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Seth Warner is a junior at Vassar College studying Political Science and Religion. Seth has worked on several political campaigns in volunteer and management positions. For nearly two years Seth...
Where do young people come down on questions of faith, values, and public life? How do they relate their values to public policy issues including education, economic inequality, and the environment? These questions, critically important for the 2012 election, are at the center of a campus conversation being organized by the Berkley Center and Georgetown University. This blog features an ongoing conversation about these issues between students selected as Millennial Values Fellows through a national competition. You can read and comment on their blogs here.
To learn more about the project, visit the Campus Conversation on Values page.
OTHER POSTS
Millennials on Social Media and Politics
November 15, 2012
Millennials on Social Issues and Diversity
November 12, 2012
Hira Baig (Rice) on Why the Presidential Election Matters to Millennials
November 7, 2012
Millennials on Religion and Interfaith Work
November 7, 2012
Ryan Price (Drake) on E Pluribus Duo
November 6, 2012
Mohammad Usman (DePauw) on Unpredictable Millennials
November 5, 2012
Millennials on Affirmative Action Policy
November 3, 2012
Seth Warner (Vassar) on What Happens as the "God Gap" Widens
November 2, 2012
Josina De Raadt (Dordt) on How Social Media Is Like Wii Bowling
October 31, 2012
Zachary Yentzer (Arizona State) on the Next Greatest Generation
October 29, 2012
Brice Ezell (George Fox) on Post-Racial America? Race, Millennials, and the 2012 Election
October 25, 2012
Tyler Bishop (Vanderbilt) on a Future of Hashtags #whatitmeansforus
October 23, 2012
Brice Ezell (George Fox) on How the People Can Heal a “Divided,” Partisan Nation
October 4, 2012
Hira Baig (Rice) on Religion and American Democracy
October 4, 2012
Tyler Bishop (Vanderbilt) on How It’s All About Relatability: Voter Turnout
October 3, 2012
Josina De Raadt (Dordt) on Mistaking Politics for a Hollywood Blockbuster
October 2, 2012
Mohammad Usman (DePauw) on the Internet Solution
October 1, 2012
>> more
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Symposium on Religion & Democracy in the Foreign Policy of the Obama Administration
November 2, 2009
November 2, 2009
PUBLICATIONS (57)
Report of the Georgetown Symposium on Religion, Democracy and the Foreign Policy of the Obama Administration
June 7, 2010
June 7, 2010
Report of the Georgetown Symposium on Religious Freedom and National Security Policy
October 28, 2010
October 28, 2010
INTERVIEWS (74)
A Discussion with Amina Rasul-Bernardo, Lead Convenor, Philippine Council for Islam and Democracy
July 8, 2010
July 8, 2010
LETTERS (59)
POSTS (10)
RELATED RESOURCES ON DEMOCRACY
Seth Warner (Vassar) on Darkness Before Dawn: Does Hope Lie Beyond Citizens United?
September 26, 2012
Once it begins in full, the Citizens United era will no doubt amass a heap of dead political careers. Multi-millionaires will fund Super PACs to defeat liberal candidates whose roots lie in the working class. Such politicians will mainly be Democratic, of course, and many rely on suburban, white-collar voters who are sympathetic to the GOP’s anti-tax platform.
Yet in a strange way, Citizens United may be a hidden blessing. The Supreme Court’s decision might never be overturned, but perhaps it can be overcome.
Beyond the obvious ideological bias of Citizens United victims, another pattern will emerge. The effectiveness of an attack hinges on two things: the assailant’s skill, of course, and also the target’s vulnerability. Members of Congress with mediocre services or “flexible” opinions are finished in the face of Super PAC attacks. Those with deep commitments and convictions, however, may stand firm.
Here lies hope for progressive politicians, who now must either evolve or die. No matter how many ads are run against a candidate, nothing will sway the vote of those the candidate has spoken to and truly connected with. Sincerity is the new slick.
Ironically, elections are decided by the 10-15% of voters who know the least about public policy. Studies consistently show that independent voters possess less civic knowledge than do partisans. As a result, swing voters do not necessarily vote “on the issues,” as schoolteachers taught us to do. They vote on trust, and frankly, they may be onto something.
Six weeks before the 2002 election, Minnesota senator Paul Wellstone was losing his reelection race by one point in the polls. Four weeks later, he voted against the popular Iraqi Freedom resolution. Few Minnesotans agreed with him. His numbers shot up by six percent.
By sticking to his principles in the midst of a political death match, Wellstone solidified their trust in him as a public servant. Had he not died in a plane crash five days later, he likely would have won.
Progressives can successfully follow in Wellstone’s footsteps, and in so doing, they can restore our trust and hope in democracy. Because no Super PAC can fragment the relationship an earnest, committed public servant holds with their constituents. As progressives begin to adopt the new role of service in politics—and as they start to win with it—candidates of all persuasions will have no choice but to follow suit.
Beyond the obvious ideological bias of Citizens United victims, another pattern will emerge. The effectiveness of an attack hinges on two things: the assailant’s skill, of course, and also the target’s vulnerability. Members of Congress with mediocre services or “flexible” opinions are finished in the face of Super PAC attacks. Those with deep commitments and convictions, however, may stand firm.
Here lies hope for progressive politicians, who now must either evolve or die. No matter how many ads are run against a candidate, nothing will sway the vote of those the candidate has spoken to and truly connected with. Sincerity is the new slick.
Ironically, elections are decided by the 10-15% of voters who know the least about public policy. Studies consistently show that independent voters possess less civic knowledge than do partisans. As a result, swing voters do not necessarily vote “on the issues,” as schoolteachers taught us to do. They vote on trust, and frankly, they may be onto something.
Six weeks before the 2002 election, Minnesota senator Paul Wellstone was losing his reelection race by one point in the polls. Four weeks later, he voted against the popular Iraqi Freedom resolution. Few Minnesotans agreed with him. His numbers shot up by six percent.
By sticking to his principles in the midst of a political death match, Wellstone solidified their trust in him as a public servant. Had he not died in a plane crash five days later, he likely would have won.
Progressives can successfully follow in Wellstone’s footsteps, and in so doing, they can restore our trust and hope in democracy. Because no Super PAC can fragment the relationship an earnest, committed public servant holds with their constituents. As progressives begin to adopt the new role of service in politics—and as they start to win with it—candidates of all persuasions will have no choice but to follow suit.