Feb 22
I participated in a conversation about the longterm sustainability of federal entitlement programs with Curtis Dubay at Mizzou Law today. The conversation was sponsored by the Mizzou Law’s chapter of the Federalist Society and moderated by 3L Hannah Mudd.
Judge Jeff Harris visited with my Law and Public Policy class at Mizzou Law today. Judge Harris, presently circuit judge of Missouri’s 13th Judicial Circuit, talked to the class about his experience in all three branches of Missouri government. His visit was hosted by a student team consisting of EC Duckworth, Ariel Kiefer, Cailynn Hayter, and Ellen Henrion.
Michael Spicer writes a review of Four Crises of American Democracy, in Public Administration Review: “Roberts’ thoughtful and elegant defense of democracy is to be welcomed, coming as it does at a time when serious doubts about the capacity of ordinary democratic politics and institutions to address our problems are being voiced, both on the right and left of our political spectrum. It is also a healthy reminder to critics of our system of all ideological hues that the real world alternatives to democratic politics and institutions are not necessarily likely to serve us much better. Moreover, packing as it does a wide range of modern history into less than 200 pages of text, it is a refreshingly accessible read and a much-needed reminder both to social scientists and citizens in general about the importance of paying attention to history and what it can teach us about democracy.” The review is available here.
I’m looking forward to giving the keynote speech to the International Conference of Information Commissioners in Manchester, UK on September 20, 2017. The working title is “Defending the open society.” The meeting will be jointly hosted by the UK Information Commissioner, Elizabeth Denham, and the Scottish Information Commissioner, Rosemary Agnew. More information about the conference here.
Michael Orthofer reviews Four Crises of American Democracy for The Complete Review: “Roberts’ overview of American democracy and how it has adapted and changed over the years is both very enjoyable and thought-provoking. . . . Roberts’ book is a reminder both of the enduring (though not unassailable) stability of democracy, and the more basic issues always surrounding it.” Read the review.
I enjoyed talking about Four Crises of American Democracy at the Truman Library in Independence MO yesterday. Slides from the talk here. Thanks to the Library staff for their hospitality!
I’ll give a talk for Mizzou’s Canada Days (March 6 to 10) on Tuesday, March 7, from noon to 1pm in Memorial Union N206. The topic: “The Canadian style of governing.” More details on Canada Days here.
Adam Crumbliss, Chief Clerk of the Missouri House of Representatives, visited with my Law and Public Policy class at Mizzou Law today. Adam described his work as Clerk and participated in a conversation about the dynamics of policymaking in state government. His visit was hosted by a student team consisting of Derek Armer, Jennifer Bennett, Blake Baumberger and Emma Altheide.
I gave a presentation at New York BK21 Conference organized by the Graduate School of Public Administration of Seoul National University in New York City on Saturday January 14. The title was “Statecrafting: A new approach to public administration.” Powerpoints available here. Listen to audio here.
I will talk about my book, Four Crises of American Democracy, at the Truman Library Institute in Independence, MO on February 9 at 6:30pm. More details here.
