| September-October 2005
Politics & Government: Elections | State Government | Supreme Court|
Government Initiatives: Crime | Disaster Recovery | Health | Homeland Security | Laws |
Politics & Government:
C1 - The Power of Fusion Politics
Katz, Alyssa
The Nation, September 12, 2005, v281, #7, pp22-27
“Katz comments on the power of fusion politics. In New York, election laws allow fusion--candidates for any public office can run as the nominee of more than one political party. The extra boost of that additional ballot line could make all the difference on election day.Alyssa Katz is editor at large of City Limits magazine and a Charles H. Revson Fellow at Columbia University. Fulltext
C2 - Elections: Party Identification in the 2004 Election
Winneg, Kenneth; Hall Jamieson, Kathleen
Presidential Studies Quarterly, Sep 2005, v35, #3, pp576-590
“Data from the National Annenberg Election Survey (NAES) show that during the 2004 presidential election campaign, party affiliation was not entirely stable. The gap between Democrats and Republicans narrowed, continuing a pattern evident in the 2000 NAES. An analysis of party breakdown by state shows Republicans made significant gains in southern states but also grew in Maine and Oregon. The Democratic party made gains in a handful of states around the country.” Kenneth Winneg is managing director of the National Annenberg Election Survey. Kathleen Hall Jamieson directs the National Annenberg Election Survey. Fulltext
C3 - "Going Bipartisan": Politics by Other Means
Peter Trubowitz; Mellow, Nicole
Political Science Quarterly, Fall 2005, v120, #3, pp433-454
”Trubowitz and Mellow examine the electoral conditions associated with bipartisanship in Congress over the last century of American politics. They challenge the widely held view that bipartisanship is above politics and show that it is just as driven by electoral imperatives as partisanship. They argue that the polarization of political parties combined with sluggish economic conditions and the war on terrorism challenge the future of bipartisanship.” Peter Trubowitz is Associate Professor at the Department of Government at the University of Texas, Austin. Nicole Mellow is Assistant Professor at the Political Science Department, Williams College. Fulltext
C4 - Complications of American Democracy: Elections Are Not Enough
Demetrios James Caraley
Political Science Quarterly, Fall 2005, v120,#3, pp379-406
“Caraley discusses the major features critical to the working of American democratic institutions, namely free elections, separations of powers with checks and balances, and government limited by constitutional guarantees. In this context, he looks at some evidence suggesting that American democracy may be shifting to an elective despotism of the majority, which was not the government Americans fought for. This is evidenced on the imposition of the doctrines of religious conservatism on officials and on the public in direct violation of the First Amendment and of the constitutional provision barring religious tests for holding public office.” Demetrios James Caraley is Professor of Political Science and the Janet Robb Professor of the Social Sciences at Barnard College and the Graduate Faculties of Columbia University. Fulltext
C5 - Trends in America: Charting the Course Ahead
The Council of State Government, June 2005, 40p
The Council of State Government recently published a report entitled “Trends in America: Charting the Course Ahead “which outlines the major long-term trends shaping our society and their implications for state governments nationwide. It describes 10 major change drivers that will influence the direction of public policy in the next five years and beyond.” Fulltext
C6 - Stolen Identities
Patton, Zach
Government, August 2005, v18, #11, pp39-42
”As more and more personal information is warehoused by data brokers … consumers’ exposure to identity theft will grow. Citizens are looking to states to respond to the threat with data-breach-notification laws or other rules giving citizens more control of their personal dossiers. Several legislatures have taken action in the past six months. But technology companies are fighting many of the proposals, and states are struggling to enact consumer protection laws with any real teeth. Meanwhile, national legislation being discussed in Congress could undo all the state-level work that’s taken place so far.” Zachary Patton is a "Governing" staff writer. Fulltext
C7 - Bush's Judiciary: The First Term Record
Goldman, Sheldon; Slotnick, Elliot; Schiavoni, Sara W.
Judicature, v88, # 6, May-June 2005, pp244-275
The authors provide a comparative look at President Bush's judicial selection and those of the last four U.S. presidents, while analyzing the politics of appointments and confirmations using first-hand accounts of the process as their guide. They discuss the Bush administration's process of identifying and vetting candidates for federal judgeships, and parse out the roles of the various players within the White House, Department of Justice, think tanks and other organizations in the process. This is an excellent primer on the political and practical process of judicial nominations. Sheldon Goldman is a professor of political science at the University of Massachussetts, Amherst; Elliot Slotnick is a professor of political science at the Ohio State University and assoc. dean of the Graduate School; Gerard Gryski is a professor of political science at Auburn University and Sara Schiavoni is a doctoral candidate in political science at The Ohio State University and instructor in political science at John Carroll University. Fulltext
C8 - Roberts v. The Future
Rosen, Jeffrey
New York Times Magazine, August 28, 2005, pp24-51
The author first met Supreme Court nominee John G. Roberts Jr. in 2002 when Roberts was an attorney. Rosen muses about the controversies that the Court will confront within the next two decades. It is interesting to see how Roberts might react, but even more interesting to see the evolving sociology that could come out to be not only America, but much of the rest of the world. Jeffrey Rosen is an associate professor at the George Washington University. Fulltext
C9 - The Roberts Court
Taylor, Stuart
National Journal, September 12, 2005, v37,#37,pp2750-2754
“In times of terrorism the most important remarks to be made by John Roberts …may not involve abortion, gay rights, womens’ rights, privacy, affirmative action, religion or crime. Instead they may involve claims by Bush, and perhaps his successors, of extraordinary powers as commander-in-chief –at home as well as abroad – to fight the war against terrorism”. Stuart Taylor Jr. is a senior writer and columnist for National Journal anda contributing editor at Newsweek. Fulltext
Government Initiatives:
C10 - Breaking Through: Juvenile Justice Reform
American Prospect vol. 16, no. 9, September 2005, ppA1-A23
This special report describes innovations in the treatment of delinquent children, and discusses advances in adolescent brain development and developmental psychology, as well as examples of successful programs in Missouri, Louisiana and California. Unlike adult offenders, teen delinquents who are helped by well-run programs can go on to live successful lives. The recidivism rate for the Missouri group homes for delinquent youth was only 8%. In the California program, young offenders are sent out to restore environmental areas and work on construction projects as part of the Youth Community Restoration Project; some eventually landed jobs in the community. The authors note that there still needs to be improvement in treating mentally ill juvenile offenders. The special report provides a good overview of the current status of treatment for delinquent youth. Fulltext
C11 - The Next Big One
Cannon, Carl M.
National Journal, September 24, 2005, v37, #39, pp2902-2907
Constructing the kind of social and physical infrastructure that could prevent any future Katrina-type calamity from striking New Orleans and the Gulf Coast demands a new vision for how the federal government approaches natural disasters. It will require a sea change of a different kind -- a shift from disaster response to disaster prevention. Carl M. Cannon is a staff writer for "National Journal". Fulltext
C12 - Pay for Performance or Compliance? A Second Opinion on Medicare Reimbursement
Dolinar, Richard; Leininger, Luke S.
Heritage Foundation, Backgrounder #1882, October 5, 2005, online edition
“Rather than follow the course of top-down micromanagement and artificial competition, Congress should base Medicare reimbursement reform on the free-market principles of price transparency, private contracting, and consumer choice, thus removing barriers to real competition and promoting high-quality and high-value patient-centered health care.” Richard Dolinar, M.D., is a Senior Fellow in Health Care Policy at the Heartland Institute, and S. Luke Leininger is a former Health Policy Fellow in the Center for Health Policy Studies at The Heritage Foundation. Fulltext
C13 - Health Information Technology
Health Affairs, Sep/Oct 2005, special issue
“President George W. Bush has pledged that his administration would work toward the goal of equipping most Americans with electronic medical records (EMRs) within ten years. In so doing, Bush reached beyond his predecessors in embracing information technology as a necessity to bring health care into the twenty-first century.” Papers in this special issue of Health Affairs examine the potential health and financial benefits of health information technology, explore how effective electronic medical care record (EMR) systems will make a critical contribution to health care transformation and analyze the potential costs, savings, and other benefits of widespread adoption of interoperable EMR systems." Fulltext
C14 - Civil Liberties in Times of War: 2005-2006 Policy Debate
Congressional Digest, September 2005, v84, #7, pp193-222
"The tension between liberty and security is as old as the Republic itself. In fact, skepticism about concentrating too much power in the hands of government is an American tradition. But the impulse to scale back civil liberties has always been especially strong during times of war, and throughout history threats to the Nation's well-being—real or perceived — have provided leaders with the political rationale to impose restrictions on fundamental freedoms in the interest of keeping the country safe" This issue of “Congressional Digest” focuses on on the effectivity of the USA Patriot Act and offers a selection of Pro & Con point of views asking if antiterrorism laws go too far in restricting individual freedoms. Fulltext
C15 - Federal Affirmative Action Law: A Brief History
Dale, Charles V.
Congressional Research Report for Congress, September 13, 2005, 6p
Affirmative action remains a focal point of public debate as the result of legal and political developments at the federal, state and local levels. This report discusses several court decisions. Charles V. Dale is a researcher at Library of Congress, Congressional research Service, Legislative History, American Law Division. Fulltext
C16 - Libraries and the USA Patriot Act
Doyle, Charles
Congressional Research Report for Congress Updated August 19, 2005
The USA Patriot Act , PL 107 – 56, enacted to help track down and punish terrorists and to prevent further terrorism, contains no provisions specifically directed at libraries or their patrons. But it has several provisions that might apply in a library context. Charles Doyle is a Senior Specialist at the American Law Division of the Congressional research Service at the Library of Congress in Washington D.C. Fulltext
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