Broder has the skills, experience, and information to make a potent argument against initiative and referendum campaigns. He has a B.A. and a M.A. in political science from the University of Chicago. Starting in 1966, he has been a corespondent for the Washington Post, in which his columns continue to appear every Wednesday and Sunday. In 1973, he was honored with the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished commentary. Broder also appears frequently on television news programs. Views expressed by Broder are often left of center, as shown by recent headlines such as "Would FDR Run Those 9/11 Ads" and "Dean: A Milestone, Not A Millstone."

With his well-established background, it is no wonder that Broder builds firm grounds against the modern initiative and referendum processes. Broder opens "Democracy Derailed" with a well-researched history of the initiative. In tracing back to the Progressivist and Populist movements of the 19th century, Broder hands the reader the "how"s and "why"s of initiative's origins. He then proceeds to show the current condition of the initiative campaign, especially in California, Oregon, and other states that implement it.

The bulk of Broder's book discusses the negative aspects of the progressivist initiative in the current United States. These chiefly concern the influences of powerful entities (such as big businesses, wealthy individuals, and initiative promoters), the undermining of constitutional legislative power, and the lack of public knowledge of detailed issues. Broder essentially argues that, though politicians have a price, the American voters wear an equally low tag. While that may not be the worst aspect of the corrupted initiative, Broder gives it ample space on the pages of "Democracy Derailed." Perhaps the strongest and most frightening detriment of the initiative is its assault on the structure of a democratic republic. This issue is also given plenty of voice from Broder. He also complains about the corrupt system of putting initiatives on ballots. Many initiative-promoting companies pay campaigners per signature for petitions, a practice of questionable integrity. The book leaves nary a stone in the anti-initiative field unturned.

"Democracy Derailed"'s chief downside lies in the fact that Broder makes no effort to break the soil of the field of the initiative benefits. The book starts with the noble origins of the initiative process, then proceeds to indicate that the current process bears no resemblance to those origins. While the current process may be quite different, it still stems from those benevolent origins. Some believe that a few positive elements of those origins remain in the otherwise-corrupt system today. Broder gives little voice to such opinions. The initiative's ability to raise the possibility of issues such as term limits may, in fact, be of benefit to this republic. Though governmental officials should represent the citizenry, they necessarily constitute a small segment of the population with its own interests in mind. There are many intelligent, thinking Americans who see the downfalls of the process as well as the redeeming qualities. However, Broder characterizes some of these people as "a bearded . . . hippie" and others as far-rightists. He includes a few token quotes from initiative rights activists, but usually follows them with rebuttals from the anti-initiative camp. The initiative rights groups may sometimes contain extremists, but they are an important part of the debate over the merits of the initiative process.

As anti-initiative literature, "Democracy Derailed" is impeccable. Broder has his facts straight; he has dotted every "i" and crossed every "t." As a springboard for discussion, the book suffices. A book that gives solid voice to both sides of the issue might be an improvement for fruitful bipartisan debate. Whether Broder intentionally omitted a solid voice for the opposition or whether his habits as a liberal journalist have carried over to the pages of "Democracy Derailed," the only fault with the book is its lack of balance. Some books, however, unlike journalistic media, should be unilateral. David S. Broder's Democracy Derailed is one such book.


Democracy Derailed Derailed   December 18, 2002
 1 out of 2 found this review helpful

_Democracy Derailed_ is obviously very well researched. Broder cannot be faulted for his attention to detail. He talks with a wide variety of people, some who feel that the initiative process serves democracy wonderfully, others who disagree. And while it seems as if he tried to make the book fairly evenhanded, every once in a while Broder makes an off the cusp comment that is virulently cynical about the people's ability to make good choices. Certainly the masses have not always made the best decisions, but Broder is unwilling to give them any credit at all. This distrust of the public seems especially out of place when it is revealed that most of the initiatives that are promoted solely for the benefit of a special interest fail. That seems to indicate a public that can make good decisions.

Despite that complaint, much of Broder's analysis is still valid. The initiative process has clearly become something that is not used by "the people" but mostly by corporations to further their own political agenda. The money issue has polluted this avenue, that was originally supposed to be a way for normal people to pass laws that legislatures were too scared/beholden to interests to make. And while this is unequivically true, Broder does not spend enough time talking about ways that the process could be changed to reflect the original intention. His (in my opinion, unwarrented) distrust of the public leads him toward wanting to abolish this potential tool for democracy.


Good Introduction, But Off in Places   August 14, 2001
 3 out of 4 found this review helpful

As a political consultant working in California, much of what Broder writes is familiar to me. That said, I am certain that, for many Americans, this text will be their introduction to this rather peculiar facet of democracy in the western USA.

Broder does a good job covering the topic in broad strokes, from its origins, to the days when it was used infrequently, to its use now, often by powerful and wealthy interest groups trying to push their agenda, often with very deceptive tactics. While he does a good jobs on these topics, as well as bemoaning these initiatives impact on representitive democracy, he misses several important subjects.

Most important, he does not deal with the implication of California's constitution (our basis law) being often radically altered by a vote of 50%+1 of the people who show up at the polls. Nor does he deal with how the legislature now often won't touch issues, figiuring that they will be covered in the initiative process. Most importantly of all, he does not lay enough of the blame on elected representitives whose failure to act in face of serious problems has led to many of Californias most famous initiatives (prop 13 and the problem of skyrocketing property taxes being the best example).

As I said, this is a good introduction, but a lot more could be written on this important topic.


Good Book, but Common Knowledge for Most   July 7, 2000
 8 out of 9 found this review helpful

Being a Californian, and one who works for a State Senator, I was interested to see what an outsider would have to say about our Great State. After chuckling about what some in the national media have said about California politics, I was surprised to see that Broder did a decent job in summarizing the recent proposition campaign in 1998.

His book is a case study that follows the money, and the advertising campaign tactics meant to trick and deceive voters. Unfortunately, this tale is all too common in Californian's high priced television driven political process. Broder could have chosen any major proposition ballot initiative in this state and produced similar results.

However, because Broder's case study and thesis is such a common occurrence in California, anyone with just a meager understanding of politics would have found the conclusion of this book axiomatic. Of course, this speaks to the well researched and truthful nature of the book, but I picked it up looking for special insight into the political process from a veteran reporter. Unfortunately, Broder's book shines no more light on the problem of money and the lack of checks and balances in proposition campaigns than already exists.

I don't want to sound like a snob, and in all honesty, I would recommend this book as a primer in California's proposition campaigns, but it only provided a basic understanding and little more.

A clear problem exists, and Broder does a good service in pointing it out so eloquently.