The Politics of the Presidency

The Politics of the Presidency
Author: Joseph A. Pika
Publisher: CQ Press
Total Pages: 598
Release: 2021-11-16
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 154439084X

Get the most up-to-date coverage and analysis of the presidency. Never losing sight of the foundations of the office, The Politics of the Presidency maintains a balance between historical context and contemporary scholarship on the executive branch, providing a solid foundation for any presidency course. In this Revised Tenth Edition, bestselling authors Joseph A. Pika, John Anthony Maltese, and Andrew Rudalevige present a thorough analysis of the change and continuity following the November 2020 presidential election and Biden administration.

The Presidency and the Politics of Racial Inequality

The Presidency and the Politics of Racial Inequality
Author: Russell Lowell Riley
Publisher: Columbia University Press
Total Pages: 404
Release: 1999
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 9780231107228

The U.S. occupation of Japan transformed a brutal war charged with overt racism into an amicable peace in which the issue of race seemed to have disappeared. During the Occupation, the problem of racial relations between Americans and Japanese was suppressed and the mutual racism transformed into something of a taboo so that the two former enemies could collaborate in creating democracy in postwar Japan. In the 1980s, however, when Japan increased its investment in the American market, the world witnessed a revival of the rhetoric of U.S.-Japanese racial confrontation. Koshiro argues that this perceived economic aggression awoke the dormant racism that lay beneath the deceptively smooth cooperation between the two cultures. This pathbreaking study is the first to explore the issue of racism in U.S.-Japanese relations. With access to unexplored sources in both Japanese and English, Koshiro is able to create a truly international and cross-cultural study of history and international relations.

The Politics of the Presidency

The Politics of the Presidency
Author: Joseph A. Pika
Publisher: CQ Press
Total Pages: 555
Release: 2016-01-04
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 148337565X

The Politics of the Presidency maintains a balance between historical context and contemporary scholarship on the executive branch, providing a solid foundation for any presidency course. Get the most up-to-date coverage and analysis in this comprehensive and accessible text. Authors Joseph A. Pika and John Anthony Maltese are joined for the Ninth Edition by noted scholar Andrew Rudalevige as they present a thorough analysis of the change and continuity in the presidency during Barack Obama's two terms in an entrenched partisan environment, discuss the competitive setting for the upcoming 2016 election, and look at the challenges and opportunities a new president will soon face.

Presidential Leadership in Political Time

Presidential Leadership in Political Time
Author: Stephen Skowronek
Publisher: University Press of Kansas
Total Pages: 272
Release: 2020-01-30
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 0700629432

In this expanded third edition, renowned scholar Stephen Skowronek, addresses Donald J. Trump’s presidency. Skowronek’s insights have fundamentally altered our understanding of the American presidency. His “political time” thesis has been particularly influential, revealing how presidents reckon with the work of their predecessors, situate their power within recent political events, and assert their authority in the service of change. A classic widely used in courses on the presidency, Skowronek’s book has greatly expanded our understanding of and debates over the politics of leadership. It clarifies the typical political problems that presidents confront in political time, as well as the likely effects of their working through them, and considers contemporary innovations in our political system that bear on the leadership patterns from the more distant past. Drawing out parallels in the politics of leadership between Andrew Jackson and Franklin Roosevelt and between James Polk and John Kennedy, it develops a new and revealing perspective on the presidential leadership of Clinton, Bush, Obama, and now Trump. In this third edition Skowronek carefully examines the impact of recent developments in government and politics on traditional leadership postures and their enactment, given the current divided state of the American polity, the impact of the twenty-four-hour news cycle, of a more disciplined and homogeneous Republican party, of conservative advocacy of the “unitary theory” of the executive, and of progressive disillusionment with the presidency as an institution. A provocative review of presidential history, Skowronek’s book brims with fresh insights and opens a window on the institution of the executive office and the workings of the American political system as a whole. Intellectually satisfying for scholars, it also provides an accessible volume for students and general readers interested in the American presidency.

The Politics of Presidential Appointments

The Politics of Presidential Appointments
Author: David E. Lewis
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Total Pages: 311
Release: 2010-12-16
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1400837685

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, many questioned whether the large number of political appointees in the Federal Emergency Management Agency contributed to the agency's poor handling of the catastrophe, ultimately costing hundreds of lives and causing immeasurable pain and suffering. The Politics of Presidential Appointments examines in depth how and why presidents use political appointees and how their choices impact government performance--for better or worse. One way presidents can influence the permanent bureaucracy is by filling key posts with people who are sympathetic to their policy goals. But if the president's appointees lack competence and an agency fails in its mission--as with Katrina--the president is accused of employing his friends and allies to the detriment of the public. Through case studies and cutting-edge analysis, David Lewis takes a fascinating look at presidential appointments dating back to the 1960s to learn which jobs went to appointees, which agencies were more likely to have appointees, how the use of appointees varied by administration, and how it affected agency performance. He argues that presidents politicize even when it hurts performance--and often with support from Congress--because they need agencies to be responsive to presidential direction. He shows how agency missions and personnel--and whether they line up with the president's vision--determine which agencies presidents target with appointees, and he sheds new light on the important role patronage plays in appointment decisions.

Jockeying for the American Presidency

Jockeying for the American Presidency
Author: Lara M. Brown
Publisher: Cambria Press
Total Pages: 496
Release: 2010
Genre: History
ISBN: 1604977027

"This book will compel scholars to take a new look at the role of "political opportunism" in the presidential selection process. Lara Brown provides a fresh, innovative exploration of the roots of opportunism, one that challenges conventional wisdom as it advances our understanding of this complex topic."--Michael A. Genovese, Loyola Marymount University.

The Politics Presidents Make

The Politics Presidents Make
Author: Stephen Skowronek
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Total Pages: 592
Release: 1997-03-25
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 9780674689374

This study aims to demonstrate that presidents are persistent agents of change, continually disrupting and transforming the political landscape. The politics of the "third way" is also discussed in relation to Bill Clinton's political strategies.

Power Without Persuasion

Power Without Persuasion
Author: William G. Howell
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Total Pages: 262
Release: 2003-07-28
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0691102708

Since the early 1960s, scholarly thinking on the power of U.S. presidents has rested on these words: "Presidential power is the power to persuade." Power, in this formulation, is strictly about bargaining and convincing other political actors to do things the president cannot accomplish alone. Power without Persuasion argues otherwise. Focusing on presidents' ability to act unilaterally, William Howell provides the most theoretically substantial and far-reaching reevaluation of presidential power in many years. He argues that presidents regularly set public policies over vocal objections by Congress, interest groups, and the bureaucracy. Throughout U.S. history, going back to the Louisiana Purchase and the Emancipation Proclamation, presidents have set landmark policies on their own. More recently, Roosevelt interned Japanese Americans during World War II, Kennedy established the Peace Corps, Johnson got affirmative action underway, Reagan greatly expanded the president's powers of regulatory review, and Clinton extended protections to millions of acres of public lands. Since September 11, Bush has created a new cabinet post and constructed a parallel judicial system to try suspected terrorists. Howell not only presents numerous new empirical findings but goes well beyond the theoretical scope of previous studies. Drawing richly on game theory and the new institutionalism, he examines the political conditions under which presidents can change policy without congressional or judicial consent. Clearly written, Power without Persuasion asserts a compelling new formulation of presidential power, one whose implications will resound.

Presidents and the Politics of Agency Design

Presidents and the Politics of Agency Design
Author: David E. Lewis
Publisher: Stanford University Press
Total Pages: 240
Release: 2004-09-02
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 0804766916

The administrative state is the nexus of American policy making in the postwar period. The vague and sometimes conflicting policy mandates of Congress, the president, and courts are translated into real public policy in the bureaucracy. As the role of the national government has expanded, the national legislature and executive have increasingly delegated authority to administrative agencies to make fundamental policy decisions. How this administrative state is designed, its coherence, its responsiveness, and its efficacy determine, in Robert Dahl’s phrase, “who gets what, when, and how.” This study of agency design, thus, has implications for the study of politics in many areas. The structure of bureaucracies can determine the degree to which political actors can change the direction of agency policy. Politicians frequently attempt to lock their policy preferences into place through insulating structures that are mandated by statute or executive decree. This insulation of public bureaucracies such as the National Transportation Safety Board, the Federal Election Commission, and the National Nuclear Security Administration, is essential to understanding both administrative policy outputs and executive-legislative politics in the United States. This book explains why, when, and how political actors create administrative agencies in such a way as to insulate them from political control, particularly presidential control.