American Politics Commons^™

Breaking News: A Woman Is Running, Bridget F. Cummings

Honors Theses, 1963-2015

As women are still underrepresented in legislative offices, it is important to examine the road it takes for them to get there. Many scholars have explored gender bias in the media when covering female candidates for elected office. Fowler and Lawless (2009) uncover bias in media coverage of candidates between 1990 and 1997 in Looking for Sex in All the Wrong Places: Press Coverage and the Electoral Fortunes of Gubernatorial Candidates. This paper replicates the method used by Fowler and Lawless (2009) to examine gubernatorial candidates between 2008 and 2014. The independent variable in my research is the gender bias …

American Conservatism: The Evolving Role Of Social Issues In American Politics, Justin Rostad

Political Science Theses and Capstones

In American society there are certain controversial issues that have been debated for the better part of the past century. Same-sex marriage, abortion, gun ownership laws, divorce laws, and the legalization of marijuana have all come under fire on the political stage. Yet the role of these issues in recent elections is far different than just a few election cycles ago. I analyze the role of social issues among different groups of conservatives to assess the continuing impact of them on their political behavior. To do so I have analyzed the GSS 2012 from the University of Chicago. I have …

The Effect Of Women In Government On Government Effectiveness, Abigail L. Tootell

Student Publications

A critical factor of gender and development is the political empowerment of women. Beyond this equality, however, what are the effects of women in government? This paper investigates these effects by examining the relationship between the percentage of women in parliament and overall government effectiveness. The research strongly supports the theory that women are more effective political leaders than their male counterparts.

Strengthening Democracy By Increasing Youth Political Knowledge And Engagement, Laura Langer

Political Science Theses and Capstones

Even though the United States had historically high voter turnout in 2008 and 2012, there remains troubling patterns pertaining to political engagement and knowledge among its least educated youth. The literature and theory suggests that if the United States educational systems increase the amount of civic education courses, extracurricular activity, and youth volunteering opportunities in high schools, especially among the most disadvantaged youth, it will lead to an increase in political knowledge and engagement. I test this idea with data from the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE) post-2012 election youth survey. The CIRCLE data …

Eleanor Roosevelt: A Voice For The Oppressed, Molly E. Craig

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Projects

In this thesis, I discuss Eleanor Roosevelt as a political and social activist through the media. ER was the first First Lady to advocate for her own social and political agenda and a way in which she accomplished this was with her extensive relationship with the media. In my thesis, I first give a brief history of other sources regarding aspects of Eleanor Roosevelt’s life that touch my own project. Then, I examine the reasons Eleanor Roosevelt felt compelled toward activism. In the next section I analyze several different media outlets, beginning with her book It’s Up to the Women …

Denhardt, Henry Herman, 1876-1937 (Mss 533), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Collection 533. Correspondence, military orders, and instructional materials relating to Henry Herman Denhardt’s World War I service as a field artillery officer and postwar training as an officer in the Kentucky National Guard. Includes a few personal and political items relating to Denhardt’s campaign for Governor of Kentucky.

As God Gives Me To See The Right: Gerald Ford, Religion, And Healing After Vietnam And Watergate, David Veenstra

Pro Rege

No abstract provided.

Brite, Henry Dearing, 1906-1976 (Mss 532), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding Aid only for Manuscripts Collections 532. Letters, programs, invitations, photographs and other political and social mementoes of Elizabeth Brite and her husband Henry, collected primarily during their years in Washington, D.C. when Elizabeth was secretary to Franklin D. Roosevelt’s press secretary, Jonathan W. Daniels.

People Of Faith And Prophetic Voices: The Role Of Faith Voters And Activists In Recent Minnesota Political History, Eric S. Fought

Forum Lectures

In November of 2012, political scientists, other experts familiar with Minnesota politics and the general public were stunned by the comfortable defeat of two constitutional amendments by voters. Amendment one, also known as the marriage amendment, would have changed the state's constitution to ban same-sex marriage in Minnesota. Amendment two, known as the voter ID or voter restriction amendment, would have required voters to show a photo ID in order to cast a vote in Minnesota elections. The Voter ID question enjoyed 80% favorability just a year before the election.

In both of the campaigns against these ballot measures, highly …

¿Más Español Por Más Votos? Assessing The Impact Of Spanish Language Electoral Advertisements On Latino Voter Turnout, Alexander C. Ervin

International ResearchScape Journal

After Latino-Americans demonstrated their power in the 2012 presidential election, securing increased minority support at the polls has become a major goal for both main U.S. political parties. A reliable bloc of Latino voters on one’s side could mean more wins, but Latinos have a low voter turnout rate. This paper explores how to increase Latino turnout and argues that the use of the Spanish language in electoral advertising will have a positive effect. By comparing statewide Latino turnout data during the 2002 midterm elections, I find states with a sizable amount of Spanish-language get-out-the-vote messages do see slightly increased …

Resistance To Unjust Immigration Restrictions, Javier S. Hidalgo

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

State employees use force or the threat of force to restrict immigration.Border guards forcibly detain and incarcerate foreigners who immigrate without state approval. When migrants evade or resist immigration restrictions, border agents sometimes deploy tasers to incapacitate migrants, pepper spray them, shoot them with rubber bullets, and, less frequently, beat migrants with batons, and even fire live ammunition at them. Thousands of migrants perish annually in attempts to evade border agents. 2 State officials also capture and deport migrants who reside in their borders without official authorization. Affluent states have deported millions of unauthorized migrants in recent decades.

Living Proof: Autobiographical Political Argument In We Are The 99 Percent And We Are The 53 Percent, Doron Taussig

Media and Communication Studies Faculty Publications

People often cite life experiences as evidence in political arguments, though personal experience is far from generalizable. How do these arguments work? In this paper, I consider the rhetorical dynamics of “autobiographical political argument” by examining We are the 99 Percent and We are the 53 Percent, two blogs that use autobiographical stories to make discursive points. I argue that these autobiographical appeals efficiently use all three of Aristotle’s persuasive “proofs”—logos (logic), ethos (credibility), and pathos (emotion). Then I show that many of the blogs’ stories focus on “redemption,” a theme personality psychologists have found emphasized in the narrative …

Religious Accommodations And The Common Good, Mark David Hall

Faculty Publications - Department of History and Politics

"Citizens, civic leaders, and jurists interested in good public policy should look to history as a guide to the impact of laws and constitutional provisions aimed at protecting religious actors. American civic leaders and jurists, at both the national and state levels, have long created significant protections for religious Americans who object to neutral, generally applicable laws. At their best, Americans have agreed that government should not force individuals to violate their sincerely held religious convictions unless it has compelling reasons for doing so. Moreover, the nation and the states have still been able to achieve important policy objectives in …

‘Please Be A Lady… You Are Not Going To Be Heard’: The Debate Over The Ratification Of The Convention On The Elimination Of All Forms Of Discrimination Against Women, Kasie Durkit

International ResearchScape Journal

Why did the United States fail to ratify the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women? This overarching question forms the basis of this paper and will be answered using an array of primary and secondary sources. This paper gleans most of its evidence from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Hearings of 1994 and 2002, letters from both President Jimmy Carter and former Secretary of State Colin Powell, Congressional Research Service reports on CEDAW from 2013 and 2007, several Senators’ statements in the Congressional Record, Congressional testimony, and the text of the CEDAW treaty. This …

Ua3/2/1 President's Office-Garrett Correspondence/Subject File, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

General correspondence and subject files regarding Western Kentucky University.

Women And Violence In The Age Of Migration, Lilia D. Monzó, Peter Mclaren

Education Faculty Articles and Research

"Women from across Latin America are migrating north at great peril to their lives – their intended destination is, as expected, the US – that giant powerhouse that in spite of its well documented historical and continued imperialist violence and exploitation against Latin America is still able to create the ideological haze that encourages hope for that illusive “American dream.” Pushed to the brink of desperation resulting from unimaginable poverty, privation, and fear, these women muster the courage that only women of color know that they have (it is imbued in their flesh and in their hearts as a result …

Ayn Rand’S Rejection Of Environmentalism: Toward Challenging Right-Wing Inaction On Environmental Issues In The United States, Taylor M. Bailey

Undergraduate Distinction Papers

Environmental protection has become a volatile political issue in the United States, especially within the past decade. This toxicity must be remedied to facilitate substantive reform. Anti-environmentalism on the part of the American Right can be partially traced back to the writings of the conservative philosopher Ayn Rand. In this paper, I aim to show that Rand fundamentally misunderstood the mainstream environmental movement in the U.S., and similarly her environmental philosophy, as well as her answers to solving environmental damages, are inadequate in providing answers to collective environmental problems (i.e. climate change). I argue that even in a framework as …

A Digital Dud? New Media, Participation, And Voting In The 2004 And 2008 United States Presidential Elections, Jeremy D. Hickman

Theses and Dissertations--Sociology

This dissertation analyzes the linkages between new media and the possible emergence of the youngest members of the voting population (the “digital native” generation, who have grown up concurrently with the rise of the internet as a means of communication). The main question is whether this digital native generation will have more civic and political participation due to their use of online news sources and social media communication on news media websites and elsewhere on the internet. Regression analyses are used to explain civic and political participation, using American National Election Studies (ANES) from the 2004 and 2008 presidential elections. …

The World According To Frank Underwood: Politics And Power In "House Of Cards", Lindsey E. Davidson

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis, argues that House of Cards portrays an embellished reality of our government through a Machiavellian lens, particularly looking at the politics of scandal through the 25^th Amendment and impeachment, as well as the role of political spouses. It also address the underlying question of appointing someone as controversial as Frank Underwood to the vice presidential position knowing his manipulative nature, and will analyze his schemes from a realistic perspective.

The Effects Of Forestry Regulations On Rural Communities And The Urban-Rural Divide In Oregon, Jennifer Sitton

CMC Senior Theses

This senior thesis is a study of federal forestry policy in Oregon and its effects on rural communities and the urban-rural division in the state. Looking specifically at the “Timber Wars” of the early 1990s, it delves deeper into the controversy over the protection of the northern spotted owl, the Northwest Forest Plan, and President Clinton’s efforts to solve the conflict between grassroots environmental activists and those with a vested interest in the timber industry. It also analyzes the federal timber payment system created by Congress to solve the problems for rural communities caused by forestry regulations. Lastly, it looks …

Bloggers And Their Impact On Contemporary Social Movements: A Phenomenological Examination Of The Role Of Blogs And Their Creators In The Lgbt Social Movements In Modern United States, Bobby K. Huen

Department of Conflict Resolution Studies Theses and Dissertations

The Internet is a ubiquitous feature in everyday life, but its application to social movements has yet to be completely understood. This phenomenological study examines the lived experiences of bloggers who focused on the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) movement in the United States to understand the impact bloggers and their work as online activists have on existing LGBT social movement organization and operation. Data collection is gathered from semi-structured and open-ended interviews with four social movement bloggers using web-conference software over the course of three months. The results of this study indicated that internet has empowered individual activists, …

“El No Murio, El Se Multiplico!” Hugo Chávez : The Leadership And The Legacy On Race, Cynthia Ann Mckinney

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

“Chávez, Chávez, Chávez: Chávez no murio, se multiplico!” was the chant outside the National Assembly building after several days of mourning the death of the first President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. This study investigates the leadership of Hugo Chávez and his legacy on race as seen through the eyes and experiences of selected interviewees and his legacy on race. The interviewees were selected based on familiarity with the person and policies of the leadership of Hugo Chávez and his legacy on race. Unfortunately, not much has been written about this aspect of Hugo Chávez despite the myriad attempts …

Sebastian, Benjamin, 1741-1832 (Mss 523), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Manuscripts Collection 523. Letters and papers of Benjamin Sebastian, associate justice of the Kentucky Court of Appeals, relating to his involvement in the Spanish Conspiracy and his response to a congressional investigation of his conduct that led to his resignation from the Court.

Grey, Benjamin Edwards, 1809-1875 (Sc 2875), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

Finding aid and full text of letter (click on "Additional File" below) for Manuscripts Small Collection 2875. Letter, 24 May 1853, of Benjamin Edwards Grey, Henderson, Kentucky, to Hardinsburg, Kentucky lawyer J. B. Bruner. Seeking reelection to Congress, Grey complains of lack of support from his own Whig Party and promises to help reconcile breaches among its members. He encloses a broadside advertising a Democratic Party meeting in Henderson County on 28 May as evidence of its organization and aim to carry the election.

Why Vote?, Jeff Taylor

Faculty Work Comprehensive List

"Does politics have anything to do with faith? Why should a Christian vote? How voting put in the proper perspective, and done with good intent, can be a God-glorifying, community-serving activity."

Posting about voting from In All Things - an online hub committed to the claim that the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ has implications for the entire world.

http://inallthings.org/why-vote/

Horse Cave, Kentucky - City Minutes (Mss 22 Box 1 Folder 11), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Manuscript Collection Finding Aids

The minutes of the Caverna (later Horse Cave), Kentucky Board of Trustees from 1871 to 1892. Full text of the minutes, in 50-page increments, can be seen by clicking on "Additional Files" below. The community was known as Horse Cave, but changed its name to Caverna in 1869 and later changed its name back to Horse Cave in 1880. Stray material was scanned where it was found in the minute book; blank pages were not scanned. A short index was typescripted from the original minute book and is also included as an "Additional File." This minute book is part of …

"If You Can Hold On...": Counter-Apocalyptic Play In Richard Kelly’S Southland Tales, Marcus O'Donnell

Journal of Religion & Film

Richard Kelly’s Southland Tales (2006) presents a dystopic, post-apocalyptic, near-future through an aesthetic, which fuses contemporary postmodern screens with the phantasmagorical of traditional apocalyptic visions. This article argues that Southland Tales is an example of what feminist theologian Catherine Keller calls the “counter-apocalyptic” (Keller 1996:19-20). Through strategies of ironic parody Kelly both describes and questions the apocalyptic and its easy polarities. In situating the film as counter-apocalyptic the paper argues that the film both resists the apocalyptic impulse however it is also located within it. In this sense it produces a unique take on the genre of the post-apocalyptic film …

How Secular Should Democracy Be? A Cross-Disciplinary Study Of Catholicism And Islam In Promoting Public Reason, David Ingram, David Ingram

Philosophy: Faculty Publications and Other Works

I argue that the same factors (strategic and principled) that motivated Catholicism to champion liberal democracy are the same that motivate 21^st Century Islam to do the same. I defend this claim by linking political liberalism to democratic secularism. Distinguishing institutional, political, and epistemic dimensions of democratic secularism, I show that moderate forms of political and epistemic secularism are most conducive to fostering the kind of public reasoning essential to democratic legitimacy. This demonstration draws upon the ambivalent impact of Indonesia’s Islamic parties in advancing universal social justice aims as against more sectarian policies.

Spartans In Vietnam: Michigan State University's Experience In South Vietnam, Jake T. Alster

Grand Valley Journal of History

In this article, the relations between various colleges (with special attention to Michigan State University) and the United States Government are explored in relation to America’s effort in nation building in South Vietnam in the late 1950s. During America’s efforts in Vietnam more reliance was put upon collegiate institutions to help negotiate foreign policy. One of the major issues regarding South Vietnam was technical assistance, and how we should implement assistance into the third world. Michigan State University, under the presidency of John Hannah, became the most important university in the technical assistance program. John Ernst argues that this was …

Distributed Media In The Age Of Eisenhower: Political Buttons, Rachel C. Loughran

Student Publications

This paper describes the purpose and effectiveness of distributed campaign materials in the context of President Dwight D Eisenhower's 1952 and 1956 elections. It analyzes campaign buttons and political cartoons distributed by the Eisenhower administration to determine how they furthered the image Eisenhower wished to convey during his campaigns. This image is presented by applying certain aesthetic qualities to the campaign materials.