Volume 128 - Number 3 - Fall 2013

The Islamist Moment: From Islamic State to Civil Islam?
Fawaz A. Gerges discusses the rise to power of Islamist parties in the Middle East after the Arab Spring. He argues that the political future of Islamists will depend on whether they meet the rising expectations of the Arab public. He concludes that if the Islamists fail to deliver local public goods, the voters and society will turn against them. 

Elusive Victories: The American Presidency at War, Andrew Polsky
Reviewed by William G. Howell

Faith Based: Religious Neoliberalism and the Politics of Welfare in the United States, Jason Hackworth
Reviewed by DAVID K. RYDEN

The Timeline of Presidential Elections: How Campaigns Do (and Do Not) Matter, Christopher Wlezien
Reviewed by MICHAEL C. HERRON

Volume 128 - Number 2 - Summer 2013

The Role of Villain: Iran and U.S. Foreign Policy
Paul R. Pillar examines why Iran has become a major focus of attention of U.S. foreign policy and finds that even a nuclear-armed Iran would not pose the major threat that is commonly assumed. The Iran issue simply fills a traditional American psychological and political need to have a foreign adversary. 

Becoming a Candidate: Political Ambition and the Decision to Run for Office, Jennifer L. Lawless
Reviewed by SAMUEL H. FISHER III

Warlords: Strong-Arm Brokers in Weak States, Kimberly Marten
Reviewed by Jesse Driscoll

Obama and China’s Rise: An Insider’s Account of America’s Asia Strategy, Jeffrey A. Bader
Reviewed by Peter Trubowitz

California Crucible: The Forging of Modern American Liberalism, Jonathan Bell
Reviewed by ADAM CARRINGTON

Volume 128 - Number 1 - Spring 2013

How the Economy and Partisanship Shaped the 2012 Presidential and Congressional Elections
Gary C. Jacobson analyzes the 2012 presidential and congressional elections. He finds that Barack Obama won despite the weak economy because Democrat partisans outnumbered Republican in the highly polarized electorate and remained unusually loyal to their candidate. The relationship between presidential and House and Senate voting patterns was extraordinarily strong, making it the most partisan, nationalized, and president-centered election in at least 60 years. 

Creating a New Racial Order: How Immigration, Multiracialism, Genomics and the Young Can Remake Race in America, Jennifer Hochschild
Reviewed by Rogers M. Smith

Social Protest and Contentious Authoritarianism in China, Xi Chen
Reviewed by Andrew Scobell

The Saddam Tapes: The Inner Workings of a Tyrant’s Regime, 1978–2001, Kevin M. Woods
Reviewed by Andrew Flibbert

Poverty in Common: The Politics of Community Action during the American Century, Alyosha Goldstein
Reviewed by Rose Ernst

Volume 127 - Number 4 - Winter 2012-2013

The Paradox of Islam’s Future
RAYMOND W. BAKER argues that although violent extremism flows from radical Islamic movements, the Islamic mainstream has effectively adapted to the globalized world and will shape the future of Islam in ways open to principled accommodation with the West. He claims that mainstream assertiveness, unencumbered by Western interference, provides the most effective way to counter destructive radicalism. 

Zionism, the Jewish State, and an Israeli–Palestinian Settlement: An Opinion Piece
Jerome Slater critically examines the case for the continuation of Zionism and for Israel to remain a Jewish state. He argues that while much of the Zionist argument is unconvincing, “liberal Zionism” is still defensible. Consequently, he claims, that first the Palestinians should conditionally recognize Israel as a Jewish state as part of an overall Israeli–Palestinian peace settlement, and second the Israelis should agree to the creation of an independent and viable Palestinian state in the occupied territories, so that the Palestinian Israelis who choose to remain in Israel are treated as fully equal citizens as the Jews. 

Open Source Intelligence in a Networked World, Anthony Olcott
Reviewed by Robert Jervis

Democratic Deficit: Critical Citizens Revisited, Pippa Norris
Reviewed by QUINTON MAYNE

Gender, Nationalism, and War: Conflict on the Movie Screen, Matthew Evangelista
Reviewed by Mia Bloom

Disciplining the Poor: Neoliberal Paternalism and the Persistent Power of Race, Joe Soss
Reviewed by SCOTT W. ALLARD

Volume 127 - Number 3 - Fall 2012

From Cold War to Hot Peace: The Habit of American Force
Richard K. Betts considers the discrepancy between ambition and cost tolerance that has led the United States to use force too often but also too indecisively since the Cold War. He argues that Washington should use American primacy not to attempt dominance on the cheap but to manage a transition to a global balance of power.

Hegemony in International Society, Ian Clark
Reviewed by Carla Norrlof

Partisan Balance: Why Political Parties Don’t Kill the U.S. Constitutional System, David R. Mayhew
Reviewed by Paul Frymer

Selling Fear: Counterterrorism, the Media, and Public Opinion, Brigitte L. Nacos
Reviewed by Montague Kern