Written by Professor Adrian, the foremost authority on state and local politics, and Professor Fine, this text provides students with a broad understanding of state and local politics. The authors begin with the assumption that the states and their subdivisions are individual communities with distinctive characteristics and that every state, has a different political, social, and economic tradition. Then the authors explore the history of states' rights and other idealogies in American politics, the impact of federalism on intergovernmental relations, the legal aspects of state power, the leadership positions in state and local governments, and the bureaucracy that develops. The authors also demonstrate how citizens can affect policies set fourth by state and local governments.