Title Uncompromising positions : God, sex, and the U.S. House of Representatives / Elizabeth Anne Oldmixon

Published Washington, D.C. : Georgetown University Press, ©2005

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Description 1 online resource (xvi, 244 pages) : illustrations Series Religion and politics series Religion and politics series (Georgetown University) Contents Introduction: guns, race, and culture -- Seeing and believing in the foreground -- The culture of progressive sexuality -- The culture of religious traditionalism -- Choosing folkways -- Managing morality -- Cultural scuffles and Capitol Hill Summary Cultural factions are an intrinsic part of the fabric of American politics. But does this mean that there is no room for compromise when groups hold radically different viewpoints on major issues? Not necessarily. For example, in a June 2003 Time/CNN poll, 49% of respondents identified themselves as pro-choice and 46% identified as pro-life. But in the same poll, 81% indicated that abortion should be "always legal" or "sometimes legal," suggesting that "pro-life" and "pro-choice" are not discrete positions, but allow room for compromise. How do legislators legislate policy conflicts that are defined in explicitly cultural terms such as abortion, gay marriage, and school prayer? American political institutions are frequently challenged by the significant conflict between those who embrace religious traditionalism and those who embrace progressive cultural norms. Uncompromising Positions: God, Sex, and the U.S. House of Representatives investigates the politics of that conflict as it is manifested in the proceedings of the U.S. House of Representatives. Oldmixon traces the development of these two distinct cultures in contemporary American politics and discusses the decision-making and leadership tactics used by legislators to respond to this division of values. She argues that cultural conflict produces an absolutist politics which draws on religious values not amenable to compromise politics. One possible strategy to address the problem is to build bipartisan coalitions. Yet, interviews with House staffers and House members, as well as roll calls, all demonstrate that ideologically driven politicians sacrifice compromise and stability to achieve short-term political gain. Noting polls that show Americans tend to support compromise positions, Oldmixon calls on House members to put aside short-term political gain, take their direction from the example of the American public, and focus on finding viable solutions to public policy&#8212not zealous ideology Bibliography Includes bibliographical references (pages 219-232) and index Notes Master and use copy. Digital master created according to Benchmark for Faithful Digital Reproductions of Monographs and Serials, Version 1. Digital Library Federation, December 2002. http://purl.oclc.org/DLF/benchrepro0212 MiAaHDL English Print version record digitized 2010 HathiTrust Digital Library committed to preserve pda MiAaHDL Subject Church and state -- United States Culture conflict -- United States Legislation -- United States Legislators -- United States. members of Congress. POLITICAL SCIENCE -- Political Process -- Political Advocacy. Church and state Culture conflict Legislation Legislators United States Form Electronic book ISBN 9781589010710 158901071X 9781589010727 1589010728 9781435631977 1435631978 9781589014787 1589014782

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