The Unexpected Wall Street Meltdown Election
January 29th, 2009
James E. Campbell, Professor and Chair, University at Buffalo, SUNY
Some political analysts have interpreted the 2008 presidential election as an ordinary retrospective election. With a very unpopular Republican incumbent presiding over unpopular wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and a weak economy, 2008 appeared to be a Democratic year.
As the often insightful Larry Sabato put it in his recent essay, “any mainstream [...]
January 29th, 2009
Rhodes Cook, Senior Columnist
The 2008 election these days may seem long ago and far away. But it is worth remembering that while the Republicans had a bad time at the polls in November, they fared well in the array of contests that concluded the election cycle in December.
The GOP scored two House wins last month [...]
Questions and Answers About Obama's First Year
January 22nd, 2009
Larry J. Sabato, Director, U.Va. Center for Politics
Almost every American recognizes January 20, 2009 as a red-letter date in U.S. history. No one who witnessed the swearing-in of President Barack Obama will ever forget it, and rarely has so much emotion been wrapped up in an inauguration. The good feelings that have been generated cannot hurt at a time when the [...]
January 15th, 2009
Larry J. Sabato, Director, U.Va. Center for Politics
The following is an excerpt from the forthcoming book, The Year of Obama: How Barack Obama Won the White House. The book, which features several frequent Crystal Ball contributors as well as other journalists and scholars, will be published by Pearson Longman in March 2009.
–The Editors
Some readers will be very [...]
How Will Obama Measure Up?
January 8th, 2009
Larry J. Sabato, Director, U.Va. Center for Politics
Rituals matter in any society, but in a democracy they are especially significant. Most authoritarian regimes are stable for long periods of time; the barrel of a gun ensures it. Democratic societies can change rapidly with public opinion, and a new administration is frequently the polar opposite of its predecessor.
How best to [...]