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Putting students directly in touch with the great authors and political leaders who have shaped and are shaping American government, the new edition of this best-selling reader is one of the most substantial revisions yet. The Fourteenth Edition features new essays that reflect the recent developments and debates over campaign finance reform; the new Supreme Court imposed limits on congressional power over the states; and political trends that are reshaping government and politics at the national and state levels. The book is structured in such a way that it can be used as an ancillary or a core textbook: included are extensive notes that prepare, connect, and comment on the selections and point out their significance so that, more than other readers, it presents a coherent narrative. As it has since its first edition, this reader provides a strong, balanced blend of classic readings and cases that illustrate and amplify important concepts in American government, along with extremely current readings and cases drawn from today's issues and literature.

Published in 1911, this volume is an explanation of our state governments and how they work.

You are holding in your hands a piece of the counterculture. The recent tendency in the academic world has been away from primary sources and toward textbooks. Being a fairly traditional lot, we find that unacceptable. We focus on the “big ideas” that have shaped American government. There are many ways to gain exposure to these ideas, but in our opinion, none are better than actually reading the primary sources that first articulated them. That is why you will see many founding documents, Supreme Court cases, and momentous speeches within these pages. This collection will whet your appetite for exploring our rich American governmental heritage. Our hope is that this may be the beginning of a lifelong interest in the basis of our American government—how we got where we are today, and how we are to proceed from here!