Do the religious affiliations of elected officials shape the way they vote on such key issues as abortion; homosexuality; defense spending; taxes; and welfare spending? In Religion; Politics; and Polarization: How Religiopolitical Conflict is Changing Congress and American Democracy; William D’Antonio; Steven A. Tuch and Josiah R. Baker trace the influence of religion and party in the U.S. Congress over time. For almost four decades these key issues have competed for public attention with health care; war; terrorism; and the growing inequity between the incomes of the middle classes and those of corporate America. The authors examine several contemporary issues and trace the increasing polarization in Congress. They examine whether abortion; defense and welfare spending; and taxes are uniquely polarizing or; rather; models of a more general pattern of increasing ideological division in the U.S. Congress. By examining the impact of religion on these key issues the authors effectively address the question of how the various religious denominations have shaped the House and Senate. Throughout the book they draw on key roll call votes; survey data; and extensive background research to argue that the political ideologies of both parties have become grounded in distinctive religious visions of the good society; in turn influencing the voting patterns of elected officials.
#2702370 in Books 2015-03-24Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.21 x .63 x 6.14l; .0 #File Name: 1440829829230 pages
Review
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Their hardest battle was against white racism. A flawed book but an important topic.By lyndonbrechtThis is an important subject; and Sheffer provides a huge amount of information; but I have some real reservations about the writing and editing. There is a fair amount of duplication among the chapters; and the writing is adequate but sometimes a bit awkward. There are also some errors. She says that about 31 million buffalo were killed in Kansas between 1868 and 1881 and sold for fertilizer; this is an impossibility for Kansas alone; and perhaps she means all the buffalo; although the fertilizer part was buffalo bones; not the original goal of the killings. She says in one spot that about 38;000 black soldiers in the Union army died in service; and in another place says about 68;000--possibly a typo but one that should have been caught. In another; she notes that in World War 1; "The Navy had nearly all white soldiers." The Navy doesn't have soldiers. These are typical of the book; they do not compromise the essential information; but indicate some writing or editing gaps.The book is not just about the Buffalo Soldiers. She paints context from the Revolution through the Korean War for black folks in the wars (some of whom fought for the British). She covers the Civil War and the creation of the USCT (US Colored Troops) some of whom morphed into the two cavalry and four infantry Buffalo Solider regiments; and which mostly served in the West. Her accounts are regiment by regiment; and this is where the duplication occurs. Sheffer provides a lot of information on what these soldiers' lives were like; their various duties (fighting Indians; protecting the border; protecting Indians from settler violence; building roads). They fought well but the greatest problem was white racism; in all areas of the country and over many years. Soldiers were lynched; and Sheffer describes the stoic existence of these men. One incident I had not read of before; a violent incident near Houston that killed five Houston officers; fifteen white civilians; and several soldiers; and resulted in 19 soldiers hanged and several dozen being given life terms--this was separate from the notorious Brownsville Incident.She describes briefly how these regiments served in Cuba and the Philippines; and how units served in France in both world wars--again; their hardest battle was against white racism. In one incident they appear to have saved Teddy Roosevelt and the Rough Riders. This enduring race-based antagonism is probably Sheffer's main point; rather than an analysis of how well and what these regiments did. Three stars rather than two because of the important information this book contains.
