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Book Cover
E-book
Author Rottinghaus, Brandon, 1977-

Title The provisional pulpit : modern presidential leadership of public opinion / Brandon Rottinghaus
Edition 1st ed
Published College Station : Texas A & M University Press, ©2010

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Description 1 online resource (xx, 318 pages) : illustrations
Series Joseph V. Hughes Jr. and Holly O. Hughes series on the presidency and leadership
Presidency and leadership (Unnumbered)
Contents Questions and quandaries of presidential leadership -- The constrained presidency: a conditional theory of presidential leadership -- Presidential (non- ) leadership of public opinion -- Successful presidential leadership of public opinion -- Case studies of successful leadership (domestic policy) -- Nixon implements wage and price controls -- Reagan and the negotiation over the budget -- Clinton and the budget debate -- Case studies of unsuccessful leadership (domestic policy) -- Kennedy's Medicare proposal -- Ford attempts to 'whip inflation now' -- Reagan 'reforms' social security -- Case studies of successful leadership (foreign policy) -- Evolution of Johnson's Vietnam policy -- Carter on the Panama Canal treaties -- Bush and the initiation of the Gulf War -- Case studies of unsuccessful leadership (foreign policy) -- Nixon (temporarily) escalates Vietnam -- Reagan presses for 'contra' funding -- Clinton withdraws from Somalia -- Implications for leadership and the public presidency -- Epilogue: Presidents 43 and 44 -- Appendix A. Case selection and matching statements and opinion polling -- Appendix B. Case study selection and archival data collection -- Appendix C. Models and data
Summary "Recent research has described how broadly difficult it is for presidents to lead public opinion and thereby push through government policy changes they seek. Marshalling a comprehensive set of data and reporting new archival evidence, The Provisional Pulpit is an impressive piece of scholarship that shows more precisely than previous work--in percentage point terms--how strikingly limited presidents are in their efforts to gain further public support for their specific proposals. Presidents and their advisors need to be reminded of the difficulties they will encounter if they try to do too much (especially during their first year in office), if they do not devote sustained attention around the country to the most important issues on their agenda, if they neglect to use opportunities for major national televised addresses, and if they do not do all of this while the president is still sufficiently popular. In these respects. The Provisional Pulpit is a major
Contribution."--Robert Y. Shapiro, professor of political science, Columbia University
"Rottinghaus makes an important contribution to the ever-expanding scholarship on the public presidency, particularly on the question of a president's effectiveness at leading public opinion. This is thorough analysis, relying on both quantitative and qualitative data, to provide the reader with an excellent understanding of why some presidents have succeeded and why others have failed to shift the public's policy preferences to be more in line with their own. This book also reminds us of the many leadership challenges faced by contemporary presidents in our media-saturated political environment."--Lori Cox Han, professor of political science, Chapman University
"Brandon Rottinghaus has produced an interesting and important study of presidential leadership and public opinion. His study aims to uncover the factors that facilitate successful presidential leadership of public opinion, and he finds that presidents are most likely to succeed when they are already popular, when they give the issue in question considerable attention, and when there are few countervailing forces inhibiting such persuasion. The study relies on both statistical and archival data, and as such makes both methodological and substantive contributions to the field of presidential leadership and public opinion."--Mary E. Stuckey, professor of communication and political science, Georgia State University
"The ear of the leader must ring with the voices of the people. Together they rise to the challenge of the day."--Woodrow Wilson
The cornerstone of the public presidency is the ability of the White House to influence, shape, and even manipulate public opinion. Ultimately, although much has been written about presidential leadership of opinion, we are still left with many questions pertaining to the success of presidential opinion leadership efforts throughout the modern presidency. What is still missing is a systematic, sequential approach to check the accuracy of conventional political wisdom on how, when, and under what conditions presidents lead public opinion
In The Provisional Pulpit a simple theory of presidential leadership is developed, arguing that presidential messages are more likely to be received if there are fewer countervailing agents or messages to contradict the president's message. Brandon Rottinghaus concludes, based upon the findings presented in this book, that the "bully pulpit" is largely provisional for modern presidents. The more the president can avoid the political echo chamber associated with partisan battles or communications, the better the chance the president has to lead public opinion
In addition to several other contingencies, presidents are successful at leading opinion when they continuously push an issue in public, when their approval rating is higher, when they deliver speeches on television from the seat of presidential power, and wh --Book Jacket
Bibliography Includes bibliographical references (pages 289-306) and index
Notes English
Print version record
Subject Presidents -- United States -- Public opinion -- Case studies
Political leadership -- United States -- Case studies
Communication in politics -- United States -- Case studies
Persuasion (Rhetoric) -- Political aspects -- United States -- Case studies
Communication in politics
Persuasion (Rhetoric) -- Political aspects
Political leadership
Politics and government
Presidents -- Public opinion
SUBJECT United States -- Politics and government -- 20th century. http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85140455
United States -- Politics and government -- 21st century
Subject United States
Genre/Form Case studies
Case studies.
Études de cas.
Form Electronic book
ISBN 9781603443593
1603443592