political science news stories on Newser

Obama's 'Scandal-Free' Streak Sets Record

Kevin Spak — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 08:43:05 CDT

Yesterday Barack Obama officially broke George W. Bush’s record for the longest scandal-free streak by a president in the post-Watergate era—at least by one political scientist’s criteria. Dartmouth professor Brendan Nyhan ran a study earlier this year on presidential scandals, which he defines as "widespread elite perception of wrongdoing....

At Lefty U., Plans for Right-Wing Chair

Kevin Spak — Tue, 13 May 2008 11:50:27 CDT

Here’s a recipe for controversy: Take one of the nation’s most liberal schools—the University of Colorado at Boulder—and make it the home of the nation’s first endowed chair for Conservative Thought and Policy. The school’s Republican chancellor tells the Wall Street Journal the campus needs “intellectual diversity” alongside...

Left Coast Democrats Lead in Nanny Laws

Sarah Seltzer — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 21:03:35 CST

Smoking, trans fat and auto emissions are only the beginning: A group of California legislators is agitating for measures regulating everything from having your pet neutered to changing your light bulbs. They're called "nanny laws," and poli-sci types say they're a product of prosperity. It's "post materialist," says Bruce Cain,...