M.A. in Democracy and Governance from Georgetown University (2012). Former political science professor. Writes on American politics, international affairs, philosophy, and literature. Based in New York City.
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According to one comprehensive study, the national poverty rate was approximately 27 percent in 1967: without decades of welfare programs, that rate would have risen to 29 percent by 2011 rather than dropped, as it did, to 16 percent. Yet despite this overall improvement, significant changes in these welfare programs
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According to a Washington Post Election Lab projection from May 2014, an incumbent in 405 of the 435 House contests has a 90 percent chance or greater of winning his or her seat, leaving only 30 seats still relatively up for grabs. Other prominent forecasters, such as the Cook or
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In 2011, New York Times columnist Paul Krugman lamented that the proliferation of half-true statements and fallacious accusations during the 2012 presidential campaign had inaugurated an era of "post-truth politics." This era is particularly enabled by the features of our contemporary media-saturated political environment: the distrust of the
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During Clinton’s uphill re-election campaign in 1996, the president relied heavily on the aid of pollsters. With the help of strategists such as Doug Schoen, Dick Morris, and Mark Penn, the president identified the concerns and personalities of swing voters (such as whether they preferred the TV shows Friends
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Several states are adopting an alternative approach to measure their citizens' well-being and shape public policy. In 2012, Vermont became the first state to pass a law mandating the use of the Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI). The metric – which has been used in academic circles for years – looks at
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On July 1, 2014, part of a 2012 Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rule became active that will make it easier for voters to know who is paying for political TV advertisements. In April 2012, the FCC decided in a 2-1 vote to require the four biggest broadcast networks -- ABC,
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Few quid pro quos are as apparent as when McDonald’s CEO, Ray Kroc, donated $250,000 to President Nixon in 1972 in return for an exemption from price control that allowed McDonald’s to raise the cost of a quarter pounder with cheese -- along with its profits. Nevertheless,
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In American folklore, it is President Grant who coined the term “lobbyists” to designate those influence peddlers who attempted to bribe him with whiskey and cigars during his jaunts to the Willard Hotel in exchange for political favors. The term, in fact, is much older -- as is the practice
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David Crane, an adviser to former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, declared in 2010 that public pension crises nationwide represent “the largest single financial issue facing state and local governments." According to one estimate, state and municipal governments across the country have a total unfunded pension liability of $4.1
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The rapid expansion of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) across Iraq is leading to sectarian violence on a scale not seen in the country in years. In June 2014 alone, approximately a thousand Iraqis -- nearly all civilians -- have been killed. The U.S. is
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The Supreme Court will soon decide in Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby the legality of the mandate under Obamacare that for-profit institutions must insure contraceptive care for their female employees. Dozens of companies have sued the government claiming that the owners’ freedom of religion is being violated by having to pay
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In recent years, several if not dozens of moderate or centrist groups have popped up. Their appearance is an understandable response to reflexive partisanship and political dysfunction. However, the call for centrism -- the centrist temptation -- as a solution to partisan gridlock reveals a misunderstanding of the underlying problem,