American
Politics
Are
there really two Americas, one "red"
and one "blue"?
Why
do
our elected national officials seem so much more partisan
than
the people they represent? How much influence do voters
have
over a president as he decides whether or not to go to war?
How
did an Austrian bodybuilder come to be the governor of
our
most populous state? Why do campaigns run negative ads
even
though virtually all voters claim to despise them? How
accurate
is "The West Wing" anyway?
These
questions and many others are what motivate the
professors
and students in the American Politics field. The
answers
can be found by examining the governing institutions,
political
behavior, and political history of the United States.
On
the institutional side are courses on the U.S. Congress, the
American
Presidency, American foreign policy, and state and
local
government. In these classes, students learn, for example,
when
presidents are influenced by public opinion, or the
historical
factors that allowed a recall election in California.
Students
interested in political behavior may take courses on
campaigns
and elections, race and politics, and on the structure
and
behavior of political parties. Here they can learn about party
polarization
and the effectiveness of campaign advertisements.
This
field also offers courses on American political history and
culture,
in which students can learn how the Constitution has
survived
virtually unchanged since the 1780s, despite the massive
changes
our nation has endured over that time.
Courses
include:
The
American Presidency
U.S.
Congress
Political
Parties and Interest Groups
American
Foreign Policy
State
& Local Politics
Religion
and American Politics
American
Political Thought
Presidential
Primaries, Nominations and Elections
Congress
& the Presidency in the TV Age
Political
Participation & Representation
|
