Books

Breaking the Two-Party Doom Loop: The Case for Multiparty Democracy in America (Oxford University Press, 2020)

American democracy is in deep crisis. But what do we do about it? That depends on how we understand what the crisis actually is.

In Breaking the Two-Party Doom Loop, Lee Drutman argues that we now have, for the first time in American history, a true two-party system, with two truly distinct parties. And it’s a disaster. It’s driving us apart instead of bringing us together. Deftly weaving together history, democratic theory, and cutting edge political science research, Drutman tells the story of how American politics became so toxic, why the country is trapped in a doom loop of escalating two-party warfare, and why it is destroying the shared sense of fairness and legitimacy on which democracy depends. With the two parties divided over competing visions of national identity, Democrats and Republicans no longer see each other as opponents, but as enemies. And the more the conflict escalates, the shakier our democracy feels.

Breaking the Two-Party Doom Loop makes a compelling case for large scale electoral reform—importantly, reform not requiring a constitutional amendment—that would give America more parties, making American democracy more representative, more responsive, and ultimately more stable.

Reviews

"The force of his argument, rigorous and limpidly expressed, is almost irresistible. He emerges as one of the keenest observers of America's political pathologies - if only because he questions what others take for granted. Tracing the arc of the doom loop, he also spies a way out." - The Economist

"Drutman, a political scientist and senior fellow at New America, writes that moving to a multiparty democracy can create fair representation, reduce partisan gridlock, lead to more positive incremental change, and increase both voter turnout and voter satisfaction. And through concrete reforms, like implementing ranked-choice voting and expanding the size of the House of Representatives, Drutman lays out the path forward….Through his thoughtful, engaging work, Drutman has done more than his fair share.” --Washington Monthly

Advance Praise for Breaking the Two-Party Doom Loop

“Lee Drutman is one of our most perceptive political thinkers, and this book is the type of fresh, clear-thinking we need to learn how to live with our age of partisan polarization, rather than simply to complain while it destroys us.” - Ezra Klein, Editor-at-Large and Co-Founder, Vox Media

“No one has written in a more penetrating or insightful way about the state of our politics than Lee Drutman. He is able to combine real insights with compelling data and do so in a fashion that professionals appreciate and the lay reader can understand. I have no doubt his book will have broad resonance for a wide range of readers.” -Norm Ornstein, Resident Scholar, American Enterprise Institute (AEI)

“Lee Drutman is one of the most shrewd and most creative new voices in political science and an engaged citizen deeply worried about our democracy. Breaking the Two Party Doom Loop is a welcomed recess from gloomy political punditry and offers an evidenced-based solution to challenges we face. I continue to see advantages to two-party systems, but Drutman has offered a rigorous and brilliantly argued case that scrapping it is a national imperative.” - E J Dionne, Professor of the Foundations of Democracy and Culture, McCourt School of Public Policy and Government Department, Georgetown University

“American democracy is badly broken, but the enormity of fixing it so often seems impossible. Lee Drutman offers an accessible, lively, and deeply compelling antidote to despair, giving us a new way to think about American political history and to understand what is possible. This is a book of refreshingly big ideas that also provides a pragmatic path forward to a multi-party democracy that works.” - Anne Marie Slaughter, CEO, New America

“Lee Drutman is one of the foremost students of American politics today. His new book will bring his formidable [research] to bear on the central issue affecting American democracy, namely, our intense polarization and the possibility that our democracy could break down altogether if it continues to intensify. He goes against conventional wisdom that says parties and partisanship are to blame, but points to the need to open up space beyond our current two-party system.” - Francis Fukuyama, Olivier Nomellini Senior Fellow and Mosbacher Director, Stanford University

 “Lee Drutman has quickly established himself as a first-rate scholar and public intellectual: deeply learned and with an ambition and capacity to speak to both academics and broader publics. He is at the very top of his cohort in thinking creatively and writing gracefully about the problems of American democracy. His new book is a brilliant analysis of our toxic partisanship and a transformational agenda of electoral reform for breaking out of it.” - Thomas Mann, Senior Fellow, Brookings, and Resident Scholar, Institute of Governmental Studies, UC Berkeley

 “Lee Drutman's Breaking the Two-Party Doom Loop is a lucid account of  how our broken party system has undermined our constitutional order,  and how rising ethnic and class antagonisms threaten to make matters  worse in the decades to come. Drawing on cutting-edge social science  and the wisdom of the founding generation, he offers a series of bold,  unconventional reforms designed to foster a healthier, more durable American democracy, and that merit close attention.” - Reihan Salam, President, Manhattan Institute, and a contributing editor of The Atlantic

“Whatever your politics, Lee Drutman’s profound and important new book will leave you thinking differently about our polarized moment and the possible paths to recovery.” - Yuval Levin, Resident Fellow, American Enterprise Institute, and Editor of National Affairs

The Business of America is Lobbying (Winner of the 2016 Robert A. Dahl Award)

Reviews and Press Coverage

Corporate lobbyists are everywhere in Washington. Of the 100 organizations that spend the most on lobbying, 95 represent business. The largest companies now have upwards of 100 lobbyists representing them.

How did American businesses become so invested in politics? And what does all their money buy? Drawing on extensive data and original interviews with corporate lobbyists, The Business of America is Lobbying provides a fascinating and detailed picture of what corporations do in Washington, why they do it, and why it matters.

Prior to the 1970s, very few corporations had Washington offices. But changing political conditions mobilized business leaders. Ever since, corporate lobbying has become increasingly more pervasive, more proactive, and more particularistic. Drutman argues that lobbyists drove this development, helping managers to see why politics mattered, and how proactive and aggressive engagement could help companies’ bottom lines.

All this lobbying doesn’t guarantee influence. Politics is a messy and unpredictable bazaar, and it is more competitive than ever. But the growth of lobbying has driven several important changes that make business more powerful. Among them: the status quo is harder to dislodge; policy is more complex; and, as Congress increasingly becomes a farm league for K Street, more and more of Washington’s policy expertise now resides in the private sector. The changes all benefit big business.

Lively and engaging, rigorous and nuanced, The Business of America is Lobbying will change how we think about lobbying – and how we might reform it.