American Government: Political Development and Institutional Change

How politics in America works today, how it got that way, and how it’s likely to change through reform--these are the themes that pervade every chapter of Cal Jillson’s highly lauded American Government: Political Development and Institutional Change. Even in the midst of current challenges, America’s past is present in all aspects of the contemporary political system. Jillson uses political development and the dynamics of change as a thematic tool to help students understand how politics works now--and how institutions, participation, and policies have evolved over time to produce the contemporary political environment. In addition, Jillson helps students think critically about how American democracy might evolve further, focusing in every chapter on reform and further change.

New to the Thirteeenth Edition

• Assesses the results of the Biden administration and the impact on the 2024 campaign of Biden’s unexpected replacement by Kamala Harris at the top of the ticket.
• Describes numerous ways in which the American political system has been affected by recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, the demise of Roe v. Wade, inflation, and the border.
• Assesses the implications of the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol, the Trump trials, and what they mean for our political culture and partisan politics.
• Assesses the implication of ＂fake news＂ and ＂the move to mobile＂ for our politics.
  Explores the evidence for increasing polarization in public opinion, voting behavior, and the work of Congress and the courts.
• Details the impact that the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the war in Israel and Gaza had on U.S. foreign policy and national security alliances.

Cal Jillson earned a PhD from the University of Maryland and has taught at Louisiana State University and the University of Colorado, where he chaired the Department of Political Science from 1989 to 1993. He joined the faculty of Southern Methodist University in 1995 as professor and chair of the Department of Political Science (1995-2001). He is a member of the American Political Science Association and several regional political science associations. Professor Jillson has written a number of books dealing with the origins of the American political culture and the health and performance of contemporary American politics and political institutions. His recent books were Lone Star Tarnished: A Critical Look at Texas Politics and Public Policy, 4th ed., 2021; Texas Politics: Governing the Lone Star State, 9th ed., 2024; and Race, Ethnicity, and American Decline, 2024.