Event: Discipline of Government and International Relations
School of Economics & Political Science
Faculty of Economics and Business
The University of Sydney
Speaker: Professor Linda Weiss , Government & International Relations, University of Sydney
12. 00 to 1.30 pm
Thursday 25 May, 2006
Room 397, Merewether Building, University of Sydney
The US lays strong claim to being the world’s most liberal state and the highest expression of an open, free-market economy. As the globe’s most powerful champion of competitive liberalism, it has steadfastly pressed on others the merits of open markets, transparency, fairness, and above all else a level playing field. US departures from the free-market norm are widely acknowledged -- but these are mostly framed as protectionist deviations from a liberal core or as interventions to combat foreign unfairness. This paper argues that the standard liberal depiction of the American state is out of date: the government-business relationship in the United States over the past two decades has undergone a substantial shift – in the direction of a more coordinated and collaborative (and in certain respects increasingly proactive) approach to policymaking. The American pattern of government-business relations now has more in common with aspects of the classical Japanese model which the US has worked hard to dismantle. In key areas of trade, technology, and procurement, government works closely with the private sector to promote US commercial interests, both at home and abroad, both proactively and defensively. Although invariably justified in official discourse as modes of ‘levelling the playing field’, these interventions usually have little to do with fighting foreign unfairness.
Contact: Dr Joanne Kelly
Discipline of Government and International Relations
Merewether Building
University of Sydney
NSW 2006
Australia
Tel: (0061)-2-9 351 2313
Fax: (0061)-2-9351-3624
email: [email protected]
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