Democracy--how Direct?: Views from the Founding Era and the Polling EraElliott Abrams For more than two hundred years Americans have been debating how direct a democracy they want. Many hold that representative government too seldom reflects the people's real views, while others counter that direct popular voting will lead to excesses of passion and deficits of deliberation. In Democracy: How Direct? Elliot Abrams brings together eminent scholars to discuss the issues surrounding the dilemma of a representative versus direct democracy. This collection of previously unpublished essays begins by examining the views of our nation's founders and the historical perspectives on our democracy and then debates modern issues such as polling, public opinion, and the referendum process. With their valuable combination of historical analysis, contemporary data, and theoretical understanding, these essays will surely raise the level of the ongoing debate surrounding the nature of American democracy. |
Contents
The Founders Views of Direct Democracy and Representation | 1 |
James Madison and the Spirit of 1787 | 19 |
Lincolns View of Direct Democracy and Public Opinion | 33 |
Beyond Referendum Democracy Competing Conceptions of Public Opinion | 53 |
Polling and the Creation of a Virtual Public | 67 |
Refined and Enlarged Public Opinion | 82 |
For the People Direct Democracy in the State Constitutional Tradition | 87 |
People Power Initiative and Referendum in the United States | 101 |
Why Initiatives Are Necessary Some Tales from California | 111 |
Notes | 119 |
| 131 | |
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