Analyzing American Democracy: Politics and Political Science

Following one of the most contentious and truth-challenged presidential administrations and elections in U.S. history, there has never been a greater need for an American government text like this--evidence-based, critically thoughtful, and contemporary in tone and touch. This text teaches students to think analytically by presenting current political science theories and research in answering the engaging, big questions facing American politics today. It serves as an introduction to the discipline―covering the Constitution, political behavior, formal and informal institutions, and public policy--by reflecting the theoretical developments and types of empirical inquiry conducted by researchers. For introductory courses in American government, this text covers theory and methods as well.

New to the Fourth Edition

• Provides 2020 election data updates throughout and examines policy implications of the ensuing changes in election laws across the country.
• Recaps controversial Trump administration policies and looks into the Biden administration’s early days.
• Offers strategic updates on the Covid-19 pandemic and the resulting economic crisis both in terms of questions of federalism as well as public policy.
• Considers the rise of new interest groups and social movements as well as the reckoning with racial injustice.
• Examines contemporary questions of social justice in light of civil rights and liberties as well as in terms of policy.
• Covers the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg, the battle to confirm her replacement, the addition of Justice Coney Barrett, and the policy implications of the shift in the ideological balance of the Court.
• For the fourth edition, a new co-author comes to the book with award-winning experience in diversity and teacher education as well as research interests in the presidency, women and politics, and foreign policy.

Jon R. Bond received his Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign and is currently a professor of political science at Texas A&M University. His research analyzes the policy making process and the operation of democracy in American politics. Specifically, he is interested in the interactions of American political institutions, especially Congress and the presidency, and how electoral motivations affect democratic responsiveness in American political institutions. He has published more than three-dozen chapters and journal articles on presidential-congressional relations, congressional elections, and public policy. He served as president of Pi Sigma Alpha, the national political science honor society from 2006–2008, and president of the Southern Political Science Association, the oldest regional political science association from 2006–2007.

Kevin B. Smith received his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and is currently a professor of political science at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, where he is also co-director of the UNL Political Science Physiology Lab. His primary research focus is on the biology of political attitudes and behavior. Smith is the recipient of his university’s College of Arts & Sciences Outstanding Research and Creative Achievement Award.

Lydia M. Andrade received her Ph.D. from Texas A&M University and is Interim Dean of the College of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences as well as a professor of political science at the University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio, TX. She is an award-winning teacher and author of a variety of teaching and learning guides including supplements for this text. She participates regularly in summer workshops with The College Board and is known for her work on the presidency, foreign policy, women and politics, and teacher diversity.