DELIBERATIVE POLICYMAKING

As presented thus far, this model highlights what can go wrong in a representative system. In this final summary of the model, I demonstrate what happens when such a system operates properly. This description reveals a final, implicit element of the model. The point of government—even democratic government—is good public decision making. Just as citizens can only make sound judgments after deliberating, so public officials can only govern wisely after careful research and reflection.^[58] Deliberative citizens might reach some clear judgments on particular issues and treat their representatives as sworn delegates, expected to do exactly as they have been instructed, but more often representatives must conduct their own deliberations and act as trustees of the public's best interest.^[59]

From one perspective, the model of representative democracy that I have described is designed to promote just such deliberation by public officials. As shown in figure 1, citizens' choices about how to use voice and votes indirectly depend upon official deliberation. If officials reach a sound deliberative judgment about the public interest and then act

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upon that judgment, they should fare well on election day so long as citizens reach the same judgment in their own deliberations.^[60] After all, in the ideal model of representative democracy, when citizens evaluate policies and candidates, they take into account the actions of elected officials. This feedback loop ensures accountability for officials' actions, and that, in turn, creates an incentive for officials to deliberate carefully lest their judgments and subsequent actions fail to impress the deliberative electorate.

To summarize, voting and public voice have important roles in the democratic process, no matter how one deflnes democracy. In addition, a healthy representative political system requires ongoing policy deliberation and intensive candidate evaluation during campaigns. Both of these processes require active citizen deliberation about private and public interests. Without an underlying set of political beliefs (e.g., selfefficacy, public trust, and civic responsibility), deliberation and the twin mechanisms of voice and vote may fall into disuse, resulting in widespread civic neglect.

The model of democracy developed in this chapter demonstrates the necessary features of a healthy representative system. To promote the creation of deliberative public policy decisions by elected officials, a political system must have institutions that sustain ongoing citizen deliberation, nurture a resilient and motivated public, and provide clear opportunities for the influential expression of political voice and the real threat of electoral rejection. The next four chapters will assess the success of U.S. political institutions in maintaining a vigilant citizenry and stimulating productive political responses to lapses in public representation.