The early 1950s may have been the nadir for modern American conservatism. Conservative hero Robert Taft had lost the Republican nomination for President to a more moderate candidate for the third time, many in the Republican Party had moved to accept some of the most popular New Deal programs, and a moderate, internationalist consensus had taken hold in the country. Yet, from these ashes, conservatism rose to become a potent political force — maybe the driving force — in the United States over the last half century. This seminar explores the contours of that rise, beginning with infrastructure laid and coalitions forged in the 1950s and early 1960s. We will see how conservatives built upon this infrastructure to overcome Barry Goldwater’s crushing 1964 defeat to elect one of their own, Ronald Reagan, president in 1980. Reagan’s presidency transformed the public philosophy and helped shape subsequent American political development. Our study of conservatism will also include the struggles that conservatives confronted in trying to enact their ideas into public policy, and the repercussions of those struggles.
We will explore conservatism’s triumphs and failures politically, as well as the cultural changes that have helped, hindered, and shaped its rise. In many ways, this class is a study in the transformation of American politics and in American culture over the last sixty-five years. Its focus is on the hows and the whys of the rise of conservatism from the low point of the early 50s to the rise of Trumpism in the 2010s. In many places, we will discover a surprisingly complex story. This complexity means that we must grapple with clashing interpretations as to why and how conservatism developed, why conservatism appealed to many Americans at various points in time, and even whether there was an agreed upon conservative vision unifying the forces pushing America rightward.
The seminar will be oriented chronologically to the degree that it is possible, spending several weeks on each decade between the 1960s and the 2010s, Yet, we will also focus on several themes and relationships throughout the class. These include the role played by certain pivotal political figures, the ideas that propelled conservatism and bound the conservative movement together, the relationship between conservatives and the Republican Party, the tensions within the diverse Reagan coalition (which have spilled over with increasing regularity, especially during the 2010s) and the impact of the courts and the conservative legal movement in seeding conservatism over the last 30 years. We will ask critical and often difficult questions involving topics such as the role of racism and bigotry in the rise of conservatism. We will also consider the big picture—is the United States really any more conservative in 2023 than it was in 1950? If not, why do many consider conservatism to have risen politically? At the end of the semester we will ponder whether some of the current conservative divisions are new, or continuations of fissures that have long existed and we will consider the big picture in American politics: are our divisions too big to foster functional governance?

This course seeks to understand contemporary political divisions in the United States. Guiding our analysis will be scholarship from the discipline of political science, with particular attention given to political culture, American political development and federalism while incorporating scholarship from several other disciplines. As we study political culture at the national level, we will unpack our own individual attitudes towards politics. There will be an emphasis throughout the course on personal wellness during dialogue with assignments ranging from written reflections on experiences to textual analysis to their combination.

This undergraduate seminar is for advanced undergraduates seeking to make sense of the upsurge in racist activism, combined with authoritarian populism and neo-fascist mobilization in many parts of the world. Contemporary manifestations of the phenomena noted above will be examined in a comparative and historical perspective to identify patterns and anomalies across various multiple nation-states. France, The United States, Britain, and Italy will be the countries examined.

This course surveys the ways conservatives have related to capitalism over time and across
countries. It is designed to bridge theory, history, and national comparison to shed light on urgent contemporary policy choices facing conservatives of all kinds. One section explores the philosophical underpinnings of the major strains of conservatism, emphasizing their concern with inherited institutions (church and family), community (local and especially national), social and cultural hierarchies, and the fundamental value of individual (as opposed to corporate) property ownership. Markets are an inherent challenge to each, as we see in a historical section that traces the rise of commercial society generally and then capitalism in its trading, industrial, financial, hi-tech, and state-based forms. How conservatives negotiated the changing world is observable in three related modes: the intellectual output of leading thinkers, the demands of social movements, and the policies of governing parties. Together they have, of course, shaped capitalism itself—from Bismarck’s creation of social insurance in Germany to Friedman's influential promotion of shareholder value, to the recent wave of populist-nationalist suspicion of international trade and Wall Street. What unites successful conservatives across the world, however, has been their management of the fundamental dilemmas of capitalism: the permanence of change, the amoral & cosmopolitan character of economic relations, and the fragility of established institutions. Course is open to all students and is offered on campus.

Consult the political science department or Paideia program for detailed descriptions. More than one course make be taken in a given semester.

Jobs in data science are quickly proliferating throughout nearly every industry in the American economy. The purpose of this class is to build the statistics, programming, and qualitative skills that are required to excel in data science. The substantive focus of the class will largely be on topics related to politics and elections, although the technical skills can be applied to any subject matter.

New sources of data (big data, small data and everything in between) raise the exciting possibility that such data could benefit the world’s poor. This course provides students with an intermediate-level review of recent research that deploys new data for insights on development and hands-on analysis of different kinds of datasets. Students will investigate key themes in development –citizen tech for accountability, corruption, household economics, climate change resilience and press freedom. As we explore these topics, students will develop data analytical skills that are useful across a wide range of research and real-world applications. As such, students will come face-to-face with the opportunities and challenges for data-intensive approaches to international development. Students should have taken PSCI 1800 or an equivalent course and be ready to both discuss course readings and engage with data assignments in the programming language R (students more comfortable in Python are welcome). This class is also designed as a follow-up to PSCI 1102, and students are encouraged (but not required) to take that course before this one.

This class looks at one of the most important issues facing the world today: China’s climate policy and energy transition, and its impact on global climate change. The course aims to expose students to the driving forces behind China’s position and policy related to climate change, with a strong emphasis on political economy. The course will also examine barriers and challenges related to meeting China’s ambitious climate commitments. An important part of the course will be guest speakers representing the U.S. and Chinese government officials; multilateral institution officials; researchers; journalists; and civil society.

International organizations (IOs) play a powerful role in mitigating conflict at the global level.  What role do they play in solving problems related to politics, economic development, corruption, inequality, and civil society in Latin America? How much power, influence, and control do they possess in the region?  This course examines the role and impact international organizations have had on Latin America since the mid-20th century.  After a review of theoretical perspectives on the significance of IOs in inter-American affairs, students will examine the workings, issues, and controversies surrounding IOs in Latin America across themes of democracy, human rights, security, and development - the four main pillars of the OAS. Through readings, short presentations/debates, and guest speakers, students will explore IOs and their action in the region. Some of these IOs include the IMF, World Bank, UN, ICC as well as regional organizations and area trade blocs and agreements of USMCA/NAFTA, Mercosur, Pacific Alliance, ALBA, and other civil society and human rights organizations. A large part of the course will focus on the Organization of American States and its various departments and divisions such as the Inter American Commission for Human Rights.  Students will be invited to participate in the Washington Model OAS simulation in April.

The Trump Presidency has profoundly shifted America's role in the world and the way in which key institutions of foreign policy making are staffed and positioned to advance America's interests. The ascent of extreme nationalists and nationalism in other power centers in the world along with growing distrust in government and public institutions may have marked the close of the two-decade post 9/11 era. Indeed, the global COVID-19 pandemic and the ways in which actors across the international spectrum have responded (or failed to respond) has led many to question the assumptions inherent in the post-9/11 international order and has marked the beginning of a new era of competition, a return to great-power politics, and the diminishing power of traditional actors, systems, and ideals on the global stage. This course will provide students with an in-depth, practical analysis of foreign policy and foreign policy making, with a view from Washington. It will also provide a baseline global literacy, through the lens of emerging ideas, institutions, interests, and actors, and focus on a framework for understanding shifts already underway in how Washington views the world. We will utilize less traditional resources, and instead focus on practical and "real-world" course material as well as less traditional instruction methods - utilizing and analyzing the sources and resources that policy makers in Washington rely upon. These include long-form journalism, official government documents, hearings and Congressional debate, think tank products, and news sources. Students will have the opportunity to engage with a variety of guest-speakers, all of whom have held senior official and non-governmental roles in American foreign policy making and influencing. Guest speakers will provide unique insight into their own experiences at the highest levels of foreign policy making and advocacy, and offer guidance as to how to pursue careers in foreign policy, national security, and international development. In the past, guest speakers have included: Former Deputy Secretaries of State William Burns and Heather Higginbottom; Executive Director of the ONE Campaign; Former Director of Policy Planning at the State Department; Former Ambassadors, Senior Professional Staff from the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and Senate Foreign Relations Committee, former Assistant Secretary of Population, Refugees, and Migration, among others.