Publics, Politics and Power


Book Description

Very stimulating and intellectually exciting. In fact, I think it is one of the best books I have read for a long time. - Professor Carsten Greve, International centre for Business and Politics at the Copenhagen Business School Publicness appears to be in decline or retreat in the face of markets, consumerism and individualism. Yet questions of public participation, public governance and the reform of public services are at the top of the political agenda in many countries. Publics, Politics and Power offers an innovative analysis of the changing fortunes of publicness. The book " Explores the emergence of new forms, sites and practices of publicness and the implications for public services. " Examines the remaking of the public in the context of new formations of the nation, where issues of migration, diversity and faith challenge traditional forms of solidarity and citizenship. " Traces the emergence of hybrid organizational forms and new strategies for governing publics and public services. " Assesses some of the ways in which the public domain is being recast around notions of civil society, community, and populist participatory politics. Chapters include vignettes illustrating the book′s core concepts, making this a useful teaching resource and valuable reading for students of public management, public and social policy, sociology and cultural studies, and for those working in public services. Janet Newman is a Professor of Social Policy at the Open University, and Director of the Publics Research Programme within the Centre for Citizenship, Identities and Governance. John Clarke is a Professor of Social Policy at the Open University. His research has centred on conflicts over the future of welfare states, public services and citizenship in the UK and elsewhere.




Publics, Politics and Power


Book Description

Very stimulating and intellectually exciting. In fact, I think it is one of the best books I have read for a long time. - Professor Carsten Greve, International centre for Business and Politics at the Copenhagen Business School Publicness appears to be in decline or retreat in the face of markets, consumerism and individualism. Yet questions of public participation, public governance and the reform of public services are at the top of the political agenda in many countries. Publics, Politics and Power offers an innovative analysis of the changing fortunes of publicness. The book " Explores the emergence of new forms, sites and practices of publicness and the implications for public services. " Examines the remaking of the public in the context of new formations of the nation, where issues of migration, diversity and faith challenge traditional forms of solidarity and citizenship. " Traces the emergence of hybrid organizational forms and new strategies for governing publics and public services. " Assesses some of the ways in which the public domain is being recast around notions of civil society, community, and populist participatory politics. Chapters include vignettes illustrating the book′s core concepts, making this a useful teaching resource and valuable reading for students of public management, public and social policy, sociology and cultural studies, and for those working in public services. Janet Newman is a Professor of Social Policy at the Open University, and Director of the Publics Research Programme within the Centre for Citizenship, Identities and Governance. John Clarke is a Professor of Social Policy at the Open University. His research has centred on conflicts over the future of welfare states, public services and citizenship in the UK and elsewhere.




Power to the Public


Book Description

“Worth a read for anyone who cares about making change happen.”—Barack Obama A powerful new blueprint for how governments and nonprofits can harness the power of digital technology to help solve the most serious problems of the twenty-first century As the speed and complexity of the world increases, governments and nonprofit organizations need new ways to effectively tackle the critical challenges of our time—from pandemics and global warming to social media warfare. In Power to the Public, Tara Dawson McGuinness and Hana Schank describe a revolutionary new approach—public interest technology—that has the potential to transform the way governments and nonprofits around the world solve problems. Through inspiring stories about successful projects ranging from a texting service for teenagers in crisis to a streamlined foster care system, the authors show how public interest technology can make the delivery of services to the public more effective and efficient. At its heart, public interest technology means putting users at the center of the policymaking process, using data and metrics in a smart way, and running small experiments and pilot programs before scaling up. And while this approach may well involve the innovative use of digital technology, technology alone is no panacea—and some of the best solutions may even be decidedly low-tech. Clear-eyed yet profoundly optimistic, Power to the Public presents a powerful blueprint for how government and nonprofits can help solve society’s most serious problems.




American Business and Political Power


Book Description

Most people believe that large corporations wield enormous political power when they lobby for policies as a cohesive bloc. With this controversial book, Mark A. Smith sets conventional wisdom on its head. In a systematic analysis of postwar lawmaking, Smith reveals that business loses in legislative battles unless it has public backing. This surprising conclusion holds because the types of issues that lead businesses to band together—such as tax rates, air pollution, and product liability—also receive the most media attention. The ensuing debates give citizens the information they need to hold their representatives accountable and make elections a choice between contrasting policy programs. Rather than succumbing to corporate America, Smith argues, representatives paradoxically become more responsive to their constituents when facing a united corporate front. Corporations gain the most influence over legislation when they work with organizations such as think tanks to shape Americans' beliefs about what government should and should not do.




Public Administration


Book Description

Public Administration: Power and Politics in the Fourth Branch of Government presents public administration through the lens of politics and the policy-making power of the bureaucracy. By showing how the bureaucracy influences daily life, Smith and Licari bring the field of public administration alive for students. This text dispels the myth that the study of public administration is boring or irrelevant to students' lives by demonstrating just how deeply it pervades our lives. The authors focus on the bureaucracy--"the fourth branch of government"--as a key ingredient in politics and policy-making. This approach is novel, but it accurately reflects the true nature of public administration in America. This book examines our bureaucracy's considerable political power, where it comes from, how it is used, and how it can be controlled. Major Features: * Unique focus on political and policy-making power. This is the first public administration textbook to focus on the political and policy-making power of the bureaucracy. Without abandoning coverage of more traditional topics, this approach is more compelling to students because it demonstrates just how much influence the bureaucracy wields in our daily lives. * Highlights the tension between democracy and bureaucracy. A central paradox at the heart of the political system is democracy's reliance on the very undemocratic bureaucratic institutions that characterize the administrative branch of government. This text seeks to explain why and lay out the implications of that dependency. * Details the role and legitimacy of public administration in a democracy. There is an uneasy and fascinating relationship between the democratically elected leadership in government and the bureaucracies needed to carry out their decisions. This tension forms a running theme throughout the book. * Solid multidisciplinary foundation. This book draws on literature by the most important academics in the fields of both public administration and political science. * Readability. Smith and Licari write in an engaging, informal style that is rich in lively examples and free of academic jargon. Key terms are included in a glossary.










City Politics


Book Description

Judd, Dennis R., Swanstrom, Todd, City Politics: Private Power Public Policy, 3rd Edition*\ Praised for its narrative style, strong research base, and distinctive theme-that urban politics in the U.S. has evolved as a dynamic interaction between governmental power and private purposes-the new edition of this #1 book is the most extensive revision yet. It has been updated to include preliminary data from the 2000 census, information about urban partisan movements and a new chapter on urban sprawl. Three primary themes are woven throughout the text: the imperative of growth; the challenge of governance; and the politics of secession. For those interested in urban politics and studies.




Women and Politics


Book Description

Women and Politics: Paths to Power and Political Influence examines the role of women in politics from the early women's movements to the female politicians in power today. The revised fourth edition includes: a new preface analyzing the 2020 elections, focusing on the historic victory of Kamala Harris and the gendered and racist critiques she endured on the campaign trail. recognition of the centennial of women's suffrage, with greater attention to Black and Indigenous women's often overlooked contributions to the fight for suffrage and expanded rights election results from the historic 2020 elections when more women filed congressional candidacies than ever before and women’s numbers in both Congress and state legislatures reached record highs. analysis of the gender gap in voting in 2020, focusing on both race and gender. updates reflecting President Biden's historic cabinet picks, including Deb Haaland as the first Native American to lead the Department of the Interior and Janet Yellen as the first woman to lead the Treasury Department. coverage of the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the nomination and confirmation of her replacement, Amy Coney Barrett.




Government against Itself


Book Description

As workers in the private sector struggle with stagnant wages, disappearing benefits, and rising retirement ages, unionized public employees retire in their fifties with over $100,000 a year in pension and healthcare benefits. The unions defend tooth and nail the generous compensation packages and extensive job security measures they've won for their members. However, the costs they impose crowd out important government services on which the poor and the middle class rely. Attempts to rein in the unions, as in Wisconsin and New Jersey, have met with massive resistance. Yet as Daniel DiSalvo argues in Government against Itself, public sector unions threaten the integrity of our very democracy. DiSalvo, a third generation union member, sees the value in private sector unions. But in public sector, unions do not face a genuine adversary at the bargaining table. Moreover, the public sector can't go out of business no matter how much union members manage to squeeze out of it. Union members have no incentive to settle for less, and the costs get passed along to the taxpayer. States and municipalities strain under the weight of their pension obligations, and the chasm between well-compensated public sector employees and their beleaguered private sector counterparts widens. Where private sector unions can provide a necessary counterweight to the power of capital, public employee unionism is basically the government bargaining with itself; it's no wonder they almost always win. The left is largely in thrall to the unions, both ideologically and financially; the right would simply take a hatchet to the state itself, eliminating important and valuable government services. Neither side offers a realistic vision of well-run government that spends tax dollars wisely and serves the public well. Moving beyond stale and unproductive partisan divisions, DiSalvo argues that we can build a better, more responsive government that is accountable to taxpayers. But we cannot do it until we challenge the dominance of public sector unions in government. This carefully reasoned analysis of the power of public sector unions is a vital contribution to the controversial debates about public versus private unions, increasing inequality, and the role of government in American life