Southern Democrats

by Nicol C. Rae

Book Overview

From the election of Jimmy Carter to the wide defection of Democrats in the South to the Republican ticket in the Reagan/Bush years, Southern Democrats have played a crucial role in recent American national politics. With the 1992 election of President Clinton, they once again occupy a place at the center of the American political stage. A timely examination of this important phenomenon in American politics, Southern Democrats traces the history of...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0195087097
• ISBN13: 9780195087093
• Release Date: May 1994
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Length: 224 Pages
• Weight: 1.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.5" x 8.2"

Customer Reviews

wonderful and informative book about regional politics

Nicol C. Rae has a remarkable ability to pinpoint key political movements and factions, and to write about them in an accessible and perceptive way. This was true of "The Decline and Fall of Liberal Republicans," and it is also the case with "Southern Democrats." Rae provides a fantastic thumbnail sketch of the modern Democratic Party, and the role of Southerners in it from the days of Harry S. Truman through the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and Jimmy Carter up to the dawn of the Clinton era. Like "The Decline and Fall of Liberal Republicans," Rae's book could benefit from an update that would fully cover not only the Clinton era, but also the rise and current prominence of politicians like North Carolina Senator John Edwards and Louisiana Senator John Breaux. Rae's book must be highly recommended for anyone interested in modern American politics, and particularly for those interested in regional and geographic factions.

A Welcomed Addition to any Democrat's Library

As a Southerner, I find it interesting that the Oxford University Press considered us an 'influential political faction' in the Democratic Party. Because of course we are, but we like to be quiet about these matters. The author's interviews with southern politicians are particularly fascinating. He has opened a conversation with the general public with this book. The book is a bit dated, but it records what is good and right and true about Southern Democrats. And I feel that every Southerner needs to learn this, or refresh their memory.