Adorno: "Kabinettspolitik"

[Andrew Perrin]

I'm in the process of completing a translation of Adorno's essay
"Meinungsforschung und Oeffentlichkeit" (1964).  At one point, Adorno uses
the term "Kabinettspolitik" (literally: "cabinet politics") as a practice
of which public opinion provides a valid critique. The original sentence
is:

Nur in dieser Relation ist der Begriff zu verstehen, als Kritik der
absolutischen Kabinettspolitik, so wie umgekehrt aristokratische Ordnungen
der Geheimhaltung beduerfen und bis zu gegenwaertigen Elitetheorien das
Geheimnis verherrlichen.

Can anyone shed some light on what Kabinettspolitik refers to? From
context, we have inferred that it refers to politics-by-polls, e.g., the
tendency on the part of politicians to simply follow "public opinion"; but
I've not run across the term before and wonder if anyone else has and can
provide some context.

Thanks.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Andrew J Perrin - andrew_perrin@unc.edu - http://www.unc.edu/~aperrin
 Assistant Professor of Sociology, U of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
      269 Hamilton Hall, CB#3210, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3210 USA