Individual donors play a critical role in financing congressional elections, accounting for more than half of all money raised in House campaigns. But significant donors (defined here as those contributing more than $200) are the least understood participants in the system. Defenders assert that contributing money to campaigns is part of a broader pattern of civic involvement and is free speech that gives a voice to various interests. Detractors argue that these contributions are undemocratic, enabling wealthy citizens to overwhelm the voices of the many and to promote narrow business and...
Individual donors play a critical role in financing congressional elections, accounting for more than half of all money raised in House campaigns. But...
When Democrats lost control of Congress in 1994, the Christian Right claimed a major role in their defeat and House Speaker Newt Gingrich credited the "organized Christian vote" with the Republican victory. Ministers from many political persuasions have long been active in American politics, but in the 1980s and 1990s it has seemed impossible to find any political controversy that did not involve the clergy-often on both sides of the issue. The Bully Pulpit is the first major study of clergy politics in more than twenty years. Drawing on two decades of survey research involving...
When Democrats lost control of Congress in 1994, the Christian Right claimed a major role in their defeat and House Speaker Newt Gingrich credited the...
The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution forbids the creation of an official state church, and we hear the phrase "separation of church and state" so frequently that it may surprise us to note that no such barrier exists between religion and politics. Religion is, and always has been, woven into the fabric of American political life. In the last two decades, however, the role of religion in politics has become more directalmost a blunt, self-conscious force in the political process. The national consequences of this "diminishing divide" between religion and politics have brought new...
The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution forbids the creation of an official state church, and we hear the phrase "separation of church and sta...
From the first rumblings of the Moral Majority over twenty years ago, the Christian Right has been marshalling its forces and maneuvering its troops in an effort to re-shape the landscape of American politics. It has fascinated social scientists and journalists as the first right-wing social movement in postwar America to achieve significant political and popular support, and it has repeatedly defied those who would step up to write its obituary. In 2000, while many touted the demise of the Christian Coalition, the broader undercurrents of the movement were instrumental in helping George...
From the first rumblings of the Moral Majority over twenty years ago, the Christian Right has been marshalling its forces and maneuvering its troop...
In the wake of the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal, the Christian Right expected major victories in the 1998 elections. Instead, many of its allies lost close contests, and the movement was seen as a liability in some high-profile campaigns. In the only in-depth study of the Christian Right's role in these races, leading scholars analyze the role of the movement in fourteen key states, from Maine to California, and address speculations that the movement is fading from the American political scene.
The book focuses on elections on the state and local levels, where the Christian Right is...
In the wake of the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal, the Christian Right expected major victories in the 1998 elections. Instead, many of its allies lost c...
The Christian Right never ceases to surprise professional observers of American politics. With the Christian coalition in disarray, many expected that the movement would play less of a role in the 2004 elections. But when exit polls reported that "moral values" were the most commonly cited reason for presidential vote choice, pundits immediately proclaimed the importance of the "values vote." Yet the role of the Christian Right, of statewide referenda on same-sex marriage, and of religious mobilization remained the subject of debate. The Values Campaign? The Christian Right and the 2004...
The Christian Right never ceases to surprise professional observers of American politics. With the Christian coalition in disarray, many expected t...
The impact of religion on the 2004 presidential election results provoked widespread consternation and surprise. Given the results' intensity and closeness, however, the role of religion should not have come as a shock. In fact, religion and faith have long played a vital role in American elections, and here, John C. Green explores the link and how it has gradually changed. He concludes that an -old religion gap--- that is, the long-standing political differences among religious communities--has been supplanted by a -new religion gap- of political divisions based on religious behavior and...
The impact of religion on the 2004 presidential election results provoked widespread consternation and surprise. Given the results' intensity and clos...
Cultural conflict plays an increasingly dominant role in American politics, with religion acting as a catalyst in the often bitter confrontations ranging from abortion to public education. These essays present a mixed asessment of the scope and divisiveness of such conflicts.
Cultural conflict plays an increasingly dominant role in American politics, with religion acting as a catalyst in the often bitter confrontations rang...
