If you ever wondered what happened to the rational middle in American politics, you've come to the right place. David Daley's book is essential reading for both political wonks and the American general public (though I fear it a bit too wonkish for mainstream consumption). It's the story of how our public present and future got retarded beyond any sense of relatability by an extreme form of gerrymandering that took hold after the 2010 census.
As Daley says:
"The simple truth is this: America is the only major democracy in the world that allows politicians to pick their own voters. And since the 2010 election, the system has been gamed to create an artificial— but foolproof— Republican majority in the House and in state capitals nationwide."
Republicans smartly seized the advantage after President Barack Obama's sweeping 2008 electoral victory. Their Operation Redmap targeted control of statehouses in which state legislatures were empowered to redraw their state's US congressional maps. This task takes place every decade in response to electoral college rebalancing among the states after the census.
The result of Operation Redmap: shocking, complete victory of every target this DC-based crew went after nationwide. I give credit to Daley here for the tone of his book: though he's clearly unsettled -- and, at times, disgusted -- by the operation and its outcomes, he accords respect to the people that foresaw and executed it, even making note of the civility and openness with which they are willing to discuss and recount the campaign. In particular, Chris Jankowski -- described in Daley's pages as "the Mastermind" -- comes across as a genteel gentleman, far removed from anyone's vision of a dark, malevolent, backstage puppetmaster.
As much as Daley would like to see this outcome as some dirty deed perpetrated against the Democrats, he instead smartly asks:
"How could this happen to the Democrats? How could a party with such a genuine demographic edge get out-organized, out-strategized and out-energized in election after election?"
It's dispiriting.
But the operation has had its blowback, too. Daley takes us on a state-by-state redistricting highlight tour. One stop: Ohio, where John Boehner's political team helped draw the post 2010 map. As Daley notes, the monster -- now unleashed -- turned on one of its enablers:
"But as John Boehner’s political team helped influence Ohio’s new congressional lines, he probably never imagined that his party’s aggressive redistricting maneuvers would contribute to his being toppled as Speaker of the House just four years later. [The operation] had blowback, and there would be unintended consequences— for the Republican Party and the entire U.S. government."
And, that's where we are now. It's going to take years, if not decades, to unwind all this mess.
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Top reviews from other countries
Alex C. Michalos
Should be required reading for all Americans!
Reviewed in Canada on October 4, 2016
M Clark
America's political future is doomed due to gerrymandering
Reviewed in Germany on July 23, 2016