A Legacy of Innovation: Governors and Public Policy

ISBN 10: 0812240952 / ISBN 13: 9780812240955

Published by University of Pennsylvania Press, 2008

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Bibliographic Details

• Title: A Legacy of Innovation: Governors and Public Policy
• Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press
• Publication Date: 2008
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0812240952
• ISBN 13: 9780812240955
• Binding: hardcover
• Condition: Very Good

About this title

Synopsis

From La Follette to Faubus, from Rockefeller to Reagan, U.S. governors have addressed some of the most contentious policy questions of the twentieth century. In doing so, they not only responded to dramatic changes in the political landscape, they shaped that landscape. The influence of governors has been felt both within the states and across the nation. It is telling that four of the last five U.S. Presidents were former state governors.

A Legacy of Innovation: Governors and Public Policy examines the changing role of the state governor during the "American Century." In this volume, top political scientists, historians, and journalists track the evolution of gubernatorial leadership as it has dealt with critical issues, including conservation, transportation, civil rights, education, globalization, and health care. As the most visible state officials, twentieth-century governors often found themselves at the center of America's conflicting political tendencies. A Legacy of Innovation describes how they negotiated the tensions between increasing democratization and the desire for expert control, the rise of interest groups and demise of political parties, the pull of regionalism against growing nationalism, and the rising demand for public services in a society that fears centralized government. In their responses to these conflicts, governors helped shape the institutions of modern American government.

As state governments face new policy challenges in the twenty-first century, A Legacy of Innovation will serve as a valuable source of information for political scientists and policy makers alike.

About the Author

Ethan G. Sribnick is a National Governors Association Post-Doctoral Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library.