National Civic Review

One of the most discussed political reforms over the last 30 years has been campaign finance reform. That reform effort blames much of what ails our representative democracy on the pernicious effect of private money in politics. In the 1990s, tales of the Keating Five, Lincoln Bedroom, and Buddhist temples became the stuff of political legend. More recently, House Majority Leader Tom DeLay was accused of campaign and money laundering violations and lobbyist Jack Abramoff pled guilty to influence peddling… more

A recent Zogby poll found that 70 percent of Americans believe both the Democrat and Republican parties should be broad-based and pursue compromise rather than polarization. That same poll found that a solid majority believes the two parties are too focused on their respective base voters and that, as a result, compromise has become impossible in Washington, DC. Looking at recent partisan battles over Social Security, presidential appointments, Terry Schiavo, the culture war, the Iraq war and more, one… more

Our country's strength flows from its willingness to innovate and improve upon the American experiment in democracy. Recent presidential elections underscore the importance of revamping the way we register citizens to vote.

Currently, there are two widespread failures. First, our voter rolls are not clean and lead to uncertainty about voter fraud, such as people voting in two states and some places like Alaska having more registered voters than adults. Second, our voter rolls are not complete, with… more

This article is adapted from the last chapter of the author's book Speak Softly and Carry a Big Stick: How Local TV Broadcasters Exert Political Power (New York: iUniverse, 2005).

The founders of the United States were deeply concerned about the corrupting influence of power. They understood that, given the chance, elected officials would seek to preserve and enhance their power, even at the expense of democratic institutions. Accordingly, they designed a government based on separation of powers, where "ambition" would… more

Political scientists have long observed that what is good for the individual may be bad for the group. Under a ruthless dictatorship, for example, the people might want to overthrow their leaders and establish a democratic government. But it is very risky for any particular individual to participate in such an uprising. The individual bears all the costs, but the public at large receives the lion's share of the benefits. Economists call such goods "public goods."… more

"Americans of all ages, all stations in life, and all types of disposition, are forever forming associations," the French philosopher Alexis de Tocqueville observed in his famous 1835 tract, Democracy in America. "There are not only commercial and industrial associations in which all take part, but others of a thousand different types -- religious, moral, serious, futile, very general and very limited, immensely large and very minute