Maxwell School News

“The overall erosion in the president’s approval ratings is still the consequence of the accumulation of many policies, orders, actions and statements during his term. There is no one reason or single inflection point. Certainly, the war in Iran and the quick, steep rise in gasoline prices have only added to the longer term trend,” says Grant Reeher, professor of political science. 

“There is room for negotiation on the nuclear program. But one of the things Iran is looking for is the following: they want the United States to agree, or at least to recognize, its right—Iran's right—too enrich uranium under the nuclear non-proliferation agreement that Iran signed and other countries have signed,” says Osamah Khalil, chair of the International Relations Undergraduate Program. 

Richard Barton, assistant teaching professor of public administration and international affairs, analyzed 14 metrics and found that states with nonpartisan primaries had seen “statistically significant improvements” in nine of them—even when accounting for other factors.

“An opening chapter of an AI cold war is emerging,” Yingyi Ma, professor of sociology, wrote ahead of the summit in a Brookings Institution commentary piece that was referenced in TIME.

Policies such as public investments in infrastructure like housing and electricity will help address climate change, says Matt Huber, professor of geography and the environment. But there is little reason for politicians to focus on the issue anymore, he says.

“To have [Vance] speak out and say, in effect, the pope should mind his own business, and the pope should learn Catholic doctrine, and other members of the administration saying things like, the pope should read the Bible—these are kind of odd statements,” says Margaret Susan Thompson, professor of history and political science.

Daniel McDowell tells Bloomberg that the U.S. Treasury using swap lines as a geopolitical instrument with foreign governments could undermine global confidence in the dollar.

“Iran does have significant leverage due to geography and capability. At the same time, it is very much in Iran’s interest to keep the strait open, given how much of its economy depends on exports moving through it. Our military posture is important in creating leverage for a diplomatic solution that would allow free and open navigation,” says Vice Adm. Robert Murrett (Ret.), professor of practice of public administration and international affairs.

“These large state drops in SNAP caseloads represent a fundamental restructuring of the food-assistance safety net,” says Colleen Heflin, professor of public administration and international affairs. “We should expect to see a surge in food insecurity and its related negative consequences at new levels.”

“I think where it's going to go from here is back to where it started, and that is you're going to see a lot of debate and conflict over what is going on on the ground with the immigration enforcement efforts,” says Grant Reeher, professor of political science.

“I would have been surprised if they hadn’t developed because we’re in a society that is absolutely saturated with conspiracism,” says Michael Barkun, professor of political science.

Margarita Estévez-Abe, associate professor of political science, says that Tokyo's policy shift will cement existing ties and help Japan to forge new alliances, as concerns grow over Washington's commitment to its partners.

“I see 988 as a promising and important part of the mental health support system, with real potential to expand its impact over time,” says Michiko Ueda-Ballmer, associate professor of public administration and international affairs.

Jacob Bendix, professor emeritus of geography and the environment, calls a recent study on the number of hours in North America when the weather is favorable for wildfires a sobering reminder of climate change’s role in driving “increased fire potential across almost all of the fire-prone environments of North America.”

“These gold artifacts are very, very distinctively 18th-century Akan goldwork,” says Christopher DeCorse, Distinguished Professor of Anthropology.

“Drug seizure data measure interdiction activity, not actual trafficking volume,” says Dessa Bergen-Cico, professor of public health. “As drug policy researchers have noted, no one knows how much goes uncaught, and changes in seizure data are insufficient to make definitive claims about policy outcomes.”

“I think [Trump] is losing even some of his [Catholic] supporters, or they are moderating their support,” says Margaret Susan Thompson, professor of history and political science. She notes that Trump's comments have been so harsh and controversial that even conservative-leaning Catholics are speaking out against the president and defending Leo.

“It was a spectacular achievement, and one that really is another step in the long continuum of human exploration of not only here on Earth, but now well into space and moving further out,” says University Professor Emeritus Sean O'Keefe. 

“I think the next couple of days would be crucial to see what the [Iranian] response is,” says Vice Adm. Robert Murrett (Ret.), professor of practice of public administration and international affairs. “It’s going to be a pretty dicey operation, I think it can be carried out, but the next couple of days are critical in terms of how it’s carried forward,” he says.