Volume 124 · Number 1 · Spring 2009

GARY C. JACOBSON analyzes the 2008 presidential and congressional elections. He concludes that the elections were, through myriad pathways, largely a referendum on the Bush administration and a reaction to the economic meltdown. He questions whether Democratic Party control of the presidency and Congress will be a stable phenomenon.

SAMUEL P. HUNTINGTON describes the diverse political processes through which thirty-five countries moved from authoritarianism toward democracy and derives guidelines from these experiences for future “democratizers.”

WALTER LaFEBER discusses the rise of the Weinberger/Powell Doctrine by tracing Colin Powell’s career to 2001. He emphasizes how the George W. Bush administration not only overthrew the doctrine after 2001, but how Powell, notably in his February 2003 speech at the UN, helped in the overthrow by placing his then-highly respected reputation behind misleading and false evidence to justify war against Iraq.

JOE SOSS and LAWRENCE R. JACOBS argue that the widely held prediction that rising inequalities would motivate the disadvantaged to use their political rights seems to falter badly in the United States today. They present findings that demonstrate how inequality has reshaped participation patterns in the American polity.

PATRICK S. ROBERTS examines the basic functions of homeland security, including defense against terrorist, natural, and industrial disasters. He concludes that the prevailing understanding of homeland security in theory and in practice undervalues the role of “mitigation,” or reducing the damage when disasters occur.

MYRON J. ARONOFF looks at the summit peace conference between Israel and the Palestinian Authority mediated by the United States at Camp David in 2000. He examines the similarities and differences among the various interpretations of the causes of the breakdown of the peace process.

Book reviews

Reviewed by Jennifer L. Hochschild

Reviewed by Bruce Cain

Reviewed by Jeffrey M. Stonecash

Reviewed by Richard C. Thornton

Reviewed by William C. Martel

Reviewed by Andrew Scobell

Reviewed by James Goldgeier

Reviewed by Eric M. Uslaner

Reviewed by Kenneth T. Jackson

Reviewed by David A. Crockett

Reviewed by Michael A. Unger

Reviewed by Donna R. Hoffman

Reviewed by David Vogel

Reviewed by Marek Kaminski

Reviewed by Bruce Miroff

Reviewed by Charles L. Glenn

Reviewed by Hanes Walton, Jr.

Reviewed by Raymond A. Smith

Reviewed by Lori Cox Han

Reviewed by Emily Jane Charnock

Reviewed by Mark Kesselman

Reviewed by Bryan Lohmar

Reviewed by Anthony Saich

Reviewed by Thomas U. Berger

Reviewed by John Martin Gillroy

Reviewed by Brian D'Agostino

Reviewed by Thomas D. Willett

Reviewed by T.V. Paul

Reviewed by Aqil Shah

Reviewed by Emma Gilligan

Reviewed by Anastasia Xenias

Reviewed by Richard L. Hasen

Reviewed by Peter Romaniuk

Reviewed by Donald Share