Publication

This publication argues that how states’ citizens pay for wars influences how those states fight. More specifically, the text’s author contends that the public and legislature are less apt to focus on the use of force when they do not bear the burdens of those wars. She concludes that the US and other democracies should restore the connection between the public and the policy choices that the government makes about war. This is to ensure that public approval is a conscious decision informed by an awareness of the stakes and tradeoffs rather than a tacit decision perpetuated by a lack of political awareness.