Crackup: The Republican Implosion and the Future of Presidential Politics

by Samuel L. Popkin Narrated by John Pruden

Overview

In Crackup, Samuel L. Popkin tells the story of how the Republican Party fractured into uncompromising groups with irreconcilable demands. Changes in campaign finance laws and the proliferation of mass media opened the way for newly energized groups to split the party. The 2002 "McCain-Feingold" campaign finance reform bill aimed to weaken the power of big corporations and strengthen political parties by ending corporate donations to the parties. Instead, it weakened legislative leaders and made bipartisanship toxic.



Popkin argues that moving money outside the political parties fueled the rise of single-issue advocacy groups and Super PACs funded by billionaires with pet issues. This allowed self-promoting politicians to undermine colleagues with an unprecedented use of tactics once only used to disrupt the other party. One such politician was Ted Cruz, who effectively promoted himself at the expense of the party, mobilized other obstructionists in Congress, and blocked compromises on immigration and healthcare. Into this abyss came Donald J. Trump, who took advantage of the party's inability to do anything for Republican voters struggling with economic decline.



A gripping explanation of why the GOP ended up with Trump as their standard bearer, Crackup forces us to look at the deeper forces set in motion two decades ago.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

03/08/2021

UC San Diego political scientist Popkin (The Candidate) delivers an incisive study of how inadequate campaign finance laws contributed to congressional gridlock and the rise of Donald Trump. Popkin lays the blame largely on McCain-Feingold, a 2002 bill that limited corporate donations to political parties. But instead of decreasing the influence of money on politics, the legislation (in conjunction with the Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizen’s United ruling) funneled private donations to super PACs and single-issue advocacy groups. According to Popkin, this shift discouraged consensus-building in Congress and gave rise to a new kind of aggressive and “self-serving” obstructionism embodied by Texas senator Ted Cruz, who became a national political figure by blocking bipartisan immigration reforms and forcing a 2013 government shutdown over the Affordable Care Act. Popkin contends that Trump borrowed from the Cruz playbook, but in a more exaggerated and media-savvy manner, in order to defeat the GOP establishment (and Cruz) in the 2016 primary. Though Popkin underplays the agency of Republican voters who either overlooked or embraced Trump’s authoritarian impulses and nativist agenda, he makes a convincing case that unchecked private interests are at the root of America’s political dysfunctions. Readers on the right and left will find food for thought. (May)

From the Publisher

"What the hell happened to the GOP? Is something just as destructive in store for the Democratic Party? The answers Popkin offers-part post-mortem, part prescription - are as shrewd as they are urgent." — Jill Lepore, author of These Truths

"Crackup brilliantly confirms why Popkin is one of the most respected political observers of our time. Not only a keen, precise explanation of how Washington unraveled, this is a thrilling examination of overlooked decisions and hidden dramas. I started highlighting the text and gave up because every page is overflowing with insights, analysis, and detail. This book is permanently installed on my desk." — Evan Osnos, Staff Writer, The New Yorker

"Popkin performs two distinct and important services in his book. First, in a thoughtful narrative with which I agree completely, he provides a much-needed corrective to the failure to understand the critical omnipresence of well-functioning political parties to the success of democratic government. Second, he provides a logical, well-argued explanation of why the system is malfunctioning with which I differ, and which I welcome." — Barney Frank, former member of the US House of Representatives

"Popkin writes with verve and good humor, knows a whole lot about politics, and is gifted at mobilizing a good story to make a point. If you are like me, you will disagree with him in fundamental ways but still appreciate the ride Popkin takes you on - and know you'd enjoy arguing with him late into the night." — E.J. Dionne Jr, author of Code Red

"Popkin, one of the nation's foremost scholars of elections, has written an indispensable book explaining the conflicts within the Republican Party that led to the election of Trump. No one is better equipped to describe this history of collapse, and he does so with rigor and grace." — Thomas B. Edsall, Contributing Opinion Writer, The New York Times

"Popkin's brilliant book could not be more timely. Crackup masterfully diagnoses the descent of the Republican Party from 'comity to carnage,' while reminding us that no political party is immune to the dynamics of breakdown." — Sarah Binder, Professor, George Washington University

"Popkin artfully traces the financial consequences of McCain-Feingold and Citizens United. He has written an important book on an important topic and it should be read by anyone interested in contemporary American politics." — Mathew D. McCubbins, Professor, Duke University

Product Details

BN ID:	2940176459197
Publisher:	HighBridge Company
Publication date:	05/19/2021
Edition description:	Unabridged

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