American politics and the environment

Changing our environmental policy has been at the forefront of many political discussions. But how can we make this change come about? In American Politics and the Environment, Second Edition, Byron W. Daynes, Glen Sussman and Jonathan P. West argue it is critical that we must understand the politics of environmental decision making and how political actors operate within political institutions. Blending behavioral and institutional approaches, each chapter combines discussion of an institution along with sidebars focusing on a particular environmental topic as well as a personal profile of a key decision maker. A central focus of this second edition is the emergence of global climate change as a key issue. Although the scientific community can provide research findings to policy makers, politics can create conflicts, tensions, and delays in the crafting of effective and necessary environmental policy responses. Daynes, Sussman, and West help us understand the role of politics in the policy making process and why institutional players such as the president, Congress, and interest groups succeed or fail in responding to important environmental challenges.

The American political setting and the environment -- American federalism and environmental politics -- Case study : climate change and sea- level rise in South Florida -- Personal profile : Mary Nichols and Carb : environmental champions -- Public opinion, interest groups, and the environment -- Case study : interest groups activism and the place of wolves in the Rocky Mountain regions -- Case study : climate change and public opinion -- Personal profile : Robert F Kennedy Jr -- Congress, the legislative process, and the environment -- Case study : cap and trade : failure to pass a climate bill -- Personal profile : Senator Susan Collins: environmental defender -- The environmental presidency -- Personal profile : FDR and the "golden age" -- Case study : leaving a legacy -- Barack Obama and climate change -- Executive agencies and the environment -- Personal profile : Steven Chu : the scientist in charge -- Case study : EPA regulations and carbon emissions -- The environmental court -- Personal profile : the environment : friend and supporter vs. a "slash-and-burn opponent" -- Case study: the court and those dam fish : TVA vs. Hill -- Case study : climate crisis is real, Mr. Limbaugh, real! -- The global environment -- Case study : biodiversity and endangered species -- Guest essay / Christina Slentz -- American politics and the environment : conclusion.