Political Science Commons^™

Judicial Nominees: Defining The Terms Of Senate Debates, Gary L. Mcdowell

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

Since roughly the beginning of the Reagan administration the left wing of the Democratic senatorial cohort has enjoyed remarkable success in disparaging Republican nominees to the federal judiciary as mere "conservatives". Its argument has been that those nominees would decide cases on everything from abortion to economic regulation on the basis of their "conservative" policy preferences. Sadly, as a general rule, the conservatives have allowed the Democrats to get away with this distortion.

The Fight For Political Representation In A Southern Suburb: The Use Of The Voting Rights Act And The Federal Court System By Black Plaintiffs In Henrico County, Virginia, Thomas J. Shields

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

There has been an abundance of written work on the historic fight for black political equality in southern urban areas. However, almost no scholarly work exists on the fight for black political equality in the rapidly expanding southern suburbs. This article analyzes the rise of the black population and its fight for political representation on the local governing board in Henrico County, a large suburb of Richmond, Virginia. The article details the increase in the black population in Henrico County from 1950 to 2000 and provides a descriptive analysis how black plaintiffs used the Voting Rights Act in a redistricting …

Coming To Set Terms For Dci, Porcher L. Taylor Iii

School of Professional and Continuing Studies Faculty Publications

Senator and presidential contender John Kerry has loudly and critically clanged the intelligence-reform bell in President Bush's ears. Recently, Mr. Kerry proposed great expansion of the director of central intelligence's (DCI) authority over the National Security Agency, Defense Intelligence Agency and National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. But true reform must first come with the DCI's emancipation from the White House through providing a 10-year term as a presidential appointee.

Colonization And The Rule Of Law: Comparing The Effectiveness Of Common Law And Civil Law Countries, Sandra F. Joireman

Political Science Faculty Publications

The rule of law is one of the most important components of any explanation of cross-national differences in economic well-being. But what leads to better rule of law in a country? Using an institutional approach this paper probes the effect of legal systems in influencing the rule of law. There has long been speculation that the countries adopting English common law are better at providing legal dispute resolution than those adopting the continental forms of civil law. That speculative assessment is found to be true only in those countries that have been colonized, further analysis demonstrates that it is the …

Congressional Leadership, Daniel J. Palazzolo

Political Science Faculty Publications

Congressional leadership takes place within an institution that serves two primary functions: making laws and representing citizens. Leaders play essential roles organizing the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senatethey set the schedule for debating bills and resolutions; formulate proposals to address public problems; represent their party's priorities through the media and in relations with leaders of the opposing party; support or oppose the president's initiatives in the legislative process; and build coalitions to pass legislation. The main challenge of congressional leadership is to advance the collective interests of the nation or of the leader's political party, …

Retributive Justice: The Gacaca Process In Rwanda, Sandra F. Joireman, Allison Corey

Political Science Faculty Publications

After decades of cycling violence between Hutu and Tutsi groups in Rwanda and Burundi, violence peaked in 1994 with a genocide of Tutsis in Rwanda, during which the Hutu majority slaughtered 800,000 Tutsi and moderate Hutus, leaving the country with 120,000 accused génocidaires awaiting trial. Rwanda's gacaca courts were established as a response to the backlog of untried genocide cases. These courts disturbingly distinguish between genocide and war crimes committed during the same era, trying only those accused of genocide. This article argues that the gacaca process will contribute to the insecurity of all Rwandan citizens in the future, since …

Communitarianism And Republicanism, Richard Dagger

Political Science Faculty Publications

Communitarianism and republicanism are closely related schools of thought - so closely related that friend and foe alike sometimes conflate them. The relationship is evident in their Latin roots: communitarians are concerned with communitas, the common life of people who form a community, and republicans are devoted to the res publica, the good of the public. Of the two, however, only republicanism traces its lineage as well as its name to ancient Rome. Indeed, scholars often look beyond Rome to the philosophers and city-states of ancient Greece, particularly Aristotle and Sparta, for the origins of republicanism. For the …

Wisdom To Know The Difference: The Rhetoric Of Pat Nixon, Linda B. Hobgood

Rhetoric and Communication Studies Faculty Publications

Henriette Wyeth Hurd painted the official portrait of Patricia Nixon. The woman depicted is serene, almost sad. She appears fragile, yet brave. Above all, the face that gazes from the canvas understands--the wisdom in her eyes reflects that sense of tribulation bequeathed by experience. Both the painting and the subject reflect "calm at the center." It is an insightful portrayal of the American first lady known to the world as "Pat."

[Introduction To] Universal Coverage: The Elusive Quest For National Health Insurance, Rick Mayes

Bookshelf

Universal health coverage has become the Mount Everest of public policy in the United States: the most daunting challenge on the political landscape. But, despite numerous attempts, all efforts to achieve universal health care have failed. In Universal Coverage, Rick Mayes examines the peculiar and persistent lack of universal health coverage in America, its economic and political origins dating back to the 1930s, and the current consequences of this significant problem.

War And State Formation: A Mennonite Critique, Sandra F. Joireman

Political Science Faculty Publications

This paper is an attempt to tackle the theory of war as a tool of state formation. Though I use the tools of my discipline to refute the theory in its contemporary manifestation, the paper is motivated by a theological belief regarding the sinfulness and depravity of war. I begin the paper by thoroughly exploring the benefits of strong states from a comparative historical perspective, since this has been critical to the theory's revival. Then I will discuss the theory that war makes strong states, looking first at the work of Charles Tilly, the best-known theorist in the area of …

A Certain Comfort: Betty Ford As First Lady, Nichola D. Gutgold, Linda B. Hobgood

Rhetoric and Communication Studies Faculty Publications

Her White House stay was short-lived, but the lessons of Betty Ford's experience remain vividly instructive. By accident of a national political crisis which catapulted her to the rank of the first lady in 1974, Mrs. Ford's tenure lasted a brief two years until her husband, Gerald R. Ford lost his bid for reelection. During that time, she developed a relationship of candor with the press and public. She spoke her mind on social and moral issues that were at the forefront of public debate. The positions she took were not always popular with the majority of Americans, many of …

What Intelligence Community Needs, Porcher L. Taylor Iii

School of Professional and Continuing Studies Faculty Publications

In order to depoliticize any claim that any U.S. president would ever take military action especially one involving tactical nuclear weapons based on politically predetermined intelligence, Congress needs to legislate and fund with a small budget what I'm calling the Contrarian Threat Assessment Directorate.

The director of this small, independent intelligence arm would be nominated by the president, confirmed by the Senate, and report directly to the president. Through a statutory amendment, the director would become an adviser to the National Security Council (NSC) on the contrarian, dissenting and minority intelligence assessments.

The “Tip Of The Iceberg” In A Southern Suburban County: The Fight For A Martin Luther King, Jr., Holiday, Thomas J. Shields

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

All across America on January 20, 1986, there were celebrations and school holidays in honor of the first holiday of the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr. In the county of Henrico, a suburb of Richmond, Virginia, the students were in school. Henrico's school administration and school board decided that the students should be in school learning about the contributions of Dr. King. The African American community in the suburb of Henrico County believed this was a slap in the face. The county observed birthdays for White historical figures but would not observe the first federal holiday for one of …

Delaney Amendment, Eric S. Yellin

History Faculty Publications

In 1958, U.S. Representative James Delaney of New York added a proviso to the 1938 Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act declaring that the Food and Drug Administration cannot approve any food additive found to induce cancer in a person or animal.

Justice For A Genocide?, Sandra F. Joireman

Political Science Faculty Publications

In Rwanda today it is considered poor manners to cry at funerals. Public grieving for the death of a single person is thought to minimize the grief people felt after the genocide when many people lost entire families. That genocide was eight years ago and to date little has been done to bring the perpetrators to justice. The newly established gacaca courts are meant to rectify this situation and assess the guilt or innocence of some of the tens of thousands of people now held in Rwandan jails.

[Introduction To] Nationalism And Political Identity, Sandra F. Joireman

Bookshelf

This is a lively and well-written textbook, which will prove a valuable addition to the IR textbook series - mainly because the ideas it covers have changed so fundamentally in the last ten years. Nationalism and ethnicity are uniquely considered within the context of both traditional IR theory and 'new' IR (ie Cold War perspectives). Joireman explains the conflict between primordialism (the view that ethnicity is inborn and ethnic division natural), instrumentalism (ethnicity is a tool to gain some larger, typically material end) and social constructivism (the emerging consensus that ethnicity is flexible and people can make choices about how …

Republican Citizenship, Richard Dagger

Political Science Faculty Publications

'Republican' and 'citizen', in fact, are old and intertwined words - so old that some may wonder at their relevance in the brave new world of the twenty-first century, and so intertwined that the phrase 'republican citizenship' seems almost redundant to others. There is no republic without citizens, after all; and, according to the classical republican thinkers, there is no citizenship, in the full sense of the word, except among those who are fortunate enough to inhabit a republic. But this view of citizenship's connection to republicanism no longer seems to prevail. If it did, there would be no need …

La Repubblica Di Sandel E L'Lo Incarnato, Richard Dagger

Political Science Faculty Publications

Quelli che vogliono conoscere cio per cui Sandel parteggia e cio contro cui combatte, quindi, hanno una buona ragione per dare il benvenuto a Democracy's Discontent. Se credono che la politica americana trarrebbe profitto da una corroborante (per non dire generosa) dose di repubblicanesimo, troveranno anche molte cose salutari nel libro. Come uno che si considera dentro entrambi questi gruppi, io credo che Sandel sia stato saggio a prendere una qualche distanza dal comunitarismo, e ancora piu saggio a sottoscrivere l'enfasi repubblicana sulla formazione dei cittadini e la coltivazione delle virtU civiche. Ma sbaglia nel continuare a opporsi al …

Government Must Make Consequences Clear, Porcher L. Taylor Iii

School of Professional and Continuing Studies Faculty Publications

With false-profits mania reigning supreme on Wall Street, Congress needs to establish an academy of corporate responsibility and integrity under the Securities and Exchange Commission. This executive training center would have as students the chief executives and financial officers and boards of directors of the nation’s publicly held companies. Senior partners at accounting companies need to be included in this back-to-school group, too. The enforcement-savvy teachers for this two-week academy would be lawyers and accountants from the commission and Justice Department.

Comment On Benhabib's "Dismantling The Leviathan": A Republican-Liberai Perspective, Richard Dagger

Political Science Faculty Publications

Those who think of themselves as republican or civic liberals, as I do, will surely be of two minds about Seyla Benhabib's "Dismantling the Leviathan: Citizen and State in a Global World" [Spring 2001 ]. In some respects, Professor Benhabib' s thoughtful essay is quite congenial to republican liberalism. She insists on the importance of human rights, for instance, and she looks for ways to expand political participation. Her indictment of "civic republicanism," however, requires a republican-liberal response.

Faux Realism: Spin Vs. Substance In The Bush Foreign-Policy Doctrine, Jeffrey W. Legro, Andrew Moravcsik

Political Science Faculty Publications

The Bush administration has coined a foreign-policy doctrine. President George W. Bush, National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice, and Secretary of State Colin Powell herald "the new realism." Think you know what they are up to? OK, then fill in the blank: The "new realism" is _______. If you find the blank hard to fill, don’t worry; so would most of today's international-relations scholars. Indeed, one fundamental problem with the Bush administration's new doctrine is that "realism" no longer has any real intellectual coherence.

The True Constitutionalist, Raoul Berger, 1901-2000: His Life And His Contribution To American Law And Politics, Gary L. Mcdowell

Jepson School of Leadership Studies articles, book chapters and other publications

When Raoul Berger turned ninety a little over a decade ago, he was presented with a book of letters from friends and admisrers. Those sending their good wishes were among America's most distinguished jurists, public officials and scholars, including Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, former Attorney General Edwin Meese III and Professor Philip B. Kurland. The collection was introduced by a letter from former President Ronald Reagan.

Euro-Med: European Ambitions In The Mediterranean, Sheila Carapico

Political Science Faculty Publications

The European Union is carving out a sphere of potentially vast influence in the Euro-Mediterranean basin, while also cultivating special relationship further south in the Arabian Peninsula. European ambitions do not directly challenge US security policy in the Middle East. Rather, they parallel US interests in the Caribbean Basin and Latin America: for a large regional free trade zone open to imports and foreign investment.

The Dialectics Of Fashion: Gender And Politics In Yemen, Sheila Carapico

Political Science Faculty Publications

The situation of Yemeni women is complicated and contradictory. On the one hand, compared with relatively fashionforward Mediterranean Arabs, or even their affluent sisters in the Gulf, Yemeni women appear to be especially oldfashioned. One rarely sees a Yemeni woman outdoors bareheaded, and in the capital, Sana'a, most women cover their faces in public. Yet outward appearances can be misleading. While it is tempting to assume that women "still" veil because "tradition" tells them to, it is simply wrong to conclude that "traditionally" all women were secluded in their homes, or that how they dress now tells us much about …

Property Rights And The Role Of The State: Evidence From The Horn Of Africa, Sandra F. Joireman

Political Science Faculty Publications

This study applies extant theories of property rights change to three land tenure systems in Imperial Ethiopia. Two of the areas underwent changes in property rights after experiencing changes in the value of land; one did not. A data set of litigation over land rights is used in conjunction with case studies to understand the mechanisms motivating or impeding property rights change. Amendments to the role of the state are suggested and two conclusions are reached: (1) that movement towards greater specificity of land rights did not always occur; and (2) the changes in property rights that occurred were imposed …

Inherited Legal Systems And Effective Rule Of Law: Africa And The Colonial Legacy, Sandra F. Joireman

Political Science Faculty Publications

The question of whether particular types of legal institutions influence the effectiveness of the rule of law has long been answered with conjecture. Common law lawyers and judges tend to believe that the common law system is superior. This opinion is based on the idea that the common law system inherited from the British is more able to protect the rights of the individual than civil law judicial systems. Quite the opposite point of view can be found in lawyers from civil law countries, who may view the common law system as capricious and disorganised. This paper compares the effectiveness …

Looking Under The Hood And Tinkering With Voter Cynicism: Ross Perot And “Perspective By Incongruity”, Mari Boor Tonn, Valerie A. Endress

Rhetoric and Communication Studies Faculty Publications

This essay examines Ross Perot’s 1992 presidential bid as a comic catalyst for a reinvigorated view of civic responsibility. Despite the Texas maverick’s political naiveté and penchant for miscalculation, his very presence in the campaign reanimated Americans’ conception of grassroots democracy. By examining important and previously unexplored distinctions between planned and unplanned incongruity, we probe the means by which Perot invited consideration of alternative political perspectives and offered an appealing glimpse into a dormant, more deeply held democratic ideal.

Ngos, Ingos, Go-Ngos And Do-Ngos: Making Sense Of Non-Governmental Organizations, Sheila Carapico

Political Science Faculty Publications

This issue of Middle East Report takes a critical look at "NGOs"--non-governmental organizations--in and beyond the Arab world. The topic is both trendy and controversial. Although they may see themselves as marginal actors, charities, advocacy groups and a range of other civic associations in the Middle East have also become agents of political, economic and social change, influencing the allocation of scarce resources in their own societies and the images national regimes project abroad. In recent years, NGOs have been depicted as saviors of failed economies in some circles while reviled as stooges of Western imperialism in others.

Good Fences Make Good Neighbors, Sandra F. Joireman

Political Science Faculty Publications

A ceasefire in the border war between Ethiopia and Eritrea is only the beginning of the process of conflict resolution that must occur for peace to take hold. The border war is the result of long standing distrust and animosity between these two countries. Therefore the possibility of the conflict erupting into violence again is high unless serious internal and international effort is put into the demarcation of the border and the acceptance of that demarcated border as fair.

The Ethiopian Prospective Case, Sandra F. Joireman, Thomas S, Szayna

Political Science Faculty Publications

This chapter applies the "process" model for anticipating the incidence of ethnic conflict to the potential case of the emergence of ethnically based violence in Ethiopia. Therefore, in contrast to the two case studies presented previously, this case entails the use of the model to consider prospectively the likelihood of an ethnic mobilization turning violent. The chapter examines the case of Ethiopia from the perspective of what an intelligence analyst might conclude were she to use the "process" model. In essence, we look at the potential ethnic mobilization of the Amhara against the Tigray-dominated Ethiopian state structures in an attempt …