In the News: Daniel McDowell
Does Crisis Lending Help China Win Friends and Influence People?
The article, co-authored by Maxwell Advisory Board Professor of International Affairs Daniel McDowell, was published in World Development.
See related: China, Economic Policy
McDowell Discusses the Petrodollar Era and Currency Debasement With DW News, Financial Times
“There is an instrumental reason to start warning people about currency debasement, even if you don’t deep down think it’s real, if you profit from this,” says Daniel McDowell, Maxwell Advisory Board Professor of International Affairs.
McDowell Speaks With Newsweek About the Economic Impact of the War in Iran
Daniel McDowell, Maxwell Advisory Board Professor of International Affairs, says he is concerned the conflict could “result in renewed attacks from the White House on the independence of the Federal Reserve. As oil prices rise and put upward pressure on prices, this makes it less likely that the Fed will cut rates, something President Trump has been demanding for his entire second presidency.”
See related: Conflict, Economic Policy, Federal, International Affairs, Middle East & North Africa, United States
McDowell Discusses the Shifting Sentiment on the Dollar in Atlantic Council Article
”The president’s decision to shrug off dollar depreciation fits within a broader pattern, suggesting that the White House is comfortable with a weaker dollar because they view it as a tool to address global trade imbalances. However, this strategy carries risks: it could help rebalance the U.S. trade deficit but would also likely erode returns for foreign investors,” says Daniel McDowell, professor of political science.
See related: Economic Policy, Federal, International Affairs, Trade, United States
McDowell Speaks With the AP and The World About the Value of Gold, US Trade Partners and the Dollar
There’s been “a real rupture in the way we think about how the world order, if we want to call it that, functions,” says Daniel McDowell, Maxwell Advisory Board Professor of International Affairs. In moments of instability, he explains, buying gold has historically been a sort of “psychological reaction” for some hoping to find a safe place for their money.
See related: Economic Policy, Federal, International Affairs, Trade, United States
McDowell Speaks With Marketplace About Europeans Selling Off US Treasurys
“Any mass sale of Treasurys like that would likely cause severe disruptions that not only impact the U.S., it would also impact European banks and the entire global economy,” says Daniel McDowell, Maxwell Advisory Board Professor of International Affairs.
See related: Economic Policy, Europe, Government, International Affairs, National Security, United States
Inflation and Incumbent Support: Experimental Evidence from the 2024 US Presidential Election
Co-authored by Professor of Political Science Daniel McDowell, the study was published in the British Journal of Political Science.
See related: Political Parties, U.S. Elections, United States
McDowell Discusses His Research on Immigrants’ Partisan Preferences in PsyPost Article
“Immigration attitudes are not immune to strategic electoral thinking and hyper-partisanship,” says Daniel McDowell, Maxwell Advisory Board Professor of International Affairs. “For many Americans, our study shows that the desirability of immigration depends not just on cultural or economic factors, but also whether voters believe migrants have the same partisan preferences that that they do.”
See related: Federal, Political Parties, U.S. Elections, U.S. Immigration, United States
McDowell Piece on the Trump Administration and Global Currency Published by Atlantic Council
"In the great global currency debate, market forces have never been more passé and political forces have never been so prominent," writes Maxwell Advisory Board Professor of International Affairs Daniel McDowell.
See related: Economic Policy, Federal, International Affairs, U.S. Foreign Policy, United States
Do Immigrants’ Partisan Preferences Influence Americans’ Support for Immigration?
The article, co-authored by Professor of Political Science Daniel McDowell, was published in the Journal of Experimental Political Science.
See related: Federal, Political Parties, U.S. Elections, U.S. Immigration, United States
McDowell Discusses the Mar-a-Lago Accord and the US Dollar in Deutsche Welle Interview
Part of the Mar-a-Lago Accord is essentially the goal to reduce U.S. debt service costs by forcing other countries to exchange existing U.S. bonds for 100-year, low- or no-interest bonds. “This is such an unprecedented idea. This is, in my opinion, the most kind of fantastical part of this,” says Daniel McDowell, Maxwell Advisory Board Professor of International Affairs.
See related: Economic Policy, Federal, International Affairs, Trade, U.S. Foreign Policy, United States
McDowell Article on Trump Administration’s ‘Mar-a-Lago Accord’ Published by Atlantic Council
“The public is not enthusiastic about a depreciating currency, even if that means more exports. This implies that a core component of a Mar-a-Lago Accord—a sustained weakening of the dollar—could pose political risks for Trump,” writes Professor of Political Science Daniel McDowell and his co-author, David Steinberg.
See related: Economic Policy, Federal, International Affairs, Trade, United States
McDowell Contributes Chapter to Gates Forum Report on Economic Statecraft
“The Sources of American Financial Power and its Challengers,” written by Daniel McDowell, Maxwell Advisory Board Professor of International Affairs, was presented at the third annual forum, hosted by the Gates Global Policy Center in partnership with William & Mary’s Global Research Institute.
See related: Economic Policy, Federal, International Affairs, Trade, U.S. Foreign Policy, United States
McDowell Discusses Trump’s Plans to Maintain Dollar Dominance in BBC, Bloomberg, Wash Post Articles
“The idea that you’d use political coercion to bind countries, or bind market actors within countries, to use the currency is not how the dollar ascended to this place in the first place,” says Daniel McDowell, professor of political science. “If that’s what’s needed to maintain dollar dominance, that shows there’s a real fundamental problem with the economic appeal.”
See related: Federal, International Affairs, Tariffs, Trade, U.S. Foreign Policy, United States
The Impact of Inflation on Support for Kamala Harris in the 2024 Presidential Election
Professor of Political Science Daniel McDowell and his co-authors find that priming Americans to think about inflation reduces approval of the Biden-Harris administration and lowers confidence in the Democrats' ability to manage the economy. Published in SSRN.
See related: Economic Policy, U.S. Elections, United States
Race, Representation, and the Legitimacy of International Organizations
Daniel McDowell and co-author explore whether the representation of Black people in international organization leadership positions influences perceptions of legitimacy among Black and white individuals. Published in International Organization.
McDowell Explains How US Sanctions Boost China’s Cross-Border Currency Use in The Diplomat Article
“By growing the use of the RMB in cross-border trade settlement directly between China and Russia, U.S. financial sanctions cut targeted actors off from using the dollar system, which forces targets into alternative currencies that are exchanged outside of the U.S. financial system,” says Daniel McDowell, professor of political science.
See related: China, Economic Policy, Government, U.S. Foreign Policy
Patel and McDowell Discuss Trump’s Plan to Impose Tariffs on Countries That Start Wars in The Hill
“The cost to the private sector is quite high,” says Kristen Patel, professor of practice of policy studies. “Former President Trump has not coherently explained how tariffs would benefit us, companies and consumers.” Daniel McDowell, professor of political science, says, “The idea of using tariffs to deter countries from invading other countries, it’s pretty out there.”
See related: China, Government, International Affairs, Tariffs, Trade, U.S. Foreign Policy, U.S. National Security, United States
McDowell Weighs In on China’s International Use of Renminbi in Financial Times Article
“I think it’s very unlikely that we’ll see China’s trade with the United States, with the European Union, moving into Chinese currency,” says Daniel McDowell, professor of political science.
See related: China, Economic Policy, Government, International Affairs, Trade
Maxwell School 2024-25 Faculty Promotions Include Four Tenure Appointments
Edwin Ackerman, Marc Garcia, Timur Hammond and Alex Rothenberg have been promoted to associate professor.
See related: Promotions & Appointments