American Government: Readings and Cases, 18th Edition

With an even stronger focus on the U.S. Constitution in the post 9/11 world, the Eighteenth Edition of this best-selling reader in American government puts students directly in touch with the great authors and political leaders who have shaped—and are shaping—American government.

 

The bestselling American government reader for over 40 years, this anthology continues to provide a strong, balanced blend of classic selections that illustrate and amplify important concepts in American government, along with current readings and cases drawn from today's headlines.

I. THE SETTING OF THE AMERICAN SYSTEM.

         *Selections new to this edition are indicated with an asterisk 

1. Constitutional Government.

 

1. John Locke, Second Treatise, Of Civil Government.

2. John P. Roche, The Founding Fathers: A Reform Caucus in Action.

3. Charles A. Beard, Framing the Constitution.

4. James Madison, Federalist 47, 48, 51.

5. Laurence H. Tribe and Michael C. Dorf, How Not to Read the Constitution.

 

2. Federalism.

 

6. Alexander Hamilton, Federalist 16, 17.

7. The Anti-Federalist Papers No. 17.

8. James Madison, Federalist 44.

9. James Madison, Federalist 45.

10. James Madison, Federalist 39.

11. James Bryce, The Merits of the Federal System.

12. McCulloch v. Maryland, 4 Wheaton 316 (1819).

13. Gibbons v. Ogden, 9 Wheaton 1 (1824).

14. United States v. Morrison 529 U.S. 59 (2000).

15. Gonzales v. Raich, U.S. Supreme Court  (2005)

16. Martha Derthick, Up-to-Date in Kansas City: Reflections on American Federalism.*

 

3. Civil Liberties and Civil Rights.

 

17. Antifederalist Paper No. 84 On the Lack of a Bill of Rights.

18. Gideon v. Wainwright 372 U.S. 335 (1963).

19. Oliver Wendell Holmes, The Need to Maintain a Free Marketplace of Ideas.

20. New York Times Co. v. Sullivan 376 U.S 254 (1964).

21. Plessy v. Ferguson 163 U.S. 537 (1896).

22. Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka 347 U.S. 483 (1954).

23. Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka 349 U.S. 294 (1955).

24. Gomillion v. Lightfoot 364 U.S. 339 (1960).*

25. Crawford v. Marion County Election Board United States Supreme Court (2008)*

26. Engel v. Vitale 370 U.S. 421 (1962).

27. Samuel D. Warren and Louis D. Brandeis, The Right to Privacy

28. Griswold v. Connecticut,381 U.S. 479 (1965)

29. Roe v. Wade 410 U.S. 113 (1973).

30. University of California Board of Regents v. Bakke 438 U.S. 265 (1978)

 

II. POLITICAL PARTIES, ELECTORAL BEHAVIOR, AND INTEREST GROUPS.

 

4. Political Parties and the Electorate.

 

31. James Madison, Federalist 10.

32. E. E. Schattschneider, Party Government.

33. Sir Ernest Barker, Government by Discussion.*

34. Report of the Committee of Political Parties, American Political Science Association, Toward More Responsible Two Party System.

35. David R. Mayhew, Divided We Govern.

36. V.O. Key, Jr., A Theory of Critical Elections.

37. Bernard R. Berelson, Paul F. Lazarsfeld, and William N. McPhee, Democratic Practice and Democratic Theory.

38. V.O. Key, Jr., The Responsible Electorate.

 

5. Interest Groups.

 

39. Robert Dahl, The Dangers of Faction.* 

40. Jeffrey M. Berry, Madison's Dilemma.

41. Buckley v. Valeo 424 U.S. 1 (1976).

42. Daniel R. Ortiz, The Democratic Paradox of Campaign Finance Reform.*

43. David B. Truman, The Governmental Process.*

44. Pendleton Herring, The Role of Interest Groups in Government.*

45. Larry J. Sabato, The Misplaced Obsession with PACs.

 

6. The Presidency.

 

46. Alexander Hamilton, Federalist 70.

47. Edward S. Corwin, The Presidency in Perspective.*

48. Clinton Rossiter, The Presidency-Focus of Leadership.

49. Richard E. Neustadt, Presidential Power.

50. James David Barber, The Presidential Character.

51. Sidney M. Milkis, The Presidency and Political Parties.

52. Ex Parte Milligan 71 U.S. 2 (1866).*

53. Boumediene v. Bush, President of the United States, United States Supreme Court, 2008.*

 

7. The Bureaucracy.

 

54. Peter Woll, Constitutional Democracy and Bureaucratic Power.

55. James Q. Wilson, The Rise of the Bureaucratic State.

 

8. Congress.

 

56. James Madison, Federalist 53, 56, 57, 58, 62, 63.

57. Woodrow Wilson, Congressional Government.

58. Morris P. Fiorina, The Rise of the Washington Establishment.

59. Lawrence C. Dodd, Congress and the Quest for Power.

60. Edmund Burke, Speech to the Electors of Bristol.

61. Richard F. Fenno, Jr., If, As Ralph Nader Says, Congress Is “The Broken Branch,” How Come We Love Our Congressmen So Much?

62. David R. Mayhew, Congress: The Electoral Connection.

63. Richard F. Fenno, Jr., Home Style and Washington Career.

 

9. The Judiciary.

 

64. William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England 1765.

65. Alexander Hamilton, Federalist 78.

66. Marbury v. Madison 1 Cranch 137 (1803).

67. John P. Roche, Judicial Self-Restraint.

67. William J. Brennan, Jr., How the Supreme Court Arrives at Decisions.

68. Daniel Webster, Why Courts Cannot Fairly Decide Political Questions.*

69. Luther v. Borden 48 U.S. 1 (1849).*

70. William J. Brennan, Jr., How the Supreme Court Arrives at Decisions.*

71. Roper v. Simmons 543 U.S. 551 (2005).*

72. Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, Constitutional Liberty and the Right to Abortion.

73. Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, Liberty, Privacy, and the Right to Abortion.

74. Justice Antonin Scalia, Liberty and Abortion: A Strict Constructionist's View.

 

Appendix 1: The Declaration of Independence.

 

Appendix 2: The Constitution of the United States