What's next

The world and the country are changing, and the federal government had better figure out how to catch up.

As George W Bush measures furniture for the Oval Office and takes the reins of power in

Over the last generation, American government has been undergoing a steady, but often unnoticed, transformation. Government's traditional processes and organizations have become more marginal to the big debates, from how much we pay for health care to how we solve the really tough problems-such as poverty. New processes and institutions-often nongovernmental ones-have become more central to public policy. In doing the people's work, the federal government increasingly shares responsibility with other levels of government, with private companies and with nonprofit organizations. It's struggling mightily to steer the ship it has built.