American Government

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 Fourteenth 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 the shrinking of Congress, the expansion of the presidency, and the conservative supermajority on the Supreme Court.

• Assesses the implications of the 2026 midterm election results on the final two years of the Trump administration.

• Assesses the implication of "fake news" and artificial intelligence, AI, 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, the war in Israel and Gaza, and Trump’s new national security strategy had on U.S. foreign policy and national security alliances.

The book is supported by a host of digital resources on the Instructor and Student Resources website at routledgelearning.com/americangovernment. Students will find chapter summaries; interactive quizzes; critical thinking exercises and useful web links for further reading, while instructor resources include figures and tables from the book; PowerPoint lecture slides; test bank and an instructor manual for each chapter.