The Strength of Government

"The American system of government is today far too weak to do the job now assigned to it, let alone the job that ought to be given". In this book, adapted from his Godkin Lectures at Harvard University in March 1968, the then-president of the Ford Foundation contends that the explosive social and technological change of recent decades has greatly increased the need for stronger and more effective national government.To illustrated his thesis, Mr. Bundy discusses the growing need for effective governmental action in the struggle against racism and poverty, the revolution in communications, and the field of nuclear weapons. Each of these problems challenged the common assumption that strong government it inconsistent with personal freedom; yet the American people still did not think they believed in active government. The Jacksonian bias against authority remains the national mode even in a time when the vast majority of Americans rely on federal programs. Mr. Bundy argues from his examples that strong government is an absolute necessity if freedom is to be maintained.