Summary thus Far

1. Income Inequality Declined from the early 20^th Century until the 1970s. Likely Causes:
   
   
   1. Higher Income and Estate Taxes
      
      
   2. The Depression followed by World War II
      
      
   3. "Stickiness" of American Political Institutions
      
      
2. Income Inequality has Steadily Increased Since the 1970s. Likely Causes (Provisional):
   
   
   1. Lower Income and Estate Taxes
      
      
   2. Increasing Returns to Education [debated]
      
      
   3. Increasing Immigration (Legal and Illegal)[debated]
      
      
3. Polarization Declined From the End of World War I Until the 1970s
   
   
4. Polarization has Dramatically Increased Since the 1970s
   
   
   1. Ideology, as measured by DW-NOMINATE scores, is increasingly related to Constituency Characteristics -- Race, education, South/North, and Income.
      
      
   2. The higher the Income of the District, the more Conservative the Representative
      
      
   3. A Number of Causes Can be Ruled Out:
      
      
      1. The Realignment of the South
         
         
      2. Partisan Reforms in Congress
         
         
      3. Party Primaries
         
         
      4. Redistricting
         
         
   4. One Cause Can be Ruled In
      
      
      1. Apportionment After Each Census Since 1980 has Added Seats to the South and West. This reallocation of Seats from Less to More Polarized Regions Reinforced the Polarization Process.
         
         
5. Income Polarization in the Electorate
   
   
   1. High Income Americans Have Become Increasingly Prone to Identify With and Vote for the Republican Party
      
      
   2. This Increase in Partisan Stratification on Income is Mostly Unrelated to the increase in Income Inequality
      
      
   3. This Increase in Partisan Stratification is Mostly Due to:
      
      
      1. Partisan Polarization -- An Elite led Process
         
         
      2. Realignment of the South -- The rapid economic development of the South in the Past 40 Years Makes it More Like the Rest of the U.S.. Political Attachments in the South are now driven More by Income and Economic Status than the Rest of the U.S..
         
         
   4. The Above Findings Use Relative Income. It is also Very Likely that the Tremendous Increase in Real Per Capita Income has made the Electorate Less Favorable to Redistribution and Thus Helped the Republicans.
      
      
6. The Effect of Immigration
   
   
   1. The Median Income voter's Incentive to Redistribute has not Increased as Overall Economic Inequality has Increased
      
      
   2. The Rise in Inequality has been Offset by Immigration which has Changed the Location of Citizens in the Income Distribution. Most Citizens, and Voters in Particular, have been "Bumped Up" by the Disenfranchisement of Poorer NonCitizens.
      
      
   3. A Voter of a Given Income is less eager to Redistribute if that Redistribution has to be Shared with the NonCitizen Poor.
      
      

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