Principle politics, not interest politics

Author: James M. Buchanan
Publisher:
Publication Date: 2004-03-01
Features: This book is a specialized work on constitutional debates, a normative treatise that runs through a single principle of generality throughout the entire book. There is no need to strive to provide precise guidelines for politics, indicating what should and should not be done. The key distinction is procedural, not substantive. Principle politics imposes constraints on the representatives and institutions of the state, ensuring that their actions are non-discriminatory, treat all individuals and groups equally, and prevent actions that are inherently selective in nature. Under such limitations, politics may play a significant role or have a minimal impact, exerting its influence in different ways. This book is a specialized work that combines political philosophy and economic philosophy, with its fundamental proposition being, "Modern politics is not principle politics but interest politics." The standard for judging this proposition is whether it provides universal treatment to all citizens. In Buchanan's words, "As long as a specific group of citizens is subjected to discriminatory treatment (whether in the form of rewards or punishments), or if a certain group is deemed to possess superior wisdom in matters of concern to all members of society, thereby dividing citizens into those who deserve rewards and those who do not," then such a society is practicing "interest politics," because these practices violate the principle of generality. Target Audience: Researchers and educators in political philosophy and economic philosophy, as well as medium and large-sized libraries for collection.