Texas Politics: Governing the Lone Star State - Softcover

Jillson, Cal

9781138290679: Texas Politics: Governing the Lone Star State

Softcover

ISBN 10: 113829067X ISBN 13: 9781138290679

Publisher: Routledge, 2017

Cal Jillson continues to approach the politics of the Lone Star State from historical, developmental, and analytical perspectives, while giving students the most even-handed, readable, and engaging description of Texas politics available today. Throughout the book students are encouraged to connect the origins and development of government and politics in Texas--from the Texas Constitution, to party competition, to the role and powers of the Governor--to its current day practice and the alternatives possible through change and reform. This text helps instructors prepare their students to master the origin and development of the Texas Constitution, the structure and powers of state and local government in Texas, how Texas fits into the U.S. federal system, as well as political participation, the electoral process, and public policy in Texas.

Pedagogical Features

Each chapter opens with an engaging vignette and a series of focus questions to orient readers to the learning objectives at hand.

Each chapter concludes with a chapter summary, a list of key terms, review questions, suggested readings, and web resources.

Each chapter includes "Let's Compare" boxes to help students see how Texas sits alongside other states, "Pro & Con" boxes to bring conflicting political views into sharper focus, and "Texas Legend" boxes featuring important figures in Texas political history.

Tables, figures, timelines, and photos throughout highlight the major ideas, issues, individuals, and institutions discussed.

Key terms are bolded and defined in the text, listed at the end of the chapter, and included in a glossary at the end of the book

New to the 6th Edition

Comprehensive assessment of the impact of Rick Perry’s unprecedented 14-year tenure as Governor of Texas

Thorough consideration of the election of Sylvester Turner as Mayor of Houston and the national response to the police shootings in Dallas

Coverage and analysis of the 2014 gubernatorial and state elections, the 2015 state legislative session, and the 2016 national elections as they affect Texas

New boxes and narrative on current issues and laws, including:

state-constitutional conventions, secession, and federalism

voter identification

abortion

state budget, taxation and spending, and the 2016 Texas Supreme Court school funding decision

the University of Texas battle between Wallace Hall, Jr. and William Powers, and its implications for gubernatorial power over directing and changing state institutions

"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.

About the Author:

Cal Jillson earned a PhD from the University of Maryland and has taught at Louisiana State University and the University of Colorado, where he chaired the Department of Political Science from 1989 to 1993. He joined the faculty of Southern Methodist University in 1995 as professor and chair of the Department of Political Science (1995–2001). He is a member of the American Political Science Association and several regional political science associations. Professor Jillson has written a number of books dealing with the origins of the American political culture and the health and performance of contemporary American politics and political institutions. His recent books were American Government: Political Development and Institutional Change, 9th ed. 2018; Lone Star Tarnished: A Critical Look at Texas Politics and Public Policy, 2nd ed. 2014; and The American Dream in History, Politics, and Fiction, 2017.

Review:

Praise for Texas Politics

I've taught from all editions of Cal Jillson's Texas Politics and am now looking forward to the new edition. I've organized my Texas government course to the Jillson text and it works like a charm, be it for a full semester or a shorter summer session.

Gary Brown, Lone Star College-Montgomery

Ounce per ounce, this new Jillson edition is among the better reads on Texas politics. The mandated essentials for Student Learning Objectives are presented in clear, to-the-point prose. A good tool for government teachers and students of rough-and-tumble Texan politics.

Jose Angel Gutierrez, University of Texas-Arlington

Jillson’s text offers an excellent description and analysis of politics and political institutions in Texas. Students will appreciate the accessible and lively writing style. Brief but thorough, this textbook is well-suited to the task of introducing students to Texas government.

Daniel Sledge, University of Texas-Arlington

Cal Jillson has provided students with a concise yet thorough introduction to the often byzantine intricacies of the Texas government. Especially helpful are the special features in each chapter that bring abstract concepts into contemporary and concrete focus. Students who use this book will find it engaging, timely, and relevant, and will be spurred to further independent exploration of their state’s institutions, warts and all―a critical step toward becoming actively participating democratic citizens.

Kevin T. Holton, South Texas College

Cal Jillson has masterfully developed a Texas Politics book that combines readability with scholarship and enables the student to understand much of the institutional structure and unique character of Texas within the federal context. Jillson provides needed insights to understanding Texas institutions and the interactions of interest groups within those institutions. He does so in an enjoyable, readable format while addressing the important Texas state-mandated student learning outcomes and the significance of Texas politics for everyone. Texas Politics is reflective of the myriad interesting stories which have made Texas what it is today.

Ray Sandoval, Richland College

Texas Politics is a well-written and well-documented text that will be an asset to any professor or student interested in Texas politics. As mentioned in the Preface, one will find a broad "range of pedagogical aids and tools" that will be helpful in the classroom.

Morris D. Drumm, Texas Christian University

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