Do Global Publics View Human Rights Organizations as Handmaidens of the United States?
David Crow and James Ron look at how global publics view the relationship between human rights organizations and the U.S. government. They argue that ordinary people across various world regions do not perceive human rights groups as “handmaidens” of U.S. foreign policy.

Chinese Domestic Politics and the Internationalization of the Renminbi
Hyoung-Kyu Chey AND Yu Wai Vic Li discuss the domestic politics surrounding the internationalization of the Chinese renminbi. They argue that the Chinese central bank played a leading role in the process because domestic financial reforms necessitated by the internationalization of the renminbi strengthened its own core institutional interests and enhanced its monetary policy effectiveness.

Obama, Congress, and Audience Costs: Shifting the Blame on the Red Line
Sarah Burns and Andrew Stravers analyze President Barack Obama’s decisions regarding Libya in 2011 and Syria in 2013 and 2014. Using statistical and case study evidence they argue that Obama’s request for congressional support in 2013 was an excuse to avoid action and audience costs rather than a genuine effort to gain congressional support for military action.

The Southern Question: American Voluntary Association Development, 1876–1920
ADAM CHAMBERLAIN, ALIXANDRA B. YANUS, and Nicholas Pyeatt evaluate the efforts of voluntary associations to organize and expand in the South during the Gilded Age and Progressive Era. They find that while organizing happened, there were serious impediments to the creation, expansion, and maintenance of associations. They argue that this had important consequences for the political representation of its citizens and the development of civil society in the region.

What “The Cult of the Irrelevant” Neglects (And Gets Right): A Review Essay
PAUL MUSGRAVE reviews Michael Desch’s recently published The Cult of the Irrelevant: The Waning Influence of Social Science on National Security which argues that political science’s emphasis on methodology has made it irrelevant to policymakers. Musgrave disagrees and argues that political scientists’ sophistication has made them more useful to policymakers but that the obstacles to research influencing policy lie on the demand side.

Presidents and Parties in the Public Mind, Gary C. Jacobson
Reviewed by CHRIS BAYLOR

The Whips: Building Party Coalitions in Congress, C. Lawrence Evans
Reviewed by Jason M. Roberts

Just Giving: Why Philanthropy Is Failing Democracy and How It Can Do Better, Rob Reich
Reviewed by Gordon Arlen

Working: Researching, Interviewing, Writing, Robert A. Caro
Reviewed by Meena Bose

China’s Global Identity: Considering the Responsibilities of a Great Power, Hoo Tiang Boon
Reviewed by Andrew Scobell

How China Sees the World: Han-Centrism and the Balance of Power in International Politics, John M. Friend and Bradley A. Thayer
Reviewed by Ketian Zhang

Restraining Great Powers: Soft Balancing from Empires to the Global Era, T. V. Paul
Reviewed by JEFFREY W. TALIAFERRO

Toppling Foreign Governments: The Logic of Regime Change, Melissa Willard-Foster
Reviewed by Alexander B. Downes

Global Data Shock: Strategic Ambiguity, Deception, and Surprise in an Age of Information Overload, Robert Mandel
Reviewed by John A. Gentry

The Cash Ceiling: Why Only the Rich Run for Office—and What We Can Do about It, Nicholas Carnes
Reviewed by William W. Franko

The Politics of Losing: Trump, the Klan, and the Mainstreaming of Resentment, Rory McVeigh and Kevin Estep
Reviewed by Jeremy D. Mayer

Conservatives and the Constitution: Imagining Constitutional Restoration in the Heyday of American Liberalism, Ken I. Kersch
Reviewed by Michael Bowen

Conspiracies of Conspiracies: How Delusions Have Overrun America, Thomas Milan Konda
Reviewed by Joseph M. Parent

God against the Revolution: The Loyalist Clergy’s Case against the American Revolution, Gregg L. Frazer
Reviewed by T. J. Tomlin

Muslims in a Post-9/11 America: A Survey of Attitudes and Beliefs and Their Implications for U.S. National Security Policy, Rachel M. Gillum
Reviewed by Ann Lin

The Path to Gay Rights: How Activism and Coming Out Changed Public Opinion, Jeremiah J. Garretson
Reviewed by Eric R. A. N. Smith

Arab New York: Politics and Community in the Everyday Lives of Arab Americans, Emily Regan Wills
Reviewed by David L. Phoenix

Judicial Merit Selection: Institutional Design and Performance for State Courts, Greg Goelzhauser
Reviewed by Raymond V. Carman Jr.

Why Bother? Rethinking Participation in Elections and Protests, Susan C. Stokes and S. Erdem Aytaç
Reviewed by BEN PRYOR

Polarized Families, Polarized Parties: Contesting Values and Economics in American Politics, Gwendoline M. Alphonso
Reviewed by Kent L. Tedin

Taking Back the Boulevard: Art, Activism, and Gentrification in Los Angeles, Jan Lin
Reviewed by Diane Wong

The Congressional Endgame: Interchamber Bargaining and Compromise, Josh M. Ryan
Reviewed by Patrick T. Hickey

Proxy War: The Least Bad Option, Tyrone L. Groh
Reviewed by Geraint Hughes

Atomic Assurance: The Alliance Politics of Nuclear Proliferation, Alexander Lanoszka
Reviewed by Rupal N. Mehta

The Costs of Conversation: Obstacles to Peace Talks in Wartime, Oriana Skylar Mastro
Reviewed by Eric Min

Spying: Assessing U.S. Domestic Intelligence Since 9/11, Darren E. Tromblay
Reviewed by Douglas M. Charles