The results of our May 2017 survey (covering American political leaders from January-May 2017) indicate a great deal of pessimism about American democracy. In brief, we polled 68 democracy experts on threats to American democracy, the significance of recent events, and the likelihood of democratic breakdown in the U.S. … […] Read more »
Democratic Norms Are Under Attack, and Not Just by Trump
Shortly after last year’s election, Andrew Reynolds made a startling assertion. The University of North Carolina political scientist, who had helped devise a formula for measuring the vitality of democracies, wrote a newspaper column claiming his state’s restrictions on voting and its unwillingness to follow established rules “means our state […] Read more »
Americans Divided on Whether Recent Science Protests Will Benefit Scientists’ Causes
In the wake of last month’s marches for science and climate in Washington and around the country, Americans are divided in their support of the events’ goals and their sense of whether it will make a difference. In particular, a new Pew Research Center survey finds that most Democrats and […] Read more »
What can (or should) activists learn from the tea party?
The next four years are likely to see a lot of activism on both left and right. … We studied the tea party movement as it happened, documenting the movement at its grass roots, in the conservative media, and at the elite levels, and demonstrating how these forces combined to […] Read more »
How Marching for Science Risks Politicizing It
Before the recent March for Science, scholars and journalists debated the likely effect of the protest: Would it defend science against politicization or unnecessarily polarize the public on the value of the scientific enterprise? Some early evidence suggests the march may have widened the divide among liberals and conservatives in […] Read more »
How the Left Learned to Hate Like the Right
… One hundred days into his administration, President Trump has few legislative achievements to his name. But he has forced liberals to experience the near-apocalyptic revulsion that conservatives have often felt toward Democratic presidents. In doing so, he has unwittingly created a new movement in American politics, as Democrats channel […] Read more »