America in Comparative Perspective

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chad Vickery ◽  
Heather Szilagyi
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
House Of Representatives ◽  
The United States ◽  
International Standards ◽  
Voter Registration ◽  
Electoral Process ◽  
Developing Democracies ◽  
Administrative Framework ◽  
The Will

Chapter 10 highlights a confluence of factors in the United States that produce a high percentage of wasted votes and a system of governance that largely fails to reflect the will of the majority of voters, widely considered a cornerstone of democracy. This study judges the fundamental integrity of key elements of the electoral process in the United States by applying the same standards used to evaluate developing democracies around the world. Several acute challenges to the U.S. electoral process are identified: boundary delimitation for the House of Representatives, the role of the Electoral College in presidential contests, processes of voter registration, and the decentralized administrative framework. The chapter concludes that despite obvious vulnerabilities, the United States is resistant to acknowledging these problems, to reform its electoral process in line with international standards, or to learn from the comparative experience of other countries that have strengthened their elections over time.

scholarly journals John Caldwell Calhoun and his political role in United States of America (1782-1850).

2018 ◽  
Vol 217 (1) ◽  
pp. 119-134
Author(s):  
Haydar Shaker Khames ( Ph.D)
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
South Carolina ◽  
House Of Representatives ◽  
United States Of America ◽  
Foreign Minister ◽  
Vice President ◽  
The United States ◽  
Legislative Council ◽  
Political Role

      This research deals with the political role of one of the pioneers of American policy in the nineteenth century,  John Caldwell Calhoun, and his ideas and philosophy in addressing the central issues in the domestic and foreign policy of the United States of America by virtue of the important sites that filled namely: Member of the Legislative Council of the State of South Carolina between 1807-1811 , a member of the House of Representatives between 1811-1817, Secretary of the Treasury between 1817 - 1825, Vice President between 1825-1832, a member of the Senate between 1833-1850, Foreign Minister between 1844-1845.

scholarly journals The role of obesity in exceptionally slow US mortality improvement

2018 ◽  
Vol 115 (5) ◽  
pp. 957-961 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuel H. Preston ◽  
Yana C. Vierboom ◽  
Andrew Stokes
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Confidence Interval ◽  
Cox Model ◽  
The United States ◽  
International Standards ◽  
Social Security Administration ◽  
Mortality Trends ◽  
Cox Models ◽  
Mortality Improvement

Recent studies have described a reduction in the rate of improvement in American mortality. The pace of improvement is also slow by international standards. This paper attempts to identify the extent to which rising body mass index (BMI) is responsible for reductions in the rate of mortality improvement in the United States. The data for this study were obtained from subsequent cohorts of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III, 1988–1994; NHANES continuous, 1999–2010) and from the NHANES linked mortality files, which include follow-up into death records through December 2011. The role of BMI was estimated using Cox models comparing mortality trends in the presence and absence of adjustment for maximum lifetime BMI (Max BMI). Introducing Max BMI into a Cox model controlling for age and sex raised the annual rate of mortality decline by 0.54% (95% confidence interval 0.45–0.64%). Results were robust to the inclusion of other variables in the model, to differences in how Max BMI was measured, and to how trends were evaluated. The effect of rising Max BMI is large relative to international mortality trends and to alternative mortality futures simulated by the Social Security Administration. The increase in Max BMI over the period 1988–2011 is estimated to have reduced life expectancy at age 40 by 0.9 years in 2011 (95% confidence interval 0.7–1.1 years) and accounted for 186,000 excess deaths that year. Rising levels of BMI have prevented the United States from enjoying the full benefits of factors working to improve mortality.

scholarly journals Uniformity: The Role of States (U.S. and Foreign) in Environmental Protection Post-Intertanko and Erika

2001 ◽  
Vol 2001 (1) ◽  
pp. 149-154
Author(s):  
Laurie Crick Sahatjian
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Supreme Court ◽  
The United States ◽  
Washington State ◽  
International Standards ◽  
International Regulation ◽  
State Regulations ◽  
Foreign Governments ◽  
The Impact

ABSTRACT On March 2, 2000, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously rejected certain Washington State regulations of oil tankers, clarified the federal interest in regulating interstate navigation, and remanded to lower courts certain other state regulations for a determination of their validity in light of the “considerable federal interest at stake.” On December 12, 1999, the oil tanker Erika broke up and caused over 10,000 tons of oil to wash up on France's coast. The ultimate impact of this incident, and the extent of the reaction of the European Community (EU), remains to be seen. These two events epitomize the ongoing international struggle between the benefits of uniformity and the political imperatives brought on by maritime casualties. This paper will discuss the impact of both. The Intertanko decision clarified that the United States is to speak with one voice on matters of foreign affairs and foreign policy, including international maritime affairs. The international implications of the case were of such great importance that fourteen foreign governments, including the United Kingdom, Norway, Greece, and Japan, filed an amicus brief urging the Supreme Court to overturn Washington State regulations on the grounds that the regulations at issue were incompatible with the principles of uniformity and reciprocity that have long been agreed by the United States and other maritime nations as key to adopting, implementing, and enforcing effective international standards and regulations for ships, including shipboard measures for protecting the marine environment. This paper will first discuss the impact of the Intertanko decision on the role of individual states. It will then address the participation of foreign governments in the legal system of the United States to further international goals, including issues considered significant enough to compel fourteen governments to participate as amici in the Supreme Court's consideration of the case. It will also address the continuing threat to uniformity resulting from notorious spills, including the Erika disaster and the EU reaction thereto. Finally, the paper will suggest steps that must be taken at the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and other international bodies to ensure continuing preservation of uniform international regulation of shipping.

scholarly journals Ideological Boundaries of Status Advantages: Legislative Effectiveness in the United States House of Representatives

2020 ◽  
pp. 017084062090720
Author(s):  
Francois Collet ◽  
Gianluca Carnabuci ◽  
Gokhan Ertug ◽  
Tengjian Zou
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
House Of Representatives ◽  
The United States ◽  
High Status ◽  
United States Congress ◽  
Organizational Influence ◽  
The Status ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Legislative Effectiveness

Prior research assumes that high-status actors have greater organizational influence than lower-status ones, that is, it is easier for the former to get their ideas and initiatives adopted by the organization than it is for the latter. Drawing from the literature on ideology, we posit that the status–influence link is contingent on actors’ ideological position. Specifically, status confers organizational influence to the degree that the focal actor is ideologically mainstream. The more an actor’s ideology deviates from the mainstream the less will her status translate into increased organizational influence. We find support for this hypothesis using data on the work of legislators in the House of Representatives in the United States Congress. By illuminating how and under what conditions status leads to increased influence, this study qualifies and extends current understandings of the role of status in organizations.

“Our Voter Rolls Are Cleaner Than Yours”: Balancing Access and Integrity in Voter List Maintenance

2020 ◽  
Vol 48 (5) ◽  
pp. 560-570
Author(s):  
Thessalia Merivaki
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Local Variation ◽  
The United States ◽  
Demographic Characteristics ◽  
Voter Registration ◽  
Electoral Process ◽  
Election Administration ◽  
History Information ◽  
Registered Voter

Accurate voter lists facilitate access to the electoral process, indicate efficient voter list maintenance, and reinforce electoral integrity. Errors in voter records often result from variation in practices that are difficult to avoid given the decentralized structure of election administration in the United States. In many states, localities lack capacity to efficiently complete voter list maintenance, especially when pressured to keep “clean” voter rolls. I argue that local challenges remain when maintaining voters’ registration and voting history information, which undermines the quality of voter lists and the integrity of the electoral process. I analyze Mississippi’s Statewide Election Management System (SEMS) records and find that voter registration and voting history errors are linked to the county’s active and inactive registered voter rates and demographic characteristics. These findings confirm that local variation in voter list maintenance can impact voters depending on their voter registration status and can result in premature voter list removal.

The Minority Party and Policy-Making in the House of Representatives

1968 ◽  
Vol 62 (2) ◽  
pp. 481-493 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles O. Jones
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
House Of Representatives ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
The United States ◽  
Recent Book ◽  
Minority Party ◽  
Distinctive Group ◽  
The Government ◽  
Sizeable Number

Considerable attention has recently been focused on political oppositions in democracies. A recent book examines oppositions in various western countries and a journal called Government and Opposition was founded in 1965. The significance of the role of an opposition in democracies does not have to be stressed. It is generally accepted.What of the role of the opposition in the United States? Robert A. Dahl notes that one must use the plural when speaking of opposition in this country since, “a distinctive, persistent, unified structural opposition scarcely exists in the United States … it is nearly always impossible to refer precisely to “the” opposition, for the coalition that opposes the government on one matter may fall apart, or even govern, on another.”While it is true that “the” opposition is not institutionalized as a definite cohesive, persistent, distinctive group in American politics, it is also true that there has usually been an identifiable minority party in Congress. Though it does not always oppose the majority, and cannot be expected to be synonymous with “the” opposition very often, it does persist. Despite handsome invitations to disband—in the form of successive defeats at the polls—a sizeable number of congressmen, senators, and congressional candidates continue to call themselves Republicans and to organize as such in Congress.

scholarly journals American policy on the Balkans

2013 ◽  
Vol 21 ◽  
pp. 12-19
Author(s):  
Frosina Doninovska
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Foreign Policy ◽  
International Relations ◽  
United States Of America ◽  
The United States ◽  
The Balkans ◽  
The Will ◽  
Dayton Agreement ◽  
Political Scene

The United States of America is a country which left a significant mark and still has a strong influence on the world political scene and the changes in the international relations especially in building the strategy of worldwide foreign policy. The paper will try to give an overview of the events that marked the 1990’s of the last century, with an accent on the breakup of Yugoslavia and the role of U.S. foreign policy in this period. The paper will especially focus on the process of the dissolution of Yugoslavia as well as the role of the United States in the Dayton Agreement and the ways of implementing the peace through the assets of diplomacy. Dayton differed from the traditional methods of negotiation in a way that included the U.S. leadership and its implementation depended on the will of the international community, especially the United States who led the efforts.

scholarly journals “The Problem from Hell”: Examining the Role of Peace and Conflict Studies for Genocide Intervention and Prevention

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Cormier ◽  
Peter Karari ◽  
Alka Kumar ◽  
Robin Neustaeter ◽  
Jodi Read ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
The United States ◽  
Conflict Studies ◽  
Peace And Conflict Studies ◽  
Peace And Conflict ◽  
The Face ◽  
The Will ◽  
The U.S ◽  
Do So

Genocide is one of the most challenging problems of our age. In her book, “A Problem from Hell:” America and the Age of Genocide, Samantha Power (2002) argues that the United States, while in a position to intervene in genocide, has lacked the will to do so, and therefore it is incumbent on the U.S. citizenry to pressure their government to act. This article reviews how the topic of genocide raises questions along the fault lines of the field of Peace and Conflict Studies (PACS). In this article, a framework is provided to examine genocide and responses to it. This includes a review of a multiplicity of factors that (a) facilitate genocide, (b) constrain action in the face of it, and (c) facilitate intervention. In this analysis, further consideration is given to the location of the actor either within the region of the conflict or external to it. Our goal is to situate the study of genocide in the PACS field and promote to the articulation of possibilities for intervention by individuals, organizations, and policymakers.

Ringing the Changes: How the Relationship between the International Gymnastics Federation and the International Olympic Committee Has Shaped Gymnastics Policy

2020 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
pp. 46-63
Author(s):  
Georgia Cervin
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Sexual Abuse ◽  
The United States ◽  
International Olympic Committee ◽  
International Level ◽  
Governing Body ◽  
The Will ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Two Bodies

This paper examines the governing body of international gymnastics, the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG) and its relationship with the International Olympic Committee (IOC). It outlines the nature of the relationship between the two bodies and how that relationship has historically impacted the resulting policy of both organizations. In particular, this research focuses on three main areas of policy. The first is economics and the shift from amateur to professional and commercial gymnastics. When the IOC began to develop commercial interests, the FIG feared losing its purity if it was to follow suit. Second, it explores policy surrounding gender. This is particularly relevant in a sport where each discipline is not only categorized by gender, but also contested on the basis of performance-gendered ideals. And finally, this research examines athlete welfare. Gymnastics is known for its young, docile participant base and, more recently, cases of sexual abuse in the United States. While a range of protective policies have since been created, what existed at an international level before then? I argue that the FIG has had to work within the confines of its Olympic remit in order to retain its relevance to the Olympic behemoth and its inclusion in the Games as gymnastics’ pinnacle event. At the same time, the FIG has mediated Olympic policy and exerted the will of the IOC over stakeholders in gymnastics. Moreover, this relationship is symbiotic: gymnastics is one of the top three most popular Olympic sports, attracting viewership and its attendant commercial benefits to the Games. This research is based on FIG bulletins and IOC correspondence, and it builds on a range of secondary works about the role of International Federations, their policies, and their rules in shaping the sports they govern.

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