion 330

Profiles in Citizenship: Nate Silver 334

Summary With Key Terms 342

Ch 11 Parties and Interest Groups 345

What's at Stake … in Working With Interest Groups Early in the Policymaking Process? 345

What Are Political Parties? 347

The American Party System 352

The Roles, Formation, and Types of Interest Groups 362

Interest Group Politics 367

Interest Group Resources 372

Citizenship and Political Groups 378

Let's Revisit: What's at Stake… 379

Don't Be Fooled by … Political Party Platforms 357

Profiles in Citizenship: Wayne Pacelle 376

Summary With Key Terms 381

Ch 12 Voting, Campaigns, and Elections 383

What's at Stake … in How a Campaign Gets Out Its Vote? 383

Exercising the Right to Vote in America 386

How the Voter Decides 393

Presidential Campaigns 397

Citizenship and Elections 415

Let's Revisit: What's at Stake… 416

Who Are We? How did we vote in the 2012 election? 404

Don't Be Fooled by … Campaign Advertising 408

Summary With Key Terms 417

Ch 13 The Media 419

What's at Stake … in the Demise of the Print News Media? 419

Where Do We Get Our Information? 422

Who Owns the Media, and How Does That Affect Our News? 427

Who Are the Journalists? 434

The Media and Politics 439

Citizenship and the Media 450

Let's Revisit: What's at Stake… 451

Don't Be Fooled by … the News Media 442

Profiles in Citizenship: Andrew Sullivan 448

Summary With Key Terms 453

Ch 14 Domestic and Foreign Policy 455

What's at Stake … in Moving to Renewable Energy? 455

Making Public Policy 457

Social Policy 464

Economic Policy 476

Foreign Policy 489

Citizenship and Policy 497

Let's Revisit: What's at Stake… 498

Who Are We? Poverty and the American people 470

Don't Be Fooled by … Economic Indicators 478

Profiles in Citizenship: Peter Orszag 484

Summary With Key Terms 499

Appendix Material A-1

Articles of Confederation A-2

Declaration of Independence A-8

Constitution of the United States A-11

Notes N-1

Glossary G-1

Index I-1

Profile Sources S-1

Illustration Credits C-1

Editorial Reviews

I had the pleasure of using Keeping the Republic in the American Government courses I taught at the College of Charleston from the fall of 2017 to the spring of 2019. Within a year of the 2016 presidential election, I was able to present students with a textbook containing detailed election content and weaving election results and data analysis together seamlessly with news reports, interviews, photographs, key political concepts, and historical content. Compelling infographics added legibility to the election data presented and kept students engaged by adding real-world context to traditional coverage of government and politics.”

Roneka Matheny

Keeping the Republic is ideal for my political science courses at my university. Its graphics, charts, and infographics are useful for visual learners, the highlighted key expressions and “definition boxes” allow students to learn the terms lexically and to understand them in context, the supplementary lecture slides help students follow lectures and the tests are the best test teaching aid that saves time.”

Zaman Stanizai

In Keeping the Republic, Barbour and Wright present an extremely clear and accessible text for any introductory course on American politics. For the many students who come into the classroom with little preexisting knowledge about how the American political process works or what their place in it is, the text provides them with the core information they need as students and as citizens.

The What’s at Stake? features in each chapter help students understand why they should care about what they are reading; and how things like Congress, the courts, and political parties affect their lives and how they just may be able to affect politics themselves.”

Joel Kersting

"Responding to Benjamin Franklin’s answer to “what have you wrought”, Barbour and Wright expertly provide an outstanding guide for future citizens learning about governance and most importantly citizenship. A readable, logically developed text on American Government, the authors maintain the central theme of “We the People” – citizenship as the guardians of the great experiment.

Interspersed with present-day examples, guided primary source analysis, and variant perspectives, Keeping the Republic is the go-to text for challenging students to think critically about every aspect of their government. Overall, an excellent balance of narrative and analytical materials for the emerging and engaged citizen."

Gary Donato

With a focus on critical thinking, analysis, and evaluation, Keeping the Republic covers the essential topics for an American Politics course by effectively linking history and current events. The What’s at Stake? feature at the beginning and end of each chapter tells a story that brings abstract concepts to life so that students can appreciate how many ways our political system directly connects to their lives. Students also learn how to critically evaluate and analyze issues and political processes, as well as assess the actions taken by those in power.

There are many texts that explain the fundamental theories and concepts associated with American politics. Keeping the Republic not only helps students understand the complexity of the American political system, but it also provides the necessary tools for learning how to be active and engaged members of society.”

Alison Howard

"I have been using Barbour and Wright’s Keeping the Republic in my Introduction to American Politics classes for over a decade, and I will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. Keeping the Republic is engaging and approachable, and manages to cover a broad array of complex subjects without watering down the content.

I’ve assigned Barbour and Wright’s book in Intro to American Politics courses taught both at a research-oriented university, as well as at a teaching oriented regional university. Even with very different student bodies, it is a fantastic book for introducing students to the fundamentals of American politics, and then opening the door for in-depth class discussions on topics such as the role of mass media in shaping—and driving—public opinion in the United States. As a former attorney, I also appreciate the realistic overview of the day-to-day functioning of the American legal system! "

Salvatore J. Russo

Barbour and Wright’s long-standing textbook continually tells the story of American politics in a captivating, fun, and accessible way. I appreciate the detail given to special sections found within each chapter. These include the colorful and descriptive Big Picture inserts that focus students’ attention by displaying foundational concepts including the development of the Constitution, how a bill becomes a law, and the evolution of political parties in an attractive and visual format. The Don’t Be Fooled By features help students to consider important ideas prevalent in today’s digitized political world like big data, clickbait, and public opinion polls.

Keeping the Republic gets top marks in my class for striking a balance between an approachable narrative and supplemental features that allow for reviewing central themes and ideas. It should be considered by all instructors looking to engage students more fully in their classroom.”

Austin Trantham

Keeping the Republic brings the student as much into the discussion of American politics as possible. The book is well-written and provides context and factual material such that students can see themselves as part of the process and not simply as winners or losers.

Mark Cichock

Keeping the Republic is the Goldilocks of the introductory American politics textbook market. The authors do an excellent job of weaving the themes of power and citizenship throughout the book, and I appreciate the fact that Barbour and Wright emphasize analysis and evaluation throughout their text.

Craig Ortsey

If I were a college student today, I would love to have Keeping the Republic as my primary text. I really like the features, such as Snapshot of America and Don’t Be Fooled By. The visuals are fantastic and full of wonderful information for students.

Dewey Clayton

Keeping the Republic is an American government text that works equally well for political science majors and general education students. It successfully combines the science of political science with a practical emphasis on citizenship and critical evaluation of the political world, providing students with valuable skills they need.

Carolyn Myers

Keeping the Republic is an engaging textbook with absolutely amazing features. It’s the type of book that’s actually fun to just flip through because it has such interesting graphics

Sally Hansen

The book is a concise read; has updated photos and images, plus a sizeable portion of historical images and events. This is a rounded book…The book does well by [integrating] a discussion of citizenship and its broader implication for the extant political culture.

Kalu N. Kalu

The content is thorough and clearly broken into separate sections which convey concepts in a manner that students can focus on systematically…The ninth edition contains a tremendous amount of valuable information and I am excited about the extent of the content and the way the content is organized… The book’s updated theme of power and citizenship and the ways the control of the political narrative has been translated into political power and how it has shifted within the new social media is refreshingly timely.

Paul Thomas Rabchenuk

I consistently recommend the book to [colleagues] who are teaching American government for the first time. It is easy to use, and it provides all of the basics that any student would ever need to know. It is easy for students to read, and it challenges their preconceived notions about the world...

James W. Stoutenborough