How Washington Really Works: Fourth Edition

Forget the Constitution, the idealist views from high school textbooks, and what politicians tell you. This book tells how politics works and how things get done in Washington, D.C. It is an expose on the day-to-day operations in government. The information is honest and backed up with numerous examples. I was so impressed with the material that I used the volume in my high school American Government classes.

I've talked about this book with other people who have read it and the consensus is that it is a cynical book that doesn't educate the reader. But personally, I would rather read a book that is skeptical and willing to explain the problems of Washington to the reader than pretend that everything is fine and dandy while the problems fester. I agree with Mr. Peters that the bottom line is that there is a lack of accountability in the nation's capital. Mr. Peters understands that human beings are rational, intuitive creatures. The thing that was so crucial to the constitution and its success was its ability to get people to work in their own interests but channel that energy into constructive ends. What struck me after reading this book was that our current institutions act in the same rational manner but they have been misdesigned to reward unconstructive ends. America doesn't face a crisis, mind you. I dislike it when people raise alarm needlessly. But I feel that without an intelligent discussion about what our government can an should be, we face the prospect of national stagnation or worse.