Customer Reviews

The Tyranny of the Two-Party System

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I'm not certain how else to say it except directly: it seems clear that Professor Pederson, author of the editorial review, simply failed to read Disch's book. The book was conceived well before Ventura's victory and written before the election of 2000, and its greatest strength is that it takes PRECISELY the historical view that Prof. Pederson calls for. This is NOT a case study of the TCANP, but an erudite, sophisticated and always approachable study of the practice, theory, and HISTORY of the American party "system." Disch takes her analsysis back to 19th century electoral poltics to show how the practice of fusion thrived and how fusion was outlawed through political maneuvering--not by some sort of historical inevitability. Her critique of the two-party system rests on her analysis of a lengthy history of party scholarship, not a "utopian" leanings or general "dissatisfaction." Pederson's review fails to even describe fusion--the common practice in the late nineteenth century of multiple parties nominating the same candidate--even though fusion is central to Disch's argument. He also fails to mention that Disch's critique of the two-party system centers on her brilliant ability to demonstrate how arbitrary and historically produced--how very much not a "system"--is the current configuration of party politics. Instead, Pederson tells us that the two-party system is a "bedrock" of American democracy. Well, almost every page in Disch's book patiently demonstrates for its readers the falsity of that claim. This book should quite simply be required reading for students of American politics and political theory. It makes a perfect complement to an intro course in either field, while at more advanced levels it contributes to advanced party scholarship and the debates over social constructivism. Moreover, the book should be highly recommended reading not just for folks outside of those fields, but for American citizens generally.

Students of American government (especially undergraduates) usually encounter the two-party system as a given: inevitable, immutable, American-as-apple-pie. This book does an outstanding job of showing how the system we currently have is the product of a series of political choices and circumstances, even beyond the impact of single-member districts and winner-take-all elections most commonly recognized in political science. The book uses the case of electoral fusion as a central focus, but the value of the book is broader than that. It shows, in very scholarly fashion, how the rules, ideology and political culture of our current system was created, and thus destroys the illusion that what we have now is inevitable and eternal. While the book isn't exactly "light" reading (Disch's training as a political theorist is obvious, and it serves the book well), it is very well-written. It will be most accessible to those readers with a bit of political science background.