2007 Conference Program - Midwest Political Science Association

Paper State Secrecy and Misrule: A Perfect Dilemma
Rahul Sagar, Harvard University
Overview: Democratic and republican theory presume oversight
of the executive by citizens and public institutions prevents
misrule. However, by failing to account for the role of state
secrecy they underestimate the scope for manipulation by
officials.
Disc. TBA
34-2 BUREAUCRACY AND DELEGATION
Room Suite 9-142, 9 th Floor, Sat at 8:00 am
Chair Sean Gailmard, Northwestern University
Paper Delegation as a Way to Fix Policy Choices Beyond the Next
Election
Nicolai Petrovsky, Cardiff University
Overview: Several theories of delegation claim that legislators use
bureaucracies to fix policy choices beyond the next election. My
paper shows that those models are a special case of a more general
model that accounts for when that does, and does not, occur.
Paper Separation of Powers, Information, and Bureaucratic
Structure
John W. Patty, Harvard University
Sean Gailmard, Northwestern University
Overview: We present a formal model of administrative policymaking.
Separation of powers limits Congress’s willingness to
affect policy through informational biases. Congress prefers
agents who seek to communicate informatively with the
President’s agent.
Paper Politicians versus Bureaucrats: Evidence from U.S. Local
Governments
Ruben Enikolopov, Harvard University
Overview: I present a model and provide empirical evidence using
panel data on local governments in the U.S. that show that directly
elected public officials choose higher level of public employment
than their appointed counterparts for political reasons.
Paper Implicit Incentives, Policy Competence, and Bureaucrats'
Career Prospects
George A Krause, University of Pittsburgh
Overview: I test the theoretical implications of the bureaucratic
“career concerns” model. That is, I examine whether bureaucratic
decisions and collective performance has consequences for the
career propsects of Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC)
members.
Paper A Theory of Policy Expertise
Steven Callander, Northwestern University
Overview: This paper presents a new theory of policy expertise. In
contrast to existing theories, I define expertise as knowledge of the
policy process itself. The theory offers a solution to the
commitment problem of legislative-bureaucratic policy making.
Disc. Sven Feldmann, Northwestern University
37-13 POLITICAL PARTIES AND THE PRESIDENCY
Room LaSalle 2, 7 th Floor, Sat at 8:00 am
Chair Mikel Wyckoff, Northern Illinois University
Paper A Comparison of Voters in Early and Late Presidential
Nomination Contests
Christian A. Farrell, University of Oklahoma
Mary E. Outwater, University of Oklahoma
Overview: This paper analyzes the similarities and differences in
the demographic and decision-making processes of voters in early
and late presidential nomination contests in 2000 and 2004.
Paper George W. Bush and the Perils and Promise of the Partisan
Presidency
Richard M. Skinner, Williams College
Overview: George W. Bush has taken presidential party leadership
to a new extreme; this has had both positive and negative
consequences for him and the political system.
Page | 204
Paper One for All and All for One? A Theory of Presidents and
Their Parties
Vidal Romero, ITAM
Overview: I assess the conditions under which presidents’ and
their parties’ interests diverge and develop a theory explaining
when and how presidents are able to get their parties’ support to
modify the status quo.
Disc. Robert C. Lowry, University of Texas, Dallas
38-6 PRESIDENTS, MEDIA, AND PUBLIC OPINION
Room Parlor B, 6 th Floor, Sat at 8:00 am
Chair Brendan J. Doherty, American Political Science Association
Paper Presidential Exchanges with Reporters: Who, What, and
When
Martha Joynt Kumar, Towson University
Overview: There are three types of exchanges presidents have
with reporters: presidential press conferences, short question-andanswer
sessions, and presidential interviews with one or more
journalists. Taken together, how often do presidents respond to
reporters questions.
Paper Presidential Media Management and the Rally "Round the
Flag Phenomenon”
Simona Kragh, University of South Carolina
Overview: The "rally 'round the flag" is a widely recognized
phenomenon. Here I explain which interventions of the president
are more likely to generate a favorable coverage by the press.
Paper Agenda Priorities in an Open System
Lara A. Grusczynski, Cardinal Stritch University
Overview: This research examines the relationship among
presidential, congressional, media and public agendas in an open
system. The president's agenda is treated as a dependent variable
in order to better explain the president's ability to maintain his
focus.
Paper Going Local: Local Newspaper Coverage of the Presidency
Matthew Eshbaugh-Soha, University of North Texas
Overview: This paper does not support the conventional wisdom,
which holds that presidents will receive primarily positive
coverage from local news media. A sample from recent presidents
reveals, instead, that local newspaper coverage is not entirely
"local".
Disc. Jeffrey S. Peake, Bowling Green State University
Karen S. Hoffman, Wheeling Jesuit University
39-20 OUTSIDE INFLUENCES ON CONGRESS: MEDIA,
THINK TANKS, AND PUBLIC OPINION
Room Montrose 1, 7 th Floor, Sat at 8:00 am
Chair Sean M. Theriault, University of Texas, Austin
Paper The Role of Money in Policy Expertise and the Mass Media
William M. Minozzi, Princeton University
Overview: To craft policy, legislators rely on privately funded
experts. This paper analyzes donations, mission statements and
media mentions of think tanks using a structural model based on
an informational theory of political communication.
Paper The Influence of the Media and the Public on Policy Agendas
Henrik M. Schatzinger, University of Georgia
Overview: This paper examines the effects of the mass media and
public opinion on congressional agendas. Analyzing the issue
salience of the economy, education, and health care clarifies
possible directions of causality among the three major agendas.
Paper What do Legislatures Contribute to Democratic Transitions?
William Mishler, University of Arizona
Overview: The paper uses pooled time series survey data from
from 13 newly democratic countries in Eastern and Central
Europe to assess the reciprocal effects of public support for
legislatures and regimes from 1991-2004.
Disc. Sean M. Theriault, University of Texas, Austin
Scott Ainsworth, University of Georgia