Maxwell School News and Commentary

There is a "mismatch between policies about abortion and attitudes about abortion at the state level," Shana Gadarian, professor of political science, tells Axios.  While opinions around abortion are "relatively nuanced," even "Republican voters tend to be more pro-choice than the policies that we're seeing in Republican states," Gadarian adds.

“That seems to be what the outcome was—it was a non-outcome outcome. Maybe that’s not the worst thing in the world because I think we do need a presidential election year in which to try to establish some kind of direction on this,” Grant Reeher, professor of political science, tells CNN.

“I don’t think they’ve proven to be effective in actually coming up with a kind of international agreement with binding limits on countries that would penalize them if they were not to abide by the pledges,” Matt Huber, professor of geography and the environment, tells the Toronto Star.

America's first third party, the Anti-Masonic Party, was founded on the conspiracy theory that an elite group of Freemasons were secretly controlling the U.S. government. Freemasonry continued to grow in the United States during the first two decades of the 19th century, in part because it was a good way for people who wanted to enter politics to network, says Mark Schmeller, associate professor of history.

“This is not the kind of thing that is done unilaterally by people in counties,” Ryan Griffiths, associate professor of political science, tells the New York Post. “They have to get the state of Oregon on board and the state of Idaho, and that’s a very high bar.”

“With new lines being drawn, it injects a lot of uncertainty into the race,” Chris Faricy, associate professor of political science, tells WAER. “With Katko not being on the ballot, we have two new candidates who have to introduce themselves to the voters of Central New York.”

If Republicans gain control of the House, the committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol—which recently issued a legal summons ordering Trump to testify—could be dismantled. "He'll claim that vindicates him," Grant Reeher, professor of political science, tells the BBC.

"This is business as usual," Sean McFate, adjunct professor in the Maxwell-in-Washington program, tells Federal Times. "It’s a form of corruption, essentially. It’s a well-known problem without a solution."

Asked about the White House’s assertion that “President Biden’s leadership” is responsible for the increase, Gary Engelhardt, professor of economics, tells CNN: “This assertion is incorrect.”

"If Lee Zeldin were to beat Kathy Hochul, that would be basically a political earthquake in the state of New York," Grant Reeher, professor of political science, tells WRVO. "That would change the whole complexion of how the state's politics are going to go in the next four years."