Presidential Puppetry documents what many millions have long suspected: secretive elites guide our government leaders. The first book to analyze the Obama second term is also one of the first to examine the 2012 elections. Puppetry reveals scandals and shows why Congress, courts, and other watchdog institutions fail to report key facts about even the biggest news makers. Puppetry unfolds like a mystery extending over decades to the present. By the end, this compelling narrative documented with 1,200 endnotes shows hidden links between puppet masters, political leaders, spy agencies, and the economic austerity now being imposed on a hapless public. By exposing key secrets, it provides a roadmap for reform.

Scholars and lay persons alike routinely express concern about the capacity of democratic publics to respond rationally to emotionally charged issues such as crime, particularly when race and class biases are invoked. This is especially true in the United States, which has the highest imprisonment rate in the developed world, the result, many argue, of too many opportunities for elected officials to be highly responsive to public opinion. Limiting the power of democratic publics, in this view, is an essential component of modern governance precisely because of the risk that broad democratic participation can encourage impulsive, irrational and even murderous demands. These claims about panic-prone mass publics-about the dangers of 'mob rule'-are widespread and are the central focus of Lisa L. Miller's The Myth of Mob Rule. Are democratic majorities easily drawn to crime as a political issue, even when risk of violence is low? Do they support 'rational alternatives' to wholly repressive practices, or are they essentially the bellua multorum capitum, the "many-headed beast," winnowing problems of crime and violence down to inexorably harsh retributive justice? Drawing on a comparative case study of three countries-the U.S., the U.K. and the Netherlands-The Myth of Mob Rule explores when and with what consequences crime becomes a politically salient issue. Using extensive data from multiple sources, the analyses reverses many of the accepted causal claims in the literature and finds that: serious violence is an important underlying condition for sustained public and political attention to crime; the United States has high levels of both crime and punishment in part because it has failed, in racially stratified ways, to produce fundamental collective goods that insulate modern democratic citizens from risk of violence, a consequence of a democratic deficit, not a democratic surplus; and finally, countries with multi-party parliamentary systems are more responsive to mass publics than the U.S. on crime and that such responsiveness promotes protection from a range of social risks, including from excessive violence and state repression.

E-Government describes the utilization of technologies to improve the lives of citizens and business organizations while facilitating the operation of the government. With the rise of new technologies, governments need to consider implementing Web 2.0 and mobile technologies as a way to offer relevant e-services to citizens so that they may fully participate in governmental affairs. Emerging Mobile and Web 2.0 Technologies for Connected E-Government highlights the latest technologies and how they can be implemented by the government and effectively used by citizens. This book aims to be an inclusive reference source for researchers, practitioners, students, and managers interested in the application of recent technological innovations to develop a more effective e-government system.

In the era of globalization, awareness surrounding issues of violence and human rights violations has reached an all-time high. In a world where billions of human beings have the potential to create endless destruction, these same individuals are capable of working cooperatively to create adequate solutions to current global problems. The Handbook of Research on Transitional Justice and Peace Building in Turbulent Regions focuses on current issues facing nations and regions where poverty and conflict are endangering the lives of citizens as well as the socio-economic viability of those regions. Highlighting crucial topics and offering potential solutions to problems relating to domestic and international conflict, societal safety and security, as well as political instability, this comprehensive publication is designed to meet the research needs of economists, social theorists, politicians, policy makers, human rights activists, researchers, and graduate-level students across disciplines.

Istvan Bibo (1911-1979) was a Hungarian lawyer, political thinker, prolific essayist, and minister of state for the Hungarian national government during the Hungarian Revolution of 1956. This magisterial compendium of Bibo's essays introduces English-speaking audiences to the writings of one of the foremost theorists and psychologists of twentieth-century European politics and culture. Elegantly translated by Peter Pasztor and with a scholarly introduction by Ivan Zoltan Denes, the essays in this volume address the causes and fallout of European political crises, postwar changes in the balance of power among countries, and nation-building processes.

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press's mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1972.

Every politically sentient American knows that Congress has been dominated by special interests, and many people do not remember a time when Congress legislated in the public interest. In the 1960s and '70s, however, lobbyists were aggressive but were countered by progressive senators and representatives, as several books have documented. What has remained untold is the major behind-the-scenes contribution of entrepreneurial Congressional staff, who planted the seeds of public interest bills in their bosses' minds and maneuvered to counteract the influence of lobbyists to pass laws in consumer protection, public health, and other policy arenas crying out for effective government regulation. They infuriated Nixon's advisor, John Ehrlichman, who called them ""bumblebees,"" a name they wore as a badge of honor. For his insider account, Pertschuk draws on many interviews, as well as his fifteen years serving on the staff of the Senate Commerce Committee that Senator Warren Magnuson chaired and as the committee's Democratic Staff Director. That committee became, in Ralph Nader's words, ""the Grand Central Station for consumer protection advocates.

This new edition covers each of the current issues concerning the development of the EU - for example, enlargement, EMU, security and defence policy, the Treaty of Nice, the European Charter of Fundamental Rights, Justice and Home Affairs and relations with countries outside Europe. Jargon-free and accessible, this substantial textbook opens with an introduction to the historical and theoretical perspectives on European integration. The book then examines the EUs institutional machinery and policy processes. The final section provides a wide-ranging review of the main EU policies, seeking to enhance understanding of the main issues and controversies surrounding development of the EU. Intended for students undertaking courses in European integration and as a supplementary book for other courses, this textbook is useful for anyone seeking a concise yet authoritative introduction to the institutions and policies of the EU. Robert Jones has drawn on his wide teaching experience to produce a text which students will find both accessible and stimulating.

Much has been written since "Capital" was first published, and more recently after the demise of the Soviet Union and the consequent triumph of neoliberalism, about the irrelevance, inconsistency, and obsoleteness of Marx. This has been attributed to his unworkable method of inquiry. This book goes against the current. It introduces the issues that are presently most hotly debated, it evaluates them, and it groups them into four headings, each one of them corresponding to a chapter. At the same time, it submits a new reading of Marx s method of social research and on this basis it argues that Marx s work offers a solid foundation upon which to further develop a multi-faceted theory of crises highly relevant for the contemporary world.

This book analyzes the structure of our constitutional system of government, providing an overview of the constitutional history of American federalism as it has been developed in decisions of the United States Supreme Court. Federalism: A Reference Guide to the United States Constitution provides a thorough examination of this significant and distinctive part of the U.S. constitutional system, documenting its role in major domestic constitutional controversies in every period of American history. Although the book is organized historically rather than doctrinally, the marked evolutions of important areas of doctrine are addressed over time. These subject areas include the scope of Congress's power under the Commerce Clause, the scope of Congress's powers under the Fourteenth and other post-Civil War Amendments, the states' authority to regulate commercial and economic matters when Congress is silent, the principle of the supremacy of federal law and the law of preemption that follows from it, intergovernmental and sovereign immunities, the obligation of state courts to enforce federal law, and the scope of national power to regulate or impose obligations on the states. Provides historical information in a clear, chronological order Enables law students and lawyers to improve their understanding of the legal doctrines that underlie today's conflicts. Documents the relationships among different doctrines across particular time periods

The actions, images and stories within films can impact upon the political consciousness of viewers, enabling their audience to imagine ways of resisting the status quo, politically, economically and culturally. But what does political theory have to say about film? Should we explore film theory through a political lens? Why might individuals respond to the political within films? This book connects the work of eight radical political theorists to eight world-renowned films and shows how the political impact of film on the aesthetic self can lead to the possibility of political resistance. Each chapter considers the work of a core thinker on film, shows its relevance in terms of a specific case study film, then highlights how these films probe political issues in a way that invites viewers to think critically about them, both within the internal logic of the film and in how that might impact externally on the way they live their lives. Examining this dialogue enables Ian Fraser to demonstrate the possibility of a political impact of films on our own consciousness and identity, and that of others.

Many reformers argue that the future of democracies depends on the quality of their political institutions. If so, it may be worthwhile examining the democratic-instrumental vision of citizens and their representatives--which assumes that they can and should decide how they might be organized and governed--and thereby develop a better theoretical understanding of the nature, architecture, dynamics of change, performance, and effects of institutions.
It may be useful to study the possibilities and limitations of governing through deliberately changing institutional arrangements and thereby achieving intended, anticipated and desired effects--including how institutions contribute to organized rule, orderly change, civilized co-existence, unity in diversity and the ability to accommodate and continuously balance rather than eliminate what John Stuart Mill called "standing antagonisms."
Governing through Institution Building offers an organization-theory-based institutional approach and it assumes that a fruitful route to improved understanding of political organization and government is to observe large-scale institutional reforms. The primary source of insight is the grand experiment in political integration through institution building and polity formation in Europe--the European Union. Yet, the book relates to century-long controversies concerning what is good government and how best to organize common affairs. The main challenge is to examine the claim that theoretical ideas and concepts developed in the context of the sovereign state are outdated in the context of the emerging European polity and a globalized world and to analyze what students of political institutions, as well as citizens, can learn from recent European experiments in democratic organization and government.

A Sunday Times and FT Book of the Year

When a rising power threatens to displace a ruling one, the most likely outcome is war.

In this razor-sharp analysis, Harvard scholar Graham Allison examines the phenomenon known as Thucydides’s Trap, which is currently playing out between the world’s two biggest superpowers: the US and China.

Through uncanny historical parallels, Destined for War shows how close we are to the unthinkable. Yet, stressing that war is not inevitable, Allison also reveals how clashing powers have kept the peace in the past ― and what painful steps international leaders can and must take to avoid disaster.

Robert Justin Goldstein's Political Repression in Modern America provides the only comprehensive narrative account ever published of significant civil liberties violations concerning political dissidents since the rise of the post -- Civil War modern American industrial state. A history of the dark side of the "land of the free", Goldstein's book covers both famous and little-known examples of governmental repression, including reactions to the early labor movement, the Haymarket affair, "little red scares" in 1908, 1935, and 1938-41, the repression of opposition to World War I, the 1919 "great red scare", the McCarthy period, and post-World War II abuses of the intelligence agencies.

Enhanced with a new introduction and an updated bibliography, Political Repression in Modern America remains an essential record of the relentless intolerance that suppresses radical dissent in the United States.

This book investigates early modern women's interventions in politics and the public sphere during times of civil war in England and France. Taking this transcultural and comparative perspective, and the period designation "early modern" expansively, Antigone's Example identifies a canon of women's civil-war writings; it elucidates their historical specificity as well as the transhistorical context of civil war, a context which, it argues, enabled women's participation in political thought.

Why should states matter and how do relations between fellow-citizens affect what is owed to distant strangers? How, if at all, can demanding egalitarian principles inform political action in the real world? This book proposes a novel solution through the concept of avant-garde political agency. Lea Ypi grounds egalitarian principles on claims arising from conflicts over the distribution of global positional goods, and illustrates the role of avant-garde agents in shaping these conflicts and promoting democratic political transformations in response to them. Against statists, she defends the global scope of equality, and derives remedial cosmopolitan principles from global responsibilities to relieve absolute deprivation. Against cosmopolitans, she shows that associative political relations play an essential role and that blanket condemnation of the state is unnecessary and ill-directed. Advocating an approach to global justice whereby domestic avant-garde agents intervene politically so as to constrain and motivate fellow-citizens to support cosmopolitan transformations, Global Justice and Avant-Garde Political Agency offers a fresh and nuanced example of political theory in an activist mode. Setting the contemporary debate on global justice in the context of recent methodological disputes on the relationship between ideal and nonideal theorizing, Ypi's dialectical account illustrates how principles and agency can genuinely interact.

Saudi Vision 2030 and the National Transformation Plan 2020 are governmental initiatives to diversify Saudi Arabia's economy and implement nationwide social changes. Media and scholarly attention often describe the success or failure of these ambitious visions. This book shifts the focus to instead examine and evaluate the actual processes of domestic policymaking and governance that are being mapped out to achieve them. The book is unique in its breadth, with case studies from across different sectors including labour markets, defence, health, youth, energy and the environment. Each analyses the challenges that the country's leading institutions face in making, shaping and implementing the tailored policies that are being designed to change the country's future. In doing so, they reveal the factors that either currently facilitate or constrain effective and viable domestic policymaking and governance in the Kingdom. The study offers new and ground-breaking research based on the first-hand experiences of academics, researchers, policy-makers and practitioners who have privileged access to Saudi Arabia. At a time when analysis and reportage on Saudi Arabia usually highlights the 'high politics' of foreign policy, this book sheds light on the 'low politics' to show the extent to which Saudi policy, society, economics and culture is changing.

What global future would ensure hope, justice and peace to the human mankind? In view of a fast evolving post-Covid world order, this volume explores a novel Christian post-colonial approach to global affairs. It examines the existing 'sociology of the powers' theoretical scheme, the debate between Christian realism and Christian pacifism, the method and practice of prophetic witnessing, to elaborate a new Christian approach to statecraft and futurology in terms of theory, methodology and ontology. This book: * Uses the COVID-19 pandemic as the background to examine why and how the pandemic has accelerated the US's decline, and to identify the tacit game rules that contributed to the UK government's mishandling of the pandemic; * Compares the political systems between China and the West, and engages with selected theoretical narratives from the Global South to envision an alternative 'shared globalisation' project; * Argues why it is important for post-colonial Christian individuals and communities to get involved in this global discussion for a new world order of complex realist interdependencies grounded on hope, social justice and peace. A fresh take on global politics and international relations, this volume will be of great interest to scholars and researchers of political science, religious studies, peace studies, theology and future studies.

Politically and economically, the future of the United States is at stake. In "Restore the Future," author Donald H. Young seeks to galvanize the American people to guarantee a traditional future for our children and grandchildren through participation in a nonviolent Second American Revolution.

This Revolution of the people is as justified as the first one, and it would be accomplished by using the extraordinary voting power granted to them by the Constitution to restore constitutional government. Without this Revolution, it can truly be said that the best days of the United States are behind it.

In this treatise, he:

reviews historical forms of government and shows how the founding documents created the pinnacle of the development of government to date;

follows the outline of the Declaration of Independence in describing the many grievances we have with our government today, based on its extraordinary departures from the founding documents, which justify the Revolution;

discusses religion, its importance to the Founders, the elemental morality it provides, and the importance of morality to the necessary function of society;

discusses the nature of liberty, how it is different from freedom, and why maximizing liberty is one of the primary responsibilities of government;

outlines the derivation of and the importance of the rule of law to the functioning of a society;

highlights the tragic failure of American education by global standards;

communicates the rationale for and critical importance of free enterprise and free trade and why free enterprise is the greatest engine for economic growth and personal development in the history of the world;

provides a roadmap for the accomplishment of the Revolution.

Worldwide newspaper headlines in recent years have covered political unrest in many East Asian nations. Citizens in these nations have become more vocal about their governments and the populace's role in those governments. Democracy is not the dominant form of government in many of these nations. However, as nations have evolved, social change and economic developments have brought increasingly pro-democratic forces to the forefront. Examining the forces of economic growth and social modernization and their impact on democratization provides the basis of this timely study. Using China, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Vietnam as case studies, this book delves into these nations' Confucian cultural heritage and how that heritage allows for careful comparison of variables which affect societal values. Will East Asian nations embrace democracy? Will the nations already democratic become stronger? This book offers insightful responses to these critical questions. Democratization in East Asia is an important addition for collections in political science and Asian studies.

Thomas Paine's "Rights of Man" posits that popular political revolution is permissible when a government does not safeguard its people, their natural rights, and their national interests. Using these points as a base it defends the French Revolution against Edmund Burke's attack in "Reflections on the Revolution in France."

This is an examination of the implicit phenomenological and existential foundations of Schmitt's political philosophy. "Groundless Existence" discusses the implicit phenomenological and existential foundations of Schmitt's political philosophy. The book's unique contribution lies in its claim that Schmitt decisively breaks with the metaphysical tradition and predicates the political on the 'groundless' categories of existence, including risk, decision, and agonism. This argument is substantiated by both tacit and explicit existentialist and phenomenological underpinnings of Schmitt's work, discussed here for the first time in book form. The book provides an insight into the implications of Schmitt's thought reconceptualized in the light of contemporary political developments. An essential text for anyone interested in the political theory of Carl Schmitt, it offers a new reading of Schmitt's work against the double background of phenomenology and existentialism.

How should failed states in Africa be understood? Catherine Scott here critically engages with the concept of state failure and provides an historical reinterpretation. She shows that, although the concept emerged in the context of the post-Cold War new world order, the phenomenon has been attendant throughout (and even before) the development of the Westphalian state system. Contemporary failed states, however, differ from their historical counterparts in one fundamental respect: they fail within their existing borders and continue to be recognised as something that they are not. This peculiarity derives from international norms instituted in the era of decolonisation, which resulted in the inviolability of state borders and the supposed universality of statehood. Scott argues that contemporary failed states are, in fact, failed post-colonies. Thus understood, state failure is less the failure of existing states and more the failed rooting and institutionalisation of imported and reified models of Western statehood. Drawing on insights from the histories of Uganda and Burundi, from pre-colonial polity formation to the present day, she explores why and how there have been failures to create effective and legitimate national states within the bounds of inherited colonial jurisdictions on much of the African continent.