Developments in American Politics

DeveloplDents in American Politics

Gillian Peele, Christopher J. Bailey, Bruce Cain Editors

Macmillan Education

ISBN 978-0-333-49438-7 ISBN 978-1-349-22029-8 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-1-349-22029-8

Editorial matter and selection © Gillian Peele, Christopher J. Bailey and Bruce Cain 1992 Individual chapters (in order) © Gillian Peele, Bruce Cain, Daniel Hays Lowenstein, Colin Campbell, Christopher J. Bailey, Richard Hodder-Williams, B. Guy Peters, Desmond S. King, Joseph Hogan, Robert X. Browning, Miles Kahler, Stanley E. Collender, Rodolfo O. de la Garza, Morris P. Fiorina 1992 Softcover reprint ofthe hardcover 1st edition 1992

All rights reserved. For information, write: Scholarly and Reference Division, St. Martin's Press, Inc., 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010

First published in the United States of America in 1992

ISBN 978-0-312-076lO-8 (cloth) - ISBN 978-0-312-07609-2 (pbk.)

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Developments in American politics / Gillian Peele, Christopher J. Bailey, Bruce Cain. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-312-076lO-8 (cloth) - ISBN 978-0-312-07609-2 (pbk.) 1. United States-Politics and government-1989- I. Peele, Gillian,1949- . 11. Bailey, Christopher J. III. Cain, Bruce E. E88l.D48 1992 320.973-dc20 91-44872

CIP

Contents

Preface List of Contributors List ofTables and Figures List of Abbreviations Map of the United States of America

Introduetion

Part One: The Sourees of Politieal Change

X

Xll

XIV

XVI

XVlll

1

1 Values, Institutions and Poliey Agendas 14 Gillian Peele

Political Institutions and American Values 15 Party Divisions and American Values 17 A Value Shift in the 1990s? 20 The Evolution of the Conservative Movement 22 A Revived Liberalism? 27 Political Movements and American Values 29

The Feminist Movement 29 The poverty issue 31 Blacks 33

Conclusions 35

2 The Ameriean Eleetoral System Bruce Cain 37 The Fracturing of the American Electorate 37 Racial and Ethnic Division in the American

Electorate 47 Institutional Fracture 55 Conclusion 61

3 Ameriean Politieal Parties 63 Daniel H ays Lowenstein

Weakness and Strength 64 The party in the electorate 64

v

VI Contents

The party in government 65 Party organization 66

Progressive Party Reform 72 Party Renewal 80 Conclusion 84

Part Two: The Governmental System

4 Presidential Leadership Colin Campbell 83 Reagan and the Decline of Policy Competence 90 Managerial Style and Administrative Organization

in the White House 94 The Reagan White House 95 The cabinet councils 96 The onset of the 'Regan' administration 99

The Bush Presidency 102 Organizational stress 108 Congressional relations 109 The GulfWar 112

Conclusion 113

5 Congress and Legislative Activism 115 ChristopherJ. Bailey

Constituency Attentiveness 117 Emphasis on constituency service 117 The parochial Congress 122

Strengthening Congressional Capacity 126 The increase in resources 127 Strengthening the political parties 129

The Role of Congress 134

6 Constitutional Legitimacy and the Supreme Court Richard Hodder-Williams 138

Introduction 138 The Problems of Divided Partisan Control 140 Interest Groups, Policy Preferences and the Use of

the Supreme Court 147 The Reagan Administration and Attempts to

Inftuence theJudicial Branch 152 The New Debate over Jurisprudence 156 Conclusion 160

Contents VII

7 Public Bureaucracy in the American Politieal System B. Cuy Peters 165

Strueture and Performance 167 Publie employees 168 Organizations 171

Autonomy 171 Links to the outside 172

The poliey role of the bureaueraey 174 The Reagan Years 177

The personnel system 177 Pay and perquisites 178

The private sector as exemplar 182 U tilizing the private sector 184

A Civil Service for the Year 2000? 185 Morale, reeruitment and retention 185 Hopes for the future 187

Part Three: Publie Poliey

8 The Changing Federal Balanee 190 Desmond S. King

Approaehes to Federalism 191 President Reagan and the New Federalism 195

Federal welfare programs 195 Federal grants 196 Reforming federal regulatory poliey 197 Reforming urban poliey 199 Federal housing poliey 201 Tax and economie poliey 202

The New Federalism and the New State Poliey Role 203 State welfare poliey 205

Condusion 207 The empowered states and persistent center 207 lnstitutional ineentives and the New

Federalism 208

9 Economie Poliey Joseph Hogan 210 The Institutional Strueture of Eeonomie

Poliey-making 211 Postwar Eeonomic Poliey 216 Condusion 225

VllI Contents

tO Social Welfare Poliey Robert X. Browning 229 The Nature ofSocial Programs 230 Patterns of Growth 232

Entitling new groups 233 The elderly 236 ln-kind growth 236

The Limits of Reform 238 The Reagan Agenda 240

The social seeurity issue 242 Housing programs 243 lnerease in poverty 244

The Post-Reagan Period 245 Social Poliey in Transition 248

II Ameriean Foreign Poliey Miles Kahler 250 President and Bureaueraey: Conditions for

Coherenee 254 Congress and Foreign Poliey: Consolidation or

Retreat? 260 Passions and lnterests in Foreign Poliey 267 Publie Opinion and Foreign Poliey 271 The New Polities of Ameriean Foreign Poliey 274

Part Four: Current Issues

12 The Budget Deficit Stanley E. Collender 280 The Legaey of the Reagan Years 280

The numbers tell the story 281 Proeedural and politieal ehanges follow the

numbers 283 Challenges for the 1990s 287

Spending 288 Taxes 290 Proeess 290

The Real Legaey of the Reagan Years 291 Stalemates 291 Slow progress on the deficit 292 Limited ability to res pond to new

contingencies 292 Hidden taxes 292

Contents ix

13 Civil Rights in the United States Gillian Peele 294 The Reagan Legacy on Civil Rights 295 The Bush Administration and Civil Rights 301 The 1990 and 1991 Civil Rights Acts 305

14 Immigration Reforms: A Mexican-American Perspective Rodolfo o. de la Garza 309

The 1980s: The Decade of the Hispanic 309 Immigration and the Mexican Community 312 1980-1986: The IRCA Debate 316 Conclusion 320

Part Five: Conclusion

15 An Era ofDivided Government 324 Morris P. Fiorina

Divided Government in Historical Perspective 325 Explanations of Divided Government 328

Incumbency 332 America is fundamentally a Democratic

country 335 Purposeful explanations 338 Summary 345

Consequences of Divided Government 345 Efficiency and effectiveness 346 Responsibility 348 Intellectual challenge 350

Notes to Chapter 15 353

Guide to Further Reading 355 Bibliography 360 Index 385

Preface

Developments in American Politics shares with its companion volumes the goal of combining the comprehensiveness of a textbook with the liveliness and contemporary relevance of articles by leading scholars. Thus, although the student or te ach er seeking a single volume treatment of the government and politics of the United States will find Developments in American Politics an accessible introduction to the subject, the volume is also suitable as a supplement to other texts and for use in more advanced classes.

The authors are all specialists on their chosen subject areas and are drawn from both sides of the Atlantic. The topics chosen reftect the editors' ambition to provide the reader both with an overview of some of the important scholarly debates about the key trends in American politics and with sufficient background information to understand the nature of those changes.

Writing about the United States and using a team of British and American authors presents certain stylistic problems. The editors have decided that spelling should be America­nized throughout in order to promote consistency. On the other hand, so me specifically American usages have been excised. Where appropriate the party and state of members of Congress have been included. The references to works cited in the book are collected together at the end of the text. There is also a short guide to further reading for each of the chapters.

The editors would like to thank our publisher Steven Kennedy for the help and encouragement he has given with this volume. We are extremely grateful for the secretarial help given by the College Office at Lady Margaret Hall. Pauline Shepheard, Elizabeth Martin, Frances Wilson, and

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Preface Xl

Jenny Harker assisted in a variety of ways, not least in keeping that essential tool of transatlantic collaboration - the fax machine - under control. We also thank Seamus Tucker and Samuel Woodhouse who provided research assistance at earlier stages of the project.

The editors acknowledge with gratitude the intellectual support given by their colleagues at the U niversity of Oxford, the University of Keele and the University of California at Berkeley. Chris Bailey would also like to thank Senator Reid and his staff for their kindness during his tenure as an APSA Congressional Fellowship in Washington.

The editors are also grateful for the constructive criticisms of the anonymous readers of this proposal.

On a personal level the British editors realize how much they owe to the hospitality and the friendliness of American scholars. We would particularly mention Nelson Polsby, James Thurber, Roger Davidson, Paul Herrnson, Maggie Fish, John and Leslie Francis, Chris Deering, Vincent Buck and Austin Ranney.

Finally, we would like to thank our contributors, whose patience and prompt responses to queries have helped to get this book to the finishing line.

Gillian Peele Chris Bailey Bruce Cain

List of Contributors

Christopher J. Bailey is Lecturer in American Studies at the University of Keele. He was an APSA Congressional Fellow in 1989-1990. Among his publications are The Republican Party in the US Senate, 1974-1984, and The U.S. Congress.

Rohert X. Browning is Professor of Political Science at Purdue University. Recent publications include Politics and Social Welf are Policy in the United States.

Bruce Cain is Professor of Government at the University of California, Berkeley. He is the author of The Reapportion­ment Puzzle and a co-author of The Personal Vote, whieh was awarded the Riehard F. Fenno Jr. Prize of the Ameriean Political Scienee Association.

Colin Camphell is Professor of Government at Georgetown University. He is the author of Governments Under Stress and Managing the Presidency.

Stanley E. Collender is Director of Federal Budget Poliey, Price Waterhouse, Washington DC. He is the author of The Guide to the Federal Budget 1992.

Morris Fiorina is Professor of Government at Harvard University. He is the author of Congress: Keystone 0/ the Washington Establishment, and a co-author of The Personal Vote, which was awarded the Richard F. Fenno Jr. Prize of the American Political Science Association.

Rodolfo O. de la Garza is C. B. Smith Fellow in Latin American Studies and Professor of Government at the University of Texas, Austin. He is the author of many articles on the politics of Mexican Americans.

Richard Hodder-Williams is Reader in Politics at the Uni­versity of Bristol. Among his publications is The Politics 0/ the Supreme Court.

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List 01 Contributors XIll

Joseph Hogan is Professor of Government and Politics at Birmingham Polytechnic. He is the editor of The Reagan Years.

Miles Kahler is Professor of Government at the U niversity of California, San Diego.

Desmond S. King a former Lecturer in American Politics at the London School of Economics is Fellow and Tutor in Politics at St John's College, Oxford. He is the author of The New Right and the co-author of The State and the City.

Daniel Hays Lowenstein is Professor of Law at the Universi­ty of California, Los Angeles.

Gillian Peele is Official Fellow in Politics at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford. She is the author of Revival and Reaction, and a co-editor of Developments in British Polities.

B. Guy Peters is Maurice Falk Professor 01" American Gov­ernment at the University of Pittsburgh. Among his pub­lications are American Public Policy, and Politics 01 B ureaucracy.

List of Tables and Figures

Tables

2.1 Presidential vote by race and ethnicity 48 2.2 Citizen voting by race and ethnicity 53 5.1 V otes in Congress showing party unity, 92nd

to 101 st Congresses 130 10.1 State-federal social welfare comparisons 232 10.2 Federal social welfare expenditures by

category 234 10.3 Federal social welfare expenditures by

category as percentage of total 235 10.4 Spending for major federal social welfare

programs 237 10.5 Changes in poverty, 1979-82 245 12.1 Steady growth in V.S. revenues and outlays,

1981-88 282 12.2 Steady growth in the V.S. deficit, 1981-88 282 12.3 Dramatic changes in V.S. budget

components, 1980-88 283 12.4 Gramm-Rudman-Hollings deficit

maXImums 284 15.1 Control of national institutions, 1832-1992 326 15.2 Major periods of divided government 327 15.3 Divided government by type of election 328 15.4 Congressional districts carried by House and

presidential candidates of different parties 331 15.5 Patterns of President-House ticket splitting 332 15.6a Gubernatorial and legislative victories, 1978/

1982 and 1986 337 15.6b Patterns of state government control 337

XIV

15.7

15.8

Figures

List ofTables and Figures xv

Voter policy positions compared with perceptions of party positions PresidentiHouse ticket-splitting

341 344

2.1 Ticket splitters in American elections, 1952-88 40 15.1 Divided states, 1946-90 329 15.2 House-President ticket-splitting 330

List of Abbreviations

ACLU AFDC APA BEA CIA CBO CRA CRC CRS D. DNC EPB EOP ERA ES FBI FDA FIA FOMC GAO GRH

GS HUD

IRCA

LULAC MALDEF

American Civil Liberties Union Aid to Families with Dependent Children Administrative Procedures Act (l946) Budget Enforcement Act (1990) Central Intelligence Agency Congressional Budget Office Civil Rights Act (1964) Civil Rights Commission Congressional Research Service Democrat Democratic National Committee Economic Policy Board Executive Office of the President Equal Rights Amendment Executive Schedule Federal Bureau of Investigations Food and Drug Administration Freedom of Information Act Federal Open Market Committee General Accounting Office Gramm-Rudman-Hollings (Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act (1985)) General Schedule Housing and Urban Development (Department of) Immigration Reform and Control Act (1986) League of United Latin American Citizens Mexican-American Legal Defense Fund

XVI

NAACP

NASA

NCLR NGA NSA OBRA

OIRA

OMB OPEC

OPM OTA PAC(s) PHS R. RNC SDI SES SIGs SSA

SSI UDAG VRA WIN

List of Abbreviations XVll

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People National Aeronautics and Space Administration National Council de la Raza National Governors' Association National Security Agency Omnibus Budget Reconciliation and Economic Recovery Tax Acts (1981) Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs Office of Management and Budget Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries Office of Personnel Management Office of Technology Assessment Political Action Commiuee(s) Public Health Service Republican Republican National Committee Strategic Defense Initiative (Star Wars) Senior Executive Service Senior Interagency Groups Socia} Security Administration or Social Security Act (1935) Supplemental Security Income Urban Direct Action Grants Voting Rights Act (1965) Work Incentive Program

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