The Logic of American Politics

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Praised for its engaging narrative, The Logic of American Politics hooks students with great storytelling while giving them a taste of real political science. Students come to understand why institutional design concepts like voting rules and delegation help explain why the American political system works the way it does.  The authors build students' critical thinking skills through a simple yet powerful idea: politics is about solving collective action problems.

The Seventh Edition of this best seller continues to delve into partisan differences among voters and in government, exploring  issues such as the Affordable Care Act’s troubled implementation, the increasing legalization of marijuana and same-sex marriage in the states, and the debate over President Obama’s executive action on immigration. A new concluding chapter on policymaking examines the noticeable logic that guides American politics, as shown through policies like health care reform, global climate change, and the federal budget. Students glean insights into the sources of policy problems, identify possible solutions, and realize why agreement on those solutions is often so hard to achieve.

Robust pedagogy strengthen the text’s analytical approach – boxed features, maps, tables, and figures make for a rich experience as students learn to analyze data; new learning objectives throughout the text provide measurable takeaways; and more than 200 carefully chosen photographs grab students' attention. In addition, the all-new SAGE edge companion site provides carefully crafted tools and resources that encourage review, practice, and critical thinking, giving students the edge they need to master course content.

Acknowledgements

We gratefully acknowledge Samuel Kernell, Gary C. Jacobson, Thad Kousser, and Lynn Vavrek for writing an excellent text. Special thanks are also due to Rachel Bitecofer, Alicia Fernandez, Peter Galderisi, Craig Goodman, Leif Hoffmann, Nicole Kalaf-Hughes, and Laurie Rice for developing the ancillaries on this site.