Catholic Social Science Review

Volume 18, 2013

Political Institutions and Power in the Twenty-First Century Republic

Stephen Krason’s study of the American political experiment is a valuable exercise in traditional political science. His analysis leads a reasonable observer to ask whether the republic established by the Founders is still operative, or whether it has evolved into something quite different from the democratic republic of 1787. The creation of an administrative state in modern America, which has taken form especially in the past half-century, has moved the political system toward new modes of governing and domination by a new class of political elites. The article concludes by asking whether the American democratic republic is a lost cause.