Parties and groups also help organize office holders to make governance possible in the fragmented American political system. Important as political parties and interest groups may be, however, it is not obvious why they arose and why they have persisted. We shall examine why political actors have decided to invest their effort and resources in creating, sustaining, and reforming parties and groups. Political parties and interest groups have also changed over time.
Many analysts speak of the decline of parties and the increasing importance of interest groups.
We shall explore the relationship between the two types of linkage institutions and cast a critical eye on the claims that groups have superseded parties in importance. The focus of the course, then, is on political parties and interest groups as political organizations and as instruments of governance. Complete assigned reading before class meetings, unless otherwise noted. I reserve the right to give surprise quizzes, to call on students to summarize arguments presented in readings, or, in cases of repeated unpreparedness, to eject students from class. Attend class regularly and on time.