Hyperpartisanship has gridlocked the American government. Congress's approval ratings are at record lows, and both Democrats and Republicans are disgusted by the government's inability to get anything done. Congressional scholars Thomas E. Mann and Norman J. Ornstein present a grim picture of how party polarization and tribal politics have led Congress -- and the United States -- to the brink of institutional failure. In this revised edition, the authors bring their book up-to-date in a political environment that is more divided than ever. The underlying dynamics of the situation -- extremist Republicans holding government hostage to their own ideological, anti-government beliefs -- have only gotten worse, further bolstering their argument that Republicans are not merely ideologically different from Democrats, but engaged in a unique form of politics that undermines the system itself.

On cover and spine "looks" is crossed out and replaced by "was." "Preface and Afterword copyright Ã2016 by Thomas E. Mann and Norman J. Ornstein" --Title page verso.

Preface to the 2016 paperback edition -- The new politics of hostage taking -- The seeds of dysfunction -- Beyond the debt ceiling fiasco -- Bromides to avoid -- Fixing the party system -- Reforming U.S. political institutions -- Navigating the current system -- Afterword to the 2016 paperback edition.