When people throw blame at politicians or the media for the increasing political polarization in the United States, Alan Abramowitz knows better. From his research, the Alben W. Barkley Professor of Political Science at Emory knows that polarization begins not with politicians but with the public. He discusses the continuing trend and its implications in his new book "The Polarized Public: Why American Government Is So Dysfunctional" (Pearson, 2012).  

The books reveals how demographic and other changes in the United States are impacting political affiliations and voting trends – and, as a result, the major political parties. To represent their districts, politicians are going left and right, leaving a scant few in the center.

Listen to Abramowitz discuss the problem of polarization in the United States: