Dirty Politics: Deception, Distraction, and Democracy

Americans in recent years have become thoroughly disenchanted with our political campaigns, especially with campaign advertising and speeches. Each year, as November approaches, we are bombarded with visceral appeals that bypass substance, that drape candidates in the American flag but tell us nothing about what they'll do if elected, that flood us with images of PT-109 or Willie Horton, while significant issues—such as Kennedy's Addison's Disease or the looming S&L catastrophe—are left une...