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Pendulum Of Power Versus Command And Control: Intergovernmental Relations 81 Under The Clean Air Act And Its Amendments, Yige Chen Apr 2017

Pendulum Of Power Versus Command And Control: Intergovernmental Relations 81 Under The Clean Air Act And Its Amendments, Yige Chen

Res Publica - Journal of Undergraduate Research

Development in U.S. politics has arisen through two controversial pathways: federalism and anti-federalism. Some scholars suggest that the two paths will create a balance of power over time. However, evidence from the environmental control of air pollution since the late 1960s falsifies this widely established claim. This paper examines the distribution of regulatory authority and intergovernmental relations between federal and local governments under the U.S. Clean Air Act and its Amendments.

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The Redistributive Properties Of The Social Security Act Of 1935, Jordan Gagnon Apr 2017

The Redistributive Properties Of The Social Security Act Of 1935, Jordan Gagnon

Res Publica - Journal of Undergraduate Research

This paper will evaluate the current theories of intent and functioning for the Social Security Act of 1935, and from there propose a hypothesis of the act as a distributive system functioning as redistributive from the start. It will analyze this through generated information and data from the United States Census Bureau. Three studies are analyzed to look at trends over twenty-five years of program action. One test on the national budget deficit and two tests on social security benefits as a percentage of poverty threshold and income. The findings portray trends in the early years of the program that …

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The Unconscious Victim Of Quiescence, Ally Daskalopoulos Apr 2017

The Unconscious Victim Of Quiescence, Ally Daskalopoulos

Res Publica - Journal of Undergraduate Research

John Gaventa describes his investigation into the lives of Appalachian coal miners as an “account of the local injustices,” (Gaventa 1980 v.). The same can be said for this investigation into the Vanderbilt Rape Trial. Similar to the accounts of Central Appalachia, an act of “local injustice” occurred on the campus of Vanderbilt University in the summer of 2013. The realities of the high profile Vanderbilt Rape case are compared and applied to the framework of power Gaventa specifies in Power and Powerlessness. The parallels between both cases are undeniable and ultimately serve one purpose for their comparison. Like Gaventa, …

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Jefferson’S West Point - A Durable Political Change, Preslav Mantchev Apr 2017

Jefferson’S West Point - A Durable Political Change, Preslav Mantchev

Res Publica - Journal of Undergraduate Research

This essay evaluates a variety of national security visions put forth between the Revolution and War of 1812. It uncovers how a professional army became the prevailing national security apparatus during America’s nascent years. Additionally, special attention is given to Thomas Jefferson’s role in the process, which culminated in the establishment of a military academy at West Point. The essay argues that the academy’s creation advanced a professional army with characteristics particular for its time: a diverse and egalitarian force, bound to the ideals of republicanism.

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The Madisonian Standard For Conceptualizing American Citizenship, Maddie E. Browning-Perry Apr 2017

The Madisonian Standard For Conceptualizing American Citizenship, Maddie E. Browning-Perry

Res Publica - Journal of Undergraduate Research

American political development was fashioned by a social contract. More specifically, the American republic evolved through the Madisonian social contract, an agreement premised on James Madison’s intention that deliberative citizenship would collaborate with decentralized government in order to advance the public good. This paper identifies the problem with the Madisonian contract today, that the relationship between citizens and government, or rather, Congress, is one that is infused with antagonism and a record high level of distrust. This present-day characterization of the broken relationship between citizens and Congress is symptomatic of a deteriorated Madisonian contract. Public opinion polls cast the illusion …

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Authors’ Biographies Apr 2017