Guide to the 2004 Presidential Election (Paperback, 2nd Revised edition)

With the 2002 midterm elections barely over, serious maneuvering for the important 2004 presidential race is already underway. That contest will feature a popular, but minority, president against a still unknown challenger, set in the context of national security concerns, international tensions and possibly war, a new muscular American foreign policy, and perhaps continued economic weakness. To help students and politically active citizens understand the process and the players, Michael L. Goldstein, a former political science professor at Claremont College, has written a short, uncomplicated guide to show the way from early positioning of candidates through the primaries and conventions to election day. Guide to the 2004 Presidential Election is the perfect resource for all who want to learn more about the grand process the nation follows every four years as voters collectively decide how, and by whom, they want to govern. This short, easy-to-understand volume is an excellent introduction to help students and general library patrons understand the way Americans select the occupant of the highest office in the land. Written in straightforward prose for nonexperts, this book has since the early 1980s helped voters and younger voters-to-be prepare for one of the most important events on the nation's political landscape. Assuming little previous knowledge, Goldstein walks the reader through the context of the election, the preliminaries leading up to the nomination, the actual process of getting the nomination, the full campaign, and the essential issues the winner will confront in office. In the course of this book the author informs and educates about campaign financing, access to the ballot, the media's role, the use of advertising, and other controversial topics in the news. Teaching exercises are included to assist high school instructors and college professors in engaging students and helping them understand the election process. The volume also contains tables to allow students and other readers to look up past events and outcomes that help illuminate the 2004 contest.