Producing Politics: Inside the Exclusive Campaign World Where the Privileged Few Shape Politics for All of Us

This illuminating insider’s view of American politics spotlights—and forcefully critiques—the largely unrecognized role played by campaign operatives. Drawing on anonymous interviews with staffers and consultants from both major parties, sociologist Laurison (The Class Ceiling) argues that political operatives are an insular and unrepresentative group who run campaigns based on long-held yet frequently inaccurate beliefs about what wins elections. “Mostly White, mostly men, and mostly from middle- to upper-middle-class backgrounds,” campaign professionals rarely interact with regular voters, according to Laurison, and tend to perceive the American electorate as uninform and unmotivated about politics. As a result, they rely on “fear-mongering and attacks on opposing candidates” to drive turnout among occasional voters and their party’s base, while ignoring nonvoters, who are “disproportionately poor or working class, and Black, Latinx, Asian American, or Native American.” Laurison also contends that “each campaign is conceived and executed as an isolated event rather than part of an ongoing party project,” alleges that operatives are more concerned about “fitting in and impressing other politicos” than having “honest, open conversations” with voters, and details the obstacles to designing and interpreting polls. Though somewhat repetitive, Laurison’s case for how current campaign practices undermine democracy is detailed and persuasive. Readers will learn much from this peek behind the political curtain. (June)