Maxwell School News

“Now she [ Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi] doesn't have to worry about any elections until 2028, when the next upper house elections will take place,” says Margarita Estévez-Abe, associate professor of political science. “So the best scenario for Japan is that Takaichi kind of takes a deep breath and focuses on amending the relationship with China.”

For Trump, it doesn't matter whether an immigrant obeys the law, or owns a business, or has been here for decades, says Mark Brockway, assistant teaching professor of political science. “They are caught in the middle of Trump's fight against an invented evil enemy,” Brockway says.

“I don't think Takaichi's budget, or anything she has stated so far, addresses any of the core underlying factors,” says Margarita Estévez-Abe, associate professor of political science.

“We are already seeing the negative reactions from the market... Further depreciation of the yen will hit ordinary Japanese households with higher prices,” says Margarita Estevez-Abe, associate professor of political science.

Ahead of the meeting between incoming New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani and Donald Trump, Grant Reeher, professor of political science, tells Agence France Presse: “Look for the outcome of that meeting to be something to the effect of, ‘I think I can work with (him)—but we will see how it goes and I’m hopeful—we both want the city to succeed’.”  

“Mamdani’s got to get his ideas realized in policy, and New York is notoriously difficult to govern. It’s arguably the second hardest political job in the United States, after the president. So whatever he’s able to accomplish, it won’t be easy,” says Grant Reeher, professor of political science.

William Banks, professor emeritus of public administration and international affairs, says federally deployed National Guard don’t have the same authority as troops deployed by a state—for example, the troops in LA are officially charged with protecting federal personnel and property, but can’t enforce the law themselves or make arrests. It’s a rarely-used executive authority because it’s not typically within their role or training, he says.natio

“I can’t imagine Donald Trump rolling up his sleeves and digging into the nitty-gritty of the words of this conflict,” says Brian Taylor, professor of political science. “That’s not who he is [but] that’s what it takes to bring about ceasefires and peace settlements, lots of detailed, nitty-gritty negotiation on a whole host of issues. It’s not simply tell both sides to stop.” 

Richard Barton, assistant teaching professor of public administration and international affairs, suggests that Trump could decide to “do whatever he wants and let somebody file a lawsuit and bring it to the Supreme Court, who have been pretty favorable to Trump on matters of executive power.”

“The risk is greater than zero, that's for sure, and it's certainly higher than anything that has been accomplished on a commercial basis,” says University Professor Sean O'Keefe.

Keith Bybee, professor of political science, says 6-3 rulings such as the immunity decision make the court appear more partisan in its decision-making. “But also, this majority is quite emboldened,” he says, rendering decisions that are “quite sweeping and overturn decades-old precedents” such as in the case of abortion.

“The Trump organization is a family business, but once he took office the first time, and then you could really see that he brought that into the political realm and into the White House,” says Natalie Koch, professor of geography and the environment.

Such hero worship benefits both the mythologized leader and followers, says Natalie Koch, professor of geography and the environment. “By building up that cult and joining that and being part of that, they get a sense of community.”

“Trump seemed to bring almost every issue back to immigration and the harms he asserted were coming from that—that was obviously one of his main strategies. President Biden seemed to address different policy questions more in their own terms. He talked fast and in a staccato, hoarse whisper,” says Grant Reeher, professor of political science.

"I think for a growing number of white Americans you are seeing more attention paid to the longer-term reasons that racial inequality persists in America," says Steven White, assistant professor of political science. "I guess the question is whether these changes in public opinion will last," he says. "Is this the beginning of a really substantial shift?"

"This is really going to hurt American businesses who use Mexico to reduce their costs and stay competitive," Mary Lovely, professor of economics, told Bloomberg after President Trump announced that all products from Mexico will be hit with 25 percent tariffs.

"I think that if President Trump goes through and raises these tariffs and then China retaliates, there will be a lot more pain and no gain," says Professor of Economics Mary Lovely.

Austin Zwick, assistant teaching professor of public affairs, says the job actions are an attempt to shift the balance of power between drivers and platforms, which now have the power to arbitrarily determine compensation and benefits. "The joint strike plus boycott strategy appear unlikely to succeed nationally as it does not appear that all drivers and passengers are unified behind the cause."