Politics for Hire
Title | Politics for Hire PDF eBook |
Author | Stefan Svallfors |
Publisher | Edward Elgar Publishing |
Pages | 160 |
Release | 2020-12-25 |
Genre | Political Science |
ISBN | 1800375190 |
This ground-breaking book investigates the work of policy professionals. They consist of political actors who, although not elected to office, are nonetheless employed to affect policy and politics on a partisan basis. Through an analysis of the influence and power they wield, this book sheds light on how the growth of this group represents a major transformation of the organization of politics and policy-making in advanced democracies.
Democracy for Hire
Title | Democracy for Hire PDF eBook |
Author | Dennis W. Johnson |
Publisher | Oxford University Press |
Pages | 617 |
Release | 2017 |
Genre | Business & Economics |
ISBN | 0190272694 |
This book is a history of political consulting in America, examining how the consulting business developed, highlighting the major figures in the consulting industry and assessing the impact of professional consulting on elections and American democracy. A key focus is on presidential elections, beginning in 1964, and the important role played by consultants and political operatives.
MPs for Hire
Title | MPs for Hire PDF eBook |
Author | Mark Hollingsworth |
Publisher | |
Pages | 206 |
Release | 1991 |
Genre | Business and politics |
ISBN |
Spies for Hire
Title | Spies for Hire PDF eBook |
Author | Tim Shorrock |
Publisher | Simon and Schuster |
Pages | 451 |
Release | 2008 |
Genre | Law |
ISBN | 0743282248 |
Reveals the formidable organization of intelligence outsourcing that has developed between the U.S. government and private companies since 9/11, in a report that reveals how approximately seventy percent of the nation's funding for top-secret tasks is now being funneled to higher-cost third-party contractors. 35,000 first printing.
Campaign Warriors
Title | Campaign Warriors PDF eBook |
Author | James A. Thurber |
Publisher | Rowman & Littlefield |
Pages | 236 |
Release | 2001-09-19 |
Genre | Political Science |
ISBN | 9780815798323 |
Campaign politics has become increasingly professionalized in recent years. The growing prevalence and influence of paid consultants in the United States and other democracies is one of the most important factors changing the nature of electoral politics. Campaign Warriors thoroughly examines this critical—and controversial—development and its impact on the political system in the U.S. and other countries. The contributors approach the topic from several different perspectives, including the increasing use of "spin doctors" and the resulting loss of influence of state and national political parties. The book investigates the role of these paid advisers: who they are, what they do and why, and how they feel about their work. The contributors discuss the consultant's relationship with candidates and parties, and analyze the effect of their efforts on election outcome.
Grassroots for Hire
Title | Grassroots for Hire PDF eBook |
Author | Edward T. Walker |
Publisher | Cambridge University Press |
Pages | 299 |
Release | 2014-04-03 |
Genre | Social Science |
ISBN | 113991619X |
Although 'grassroots' conjures up images of independent citizen organizing, much mass participation today is sponsored by elite consultants working for corporations and powerful interest groups. This book pulls back the curtain to reveal a lucrative industry of consulting firms that incentivize public activism as a marketable service. Edward Walker illustrates how, spurred by the post-sixties advocacy explosion and rising business political engagement, elite consultants have deployed new technologies to commercialize mass participation. Using evidence from interviews, surveys and public records, Grassroots for Hire paints a detailed portrait of these consultants and their clients. Today, Fortune 500 firms hire them to counter-mobilize against regulation, protest or controversy. Ironically, some advocacy groups now outsource organizing to them. Walker also finds that consultants are reshaping both participation and policymaking, but unethical 'astroturf' strategies are often ineffective. This pathbreaking book calls for a rethinking of interactions between corporations, advocacy groups, and elites in politics.
Hiring and Firing Public Officials
Title | Hiring and Firing Public Officials PDF eBook |
Author | Justin Buchler |
Publisher | Oxford University Press |
Pages | 273 |
Release | 2011-04-13 |
Genre | Political Science |
ISBN | 0199890218 |
Conventional theories of elections hold that an election is analogous to a consumer product market. According to the market paradigm, voters are consumers, candidates are competing firms, and an election is a market in which voters exchange votes for policy by voting for the candidates whose policies they prefer. According to this logic, a healthy democracy requires frequent competitive elections. The market analogy underlies decades of electoral theory, but in Hiring and Firing Public Officials, Justin Buchler contends that it does not capture the real nature of elections. In fact, our widespread dissatisfaction with the current state of electoral politics derives from a fundamental misunderstanding of what elections are and what purpose they serve. As Justin Buchler shows, an election is a mechanism by which voters hire and fire public officials. It is not a consumer product market--it is a single employment decision. Thus, the health of democracy depends not on regular competitive elections, but on posing a credible threat to fire public officials who do not perform their jobs well. However, the purpose of that threat is to force public officials to act as faithful public servants so that they do not have to be fired. Thus, competitive elections, by most definitions, are indicative of a failure of the democratic system.