Standoff: How America Became Ungovernable

There is a current rash of books dealing with the phenomena that is the current political administration. The subtitle of this book is How America Became Ungovernable. The author’s answer is that American has always been ungovernable based on the Constitution and the tension between arguments for weak or strong government, which the author submits have been waging for over two hundred years. The author attests that divisions are inherent in our form of government. He feels that the bias has always been toward weak government because of the issues of religious freedom that founded this country.

He describes our current political situation as a backlash that has been brewing since 1960 when identity politics became dominant. He feels that there is a current contest over values, with older white men resisting the changes that took place in their youth. He traces the movement growing through candidates such as Barry Goldwater, George Wallace, Richard Nixon, and groups like the modern Tea Party. Schneider is quite knowledgeable about politics. His arguments are valid. I just wished for more coherence and chronology in their expression.