Trump’s Approval Sinks Amid Unpopular War, Darkening G.O.P. Prospects www.nytimes.com/2026/05/18/u...

shsu.peopleadmin.com/postings/47107 My department at Sam Houston State University is hiring a Lecturer of Political Science. Use the link to apply! #Polisky #Polisci #PoliticalScienceJobs

Jamie Carson of @universityofga.bsky.social and @stewulrich.bsky.social of Sam Houston State University find that the “stuck electorate” of the 2024 presidential election meant small movements among groups of voters were decisive blogs.lse.ac.uk/usappblog/20...

Whoa this is big news. Many presidential scholars, including myself, have used Gallup in research for its accuracy and longevity (since FDR!) This changes things going forward #Polisky www.nytimes.com/2026/02/11/u...

shsu.peopleadmin.com/postings/45764 My department is hiring a TT assistant professor with speciality in Judicial Politics/Public Law. Review date is Jan 31st. Come work with me! #polisky #poliscisky #academicsky #politicalsciencejobs

Good analysis of presidential power www.nytimes.com/2025/12/21/u...

theconversation.com/pardons-are-... We’ve seen the pardon power be used differently than what the Founders intended by recent presidents. I wrote about it for @theconversation.com here: #Polisky

Great visual by @wsj.com showing Trump’s pardons this year. He has wielded this power more frequently than most presidents at this stage in a term: www.wsj.com/politics/pol...

www.bbc.com/news/article... Interesting response from the president to a pardon, shows how he views them as transactional and should get something in return.

www.deseret.com/politics/202... Pleased to have been asked to comment for this article. Very interesting times with the pardon power recently.

www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202... Good analysis by the Washington Post, which points out how Trump’s pardoning patterns seem to follow no philosophy or pattern and directly contradict his administration’s policies.

www.wsj.com/politics/pol... Fascinating story on how the pardon came to be

www.nytimes.com/athletic/683... Interesting to see how the World Cup has been intertwined with the Trump administration and politics of Washington currently.

news.gallup.com/poll/699221/... Interesting to see a new poll of Pres. Trump’s approval rating and a new low for this term.

Had fun wrapping up in my presidency class and mapping out what we’ve learned this semester. Excited to see how their final projects turn out.

Interesting use of the pardon power and what it communicates: the administration is taking action against drug traffickers in the Caribbean while also pardoning a convicted drug trafficking from the same region. Seems contradictory and shows pardon power is solely up to the president.

We continue to see the clemency power used for political purposes: Trump Gives Clemency to More Than Two Dozen, Including Political Allies www.nytimes.com/2025/05/28/u...

Modern presidents have shifted the pardon power from an act of mercy to a political tool writes @stewulrich.bsky.social of Sam Houston State University blogs.lse.ac.uk/usappblog/20...

www.wsj.com/sports/socce... Fascinating read

Leaving campus after submitting the final version of my dissertation feels both weird and exciting. Wild to be at this stage!

Leaving Chicago after a great time at #MPSA2025. Thanks for all I met and interacted with. Fun time mingling with a bunch of amazing scholars.

apnews.com/article/hunt... We continue to see pardons used as a political tool and not the act of mercy the founders intended.

www.reuters.com/world/us/man... Curious to see what effect, if any, public opinion will have on this administration

Donald Trump's disapproval rating is now higher than his approval rating: projects.fivethirtyeight.com/polls/approv...

Pleased to announce that I will be joining the faculty of Sam Houston State University in the fall as an Assistant Professor of Political Science. Very excited for this new chapter of my career and to continue teaching and researching with my future colleagues there!

youtube.com/watch?v=HlJa... On this #PresidentsDay I am reminded of this great friendship among former rivals and presidents, showing that you can be friends across the aisle.

Noticed this in recent days as Pres. Trump came into office. There is a replica of the FIFA World Cup trophy on the table behind the Resolute Desk, and it struck me as a bit odd. I know the US is co-hosting the tournament next year and it was announced during his 1st term. But still seems odd?

civiqs.com/results/favo... Interesting to see this favorability rating of Trump on a state-by-state basis. Particularly of note are GA, NC, and VA in the South. Just one poll from one organization, of course, but curious as we’re getting polling on Trump’s 2nd term coming out

open.substack.com/pub/goodpoli... Great piece by @juliaazari.bsky.social examining the executive orders of the new administration

Trump starts with a +7 net approval rating (50% approve, 43% disapprove), according to 538's new and constantly-updating average. That's lower than the starting approval for every other modern president, except Trump's own starting rating in his first term (just +3) abcnews.go.com/538/trump-st...

Great piece about the New Era of Pardons we find ourselves in open.substack.com/pub/sharonmc...

Check out my recent piece on Biden’s pardons leaving office and how it will affect his legacy at the LSE American Politics and Policy blog: blogs.lse.ac.uk/usappblog/20... #PoliSci #poliSky

www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb... Great piece that puts the Jan 6th pardons in the context of history

www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti... In last week’s flurry of pardons, one group stands out as particularly worrying:

Heard someone on the news describe this week as “pardon palooza” and isn’t that the perfect way to describe it? Both the incoming and outgoing president used their pardon pen a lot this week.

Pres. Biden started his term slow to use the clemency power but left office as the modern president who used it the most. His legacy may be overshadowed by these pardons more than any his accomplishments. I wrote about it for the LSE USAPP blog: blogs.lse.ac.uk/usappblog/20...

A retired federal judge examines Trump's pardons of hundreds convicted in the violent storming of the Capitol: "When it comes to #Jan6 offenders, not only do I think they received appropriate due process, but in some cases, I believe they received excessive due process."

apnews.com/article/capi... Man, what a day for pardons. That pardon pen got used mightily by two presidents today.

a little bonus content from me - a bit of a response to the question Ezra Klein posed about why the 2024 election victory for Trump has such strong mandate vibes despite its narrow nature goodpoliticsbadpolitics.substack.com/p/explaining...

www.nytimes.com/2025/01/20/u... An unprecedented and sweeping use of the pardon power. As I’ve said for a long time now, this power is very broad and unchecked, which makes it so powerful. Each president has used it in a different way and Biden has certainly used it differently than his predecessors

apnews.com/article/bide... More pardons from Pres. Biden, while he’s still in office. He now becomes the president to issue the most individual pardons and commutations. Who would’ve thought would be the case when he was elected?

www.nytimes.com/2025/01/17/u... More clemency action from Pres. Biden, the largest one-time issue of clemency. I’m not surprised, as it is the few powers left he can still do as president. I’m sure we’ll see some more before Monday.

Will be interesting to see how these fires affect the upcoming Olympics. Especially now with an incoming Trump administration, lots of factors organizers probably didn’t expect. www.nytimes.com/2025/01/13/u...

The MPSA proudly announces the Linda F. Williams PhD Student Travel Scholarship, supporting scholars attending the annual conference and honoring her legacy. Read the full announcement here: www.mpsanet.org/about/govern...

After having to take a stop (unplanned) at the Miami airport, makes you really appreciate how efficient and well laid out the Atlanta airport is. It ain’t pretty but gets the job done. A work horse not a show horse.

news.gallup.com/poll/654878/... Interesting poll that was released in the past week. 54% of Americans said history would judge Biden’s presidency negatively. I’m curious to see how the Biden legacy is viewed as he leaves office and Trump takes a second term.