The Citizen Conversation with … Peter Bergen
by Ben Branham, News Editor on April 30, 2008 in Citizen Conversation with...
Peter Bergen, a visiting adjunct lecturer who this spring taught a new course on “Al Qaeda and the Rise of International Terrorism” (ISP-425), is widely viewed as a pre-eminent terrorism expert. As the first journalist to conduct a televised interview with Osama bin Laden in 1997, Bergen has authored two books, Holy War, Inc. (Free Press, 2001) and The Osama bin Laden I Know (Free Press, 2006). Prior to HKS, he taught at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). The Citizen caught up with him before the last week of classes. (PHOTO: Peter Bergen at the Afghan-Pakistan border in 2003; CREDIT: Scott Wallace)
“We Should Not Matter”
by Ben Branham, News Editor on April 20, 2008 in Citizen Conversation with...
The Citizen Conversation with … Elizabeth Edwards
Elizabeth Edwards, the wife of two-time Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards and, like her husband, a former attorney, served as a Visiting Fellow at Harvard’s Institute of Politics the week of April 7. During her stay, she talked to the Citizen about why spouses should not matter in presidential election, why she’s stopped watching network news, and what it’s like to bring your children on the campaign trail.
The Citizen Conversation with … Elaine Kamarck
by Clare O'Neil on March 18, 2008 in Citizen Conversation with..., HKS News
Months ago, few but the most hardened of political operatives had ever heard of superdelegates. Today, all but the most ignorant of observers has an opinion on the merits of this peculiar, powerful breed of Democratic Party insiders.
It comes as no surprise that HKS has its very own superdelegate, who - when she’s not moving and shaking on the Democratic National Committee - researches innovation in contemporary government from her office in Littauer.
Prof. Elaine Kamarck came to HKS in 1997 following an accomplished career in politics. She served in the Clinton White House from 1993 to 1997 and received her Ph.D in political science from the University of California, Berkeley.
Clare O’Neil (MPP2) recently caught up with Prof. Kamarck to discuss her role as superdelegate, the classic debate between delegates and representatives, and the tough decisions ahead.
(For an explanation of superdelegates, please click here)
Superdelegates Explained
by Clare O'Neil on March 17, 2008 in Citizen Conversation with...
The 796 superdelegates include elected representatives, past U.S. presidents, former national committee heads and Democratic National Committee members, among others. Each is awarded one vote, which they cast at the Democratic convention.
The Citizen Conversation with … Sergio Bendixen
by Phillip Martin on February 26, 2008 in Citizen Conversation with...
With Senator Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign staking the survival of her candidacy on winning the Ohio and Texas primaries on March 4, her success, particularly in Texas, rests largely on her ability to turn out Hispanic Democrats - a demographic that helped deliver the state of California for her on Super Tuesday.
On February 20, one of the Clinton campaign’s chief pollsters, Sergio Bendixen, visited campus for a Shorenstein Center brownbag lunch to discuss polling and the Hispanic vote. Bendixen has been a leading expert in the field of Hispanic polling for more than 20 years, having served as the chief pollster for each of the four major Spanish-language television stations, including Univision and Telemundo. Though Bendixen wasn’t able to share any secrets about internal poll numbers or strategy, he took a few minutes to talk to the Citizen and shed some light on the voting patterns and behaviors of Hispanic voters in Texas and across the country.
The Citizen Conversation with … Sareena Dalla
by Ben Branham, News Editor on February 11, 2008 in Citizen Conversation with..., News
Sareena Dalla (MPP2) just returned to HKS after taking the fall semester off to serve as CNN’s 2008 New Hampshire Campaign Producer leading up to the state’s January 8 primary. Having witnessed the drama of this year’s unprecedented presidential campaign from a unique vantage point—heading up CNN’s NH mini-bureau—she took a few minutes last week to share her experience with the Citizen.
The Citizen Conversation with … Andy Card
by Ben Branham, News Editor on November 12, 2007 in Citizen Conversation with...
Andrew Card, a native of Massachusetts, served as Chief of Staff to President George W. Bush from 2001 until his resignation in April 2006-making him the second-longest serving Chief of Staff in U.S. history. On October 30, he visited the Institute of Politics for a study group and dinner in his honor. He also made time for an exclusive interview with the Citizen.
The Citizen Conversation with … Linda Bilmes
by Ben Branham, News Editor on October 21, 2007 in Citizen Conversation with...
On October 24, Prof. Linda Bilmes was one of three witnesses called before the U.S. House Committee on the Budget for its first-ever hearing on the growing costs of the Iraq War. Bilmes, who teaches several budgeting courses, has become an oft-cited and respected expert since first writing about the issue in 2005.
The Citizen conversation with … Paul Farmer
by Tony Saudek on October 17, 2007 in Citizen Conversation with...
Paul Farmer’s work fighting infectious diseases in the developing world has earned him international renown, not to mention a MacArthur “genius” grant. Today, he splits his time between teaching medical anthropology at Harvard, monitoring new public health projects in Rwanda and Lesotho and advising global power-players like the Clinton Foundation. Tony Saudek, MPP2, caught up with him after a recent appearance at the KSG Forum.
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The Citizen conversation with … Stephen Walt
by Ben Branham, News Editor on September 19, 2007 in Citizen Conversation with...
On August 27, Prof. Stephen Walt published The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy (Farrar, Straus and Giroux), which he co-authored with John Mearsheimer and that expands upon a 2006 article they wrote for the London Review of Books. The book’s premise that the pro-Israeli lobby exerts a negative and damaging influence on U.S. policy has generated a controversial debate that has seen Walt accused of anti-Semitism and vigorously attacked by his opponents. He recently sat down with the Citizen to talk about the experience:
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