About the Book and Discussion
Public disenchantment with and distrust of government is at an all-time high. In the face of widespread challenges―everything from record levels of debt and the sky-high cost of education to gun violence, racial discrimination, an immigration crisis, overpriced pharmaceuticals, a pandemic, challenges to voting rights, policing, crumbling infrastructure, and much more―the federal government seems paralyzed and unable to act.
Join us for a discussion with author Jeanne Sheehan who argues that we cannot understand why we are in this situation and why our government is unable to respond to key challenges of the day unless we look back at the choices the Founders made in the late 1700s. The Framers, led by James Madison, designed the system with one primary goal in mind - to protect liberty. It has done this remarkably well, arguably too well, to the point that more than two-hundred years later we have a government in which power is so dispersed that responsiveness, accountability, and effectiveness have suffered. This is not an accident, it is by design.
Sheehan's book, American Democracy in Crisis, not only examines why we are in this situation, but what can be done to address it. This includes a call to public conversation about the proper role of government, as well as a discussion of numerous reform proposals, all of which will help make the government more responsive, accountable, and effective while preserving cherished liberties.
Register now and we'll send you a link to participate. If you can't tune in when it's live, you can watch it any time afterward!