Quantitative and formal analysis of international relations, comparative politics, and American politics.
Americans are becoming progressively more accepting of gays and lesbians. According to polling from Pew Research, a majority of Americans now support legalizing same sex marriages. This is a dramatic reversal from the public’s attitudes towards gay marriage just 15 years earlier, where a solid majority (57 percent) of Americans opposed same sex unions. On … Read more
Mitt Romney was a good presidential candidate; he ran a good campaign in the 2012 election. He had the necessary experience. He stayed on message, performed well in the debates, and by most accounts, appeared presidential. Romney also had the benefit of not flying into a strong economic headwind; the state of the economy certainly … Read more
In the wake of the 2012 victory by Democratic incumbent Barack Obama, many within the Republican Party were deeply troubled by the election returns. Republican challenger Mitt Romney faired poorly among ethnic and racial minorities, to the point where Republican Party Chairman Reince Priebus equated the party’s performance among Latinos (Romney won just 27 percent … Read more
Does familiarity with members of out-groups breed contempt or acceptance? The relationship between the geographic distribution of ethnic and racial minorities and white attitudes has been the subject of considerable academic debate since V.O. Key’s 1949 landmark Southern Politics. In Southern Politics, Key advanced the claim that white racial conservatism was the strongest in places … Read more
Who would have thought? When Reagan visited the Soviet Union in 1988, he would end up meeting the future President of Russia, Putin, and the world would have a picture to remember the occasion! Unfortunately we do not know what they were saying or thinking at the time. But we can pretend we do. What do you … Read more
USA Today provides an infographic detailing the number of corruption convictions per 100,000 people. Using statistics from the Department of Justice, the article boldly declares that North Dakota is the most corrupt state in the Union while infamous Illinois comes in at a late 17th: Using conviction rates of corruption as a proxy for the … Read more