Alan Rosenthal 
The Best Job in Politics 
Exploring How Governors Succeed as Policy Leaders

'My worst day as governor was better than my best day as a United States senator.’
—Former Governor Tim Carper (D-DE, 1993–2001)



Governors—both in, and now out of, office—see the job as the best in politics. Why is that? Drawing on a survey of former governors, personal interviews, as well as gubernatorial memoirs and biographies, Rosenthal shows students how and why governors succeed as policy leaders and makes a case as to why some governors are better at leveraging the institutional advantages of the office.

Spis treści

The Job of Governor

What’s So Good About the Job?

What They Want to Achieve

As Governors See It

Policymaking Success

Exploring How and Why Governors Succeed

Playing the Hands They Are Dealt

Gubernatorial Powers

Legislative Power

Party Control and Partisan Division

The Structure of State Government

Economic and Fiscal Conditions

Other Conditions and Events

What Governors Bring to the Table

Personalities

Experience

Friends

Staff

Orientations

Pragmatism

Adaptability

How Governors Put Together Their Policy Agendas

What Is the Governor’s Agenda

Initiatives on the Agenda

The Multiple Sources of Initiatives

How Agendas Are Developed

The Political Calculus at Work

Agendas in a State of Play

Laying the Groundwork for Their Initiatives

Gubernatorial Involvement

Relating to Members

Dealing With Legislative Leaders

Building Relationships With Leaders

Imperfect Together

Strategies and Tactics of Engagement

The Types of Issues in Play

Building Support and Exerting Pressure on the Legislature

Building Support and Exerting Pressure in the Legislature

Tools of Engagement

Playing Defense

Succeeding as Policy Leaders

How Successful Are They

What Makes Them Successful

Having the Upper Hand

Playing the Cards They Are Dealt

Having the Right Stuff

Asking For What They Have a Chance of Getting

Laying the Groundwork

Waging Budget and Policy Campaigns

Legacy and Beyond

How They See Their Legacies

How They Are Remembered

What Difference They Made

Will a New Generation of Governors Be Different?

Appendix A: Governors, 1980–2010

O autorze

Alan Rosenthal is Professor of Public Policy and Political Science at the Eagleton Institute of Politics, Rutgers University. He has collaborated in activities with the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), the Council of State Governments (CSG), and the State Legislative Leaders Foundation (SLLF) and worked on projects and studies for legislatures in about 35 states. Currently, he is working with NCSL, the American Political Science Association (APSA), and the Center for Civic Education on the development and communication of a new public perspective on representative democracy.
In New Jersey, he chaired the Ad Hoc Commission on Legislative Ethics and Campaign Finance in 1990, was selected as the independent member and chair of the Redistricting Commission in 1992, and in 1993 received the Governor′s Award for Public Service. In 1995 Rosenthal received APSA′s Charles E. Merriam Award, which honors a person whose published work and career represent a significant contribution to the art of government through the application of social science research.
His recent books include Republic on Trial: The Case for Representative Democracy (Rosenthal et al., 2003) and Heavy Lifting: The Job of the American Legislature (2005).