― J.D., Wednesday, 16 May 2007 04:07 (eighteen years ago)
Do you mean like a solid academicy style grounding, or something more impressionistic? That Fear and Loathing On The Campaign Trail book is quite entertaining.
― The Real Dirty Vicar, Friday, 18 May 2007 20:11 (eighteen years ago)
i haven't finished it yet, but "the power game", by hedrick smith is a really engrossing and very-detailed look at esp. the reagan years and the dynamic of his presidency with congress set against the changes of american politics since he(smith) began covering washington DC in the 1960s. lots of interviews with insiders, specific case examples, etc. somewhat dated (1988?) but good.
i plan on reading "marathon: the pursuit of the presidency '72-'76" w/in the next year, to contrast with the unfolding 2008 campaign. 650+ pages. i'd love more recommendations too.
― derrrick, Saturday, 19 May 2007 05:26 (eighteen years ago)
"Politics: Observations & Arguments" (amazon)
― kclu, Wednesday, 23 June 2010 20:44 (fifteen years ago)
see also Dahl's "How Democratic Is the American Constitution?," an example of my personal favorite genre of American political writing. imo, the structural problems of a Senate (in which Vermont's population and California's population both receive two seats), deciding elections' winners through plurality rather than proportionality (runoffs or other alt. methods), an executive branch with unlimited power over foreign policy, a supreme court without term limits .. are of vastly greater consequence to us than our sensationalized contemporary debates.
actually, there's plenty of this in the Hertzberg collection. just get that and you'll have a lot to consider.
― kclu, Wednesday, 23 June 2010 21:05 (fifteen years ago)