¶ … American citizenry is somewhat in the position of the unfortunate citizens of some third-world countries who try to stay out of the cross-fire while Maoist guerrillas and right-wing death squads shoot at each other. Reports of a culture war are mostly wishful thinking and useful fund-raising strategies on the part of culture-war guerrillas, abetted by a media driven by the need to make the dull and everyday appear exciting and unprecedented.
At the time of every election, both the Democrat and Republican presidential candidates begin spouting their strong political platform. Somewhere along the line of American history, and perhaps it was once true, there arose the belief that a major difference exists between the two parties' beliefs. In their book Culture War? The Myth of a Polarized America, Morris P. Fiorina of Stanford University, Samuel J. Abrams of Harvard University, and Jeremy C. Pope of Stanford University combine polling data with a corresponding historical background to negate the common myth that Americans are deeply divided in their fundamental views. When comparing the platforms of today's candidates, they may not be far from the truth.
The term "cultural war" stems back to a speech made by Christian rightwing Pat Buchanan who stated in 1992, "There is a religious war going on in this country, a cultural war as critical to the kind of nation we shall be as the Cold War itself, for this war is for the soul of America." Buchanan took the term from a 1991 book, Culture Wars by sociologist James Davison Hunter who divided United States voters into the culturally "orthodox" and the culturally "progressive." He believed that this rift would become larger over the coming decade.
Fiorina et. al. In Culture War? especially looked at beliefs concerned with critical issues such as abortion, gender, religion and homosexuality to determine the degree of rift between American voters. They found that most people stand in the middle of the political landscape, preferring centrist candidates from either party to the extreme partisans who often emerge from the primary process. It is the political parties and the media that have ignored this fact and distorted public perceptions. "The country is gray, not red or blue," said Abrams.
According to Fiorina, who specializes in elections, public opinion and Congress, "increasingly, we hear politicians, interest group leaders, and assorted 'activists' speak half-truths to the American people. They tell us that the United States is split right down the middle, bitterly and deeply divided about national issues, when the truth is more nearly the opposite."
For example, the Republicans, especially the religious right, expect that the issue of gay rights and same-sex marriages will sway voters one way or the other in this coming election.
What's missing is intensity," said Fiorina. "You can do a poll and find that 75% of the country prefers Coke to Pepsi, but that doesn't mean they feel all that strongly about it. I haven't seen any indication in the polls that this is a major issue for most people. Just the opposite: This issue comes in at or near the bottom when you go asking people what's important to them in this election."
In polls, a majority of residents express a favorable opinion of the Democratic Party, while 50% of voters think well of Republicans.
The book Culture War? presented evidence that voters in red (Republican states) and blue (Democratic states) America are in fact quite close. Majorities in both places support stricter gun control as well as the death penalty; they strongly oppose giving blacks preference in hiring while also wanting the government to guarantee that blacks are treated fairly by employers. They are against outlawing abortion completely or allowing it under any circumstances, and their opinions on abortion have been fairly stable for three decades.
Across a range of other matters, blue and red state residents differ little, if at all," the authors reported. Looking at public opinion on a long list of issues, from school vouchers to estate taxes to Medicare prescription drug coverage, they said, "one wonders why anyone would bother separating respondents into red and blue categories, since the differences are so insignificant."
Similarly, the authors argue that for all the differences between...
American Politics Introduction to Kevin Phillips Kevin Phillips is a well-known, controversial yet respected writer and political analyst, who writes about the political and social world of contemporary America with a sense of literary style and an "at the bottom of it" substance. His most recent book, American Dynasty: Aristocracy, Fortune, and the Politics of Deceit in the House of Bush, would seem to give the literary and politically uninitiated all the
American Politics Historically, the significance of the executive branch has increased during periods of war, crisis and economic turmoil, while the legislative branch has assumed greater responsibility during peaceful reprieves and ostensibly stable times. The relation between these two branches is complicated, but the increase of power and prestige of the president during crisis times must be approached in two ways: the president as a more efficient executive administrator of policy,
American Politics In the U.S. society, the political powers of groups are determined by the demographic and institution characteristics. The powers is divided into two models, these includes; the pluralism which was created by the Madisonian democracy and the elitism. Pluralism is a system where the decisions of politics are being made resulting to the bargaining and negotiation among the special interested groups. For this case, no one is allowed to
Not all money is illegal, of course, since politicians running for office need money to pay for their campaigns. But some money given to members of Congress is given illegally and influence is given illegally. And the benefits that the lobbyists receive is money and power and free trips and a life of luxury, in most cases. Take lobbyists, for example. The lobbyist is hired by a company or an
This rule is applicable to all states except North Dakota which does not require registration. Absentee ballots and mail ballot options are also available for voters who could not make it to the election booth. This is the election process in the United States. Problems of the local governments Local governments have a vital role to play in the country because they are the closest government body for the citizens. Despite
The critical part of this decision is its date - 2002. McConnell v. Federal Election Commission decided the manor in which the 2005 election would be campaigned, and while the political world blistered in post-9/11 heat, the Bush v. Kerry campaign was taking on such importance that the Justices' opinion would be immediately decisive in the outcome of yet another election. Although not as direct as their role in the Bush
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now