Brian Balogh

In A Government Out of Sight Brian Balogh argues that the US national government during the nineteenth century was not the weak instrument typically depicted in American historiography. It may have governed in manner different from contemporary European governments, but it did exercise power that influenced social, economic, cultural, and political institutions. As a corollary, he argues that the national government exercised power most effectively when it was out of view. Examples include subsidization (as opposed to nationalization of projects), the role of the courts, taxation through tariffs (which was more hidden than direct taxation), territorial expansion, including the use of force to conquer of the west, among others. The American people generally accepted this form of national power. However, when the national government exercised power directly, as in the case of the Alien and Sedition Acts or the Embargo, it encountered a firestorm of opposition. Balogh offers many interesting insights on events and people in the time frame covered. I am not totally convinced of the main thesis, though. I feel that some of the examples that are offered in A Government Out of Sight to demonstrate its arguments could also be attributed to interpretations of federalism, the tendency to distrust the motives of the opposition party but justify the same action when one's own party is in office, blatant opportunism, self-interest, and the tendency to attack the party in power on issues important to the public but not following up once in office (such as the deficit and national debt in the 21st century).… (lisätietoja)