Testing Theories of American Politics: Elites, Interest Groups, and Average Citizens
美国政治研究指出精英主导政策，普通民众影响力微弱，民主性质受威胁。
关键信息与数据点
- 核心结论：即使仅从双变量描述性角度看，当公众希望政府采取行动时，美国政治系统的响应能力受到严重限制。
- 多数派劣势：当大多数公民在经济精英或组织利益集团面前持反对意见时，他们通常会失败（lose）。
- 影响力缺失：分析表明，美国公众多数人对政府采纳的政策几乎没有影响。
- 民主性质质疑：虽然美国拥有定期选举、言论自由和结社自由等民主治理特征，但如果政策制定被强大的商业组织和少数富裕美国人主导，那么美国作为民主社会的说法将受到严重威胁（#1 @AWS）。
/uploads/short-url/iY0dqBsoqtYAVOfLfssH1zaVCpn.png?dl=1 /uploads/short-url/tZdCq9OmIjTAU2zYxOuHDtbY0fR.png?dl=1 Even in a bivariate, descriptive sense, our evidence indicates that the responsiveness of the U.S. political system when the general public wants government action is severely limited. When a majority of citizens disagrees with economic elites or with organized interests, they generally lose. our analyses suggest that majorities of the American public actually have little influence over the policies our government adopts. Americans do enjoy many features central to democratic governance, such as regular elections, freedom of speech and association, and a widespread (if still contested) franchise. But we believe that if policymaking is dominated by powerful business organizations and a small number of affluent Americans, then America’s claims to being a democratic society are seriously threatened