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Author: stepht@duke.edu

When Democracy Declines: Panel Explores the Challenges to Sustaining Freedom

Mike Abramowitz, president of Freedom House, and Sanford School Dean Judith Kelley shared a timely message in a Feb. 25 panel discussion: Democracy is “not a one-way street,” and democratic nations can fall back into authoritarianism.

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U.S. Rep. Scott Peters on Whether the New Democratic Majority Can Unify the Country

Duke University boasts seven alums currently serving in the U.S. Congress. On February 18, Duke University welcomed its third of the 2018-2019 academic year: Scott Peters ’80, who spoke to Duke students at the Sanford School of Public Policy.

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Ex-Clinton Spokesman Issues Caution: “We As a People Don’t Like One Another”

Mo Elleithee, former spokesman for Hillary Clinton’s 2008 presidential campaign and later for the Democratic National Committee, has no interest in partisan politics. During a talk last week at Duke, Elleithee explained why.

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Different Perspectives, Similar Messages on Gun Violence and Regulation

After the 2018 mass shooting in his Pittsburgh neighborhood of Squirrel Hill at the Tree of Life synagogue, where his parents were married and his closest friends regularly attended services, junior David Frisch began planning a campus panel discussion on how to reduce gun violence.

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So You Want to Work on a Presidential Campaign. Here’s What It’s Like.

What is it like to work on a presidential campaign? About 40 Duke students gathered Jan. 17 to hear stories from the campaigning front lines from experienced students and staff.

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The Political Student Podcast—Episode 15: Olivia Simpson ’20

Duke University junior Olivia Falchi Simpson, a Sociology major, is a North Carolina native. She came to Duke as a public policy major, but says she’s “become more interested in quantifying stories and in learning how to translate people’s experiences into empathetic policy.”

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The Political Student Podcast—Episode 14: Yash Bajaj ’19

The Political Student is back for the spring semester, kicking off with an interview with Yash Bajaj ’19. Yash studies Public Policy and International Comparative Studies (Middle East focus) at Duke University and will receive his undergraduate degree in 2019.

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Rand Paul on How Libertarian Philosophy Can Connect Divided Partisans

What should we expect from Congress between January and the presidential election in 2020, now that Democrats have won back the House? Not much, according to one U.S. senator.

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The Political Student Podcast—Episode 5: Ryan Williams, ’21

Duke sophomore Ryan Williams shares his political origin story and how he engages politically. New episodes of The Political Student podcast release every Tuesday during the school year. Subscribe on iTunes.

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The Rise of Kathy Tran from Political Novice to Elected Official

Virginia Rep. Kathy Tran, T’00, has an extraordinary American story, one that has taken her from her arrival at age 2 with her family as refugees from Vietnam to being a rising star in Virginia politics. 

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Introducing The Political Student Podcast — Episode 1, Kristina Smith, Available Now

POLIS is excited to launch a new podcast this semester, featuring Duke students telling their own stories of political engagement.

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Duke Women Campaign Workshop on 11/10 — Sign Up Now!

On Saturday, November 10 from noon to 2:00pm in McClendon Tower (5th floor), Running Start instructor Krysta Nicole Jones — who led an introductory on-campus training in McClendon back in January — will lead a newly conceived workshop titled “Charting Your Course to Elected Office: Developing a Personalized Calendar for Your Future Run.”

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They Work Across the Political Spectrum, But These Activists Share the Same Passion

Three local activists from across the political spectrum described the joys and challenges of citizen activism at an April 17 panel in the Sanford School’s Rhodes Conference Room, sponsored by Duke’s Center for Political Leadership, Innovation, and Service (POLIS).

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The Price of Compromise: Two Congressmen Discuss Bipartisan Collaboration in Congress

In the contemporary political scene, there are few true bipartisans remaining. Two of them came to Duke April 4 to discuss the state of political compromise in a time of deep ideological divisions.

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Profiles in Political and Civic Engagement: Colin Duffy

Leading up to the election, Colin Duffy, at the time the president of Duke College Republicans (DCR) and a junior computer science and economics major, faced a difficult challenge: half of the club wanted to endorse the Republican nominee Donald Trump, while the other half wanted to avidly disavow him and endorse a third-party candidate.

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Voices from Egypt: Panel Takes a Crash Course on a Presidential Election

Nearly 40 students, faculty, and community members took a crash course on Egyptian politics on March 1 at the Sanford School of Public Policy, exploring Egypt’s complex history and how the growing power of the country’s president and his muzzling of civil society is affecting one of the most important countries in the Middle East.

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Congressman Seth Moulton Calls Students to Public Service

U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA) practices what he preaches. On Thursday, the U.S. Marine Corps veteran sat down with Duke POLIS Director Fritz Mayer and nearly 200 members of the Duke community to discuss topics ranging from bipartisanship to guns. Throughout the event, Moulton brought it back to having the courage to serve.

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Profiles in Political and Civic Engagement: Alec Lintz

Alec Lintz, a junior public policy student, grew up in a family in Ohio where commitment to the community and the public good was a shared, passionate value. Following in this family tradition, Lintz has continued this spirit of engagement during his time at Duke. 

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Pollster Neil Newhouse on the Data Underlying America’s Stark Political Divide

On January 30, Neil Newhouse, Republican pollster and Duke Alum (BA’74), spent half a day with Duke students to share perspectives on polling, contemporary politics, and Washington, DC careers. His visit was sponsored by POLIS: Duke’s Center for Political Leadership, Innovation, and Service.

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During a Day with Students, Journalist Michael Kruse Draws Connections Between Political Reporting and Citizenship

On January 29, Politico senior reporter Michael Kruse spent half a day on campus with Duke students to share insights on political reporting and our current state of politics. His visit was sponsored by POLIS: Duke’s Center for Political Leadership, Innovation, and Service and was cosponsored by the DeWitt Wallace Center for Media and Democracy.

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Leaders for Political Dialogue Tackles Polarization

A student-led initiative on college campuses  in North Carolina is tackling one of the most important issue of our time – political polarization. The project, called Leaders for Political Dialogue, convenes students from Duke, N.C. State, UNC and N.C. Central. Students spend a weekend learning how to communicate better with those whose political opinions may differ from their own. In this episode of the Policy 360 podcast, Kelly Brownell talks with the founder of the project, as well as three participants.

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Alumni Affairs, POLIS Bring Students Together with Women Activists to Discuss Politics & Civic Leadership

More than 80 members of the Duke students, alumni, faculty, and staff from across the ideological spectrum gathered Oct. 12 for an evening of advocacy… Continue Reading Alumni Affairs, POLIS Bring Students Together with Women Activists to Discuss Politics & Civic Leadership

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Devil’s Discourse Episode 2.1 — Immigration

[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/340144844″ params=”color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false” width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /] Our first podcast of season two concerns immigration, and features four Duke students affiliated with the Listen First… Continue Reading Devil’s Discourse Episode 2.1 — Immigration

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At POLIS Discussion, Bipartisanship Shows It Endures

Despite the divisive nature of our politics, bipartisanship is still alive and well, according to two U.S. senators who spoke at the Sanford School of Public Policy’s annual “Sanford on the Hill” event at the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center on July 17.

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Bipartisan climate caucus a step toward restoring civility in politics

The Climate Solutions Caucus was started by Republican Carlos Curbelo and Democrat Ted Deutch, both of whom represent coastal Florida districts that have become ground zero — literally — for rising sea levels. It’s predicated on a simple idea: We know our nation is facing big problems with climate change, so let’s have members of Congress from both sides of the aisle come together, listen to one another, and find the common ground to introduce and enact effective solutions.

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Amid budget gridlock, bipartisan work hailed for Louisiana criminal justice reform

Celebrating one of the few major achievements of the 2017 regular legislative session, Gov. John Bel Edwards on Thursday (June 15) signed bills making up what has been called a historic reform of Louisiana’s criminal justice laws. The 10 bills collectively are supposed to reduce the prison population by 10 percent in the state with the world’s highest incarceration rate, and save the public $78 million over the next 10 years.

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With broad support, Maine Senate passes bill to boost public health nurses

The Maine Senate voted 30-5 Wednesday in favor of a bill that could force the administration of Gov. Paul LePage to fully staff the state’s public health nursing program.

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A Tale of Bipartisan Rape Kit Legislation Has Restored Samantha Bee’s Faith in Government (at Least a Little Bit)

It’s not often that a story about government has a happy ending these days, but this one does.

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Bipartisan duo in Kansas House committee push for increased funding for senior services, mental health

Two lawmakers across party lines spearheaded a passionate push for mental health and senior services Monday, urging their colleagues to help vulnerable Kansans.

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Oklahoma ScissorTales: A welcome sign of bipartisanship

An amendment that would embed the rights of crime victims in the Oklahoma Constitution has easily cleared its first legislative hurdles. Senate Joint Resolution 46, which creates Marsy’s Law for Oklahoma, passed on a 43-2 vote.

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Bipartisan Legislation To Address Opioid Epidemic, Substance Abuse Treatment

Delawareans denied treatment for substance abuse and families of Delawareans who have died from drug overdoses joined with legislators and elected and appointed officials to unveil a number of steps in the fight against the state’s substance abuse crisis.

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Blue, red, urban, rural — Pennsylvania voters back help for ex-offenders

Pennsylvanians — Republicans, Democrats, Philadelphians, suburbanites, people from upstate and mid-state Pennsylvania — overwhelmingly believe that the state’s legislature and criminal justice system need to do more to help ex-offenders keep from committing another crime, according to a poll released Wednesday.

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Bipartisan civil asset forfeiture bill wins unanimous Senate support

The Idaho Senate has voted unanimously – 35-0 – in favor of bipartisan legislation reforming Idaho’s civil forfeiture laws. HB 202 earlier passed the House on a 58-10 vote, but was amended in the Senate, so it still needs to go back to the House for concurrence in the amendments.

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