Politics + Society – The Conversation – US Presidential election, Congress and political issues

More than a dozen screens – labeled primary and secondary comms – show different views at and around the White House. A few show President Donald Trump behind a lectern.

More than a dozen screens – labeled primary and secondary comms – show different views at and around the White House. A few show President Donald Trump behind a lectern.

Declassified intelligence is not the same as proof

Brian O'Neill, Georgia Institute of Technology

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent holds up a document featuring a proposed $250 banknote with Donald Trump's portrait

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent holds up a document featuring a proposed $250 banknote with Donald Trump's portrait

Featuring Trump on US coins and bills would put America in rare company

Jacques Hymans, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences; University of Southern California

How America’s newspapers lost their voice

Ken Paulson, Middle Tennessee State University

Torn-out piece from a newspaper with blank space for an article, advertisement or picture.

Torn-out piece from a newspaper with blank space for an article, advertisement or picture.

Republicans control Congress, so why is Trump’s SAVE America Act stuck?

SoRelle Wyckoff Gaynor, University of Virginia

Stern men in suits stand behind a lectern, with one pointing to a sign chastising the U.S. Senate.

Stern men in suits stand behind a lectern, with one pointing to a sign chastising the U.S. Senate.

The Trump administration’s global campaign against ‘radical left terrorism’ is built on a national security memo without congressional approval

Melinda Haas, University of Pittsburgh

A man stands, speaking, at a lectern on a stage in front of a lot of flags.

A man stands, speaking, at a lectern on a stage in front of a lot of flags.

When can a power company take your land for data center infrastructure?

Aaron Walayat, University of Dayton

Transmission towers and power lines above a hillside neighborhood

Transmission towers and power lines above a hillside neighborhood

After 1776, the founders designed a government that accounts for ‘a degree of depravity in mankind’

Donovan Fifield, University of South Carolina

An American flag, with only 13 stars, arrayed in a circle.

An American flag, with only 13 stars, arrayed in a circle.

How Lindsey Graham’s keen ability to read the moment propelled him to political relevance for 3 decades

Gibbs Knotts, Coastal Carolina University and Christopher A. Cooper, Western Carolina University

A man speaks at a lectern on a stage.

A man speaks at a lectern on a stage.

Republicans have beef with Texas Rep. James Talarico – why does meat matter in US politics?

S. Marek Muller, Texas State University and David Rooney, University of Wyoming

A man in a suit jacket speaks into a microphone on a stage in front of a screen showing a large white star on a blue background.

A man in a suit jacket speaks into a microphone on a stage in front of a screen showing a large white star on a blue background.

Most Americans support conservation – here’s how the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative got politicians from both parties on board too

Mike Shriberg, University of Michigan

A silhouetted figure walks along a body of water with a Ferris wheel visible in the distance.

A silhouetted figure walks along a body of water with a Ferris wheel visible in the distance.

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The White House & Congress

A man about to hit another man with a stick.

A man about to hit another man with a stick.

When a congressman beat a senator unconscious, America confronted the limits of free speech

Paul Quigley, Virginia Tech

For nearly 250 years, the US has had eyes on Latin America – but interventions then looked rather different

Lindsay Schakenbach Regele, Miami University

The silhouette of a statue at dusk.

The silhouette of a statue at dusk.

Washington DC’s physical appearance has long been a battleground for competing national ideals and presidential visions

Allison M. Prasch, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Three large white monuments against a dark sky.

Three large white monuments against a dark sky.

In deep-red Idaho, even Republicans break with Trump on farm labor

Lisa Meierotto, Boise State University; Matthew May, Boise State University, and Rebecca Som Castellano, Boise State University

Workers in a field sort and pack freshly picked corn into crates.

Workers in a field sort and pack freshly picked corn into crates.

Race, Identity & Society

A rusty-haired man rubbing his face in front of a microphone.

A rusty-haired man rubbing his face in front of a microphone.

Graham Platner’s campaign implosion highlights the hollowness of America’s political parties and how they can be hijacked by insurgents

Nicholas Jacobs, Colby College; Institute for Humane Studies

The US murder rate fell to historic lows in 2025 – here’s why

James Tuttle, University of Montana

Police tape blocks access to the scene of a shooting. The background is dark and blurred, slightly illuminated by red and blue lights.

Police tape blocks access to the scene of a shooting. The background is dark and blurred, slightly illuminated by red and blue lights.

Young women are identifying as less straight; young men, not so much

Sean G. Massey, Binghamton University, State University of New York; Ann M. Merriwether, Binghamton University, State University of New York, and Melissa Hardesty, Binghamton University, State University of New York

A crowd stands behind metal barricades along a street. A rainbow flag waves above them.

A crowd stands behind metal barricades along a street. A rainbow flag waves above them.

Democratic socialists aren’t the only young, progressive Democrats dividing the party

Charlie Hunt, Boise State University

A large crowd of sign-holding people underneath huge red and white signs saying 'TAX THE RICH' and 'FIGHT THE OLIGARCHY.'

A large crowd of sign-holding people underneath huge red and white signs saying 'TAX THE RICH' and 'FIGHT THE OLIGARCHY.'

Courts & the Constitution

A Black woman on a stage speaks in front of a podium.

A Black woman on a stage speaks in front of a podium.

Justice Jackson’s birthright citizenship opinion includes Black Americans in the story of the nation’s search for equality

Austin Sarat, Amherst College

Why Trump’s move to gut the Endangered Species Act likely won’t hold up in court

Patrick Parenteau, Vermont Law & Graduate School

Tiny chicks and an egg in a nest

Tiny chicks and an egg in a nest

Military voters were at the heart of the Supreme Court’s mail-in ballot decision

Jamie Rowen, UMass Amherst

A uniformed service member at a table marking a paper ballot

A uniformed service member at a table marking a paper ballot

‘In the end the court did its job’ – a former federal judge reviews a Supreme Court term full of momentous decisions

John E. Jones III, Dickinson College

The top of a large white building with pillars.

The top of a large white building with pillars.

America 250

A man in a suit and red tie claps on stage with an American flag behind him.

A man in a suit and red tie claps on stage with an American flag behind him.

As lawmakers politicize the 250th anniversary, Americans are looking for unity over division

Tatishe Nteta, UMass Amherst and Adam Eichen, UMass Amherst

As the US turns 250, a forgotten founding influence helps explain its current unease

Robert A. Ballingall, University of Maine

Delegates at the signing of the U.S. Constitution

Delegates at the signing of the U.S. Constitution

I study the Declaration of Independence, and here’s why the colonists’ grievances are surprisingly relevant, 250 years later

Robert Parkinson, Binghamton University, State University of New York

Handwritten text of the Declaration of Independence on aged parchment

Handwritten text of the Declaration of Independence on aged parchment

How out-of-work fishermen saved the American Revolution

Christopher Magra, University of Tennessee

Black-and-white illustration of two ships engaged in battle at sea

Black-and-white illustration of two ships engaged in battle at sea

State & Local Government

A group of people sit in chairs in a circle in a large room with windows.

A group of people sit in chairs in a circle in a large room with windows.

What Allegheny County’s new court-ordered mental health treatment program can and can’t do

Erica Maloney, Chatham University

Why Colorado replaced its AI discrimination law with a transparency requirement that the feds might challenge anyway

Stefani Langehennig, University of Denver

People sit behind a long desk facing another desk with people sitting at it.

People sit behind a long desk facing another desk with people sitting at it.

Florida’s proposed property tax cuts rely on a population boom that has slowed dramatically

Matt Brooks, Florida State University and Karin Brewster, Florida State University

an older couple unloading boxes out of a moving truck

an older couple unloading boxes out of a moving truck

Why the DOJ is investigating Philadelphia after police stripped gun permits from Black Panthers-inspired group

Jonathan S. Goldstein, University of Pennsylvania and George A. Mocsary, University of Wyoming; Institute for Humane Studies

Man in black shirt stands in doorway with arm over door with a list of 'Class Rules' written on it

Man in black shirt stands in doorway with arm over door with a list of 'Class Rules' written on it

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