Reference no: EM132866888

Question 1. How do Hacker and Pierson understand the nature of business power in U.S. politics? Why do they think this power can fluctuate?

Question 2. If business interests were powerful and opposed to social welfare policies, what happened in the 1930s to make these policies possible (in particular Social Security)? Why did this kind of policy shift have to happen nationally instead of emerging by different states enacting such reforms?

Question 3. How does the piece by Hacker and Pierson offer a challenge to the focus on state capacity and government actors put forward by Skocpol and Finegold (what Hacker and Pierson call "institutionalist" approaches)? Is it possible to combine these perspectives?

Question 4. Does the possibility that business interests were politically weak in the 1930s mean they had no impact on New Deal policies? Was the New Deal about a shift in class politics with mobilized workers gaining more influence? Are there reasons the political power of business might have a resurgence after the 1930s?