White-Collar Government
The Hidden Role of Class in Economic Policy Making
Eight of the last twelve presidents were millionaires when they took office. Millionaires have a majority on the Supreme Court, and they also make up majorities in Congress, where a background in business or law is the norm and the average member has spent less than two percent of his or her adult life in a working-class job. Why is it that most politicians in America are so much better off than the people who elect them – and does the social class divide between citizens and their representatives matter?
With "White-Collar Government", Nicholas Carnes answers this question with a resounding – and disturbing – yes. Legislators' socioeconomic backgrounds, he shows, have a profound impact on both how they view the issues and the choices they make in office. Scant representation from among the working class almost guarantees that the policymaking process will be skewed toward outcomes that favor the upper class. It matters that the wealthiest Americans set the tax rates for the wealthy, that white-collar professionals choose the minimum wage for blue-collar workers, and that people who have always had health insurance decide whether or not to help those without. And while there is no one cause for this crisis of representation, Carnes shows that the problem does not stem from a lack of qualified candidates from among the working class. The solution, he argues, must involve a variety of changes, from the equalization of campaign funding to a shift in the types of candidates the parties support.
If we want a government for the people, we have to start working toward a government that is truly by the people".White-Collar Government" challenges long-held notions about the causes of political inequality in the United States and speaks to enduring questions about representation and political accountability.
Contents
1. White-Collar Government
What Is Class?
The Unequal Social Class Makeup of American Political Institutions
The Elephant in the Room
Why Does Class Matter?
The Evidence
2. Voting with Class
Legislative Voting as a Window into the Importance of Class
Measuring the Divisions
Class and Legislative Voting Today
Class and Legislative Voting during the Postwar Period
The Enduring Imprint of Class
Representational Inequality in "Ayes" and "Nays"
3. Before the Votes are Cast
Legislative Entrepreneurs
The Role of Class
Measuring Legislative Entrepreneurship
The Policies Legislators Propose
The Policies Legislators Pass
Leaving the Working Class Off the Agenda
4. Class, Opinions, and Choices
Out of Touch, or Out of Step?
Inside the Mind of a Member of Congress
The Importance of Opinions
Who's Out of Touch Now?
Out-of-Step Government
5. Economic Policy Making in Class-Imbalanced Legislatures
Representation and Policy Making
What Would a Class-Balanced Congress Have Done?
When the Working Class Holds Office
Blue-Collar Government
The Economic Consequences of White-Collar Government
6. Fixing the Broken Mirror
What's Keeping the Working Class Out of Office?
Thinking Bigger about Inequality
Up Front There Ought'a Be a Man in Black
Notes
References
Index
About the Author
Nicholas Carnes is assistant professor of public policy in the Sanford School of Public Policy at Duke University. He lives in Durham, NC, and he has worked as a busboy, dishwasher, and construction worker.
Reviews
"If you're wondering 'what's the matter with Kansas?' – working-class Americans voting against their own class interest – you should be asking, 'what's the matter with Congress (and state legislatures, the Supreme Court, and basically every other American political institution)?' As Nicholas Carnes engagingly shows, politicians with working-class backgrounds take positions very much in line with working-class interests. The problem is that there are hardly any of them in office. Sure to stir debate, 'White-Collar' Government opens up exciting research vistas and new strategies of reform" – Jacob S. Hacker, Yale University, co-author of "Winner-Take-All Politics: How Washington Made the Rich Richer – And Turned Its Back on the Middle Class"
"That Congress contains more than its fair share of millionaires is fairly well known. But I've never seen it put quite this vividly... Nicholas Carnes's research – and common sense – shows that the simple fact of being a white-collar millionaire leads to different priorities. It leads to different social circles. It leads to different bills" – Ezra Klein, Washington Post
"A bold, compelling, and much-needed study of how the lack of working class individuals in public life shapes what government does. Nicholas Carnes undertakes a careful analysis to show how the disproportionate representation of people from white-collar professions skews government output toward conservative economic policies. The evidence he presents convinces me!" – Theda Skocpol, Harvard University
"'Where you stand depends on where you sit' is a maxim seldom applied to the economic backgrounds of legislators. But Nicholas Carnes's eye-opening study shows social class and work experience to be key determinants in shaping how Congress and state legislatures write laws and shape policies" – Timothy Noah, author of "The Great Divergence: America's Growing Inequality Crisis and What We Can Do About It"
"'White-Collar Government' is a superb analysis of an important and long-neglected topic. Nicholas Carnes documents the overwhelming underrepresentation of the working class in America's legislatures and shows why it matters. At local, state, and national levels, the dearth of representatives from working-class backgrounds, Carnes shows, has bent public policies toward the interests of business and the well-to-do. This book combines fluid, accessible prose with methodological rigor to make a powerful statement about the causes and consequences of our disproportionately white-collar government. Anyone concerned with the health of American democracy needs to read Carnes' compelling study" – Martin S. Gilens, Princeton University, author of "Affluence and Influence: Economic Inequality and Political Power in America"
