Maxwell School News and Commentary

Modern Venice is “an amusement park,” according to Professor Emeritus of History Dennis Romano, who recently wrote a book on the city. He predicts that the wedding and its attendant publicity will likely just drive more tourists to the city. 

“Among the issues Quinnipiac asked about—immigration, trade, the economy, Israel-Gaza and universities—Trump’s numbers are the worst on Russia-Ukraine, and they also are the worst among Republicans,” says Brian Taylor, professor of political science.

Vice Adm. Robert Murrett (Ret.), professor of practice of public administration and international affairs, says that from a tactical military standpoint, they were very effective attacks that had dealt a significant blow to Moscow's military machine.

Margaret Susan Thompson, professor of history and political science, says she doubts Leo will renounce his U.S. citizenship. “I think he wants to stress that he is the pope of the universal Catholic Church,” Thompson says, “and not an American holding that position.”

“Putin isn’t interested in a ceasefire or an agreement, but rather in victory, understood as the subjugation of Ukraine,” says Brian Taylor, professor of political science. “The Russian president has faced zero consequences for stalling Trump over the past four months, and from what Trump has said about the conversation, that hasn’t changed one bit.”

“Social media can be a minefield for divisive commentary, so I imagine he’ll use it sparingly, perhaps for simple, pastoral messages (and yes, delivered on the official pope account) like holiday greetings, but not for anything controversial,” says Margaret Susan Thompson, professor of history and political science.

“There have been a variety of efforts since the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991 to try and remake the U.S.-Russia relationship...Obviously a lot has happened since then and it hasn't worked out that way and from my point of view, the thing that has broken the relationship most of all has been the Russian war against Ukraine which began in 2014,” says Brian Taylor, professor of political science.

“Trump’s contention that Ukraine’s hope of joining NATO ‘caused the war to start’ is a claim that is often made, but one that doesn’t stand up to scrutiny,” says Brian Taylor, professor of political science. “Given that there was no serious prospect of Ukraine joining NATO between 2008 and 2022, it’s hard to see how Ukraine’s hope of joining NATO at some point in the future caused the full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022.”

“I think it was simply that across the communist world, they had become really enchanted by Western films. And the main reason that some people point to for this is that in 1960, “The Magnificent Seven,” that film was allowed into the Soviet Union, and it became this instant sensation,” says Natalie Koch, professor of geography and the environment.

“I challenge the notion that there is a tsunami of support for Le Pen on this issue,” says John Goodman, assistant professor of political science by courtesy appointment. “Her appeal has been fast-tracked so it can be heard in the summer of 2026, well before the 2027 presidential election, and significantly faster than a typical criminal case.”