White-Collar Government
" 'Where you stand depends on where you sit' is a maxim seldom applied to the economic backgrounds of legislators. But Nicholas Carnes's eye-opening study shows social class and work experience to be key determinants in shaping how Congress and state legislatures write laws and shape policies." -Timothy Noah, author of The Great Divergence: America's Growing Inequality Crisis and What We Can Do About It"
Eight of the last twelve presidents were millionaires when they took office. The figure is above fifty percent among current Supreme Court justices, all nine of whom graduated from either Harvard or Yale. Les mer
It matters that the wealthiest Americans set the tax rates for the wealthy, that white-collar professionals choose the minimum wage for blue-collar workers, and that people who have always had health insurance decide whether to help those without. And while there is no one cause for this crisis of representation, Carnes shows that the problem does not stem from a lack of qualified candidates from among the working class. The solution, he argues, must involve a variety of changes, from the equalization of campaign funding to a shift in the types of candidates the parties support. If we want a government for the people, we have to start working toward a government that is truly by the people. White-Collar Government challenges long-held notions about the causes of political inequality in the United States and speaks to enduring questions about representation and political accountability.
Detaljer
- Forlag
- University of Chicago Press
- Innbinding
- Paperback
- Språk
- Engelsk
- Sider
- 200
- ISBN
- 9780226087146
- Utgivelsesår
- 2013
- Format
- 2 x 2 cm
Anmeldelser
" 'Where you stand depends on where you sit' is a maxim seldom applied to the economic backgrounds of legislators. But Nicholas Carnes's eye-opening study shows social class and work experience to be key determinants in shaping how Congress and state legislatures write laws and shape policies." -Timothy Noah, author of The Great Divergence: America's Growing Inequality Crisis and What We Can Do About It"