Dependent on D.C.: The Rise of Federal Control over the Lives of Ordinary Americans (Hardcover)

~ Charlotte A. Twight (Author) "The shift from personal autonomy to dependence on government is perhaps the defining characteristic of modern American politics..." (more)
Key Phrases: channeling ideological change, political transaction costs, natural transaction costs, United States, Supreme Court, Internal Revenue Service (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Americans have been seduced into surrendering their autonomy by an ever-growing federal government, contends Twight, economics professor at Boise State University. That refrain is hardly new, of course. Ronald Reagan used it to great effect in his early presidential campaigns. Twight offers a plausible explanation about why politicians like Reagan, who promise to "shrink" big government, find it so hard to do once in power. In her view, entrenched bureaucrats and politicians willfully manipulate "political transaction costs" (or the costs of collective action) in an effort to influence "people's perceptions of the costs and benefits of governmental activities." Stripped of its academic window dressing, Twight's thesis is straightforward: government insiders actively promote their own public policy initiatives. In her view, this promotion often takes the form of outright misrepresentation of costs and benefits to the individual citizen. Reviewing the history of the social security program, she explains how the Roosevelt administration won over an initially hostile public by inaccurately portraying the program as akin to "insurance," which it decidedly is not. The more citizens come to rely upon government programs, the less likely they are to agitate for reform, even when such reform is needed. In addition to social security, Twight discusses the federal government's growing involvement in health care, education, taxation and data collection. Her take on virtually all these programs is predictably dour: they fail to deliver the social benefits that their proponents promise while robbing Americans of autonomy. She also implies that those who promote big government do so largely out of self-interest. In short, Twight is so deeply distrustful of federal power that she invests no merit in the contrary position. Still, she offers a spirited argument that will engage readers who follow Washington politics.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Libertarians have a basic problem with government they don't believe it should exist except to provide a police force and a military. Nor do they appreciate the necessary role politicians perform in a democratic society. Instead, they retreat into the worst romanticisms of Thomas Jefferson. This first book by Twight reflects her specialty training outside political science and history, which includes a Ph.D. in economics, a law degree, and experience in programming computers. Like most libertarians, she espouses unrealistic ideals and ideas unrelated to pragmatic solutions to social and political issues. She fills this work with criticism of the expansion of federal authority during the past 70 years, never mind which political party governed. She also ignores lessons gathered over 2500 years of Western political philosophy, except to acknowledge that politicians may lie to cover up their misdeeds, which the author terms "transaction-cost-augmentation" i.e., they spend public money. September 11 makes most of this seem like abstract economic argument. Not recommended for general libraries; an optional purchase for large academic libraries. William D. Pederson, Louisiana State Univ. in Shreveport

Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan (January 12, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312294158
• ISBN-13: 978-0312294151
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.5 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,476,855 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars How to Boil a Frog, June 15, 2002

By	Michael Foudy (Falls Church, VA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

It has been said that if you were to put a frog into a pot of boiling water the frog would do it's best to escape, but that if you put the frog into tepid water and gradually heat the water to the boiling point the frog would just sit there until it dies. Never having boiled frogs I don't know whether or not that's true. But, it's a central premise of Charlotte Twight's book that if we were frogs, the government has us in the pot and has gradually brought the water to a point close to boiling.

Ms. Twight details how that happened with several examples including Social Security, federal income tax witholding, health care and education. The most frightening is her description of the rise of federal data collection. The bottom line is Big Brother is watching, he knows where you are and he can come get you anytime he wants because it's basically impossible for you to know all the laws much less abide by them.

Ms. Twight details how politicians and bureaucrats lie, cheat and steal to accomplish the ultimate goal of getting and holding power. She is more polite though and calls it political transaction cost manipulation.

I have only two complaints about the book. The first is that Ms. Twight fails to take into account the full force of government's fellow travelors in the media and special interest groups (ranging from labor unions to recipients of corporate welfare) and their impact on the growth of government. The second is that she doesn't do enough to put the evolution of America's government into a complete historical and philosophical context.

Nevertheless, this is a book well worth reading. If you were to read it in conjunction with "The Myth of the Robber Barons," "Bias" and "America's Thirty Years War" you would have a more complete picture of what is really going on.

But, whatever you do, read this book. It's worth the effort.

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Why Liberty Loses: The Economics of Public Policy Formation, January 15, 2002

By	W. E. Schetlick (FLEMINGTON, NEW JERSEY United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Wow! Charlotte Twight's book, "Dependent on DC" is clearly one of the best "scientific" political polemics I have ever read. Twight employs the economic analysis of the "law and economics" movement to explain why and how government has been successful in creating and maintaining the New Leviathan that contolls virtually every single aspect of our daily lives.

Twight explains that policy wonks, bureaucrats and legislators have been successful in altering the incidence of transaction costs related to government activity from government itself to the naysayers and adversaries of increased government at all levels, thereby making it difficult (if not impossible) for constitutionally-limited government to survive.

This book is both a serious academic work which should appeal to scholars and academics, as well as a political polemic designed for generally-sophisticated readers interested in the dynamics of public policy formation.

Once I picked it up, I couldn't put it down . . . a real page turner!

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If liberty is important to you... read this book., March 2, 2002

By	Benjamin G. Pratt "prattb" (Wichita, KS USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I agree with many of the comments regarding the "tough read" -- however, this was more true of the 2nd chapter that outlines the agenda and all of the ways transaction-costs are raised. You could almost skim or skip it and head to the rest of the chapters that bring her theory more alive through the examples of Social Security, Income Taxes, etc. These chapters read like a detective novel and provide tremendous education.

Part of the "transaction costs" inherent to understanding why government controls so much of our lives now is due to the somewhat dry nature of the material -- but perhaps slugging through a few dry parts of this book and trying to connect to them is part of the price that Jefferson referred to as the "eternal vigilance" required for freedom.

My experience to date is that most people simply don't want to be free. Although the wouldn't say it explicitly, their behavior shows that they'd rather be treated like children and taken care of by the state.

If liberty matters to you; if you would prefer to be treated like an adult... read this book.