Constitutional Polarization A Critical Review of the U.S. Political System

"Many who worry about the state of American democracy adopt a narrow focus and consequently propose specific reform proposals such as ranked-choice voting or campaign finance restrictions. This book by an eminent scholar of comparative politics situates American democracy in a broader historical, comparative, and-especially--international context. Along the way, it makes a welcome shift in the focus of attention from what is going on inside the heads of voters to what is occurring in the larger social, economic, and international worlds in which they live."

Morris P. Fiorina, Stanford University and Hoover Institution

"In this brilliant book, Josep Colomer documents how the visionary framers of the US Constitution devised the doctrine of separation of powers to curb monarchical rule and the follies of immoderate majorities. Although presidentialism generally succeeded in a world long dominated by imperial powers, he shows how in recent decades the increased gridlock of divided government continues to undermine genuine democratic governance."

Arturo Valenzuela, Georgetown University and co-author (with Juan J. Linz) of The Failure of Presidential Democracy