Prime Ministers and Rhetorical Governance [Paperback]

Prime Ministers in Westminister style democracies are forever talking to and communicating with the electorate. This ground-breaking book explores and analyses the uses of political rhetoric by Prime Ministers to explore patterns of communication and shows that the manner in which they talk to the electorate is central to day-to-day governance.Illustrations Acknowledgements 1. The Mutual Delusion 2. Extra-Parliamentary Rhetorical Leadership  from Gladstone to Blair 3. The Rhetorical Prime Minister in Comparative Perspective 4. Persuading Voters  Cycles of Election Defining Rhetoric 5. Prime Ministers and Policy Narratives 6. Policy Intervention in Sub-National Jurisdictions 7. Defining a Legacy 8. Prime Ministers and Mandarins  Rhetorical Consistency Across Government 9. Conclusion - In Search of Authenticity Bibliography Index

'Prime Ministers and Rhetorical Governance is a sophisticated and accessible study which explores how top government leaders use rhetorical strategies to lead governments and to frame policy discourse and interventions. This study uses historical and comparative analysis to illuminate dimensions of rhetorical governance focusing particularly on the Westminster experience of Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the UK and successfully links them to the contemporary conditions of centralizing prime ministers, networked governance, and 24-7 news cycles. Grube's work will undoubtedly engage political scientists, but should equally interest scholars and practitioners seeking to understand how rhetoric strategies and practice by prime ministers conditions and informs public policy and public administration, opening up and constraining opportunities for change.'

Professor Evert Lindquist, University of Victoria, British Columbia; Editor, Canadian Public Administration.

This is an important and insightful book. It not only enlarges our understanding of political leadership in British politics, bul±