The Great Democracy

Over the last four decades, neo-liberalism has been the force shaping America and the world, its logic of the market applied to every aspect of life. But now, amid a new Gilded Age of inequality and economic stagnation, and in the wake of Donald Trump's election, it is clear that the neo-liberal era has come to an end. The central question of our time is what comes next.

In The Great Democracy, professor of law and progressive policy expert Ganesh Sitaraman argues that the only way forward is more democracy. If America wishes to avoid avoid a future characterised by Trump's oligarchic nationalism - or a warmed-over version of the failed neo-liberal ideas that brought us Trump in the first place - we will need not only to protect and expand political democracy but also to realise true economic democracy in America for the first time in our history. Sitaraman outlines a bold political vision for a "new democracy" resting on three main pillars: (1) protecting and extending political democracy, so that the political process leads to outcomes that represent all Americans, (2) realising an unprecedented level of economic democracy by combating economic inequality and (3) forging social solidarity in a diverse nation, to ensure a united democracy. He proposes policies to achieve these ends, ranging from compulsory voting to statehood for Puerto Rico and other US territories to aggressive regulation of big tech companies to a national service program and a National Endowment for Journalism.

At a time when American politics is in disarray, The Great Democracy demonstrates persuasively that we must choose to build a new era of robust democracy, offering a compelling call to action and a realistic road map for achieving it. It is time to play hardball in service of democracy, Sitaraman argues and to win the fight against oligarchy once and for all.

“" The Great Democracy is a remarkable achievement. Ganesh Sitaraman offers a far-reaching analysis of the challenges confronting American democracy and their economic underpinnings. He also proposes a comprehensive set of reforms that could actually make a difference. Read this book if you want a greater democracy."-- Simon Johnson, coauthor of Jump-Starting America , 13 Bankers , and White House Burning”

"The Great Democracy is a remarkable achievement. Ganesh Sitaraman offers a far-reaching analysis of the challenges confronting American democracy and their economic underpinnings. He also proposes a comprehensive set of reforms that could actually make a difference. Read this book if you want a greater democracy."--Simon Johnson, coauthor of Jump-Starting America, 13 Bankers, and White House Burning
"It will take ideas and imagination, not just a defense of the status quo, to solve America's deep political crisis. The Great Democracy offers both in spades; though I do not agree with all of Ganesh Sitaraman's prescriptions, he has made an important contribution to the kind of bold political vision which can help to ensure that the future of liberal democracy will shine even more brightly than its past."--Yascha Mounk, author of The People vs. Democracy
"One of the biggest divides in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination is whether Donald Trump is a cause or a symptom of the current dysfunction in American politics. ... [Sitaraman is] firmly in the big, structural change camp, making a strong case that there is no normal to go back to. ... [His] expansive notion of democracy is the key revelation from Sitaraman's illuminating book."--Ari Berman, New York Times
"This insightful, engaging book offers a vital diagnosis of our current political crisis. By explaining how we got into this mess, Ganesh Sitaraman cuts a clear and compelling path forward. There's no turning back the clock, no nostalgic return to normalcy -- only the possibility of finally making democracy great by setting our sights on the socially inclusive and economically egalitarian future we the people deserve and desire."--Astra Taylor, author of Democracy May Not Exist, But We'll Miss It When It's Gone
"This is a major statement of principle and program from one of our most important progressive thinkers. The position Ganesh Sitaraman sets out deserves to be the benchmark for reformers going forward."--Jedediah S. Purdy, author of This Land Is Our Land and William S. Beinecke Professor of Law, Columbia Law School

Ganesh Sitaraman is chancellor's faculty fellow, professor of law, and director of the Program in Law and Government at Vanderbilt Law School. Author of The Crisis of the Middle-Class Constitution, a 2017 New York Times Notable Book, he lives in Nashville, Tennessee.

Over the last four decades, neo-liberalism has been the force shaping America and the world, its logic of the market applied to every aspect of life. But now, amid a new Gilded Age of inequality and economic stagnation, and in the wake of Donald Trump's election, it is clear that the neo-liberal era has come to an end. The central question of our time is what comes next.In The Great Democracy , professor of law and progressive policy expert Ganesh Sitaraman argues that the only way forward is more democracy . If America wishes to avoid avoid a future characterised by Trump's oligarchic nationalism - or a warmed-over version of the failed neo-liberal ideas that brought us Trump in the first place - we will need not only to protect and expand political democracy but also to realise true economic democracy in America for the first time in our history. Sitaraman outlines a bold political vision for a "new democracy" resting on three main pillars: (1) protecting and extending political democracy, so that the political process leads to outcomes that represent all Americans, (2) realising an unprecedented level of economic democracy by combating economic inequality and (3) forging social solidarity in a diverse nation, to ensure a united democracy. He proposes policies to achieve these ends, ranging from compulsory voting to statehood for Puerto Rico and other US territories to aggressive regulation of big tech companies to a national service program and a National Endowment for Journalism. At a time when American politics is in disarray, The Great Democracy demonstrates persuasively that we must choose to build a new era of robust democracy, offering a compelling call to action and a realistic road map for achieving it. It is time to play hardball in service of democracy, Sitaraman argues and to win the fight against oligarchy once and for all.

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