The Power of Public Ideas

The Power of Public Ideas displays a rare combination of virtues, building an innovative approach to public policy on a foundation of old-fashioned common sense. It is, as a result, an extremely useful book. It identifies what is important and what is trivial, what is true and what is silly, what we know already and what we need to know about the sources of public policy… A rich collection… It clears away a lot of deadwood and turns the discussion of public policy toward the things that really matter and the ideas that are worthy of public and professional deliberation. -- Dennis Hale * American Political Science Review *
Consists of uniformly well-written chapters by authors animated by a common purpose who build upon each other’s contributions… This is easily one of the best [books] of its kind to be published in the last decade or so. -- John J. Dilulio, Jr. * Journal of Policy Analysis and Management *
Presents the case for an alternative to the shriveled conception of individual interest that now dominates thinking about public policy. As Hume said, men fight for their interests, but their interests are a matter of opinion. The public ideas that govern opinion are the subject of this important book. -- Paul Starr, Princeton University