Polarized America: The Dance of Ideology and Unequal Riches (Walras-Pareto Lectures) [Paperback]

Nolan McCarty (Author), Keith T. Poole (Author), Howard Rosenthal (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 25, 2008 | Series: Walras-Pareto Lectures

The idea of America as politically polarized--that there is an unbridgeable divide between right and left, red and blue states--has become a cliché. What commentators miss, however, is that increasing polarization in recent decades has been closely accompanied by fundamental social and economic changes--most notably, a parallel rise in income inequality. In Polarized America, Nolan McCarty, Keith Poole, and Howard Rosenthal examine the relationships of polarization, wealth disparity, immigration, and other forces, characterizing it as a dance of give and take and back and forth causality.Using NOMINATE (a quantitative procedure that, like interest group ratings, scores politicians on the basis of their roll call voting records) to measure polarization in Congress and public opinion, census data and Federal Election Commission finance records to measure polarization among the public, the authors find that polarization and income inequality fell in tandem from 1913 to 1957 and rose together dramatically from 1977 on; they trace a parallel rise in immigration beginning in the 1970s. They show that Republicans have moved right, away from redistributive policies that would reduce income inequality. Immigration, meanwhile, has facilitated the move to the right: non-citizens, a larger share of the population and disproportionately poor, cannot vote; thus there is less political pressure from the bottom for redistribution than there is from the top against it. In "the choreography of American politics" inequality feeds directly into political polarization, and polarization in turn creates policies that further increase inequality.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A breath of fresh air.... A book that will guide and inform the study of polarization for years to come." Jeffrey A. Jenkins Chicago Tribune

"Important.... Essential reading for anyone who wants to understand what's happening to America." Paul Krugman New York Times

"The topic of polarizationits causes and consequenceshas risen to the front of the study of American politics. Nolan McCarty and his coauthors have written the gold standard against which others will be judged. Their analysis of the consequences of polarization has caused me to rethink my belief that there are no real policy consequences to the elite polarization of American politics." David W. Brady , Bowen H. and Janice Arthur McCoy Professor of Political Science and Leadership Values, Stanford University

"The topic of polarization -- its causes and consequences -- has risen to the front of the study of American politics. Nolan McCarty and his coauthors have written the gold standard against which others will be judged. Their analysis of the consequences of polarization has caused me to rethink my belief that there are no real policy consequences to the elite polarization of American politics."--David W. Brady, Bowen H. and Janice Arthur McCoy Professor of Political Science and Leadership Values, Stanford University

About the Author

Nolan McCarty is Professor of Politics and Public Affairs and Academic Dean of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University.

Keith T. Poole is Professor of Political Science at the University of California, San Diego.

Howard Rosenthal is Professor of Politics at New York University and Visiting Scholar at the Russell Sage Foundation.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: The MIT Press (January 25, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0262633612
• ISBN-13: 978-0262633611
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.4 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #435,365 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 26 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A worthwhile read September 2, 2006

By Douglas B. Wilson

Format:Hardcover

Polarized America is a difficult, but valuable read. Nolan McCarty, Keith Poole, and Howard Rosenthal, three political scientists wrote the book for other political scientists. Nevertheless, reading and then rereading the book is time well spent. Their arguments about our current political polarization are thoughtful and detailed. I will not summarize the book beyond a list of the chapters and a follow-up sentence.

1. The Choreography of American Politics

2. Polarized Politicians

3. Income Polarization and the Electorate

4. Immigration, Income, and the Voter's Incentive to Redistribute

5. Campaign Finance and Polarization

6. Polarization and Public Policy

7. Where Have you Gone, Mr. Sam [Rayburn]

Excellent graphics and tables, which the reader should avoid the temptation to skip, illustrate the chapters.

A one-sentence summary of their thesis is that America is politically stuck and is likely to remain so until tectonic social events move the parties from the political edges back to the middle, the position from which American political institutions work best.