What Happened to the Vital Center?

Presidentialism, Populist Revolt, and the Fracturing of America

Nicholas Jacobs and Sidney Milkis

Provides a long historical view of populism, party politics, and the growth of presidential power
Traces the joining of executive power and movement politics over the past six decades
Argues for a a reconstituted party system rather than greater presidential power

What Happened to the Vital Center?

Presidentialism, Populist Revolt, and the Fracturing of America

Nicholas Jacobs and Sidney Milkis

Description

Taking the reader through a long view of American history, What Happened to the Vital Center? offers a novel and important contribution to the ongoing scholarly and popular discussion of how America fell apart and what might be done to end the Cold Civil War that fractures the country and weakens the national resolve.

In What Happened to the Vital Center?, Nicholas Jacobs and Sidney Milkis tackle a foundational question within American political history: Is current partisan polarization, aggravated by populist disdain for constitutional principles and institutions, a novel development in American politics? Populism is not a new threat to the country's democratic experiment, but now insurgents intrude directly on elections and government. During previous periods of populist unrest, the US was governed by resilient parties that moderated extremist currents within the political system. This began to crumble during the 1960s, as anti-institutionalist incursions into the Democratic and Republican organizations gave rise to reforms that empowered activists at the expense of the median voter and shifted the controlling power over parties to the executive branch. Gradually, the moderating influence that parties played in structuring campaigns and the policy process eroded to the point where extreme polarization dominated and decision-making power migrated to the presidency. Weakened parties were increasingly dominated by presidents and their partnerships with social activists, leading to a gridlocked system characterized by the politics of demonization and demagoguery. Executive-centered parties more easily ignore the sorts of moderating voices that had prevailed in an earlier era. While the Republican Party is more susceptible to the dangers of populism than the Democrats, both parties are animated by a presidency-led, movement-centered vision of democracy. After tracing this history, the authors dismiss calls to return to some bygone era. Rather, the final section highlights the ways in which the two parties can be revitalized as institutions of collective responsibility that can transform personal ambition and rancorous partisanship into principled conflict over the profound issues that now divide the country. The book will transform our understanding of how we ended up in our current state of extreme polarization and what we can do to fix it.

What Happened to the Vital Center?

Presidentialism, Populist Revolt, and the Fracturing of America

Nicholas Jacobs and Sidney Milkis

Preface

1. Introduction: Populism and American Democracy
2. The American Party System and Populist Upheaval: Mediating Anger and Discontent, 1800-1945
3. Origins of Executive-Centered Partisanship and The Quest for Responsible Party Government
4. Liberalism Transformed: The Democratic Party since 1960
5. Conservatism Redefined: The Republican Party since 1960
6. Culminating Developments: Presidential Power, Liberalism, and Conservatism in the Twenty-first Century
7. Conclusion: Executive-Centered Partisanship and the Future of American Democracy

What Happened to the Vital Center?

Presidentialism, Populist Revolt, and the Fracturing of America

Nicholas Jacobs and Sidney Milkis

Author Information

Nicholas F. Jacobs is an Assistant Professor at Colby College, where he teaches in the Government Department.

Sidney M. Milkis is the White Burkett Miller Professor in the Department of Politics and a Faculty Fellow at the Miller Center at the University of Virginia.

What Happened to the Vital Center?

Presidentialism, Populist Revolt, and the Fracturing of America

Nicholas Jacobs and Sidney Milkis

Reviews and Awards

"This provocative book combines a stark warning and a roadmap for the revival of the 'vital center' in American party politics. But this is no pot-boiler written for the political moment; drawing on deep historical knowledge and rich theoretical acumen, Jacobs and Milkis warn Americans of the dangers of executive-centered partisanship in the presence of weakened party organizations. Their book charts a sane and doable path to assure the future of our embattled democracy." -- Sidney Tarrow, author of Movements and Parties

"This book is an altogether impressive achievement—a work of impressive historical sweep and pointed analytical acuity, a bold and compelling reinterpretation of American political development. Jacobs and Milkis brilliantly illuminate the roots of the weakness of the American party system, the rise of a corrosive brand of populism, and the contemporary distemper of American democracy." -- Robert C. Lieberman, coauthor of Four Threats: The Recurring Crises of American Democracy

"Through a rich historical analysis, Jacobs and Milkis detail the pathologies of a politics dominated by the battle for control of an increasingly empowered presidency. Steering a path between an airy romanticism and a narrow realism, they make an eloquent case for a reinvigorated party system." -- Frances E. Lee, Princeton University

"Milkis and Jacobs argue that America once had responsible parties that tempered both executive power and populist passions and thereby served genuine democratic self-governance. What went wrong? Can it be fixed? Jacobs and Milkis offer valuable insights into these vital questions about America's once-vital center." -- Rogers M. Smith, University of Pennsylvania