Policymaking For Realists
My next book, Policymaking for Realists: A Playbook for Policy Progress Despite Political Decay, will be released June 1st, 2027 from the University of Chicago Press. Work on this project was supported by my 2025–2026 sabbatical and as an Andrew Carnegie Fellow from 2025-2027.
How to make durable policy change in a seemingly broken system.
American politics is likely to remain a closely divided, highly polarized two-party system for the foreseeable future. Rather than pine for an impossible constitutional overhaul, Matt Grossmann lays out how we can still achieve policy wins despite the system’s many constraints. He offers a practical guide for governing when neither side can rely on sustaining power on their own. From the energy transition to building housing to criminal justice reform, the most durable changes in American life are not coming from noisy partisan revolutions. Rather, they are the fruit of bipartisan agreements and careful implementation, often occurring behind-the-scenes.
An astute observer of US politics, Matt Grossmann is also at the forefront of translating academic research for broad audiences. In Policymaking for Realists, he draws on numerous examples across policy areas in state and federal government, as well as the newest research, to distill key lessons for policymakers, business and advocacy group leaders, activists, and concerned citizens. This book is essential reading for those interested in creating change within the country that we actually have.
Table of Contents:
Preface
Introduction: Old Governing Wisdom for a New Political World
Section 1: Our Predicament
Chapter 1: We are Stuck with a Nationalized Two-Party System
Chapter 2: We are Stuck with a Reactive, Conflicted Public
Chapter 3: We are Stuck with Shared Power and Polarized Groups
Chapter 4: We are Stuck with Partisan Implementation and Whiplash
Section 2: Governing Strategies
Chapter 5: We Move Forward with Bipartisan Thinking
Chapter 6: We Move Forward with Long-Term Thinking
Chapter 7: We Move Forward Behind the Scenes
Chapter 8: We Move Forward by Upgrading Civic Capacity
Section 3: Managed Expectations
Chapter 5: Expect Small Victories
Chapter 6: Expect Mixed Evidence
Conclusion: Expect to Muddle Through