The Paradox of Islam’s Future
RAYMOND W. BAKER argues that although violent extremism flows from radical Islamic movements, the Islamic mainstream has effectively adapted to the globalized world and will shape the future of Islam in ways open to principled accommodation with the West. He claims that mainstream assertiveness, unencumbered by Western interference, provides the most effective way to counter destructive radicalism. 

Geographic Distribution of the Federal Stimulus of 2009
JAMES G. GIMPEL, FRANCES E. LEE, and REBECCA U. THORPE investigate why the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 did not always focus additional resources on areas where the recession’s downturn was most severe. They examine whether funds were allocated according to pork barrel politics or instead via “policy windows” through which advocates steered a diverse group of programs long desired for reasons unrelated to the recession. They find some support for both theories, but policy window effects were more important than pork barrel politics in accounting for distributional outcomes. 

Zionism, the Jewish State, and an Israeli–Palestinian Settlement: An Opinion Piece
Jerome Slater critically examines the case for the continuation of Zionism and for Israel to remain a Jewish state. He argues that while much of the Zionist argument is unconvincing, “liberal Zionism” is still defensible. Consequently, he claims, that first the Palestinians should conditionally recognize Israel as a Jewish state as part of an overall Israeli–Palestinian peace settlement, and second the Israelis should agree to the creation of an independent and viable Palestinian state in the occupied territories, so that the Palestinian Israelis who choose to remain in Israel are treated as fully equal citizens as the Jews. 

Suspension of Law during Crisis
ROSS J. CORBETT analyzes the claim that the response to some emergencies requires a departure from the law. He notes that this claim rests on a particular view of what the law is and is best understood as an argument that emergencies ought to be handled extra-legally. He argues that interrogating this extra-legalist claim reveals another strategy for controlling executive discretion while permitting enough flexibility to preserve the public good. 

Economic Crime and Punishment in North Korea
STEPHAN HAGGARD and Marcus Noland describe North Korea’s prison system. The system includes not only the infamous penal camps for political prisoners but detention facilities that permit short-run incarceration for economic crimes. They find that those with greater involvement in the market are more likely to face incarceration in such facilities and that the criminalization of economic activity allows the state to extract bribes. 

Open Source Intelligence in a Networked World, Anthony Olcott
Reviewed by Robert Jervis

American Force: Dangers, Delusions, and Dilemmas in National Security, Richard K. Betts
Reviewed by Michael O’Hanlon

Democratic Deficit: Critical Citizens Revisited, Pippa Norris
Reviewed by QUINTON MAYNE

Fighting for Our Health: The Epic Battle to Make Health Care a Right in the United States, Richard Kirsch
Reviewed by CARL F. AMERINGER

Eclipse: Living in the Shadow of China’s Economic Dominance, Arvind Subramanian
Reviewed by SCOTT W. HAROLD

Power and Willpower in the American Future: Why the United States Is Not Destined to Decline, Robert J. Lieber
Reviewed by MICHAEL BECKLEY

Vladimir Putin and Russian Statecraft, Allen C. Lynch
Reviewed by Dale R. Herspring

The Politics of Prisoner Abuse: The United States and Enemy Prisoners after 9/11, David P. Forsythe
Reviewed by ROBERT PALLITTO

Trust in International Cooperation: International Security Institutions, Domestic Politics and American Multilateralism, Brian Rathbun
Reviewed by Andrew Kydd

Gender, Nationalism, and War: Conflict on the Movie Screen, Matthew Evangelista
Reviewed by Mia Bloom

The Southern Political Tradition, Michael Perman ; Georgia Democrats, the Civil Rights Movement, and the Shaping of the New South, Tim S.R. Boyd
Reviewed by James M. Glaser

Disciplining the Poor: Neoliberal Paternalism and the Persistent Power of Race, Joe Soss, Richard C. Fording and Sanford Schram
Reviewed by SCOTT W. ALLARD

Power and Constraint: The Accountable Presidency After 9/11, Jack Goldsmith
Reviewed by Erwin C. Hargrove

Competitive Elections and the American Voter, Keena Lipsitz
Reviewed by David C. Kimball

Cruel and Unusual: The American Death Penalty and the Founders’ Eighth Amendment, John D. Bessler
Reviewed by JOHN H. BLUME

Daisy Petals and Mushroom Clouds: LBJ, Barry Goldwater, and the Ad That Changed American Politics, Robert Mann
Reviewed by ANNE JOHNSTON

Competitive Interests: Competition and Compromise in American Interest Group Politics, Thomas T. Holyoke
Reviewed by TIMOTHY M. LA PIRA

Paradise Plundered: Fiscal Crisis and Governance Failures in San Diego, Steven P. Erie, Vladimir Kogan and Scott A. Mackenzie
Reviewed by JULIET ANN MUSSO

Trust in Black America: Race, Discrimination, and Politics, Shayla C. Nunnally
Reviewed by Michael Javen Fortner

Sprawl, Justice, and Citizenship: The Civic Costs of the American Way of Life, Thad Williamson
Reviewed by Juliet F. Gainsborough

The Al Qaeda Factor: Plots Against the West, Mitchell D. Silber
Reviewed by CHRISTOPHER FETTWEIS

The Craft of Political Analysis for Diplomats, Raymond Smith
Reviewed by MAI’A K. DAVIS CROSS

The Faiths of the Postwar Presidents: From Truman to Obama, David L. Holmes
Reviewed by DAVID O'Connell

Activists, Alliances, and Anti-U.S. Base Protests, Andrew Yeo
Reviewed by William C. Martel

American Military Intervention in Unconventional War: From the Philippines to Iraq, Wayne Bert
Reviewed by Ryan C. Hendrickson

Bangladesh: Politics, Economy and Civil Society, David Lewis
Reviewed by Philip Oldenburg

Moscow, December 25, 1991: The Last Day of the Soviet Union, Conor O’Clery
Reviewed by J. PAUL GOODE

The Institutional Imperative: The Politics of Equitable Development in Southeast Asia, Erik Kuhonta
Reviewed by THOMAS B. PEPINSKY

The Rise of Global Powers: International Politics in the Era of the World Wars, Anthony D’Agostino
Reviewed by PAUL MUSGRAVE

Why Peace Fails: The Causes and Prevention of Civil War Recurrence, Charles T. Call
Reviewed by ANDREW G. REITER

American Journalism and International Relations: Foreign Correspondence from the Early Republic to the Digital Era, Giovanna Dell’Orto
Reviewed by HOLLI A. SEMETKO