DOCSLIB.ORG

Federal Crime and Punishment Meet the New System, Same As the Old System?

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Federal Crime and Punishment Meet the New System, Same As the Old System? It’s been more than a quarter-century since Congress rewrote the federal criminal code to toughen criminal sentences, abolish parole, and add drug and other crimes. Since then, federal crimes have mushroomed, and the numbers of people in federal prison has increased exponentially. Is this system the best we can do? BY JOHANNA E. MARKIND 64 • THE FEDERAL LAWYER • AUGUST 2014 Federal Crime and Punishment Meet the New System, Same as the Old System? n 1987, the Sentencing Reform Act transferred to the United States under treaty. But the Parole Commission’s principal focus is now administering parole and (SRA) eliminated parole for federal supervised release for the local District of Columbia criminal Icrimes. The U.S. Parole Commission population. had five years to phase out parole and shut The decline in federal parole has led to an explosion of federal inmates. As of March 21, 2013, the Bureau of Prisons down. Since then the commission has been (BOP) reported 217,929 prisoners in custody, around 210,000 extended several times. Most recently, Con- of whom are not eligible for parole, resulting in substantial overcrowding.3 In short, today’s federal prisons have about gress approved a five-year reauthorization 495 percent more prisoners than they did back in 1987 when bill, which the President signed into law on parole was abolished. To handle the increased volume, BOP’s Oct. 31, 2013. budget has increased exponentially, from $220 million in 1986 to $6.859 billion for fiscal year 2014, a 3,153 percent increase From a high of about 44,000 prisoners in 1987,1 the com- since the abolishing of parole. As Sen. Everett Dirksen (R-Ill.) mission now has jurisdiction over fewer than 1,200 federal is reputed to have said, “A billion here, a billion there, and prisoners and 2,500 federal parolees.2 The bulk of its respon- pretty soon you’re talking real money.”4 sibilities now lies elsewhere— deciding whether to release on The increase in incarcerated prisoners and costs is partly parole, and whether to revoke parole or supervised release attributable to a vast growth of federal crimes. In particular, of District of Columbia Code offenders. (For the uniniti- Congress federalized a lot of drug crimes about a year before ated, supervised release is a period of post-incarceration abolishing parole. The Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986 greatly re-entry to society overseen by the authorities, in many ways expanded the number and scope of federal drug crimes and analogous to parole.) D.C. offenders under supervision of penalties for their violation. About 48 percent of people now the Parole Commission now number about 17,200 people, or serving time in federal prison are there for drug offenses, about 83 percent of its workload. The commission also makes according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) parole decisions for military prisoners in the custody of the study. Bureau of Prisons and determines release dates for Americans But these mushrooming numbers also result from the convicted of crimes in foreign countries who have been abolition of parole, which had previously functioned as a AUGUST 2014 • THE FEDERAL LAWYER • 65 safety valve for the system. In an August 2013 address to the ago piecemeal, it may be time for Congress to undertake a sys- American Bar Association (ABA) House of Delegates, Attorney tematic review of its criminal justice system: what works, what General Eric Holder said that, under the current system, “too doesn’t, and what could stand improvement? many Americans go to too many prisons for far too long and for Following is my proposed agenda for such a review. no truly good law enforcement reason.”5 In a November 2013 interview with USA TODAY, Holder suggested that “new consid- Revamping the Federal Criminal Code eration should be given to the reinstatement of parole for federal The vast expansion of federal drug crimes accounts for almost offenders to help restore fairness in the criminal justice system half of federal prisoners. The cost of prosecution and punishment and relieve overcrowding in the swelling federal prison system.”6 is enormous, especially in light of stiff mandatory sentencing In the August ABA speech, Holder presented a package of minimums, which is why two of the changes respectively adopted revised Department of Justice policies to ease overcrowding and and advocated by the attorney general concern narrowing the improve sentencing fairness. These include increasing compas- impact of these mandatory minimums. sionate releases of nonviolent elderly inmates to be administered Historically, drug crimes were generally considered a state by the BOP (the Parole Commission already had authority to problem. During his Oct. 5, 2011, testimony before the Senate order compassionate release of inmates sentenced pre-SRA), Judiciary Committee, Justice Antonin Scalia remarked, “I think it avoiding charges for low-level and nonviolent drug offenders was a great mistake to put routine drug offenses into the federal that would carry mandatory minimum sentences, and endorsing courts. That’s just routine stuff that used to be handled by state proposed legislation to permit federal judges to vary from “man- courts.”8 Last December, Washington and Colorado legalized the datory” minimums for certain drug offenses. use of marijuana. Several other states have legalized its use for One of the goals of the Sentencing Reform Act was to pro- medical purposes. mote fairness by prescribing more or less the same time for the Congress should revisit whether drug crimes should be crimes same crime, thus avoiding unwarranted sentencing disparities. at all, whether they should be federal crimes, and what sanctions Although the sentencing guidelines tried to account for dis- would be appropriate if they remain on the books. Fortunately, tinctions between offenders as well as crimes, the prescriptive we have a partial model for this study, in the form of alcohol. approach could not help but overlook many differences. Many Prohibition certainly was effective in reducing alcoholism and judges felt the SRA straightjacketed them into imposing sen- related health problems. It ended during the straitened financial Drug crimes are not the only problematic federal crimes. In a joint study published in 2010, “Without Intent: How Congress Is Eroding the Criminal Intent Requirement in Federal Law,” the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and the Heritage Foundation decried the “reckless pace of criminalization” and poor draftsmanship that have created federal crimes with murky mens rea requirements, sowing confusion, additional administrative costs, and potential wrongful conviction. tences they did not believe to be fair or appropriate. Judges and circumstances of the Great Depression, arguably to enable states criminal defense lawyers complained that the SRA unconsti- to benefit from alcohol tax revenue. By reviewing the impact of tutionally shifted power from judges and juries to prosecutors Prohibition’s repeal, we may gain useful insight into the prob- because the prosecutor’s charging decisions largely dictated the able impact of drug legalization, insofar as whether it is likely ultimate sentence. The judge had little power to deviate from the to increase or decrease crime, whether it is likely to increase guidelines, and juries not only didn’t determine sentences, they or decrease health problems related to drug use and abuse, and were shielded from any knowledge of sentencing consequences. how much it is likely to increase revenue if drugs are legalized The Supreme Court’s 2005 decision in United States v. and taxed. Booker reinstated some judicial discretion by making the sen- Drug crimes are not the only problematic federal crimes. In tencing guidelines advisory instead of mandatory. But, even a joint study published in 2010, “Without Intent: How Congress still, judges are not permitted to sentence below the mandatory Is Eroding the Criminal Intent Requirement in Federal Law,”9 minimums established by Congress for a given crime. Holder the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and the urged Congress to remove unnecessary mandatory minimums,7 Heritage Foundation decried the “reckless pace of criminaliza- and in the interim proposed that prosecutors avoid, in some tion” and poor draftsmanship that have created federal crimes instances, charging crimes carrying a mandatory minimum. (This with murky mens rea requirements, sowing confusion, addi- interim proposal tends to increase prosecutorial plea-leverage). tional administrative costs, and potential wrongful conviction. As With such changes, the new sentencing system is looking more Justice Scalia noted in his dissent in Sykes v. United States,10 and more like the old system, in which judges had unfettered discretion in imposing sentences and prisoners could be released We face a Congress that puts forth an ever-increasing vol- before their terms expired if they were deemed not to pose a ume of laws in general, and of criminal laws in particular. threat to society. It should be no surprise that as the volume increases, so Rather than reworking or reversing changes imposed 26 years do the number of imprecise laws. And no surprise that our 66 • THE FEDERAL LAWYER • AUGUST 2014 indulgence of imprecisions that violate the Constitution As Tierney notes, increased prison time for nonviolent offenders encourages imprecisions that violate the Constitution. may actually increase recidivism, “creating more crime over the Fuzzy, leave-the-details-to-be-sorted-out-by-the-courts long term by harming the social fabric in communities and per- legislation is attractive to the Congressman who wants manently damaging the economic prospects of prisoners as well credit for addressing a national problem but does not have as their families.” the time (or perhaps the votes) to grapple with the nitty- People from both sides of the political spectrum have begun gritty. In the field of criminal law, at least, it is time to call to question the need for and utility of more and longer sentences.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Republicans on the Run Editor's Column
    December 1984 Volume XX, No.6 Price $ 1.50 ~\- Republicans On The Run Editor's Column One of the first orders of business for RepUblicans on Capitol Hillfollowing the 1984 election was the selection of new Senate leaders. For moderates and progressives, the news was encouraging. Bob D ole was elected majon'ty leader. RIPON fORtJM John Heinz again heads the National Republican Senaton'al Commillee; John Chcifee is in charge ofth e Senate Republi­ can Conference; B ob Packwood is chairman of the Senate Editor's Column 2 Finance Commillee; a nd John Danforth is in charge of the Pronlu and Perspectivu: 3 Senate Commerce Commillee, They join other moderates A Conversation with andprogressives, such as Pete Domenici and M ark Haifield, Donald Shriver in key leadership positions. Our cover design points out that some moderates might, in A P~serlptlon (or Pro&resslves: 7 Dale Curt!, fact, seek the presidency in 1988. Ofcourse, it is too early, if not plain wrong, to start sen'ously hypothesizing about 1988. Editorial: LooklnaBeyond 1984 Yet it isn't too earlyfor GOP moderates and progressives to • begin organizing andfocusing on specific goals. This is the Toward A PrOltenive 12 Repubtlean Alenda: theme of several articles in this edilion oflhe Forum. Dale David L. S.lI acb CUrlis outlines several obstacles thaI must be overcome, but he also claims thatfivefavorable trends existfor moderates Proafuslve Republicans: IS and progressives, David Sallachpresenls theftrst in a sen'es Head Soutb and Go Wu t: William P. McKenzie ofprogressive R epublican "agendas, "focusing pn'man'ly on U.
    [Show full text]
  • The New Right
    W&M ScholarWorks Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects 1984 The New Right Elizabeth Julia Reiley College of William & Mary - Arts & Sciences Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wm.edu/etd Part of the Political Science Commons Recommended Citation Reiley, Elizabeth Julia, "The New Right" (1984). Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects. Paper 1539625286. https://dx.doi.org/doi:10.21220/s2-mnnb-at94 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects at W&M ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects by an authorized administrator of W&M ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE NEW RIGHT 'f A Thesis Presented to The Faculty of the Department of Sociology The College of William and Mary in Virginia In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts by Elizabeth Reiley 1984 This thesis is submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Elizabeth Approved, May 1984 Edwin H . Rhyn< Satoshi Ito Dedicated to Pat Thanks, brother, for sharing your love, your life, and for making us laugh. We feel you with us still. Presente! iii. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................... v ABSTRACT.................................... vi INTRODUCTION ................................ s 1 CHAPTER I. THE NEW RIGHT . '............ 6 CHAPTER II. THE 1980 ELECTIONS . 52 CHAPTER III. THE PRO-FAMILY COALITION . 69 CHAPTER IV. THE NEW RIGHT: BEYOND 1980 95 CHAPTER V. CONCLUSION ............... 114 BIBLIOGRAPHY .................................. 130 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The writer wishes to express her appreciation to all the members of her committee for the time they gave to the reading and criticism of the manuscript, especially Dr.
    [Show full text]
  • Conservatives on Madison Avenue: Political Advertising and Direct Marketing in the 1950S
    NANZAN REVIEW OF AMERICAN STUDIES Volume 41 (2019): 3-25 Conservatives on Madison Avenue: Political Advertising and Direct Marketing in the 1950s MORIYAMA Takahito ＊ This article investigates how urban consumerism affected the rise of modern American conservatism by focusing on anticommunists’ political advertising in New York City during the 1950s. The advertising industry developed the new tactic of direct marketing in the post-World War II period and, over the years, several political activists adopted this new marketing technique for political campaigns. Direct mail, a product of the new marketing, was a personalized medium that built up a database of personal information and sent suitable messages to individuals, instead of standardized information to the masses. The medium was especially significant for conservatives to disseminate their ideology to prospective supporters across the country in the 1950s when the conservati ve media establishment did not exist. This research explores the development of the American right in urban areas by analyzing the role of direct mail in the conservative movement. The postwar era witnessed the rise of modern American conservatism as a political movement. Following World War II, anticommunism became widespread among Americans and the United States was confronted with communism abroad, whereas in domestic politics right-wing movements, such as McCarthyism, attacked liberalism. The New Deal had angered many Americans prior to the 1950s. Frustrated with government regulations since the 1930s, some businesspeople acclaimed the free enterprise system and individual liberties as the American ideal; several intellectuals and religious figures criticized the decline of traditional values in modern society; and white Southerners were adamant in preventing the federal government from interfering in the Jim Crow laws.
    [Show full text]
  • Conservative Movement
    Conservative Movement How did the conservative movement, routed in Barry Goldwater's catastrophic defeat to Lyndon Johnson in the 1964 presidential campaign, return to elect its champion Ronald Reagan just 16 years later? What at first looks like the political comeback of the century becomes, on closer examination, the product of a particular political moment that united an unstable coalition. In the liberal press, conservatives are often portrayed as a monolithic Right Wing. Close up, conservatives are as varied as their counterparts on the Left. Indeed, the circumstances of the late 1980s -- the demise of the Soviet Union, Reagan's legacy, the George H. W. Bush administration -- frayed the coalition of traditional conservatives, libertarian advocates of laissez-faire economics, and Cold War anti- communists first knitted together in the 1950s by William F. Buckley Jr. and the staff of the National Review. The Reagan coalition added to the conservative mix two rather incongruous groups: the religious right, primarily provincial white Protestant fundamentalists and evangelicals from the Sunbelt (defecting from the Democrats since the George Wallace's 1968 presidential campaign); and the neoconservatives, centered in New York and led predominantly by cosmopolitan, secular Jewish intellectuals. Goldwater's campaign in 1964 brought conservatives together for their first national electoral effort since Taft lost the Republican nomination to Eisenhower in 1952. Conservatives shared a distaste for Eisenhower's "modern Republicanism" that largely accepted the welfare state developed by Roosevelt's New Deal and Truman's Fair Deal. Undeterred by Goldwater's defeat, conservative activists regrouped and began developing institutions for the long haul.
    [Show full text]
  • The Tea Party and American Populism Today: Between Protest, Patriotism and Paranoia
    The American State – symposium Michael Minkenberg The Tea Party and American Populism Today: Between Protest, Patriotism and Paranoia Abstract This article takes a closer look at the Tea Party by adding a transatlantic perspective. Its aim is to show that the Tea Party is a genuine right-wing movement with strong affinities to the Republican Party which revives par- ticular American traditions of conservatism and the radical right. Its support base is not ‘the mainstream’ but a particular cross section of the white middle classes. In this, it is the American mirror image of many European parties and movements of the populist radical right which share the Tea Party’s anti-establishment message, its ultra-patriotism and ethnocentrism. It also shares some of its characteristics with the Christian Right with which it competes and cooperates when aiming at influencing the Republican Party and Washington while marking the merger of the Christian Right with Southern conservatism. Key words: Populism, American conservatism, radical right, Christian Right, Republican Party 1. Introduction “Keep your government hands off my Medicare!” (at a town hall meeting in South Carolina, quoted in Zernike 2011a, p. 135) After more than one and a half years of its existence and unmistakable presence in American politics, and of its accompanying scrutiny, the Tea Party movement remains a deeply ambivalent phenomenon. Ambivalent in terms of its independence as a movement or and its relationship to the Republican party, conservative business elites, or right-wing media; ambivalent in terms of its message, the kind of change it advocates in explicit de- marcation from the change its adherents attribute to President Obama; ambivalent about its social base as a true grass-roots or an elite-driven network of organizations and activ- ists, a middle class or cross-class movement (see Rahe 2011; Rasmussen/Schoen 2010; Williamson et al.
    [Show full text]
  • Eonfmnting ]He Opposition a Child in Crisis
    I I . Nadonal NOW Times, April-May 19l8 ~~~NOW~ KNOW TfrtE OPPOSi ifri0N-Part IV continued Official Monthly Publtcatton of the (]~ NATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR WOMEN, INC. N A T I o N A L Eleanor Cutri Smeal, President CJ!!OANt2!4TIDN Sandrill Roth, Secretary Ill Executive Committee Liaison the New High~: ...,,. wDMIIN Toni Carabillo & Judith Meuli, Edttors APRIL/MAY, 1978 An Echo No~ a Choice by Toni Carabillo Eonfmnting ]he Opposition Richard Viguerie may be the linchpin It was Rusher who then came up with of the "New" Right consortium by virtue the idea of the AlP takeover. Rusher be­ The Declaration of a State of Emer· one feminist issue-equal credit. of his computerized abil ity to churn up lieved that the situation in 1975-76 was gency on the ERA involves a comm•tment The hterature of opposition groups. money for them, but his past activities comparable to 1856, when the Repubh· of most of the resources of NOW to a once geared to single issues. now attacks suggest he would made an uncertain can Party had emerged first as a third direct confrontation with t he opposition the whole range, and in fact goes to mentor-if that's his role also. Al ong party and then as a majority party on this single issue. extraordinary and unscrupulous lengths with his more useful abilities, he has an replacing the Wh1gs . Viguerie found the By committing so much concentrated to link unrelated issues together. impulsive flair for political misadventures. theory persuasive and made the abortive effort on this one issue, do we risk losing From the ladies., auxiliaries hke Stop· In 1976, when Sen.
    [Show full text]
  • L&Sizt*O B.C. 20006V No Wovt R 0 1976, and the Enclosed Lote Txvm
    ~Y 4* Y ~44 2o L&sizt*o b.C. 20006V D~ear Ur.4tfl Tlis will acknowledge receipt of y u letter of NoWovt r 0 1976, and the enclosed lote txvm Mr. VI.wie and the Richard Viguerie fOr Voo Prouidef t - CoMmitee , 196, thcm sdon voted to terminate its inquiry into the alleged violation of 2 u.s.C. 1434(e). The Comuission determined that substantial voluntary compliance had been obtained. and accordingly, the Commission has closed its file on this matter. A copy of the Comission's determination and the S Gneral Counsel's Report is enclosed for your information. If you have any questions, please contact D&aO L. Anderson (tlephone No. 202-382-3153), the attwmey assigned to this matter. OFFICE OF GEERL COONSEL Jobos ,.MUrphy, Jr. Gemral c(ousel Enclosures DAnderson: cfb: 11/18/76 cc: Compliance Section DA BEFORE THE FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION In the Matter of ) ) MUR 229 (76) Richard A. Viouerie ) CERTIFICATION I, Marjorie W. Emmons, Secretary to the Federal Election Commission, do hereby certify that on December 2, 1976, the Commission determined by a vote of 5-0, that there was no reason to believe that a violation of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as amended, has been committed in the above-named case. Commissioner Staebler was not present. Accordingly, the file in this matter is now closed. Ma jorie W. Emmons Secre ary to the Commission F.- L u , BEFORE THE FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION In the Matter of )MUR 229 (76) Richard A. Viguerie) GENERAL COUNSEL'S REPORT I.
    [Show full text]
  • Papers of William A. Rusher [Finding Aid]
    William A. Rusher A Register of His Papers in the Library of Congress Prepared by Kathleen M. Dondanville with the assistance of Melissa Little, Scott McLemee, and Richard Urban Manuscript Division, Library of Congress Washington, D.C. 1993 Contact information: http://lcweb.loc.gov/rr/mss/address.html Finding aid encoded by Library of Congress Manuscript Division, 2001 Finding aid URL: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/eadmss.ms001041 Latest revision: 2008 October Collection Summary Title: Papers of William A. Rusher Span Dates: 1940-1989 Bulk Dates: (bulk 1968-1988) ID No.: MSS77641 Creator: Rusher, William A., 1923- Extent: 78,400 items; 224 containers; 89.6 linear feet; 36 microfilm reels Language: Collection material in English Repository: Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. Abstract: Author, lawyer, and publisher. Correspondence, memoranda, diaries, drafts and manuscripts of articles, books, book reviews, columns, minutes of meetings, reports, research notes, reference material, financial and legal papers, photographs, and other papers relating to Rusher's role as publisher of the National Review and the development of the conservative movement in American politics. Selected Search Terms The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the Library's online catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed alphabetically therein. Personal Names Agnew, Spiro T., 1918-1996. Ashbrook, John M. Bauman, Robert, 1937- Blackwell, Morton C. Buchanan, Patrick J. (Patrick Joseph), 1938- Buckley, James Lane, 1923- Buckley, William F. (William Frank), 1925-2008. Burnham, James, 1905-1987. Cohn, Roy M.
    [Show full text]
  • American Conservatism, the Republican Right, and Postwar U.S
    American Conservatism, the Republican Right, and Postwar U.S. Political History Alf Tomas Tønnessen Volda University College Guest editor This thematic issue of American Studies in Scandinavia discusses the rise of American conservatism since World War II and the way issues dear to conservatives increasingly shaped the political conversation and legislative agenda in the United States. The Age of Franklin Roosevelt, with shared prosperity and an expansion of the role of government in welfare and eco- nomic activities, came to an end in the late 1970s and has been replaced by the Age of Ronald Reagan, an era of deregulation of business, tax cuts, and a renewed focus on self-reliance. In spite of the election of Barack Obama in 2008, the Age of Reagan is arguably still ongoing. The House of Representatives is led by conservative Republicans, and conservatives in the Senate have repeatedly filibustered Democratic legislative proposals. The Supreme Court has a majority of conservative justices. The Affordable Care Act, President Obama’s signature legislative accomplishment, does not have a public option and is based on ideas initiated by Republicans. In the middle of the 20th century it did not seem likely that conservatism would strongly influence the trajectory of American politics in subsequent decades. In 1950 American literary critic Lionel Trilling claimed that “liber- 6 American Studies in Scandinavia, 45:1-2 alism is not only the dominant, but even the sole, intellectual tradition” in the U.S. According to Trilling, conservatism did not have fully developed ideas, but was expressed in “irritable mental gestures.”1 During the decades after Trilling made his observation, conservatism would definitely shape the di- rection of American politics.
    [Show full text]
  • Scoring Guidelines
    AP® United States History 2014 Scoring Guidelines © 2014 The College Board. College Board, Advanced Placement Program, AP, AP Central, and the acorn logo are registered trademarks of the College Board. Visit the College Board on the Web: www.collegeboard.org. AP Central is the official online home for the AP Program: apcentral.collegeboard.org. AP® UNITED STATES HISTORY 2014 SCORING GUIDELINES Question 1 — Document-Based Question How and why did the goals of United States foreign policy change from the end of the First World War (1918) to the end of the Korean War (1953)? 0–9 points The 8–9 Essay • Contains a clear, well-developed thesis that addresses all parts of the question. • Presents an effective analysis of how and why foreign policy changed; treatment of multiple parts may be somewhat uneven. • Effectively uses a substantial number of documents. • Develops the thesis with substantial and relevant outside information. • May contain minor errors that do not detract from the quality of the essay. • Is well organized and well written. The 5–7 Essay • Contains a thesis that addresses the question; may be partially developed. • Provides some analysis of how and why foreign policy changed, but treatment of multiple parts may be uneven. • Effectively uses some documents. • Supports the thesis with some relevant outside information. • May contain errors that do not seriously detract from the quality of the essay. • Has acceptable organization and writing. The 2–4 Essay • Contains an unfocused or limited thesis, or simply paraphrases the question. • Deals with the question in a general manner; simplistic, superficial treatment of the subject.
    [Show full text]
  • The President's Conservatives: Richard Nixon and the American Conservative Movement
    ALL THE PRESIDENT'S CONSERVATIVES: RICHARD NIXON AND THE AMERICAN CONSERVATIVE MOVEMENT. David Sarias Rodriguez Department of History University of Sheffield Submitted for the degree of PhD October 2010 ABSTRACT This doctoral dissertation exammes the relationship between the American conservative movement and Richard Nixon between the late 1940s and the Watergate scandal, with a particular emphasis on the latter's presidency. It complements the sizeable bodies ofliterature about both Nixon himself and American conservatism, shedding new light on the former's role in the collapse of the post-1945 liberal consensus. This thesis emphasises the part played by Nixon in the slow march of American conservatism from the political margins in the immediate post-war years to the centre of national politics by the late 1960s. The American conservative movement is treated as a diverse epistemic community made up of six distinct sub-groupings - National Review conservatives, Southern conservatives, classical liberals, neoconservatives, American Enterprise Institute conservatives and the 'Young Turks' of the New Right - which, although philosophically and behaviourally autonomous, remained intimately associated under the overall leadership of the intellectuals who operated from the National Review. Although for nearly three decades Richard Nixon and American conservatives endured each other in a mutually frustrating and yet seemingly unbreakable relationship, Nixon never became a fully-fledged member of the movement. Yet, from the days of Alger Hiss to those of the' Silent Majority', he remained the political actor best able to articulate and manipulate the conservative canon into a populist, electorally successful message. During his presidency, the administration's behaviour played a crucial role - even if not always deliberately - in the momentous transformation of the conservative movement into a more diverse, better-organised, modernised and more efficient political force.
    [Show full text]
  • How Intellectuals and the Ideologies They Market Can Realign American Politics
    The Power of Ideas: How Intellectuals and the Ideologies They Market Can Realign American Politics Charlie Frindt Senior Thesis in Political Science April 22, 2019 Advisor: Stephen J. McGovern Acknowledgements Working on this thesis has been incredibly rewarding and insightful, even if the process itself has been long and arduous. Having the opportunity to work on a subject matter I am not only interested in but passionate about has made the many hours put into this project worthwhile. I would first like to thank my advisor, Steve McGovern, for all the help he has given me in writing this thesis. His guidance and encouragement as well as enthusiasm and interest in the subject I have chosen to explore has kept me motivated and focused over the course of the research and writing process. I would also like to thank Professor Zach Oberfield for introducing me to The Politics That Presidents Make by Stephen Skowronek which became the inspiration for this thesis even if it has diverged from the ideas presented in that book. Finally I would like to thank my friends at Haverford for their constant encouragement over the course of this process and my family for the love and support they have given me over the years. 2 Table of Contents I. Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 4 II. Literature Review .................................................................................................................... 6 Ideological Shifts from the
    [Show full text]