Understanding the 2016 U.S. Election

Description

Theda Skocpol is the Victor S. Thomas Professor of Government and Sociology at Harvard University. At Harvard, she has served as Dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and as Director of the Center for American Political Studies. In 2002-03, she served as President of the American Political Science Association. She has been elected to membership in all three major U.S. interdisciplinary honor societies: the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Philosophical Society, and the National Academy of Sciences. Skocpol’s research focuses on health reform, social policy, and civic engagement amidst the shifting inequalities in American democracy. Current projects include tracking the implementation of health reform in the U.S. states; analyzing the dynamics of local Tea Party groups; and probing how the Democratic Party has handled – and mishandled – political battles over taxes and public revenues. Her most recent books are Health Care Reform and American Politics (2012, with Lawrence R. Jacobs), The Tea Party and the Remaking of Republican Conservatism (2012, with Vanessa Williamson), and Obama and America’s Political Future (2012). In addition to her teaching, research, and service in academia, Skocpol currently directs the Scholars Strategy Network, a national organization she co-founded in 2009 that encourages public engagement by university-based scholars. Skocpol speaks regularly to community groups and writes for blogs and public-interest magazines. She has met with groups of Congressional Democrats, and attended White House sessions that included the president during the Clinton years.