Book Talk | Julian Zelizer | In Defense of Partisanship

Join the Institute for Public Knowledge on Wednesday, February 5th at 5:30 PM for a book talk with historian Julian Zelizer. He will discuss his new book In Defense of Partisanship with Jonathan Alter. This event is sponsored by IPK and the NYU John Brademas Center.

In Defense of Partisanship imagines what partisanship might look like if we put into place important reforms. Through a sweeping history of Congress since the Founding, Zelizer offers a way forward. Some are simple—repeal the filibuster, restore the campaign-finance rules undone by the Citizens United decision—while others are more revolutionary—increase the size of the House of Representatives. These reforms, which focus on enabling political parties to speak more forcefully and clearly for American citizens, have the potential to pay respect the deep differences that divide us while simultaneously creating more opportunities for collaboration, cooperation, and consensus. This book arrives just after one of the most contentious presidential elections in history. As the president is inaugurated and a sure-to-be-polarized Congress takes their seats, isn’t it time to envision how we might govern better?

Jonathan Alter is an award-winning author, political analyst, documentary filmmaker, columnist, television producer and radio host. Alter’s most recent book is American Reckoning: Inside Trump’s Trial―and My Own (2024). He is also the author of “His Very Best: Jimmy Carter, a Life.” (2020), “The Center Holds: Obama and His Enemies” (2013), “The Promise: President Obama, Year One” (2010) and “The Defining Moment: FDR’s Hundred Days and the Triumph of Hope” (2006). A former senior editor and columnist at Newsweek, Alter is a longtime analyst for NBC News and MSNBC. He co-produced and co-directed the HBO documentary “Breslin and Hamill: Deadline Artists,” which won the 2020 Emmy for Outstanding Historical Documentary. In 2021, he launched a weekly Substack newsletter called “OLD GOATS, Ruminating with Friends,” and is the host of “Alter Family Politics” on Sirius XM, 102 with his three adult children.

Julian E. Zelizer is the Malcolm Stevenson Forbes, Class of 1941 Professor of History and Public Affairs at Princeton University, a CNN political analyst, and a contributor to NPR’s Here & Now. He is the author and editor of numerous books, most recently Myth America and Burning Down the House. He lives in New York City.