#ScienceofPolitics

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

6 days ago

Why rural areas vote Republican despite worse health outcomes - Niskanen Center Rural areas disproportionately suffer from Republican policies but Republicans can blame Democrats for worse health outcomes, especially when policies can be framed as helping immigrants or racial min...

Why rural areas vote Republican despite worse health outcomes

Rural America has moved toward Republicans even as Republican governance helps explain worse health outcomes

New #ScienceOfPolitics podcast/transcript with Michael Shepard
www.niskanencenter.org/why-rural-ar...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

2 weeks ago

Can corporate scandals reinvigorate democracy? - Niskanen Center Pepper Culpepper and Taeku Lee find that corporate scandals can often mobilize the public and wider interests to overcome big business power, including after the financial crisis.

Can corporate scandals reinvigorate democracy?

New #ScienceOfPolitics podcast/transcript with Pepper Culpepper & Taeku Lee

www.niskanencenter.org/can-corporat...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

1 month ago

The intellectual support for Trumpism - Niskanen Center Laura Field tracks the intellectual parts of the movement and their relationship to mainstream political figures and activists.

What political theorists lined up behind Trumpism and why?

Laura Field tracks the strands of intellectual support, finding opportunistic turns, conflicting ideas, & real impact

New #ScienceOfPolitics podcast/transcript on Furious Minds:
www.niskanencenter.org/the-intellec...

Carlos Algara

@algaraca

1 month ago

Many thanks to @mattgrossmann.bsky.social for having me on the @niskanencenter.bsky.social #ScienceofPolitics podcast to talk '26 midterms for the U.S. Senate & House!

TLDR; battleground looks expanded for Senate Democrats compared to year ago thanks to candidate recruitment efforts. Take a listen!

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

1 month ago

What predicts midterm election results? - Niskanen Center The historical pattern suggests Democrats are on the way to big congressional gains.

Predicting Congressional Election Results

Presidential approval & ideological direction of public opinion, not economics or party conflict, predict election results. That looks good for Dems

New #ScienceOfPolitics podcast/transcript with Carlos Algara

www.niskanencenter.org/what-predict...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

2 months ago

Legislators are raising money instead of making policy - Niskanen Center Michael Kistner finds that when legislators spend a lot of time raising money, they spend less making policy.

Legislators Are Raising Money Instead of Making Policy

By rewarding fundraising, parties miss out on diverse leaders & effective legislators. But states that reform make more policy.

New #ScienceOfPolitics with Michael Kistner on Paying for the Party
www.niskanencenter.org/legislators-...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

2 months ago

Can AI ‘vibe research’ replace social science? - Niskanen Center AI tool improvement is compounding fast enough for researchers to start using tools like Claude Code for real social science tasks.

Can AI 'vibe research' replace social science?

Experiments in research design, planning, data collection, analysis, & writing with Claude Code

New #ScienceOfPolitics podcast/transcript with Andy Hall
www.niskanencenter.org/can-ai-vibe-...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

3 months ago

How authoritarian parenting attitudes explain our political divides - Niskanen Center Christopher Federico and Christopher Weber find that authoritarian values, measured by these parenting preferences, increasingly structure Americans’ attitudes toward social and cultural issues and th...

How authoritarian parenting attitudes explain our political divides

New #ScienceOfPolitics podcast/transcript with Christopher Federico and Christopher Weber on The Authoritarian Divide
www.niskanencenter.org/how-authorit...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

3 months ago

Which groups win policy under each party? - Niskanen Center Agustin Markarian finds that different groups see their policy preferences better represented depending on which party is in power.

Which groups win policy under each party?

Whites under Republicans, minorities under Democrats
New #ScienceOfPolitics podcast/transcript with Agustin Markarian
www.niskanencenter.org/which-groups...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

4 months ago

How media incentives stoked the culture war - Niskanen Center Aakaash Rao and Shakked Noy find that cable news outlets talk more about culture war issues while candidates favor economics.

How media incentives stoked the culture war

When cable news talks culture, it mobilizes viewers; went it talks econ, they change the channel. Now voters & candidates exposed to cable prioritize culture

New #ScienceOfPolitics with Aakash Rao & Shakked Noy
www.niskanencenter.org/how-media-in...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

4 months ago

Who now directs spending: Congress or the president? - Niskanen Center Kevin Angell compares what Congress appropriated to what agencies actually spent over decades, finding that presidents have long moved spending toward their preferences.

Who directs spending: Congress or the president?

There's long been a gap between what Congress appropriates & what agencies spend. presidents find ways to not spend money they don't request

New #ScienceOfPolitics podcast/transcript with Kevin Angell

www.niskanencenter.org/who-now-dire...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

5 months ago

The backlash presidency - Niskanen Center Julia Azari finds that backlash presidents like Trump tend to follow transformative presidents like Barack Obama who represent changes to the American racial order.

The Backlash Presidency

Why Trump followed Obama & got impeached, in historical perspective with comparisons to Nixon after LBJ & Johnson after Lincoln

New #ScienceOfPolitics podcast/transcript with @juliaazari.bsky.social
www.niskanencenter.org/the-backlash...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

5 months ago

How the money chase governs our elections - Niskanen Center Danielle Thomsen finds that candidates are raising money earlier and in larger amounts than ever.

How the Money Chase Governs our Elections

Early $ still governs who runs, who lasts, & who rises in Congress, even though it's often spent just to raise more

@daniellethomsen.bsky.social on The Money Signal on the #ScienceOfPolitics podcast/transcript:
www.niskanencenter.org/how-the-mone...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

6 months ago

The Supreme Court is enabling Trump’s executive power - Niskanen Center Adam Bonica finds that Trump has sought to purge and cut more liberal agencies but has been repeatedly shot down by lower courts.

The Supreme Court is enabling Trump’s executive power grab

New #ScienceOfPolitics with @adambonica.bsky.social
www.niskanencenter.org/the-supreme-...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

7 months ago

Will partisan redistricting tip Congress? - Niskanen Center Eric McGhee finds that both parties are increasingly extreme in gerrymandering but that prior mid-decade redistricting gains have been small. Daniel Kolliner finds that Republican control of redistric...

Will Partisan Redistricting Tip Congress?

New #ScienceOfPolitics with Eric McGhee and Daniel Kolliner
www.niskanencenter.org/will-partisa...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

7 months ago

The fall of an independent Fed - Niskanen Center Cristina Bodea finds that the Fed is becoming less independent in the face of public pressure.

The Fall of an Independent Fed

The Fed was never the most independent & is becoming less so in the face of Trump pressure. That could move it toward enabling inflation & government spending

New #ScienceOfPolitics podcast/transcript with Cristina Bodea
www.niskanencenter.org/the-fall-of-...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

8 months ago

Making AI policy: Are we falling behind or rushing in? - Niskanen Center AI policy now matters for energy, health, education, foreign, and economic development policy. What can we learn from the early AI legislation?

Making AI policy: Are we falling behind or rushing in?

Chinnu Parinandi and Heonuk Ha review state and federal AI legislation so far, finding some partisan differences & a lot of uncertain issues ahead

New #ScienceOfPolitics podcast/transcript:
www.niskanencenter.org/making-ai-po...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

8 months ago

Is democracy failing education? - Niskanen Center American students are falling behind while local school boards are preoccupied with culture war controversies.

Is democracy failing education?

New #ScienceOfPolitics podcast/transcript with Vlad Kogan on his new book, No Adult Left Behind
www.niskanencenter.org/is-democracy...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

9 months ago

How the president gained war powers - Niskanen Center Casey Dominguez finds that although the founders bestowed war powers with Congress, by the Spanish-American war legislators had expanded their view of the president’s powers and begun applying a more ...

How the President Gained War Powers

The long history, with implications for how shared constitutional understanding can be lost to nationalism & partisanship

Casey Dominguez on the #ScienceOfPolitics podcast, with transcript
www.niskanencenter.org/how-the-pres...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

9 months ago

If we don’t like polarizing politicians, why do we get them?

Negative partisan rhetoric gets the retweets, but not the voters

New #ScienceOfPolitics podcast/transcript with Mia Costa
www.niskanencenter.org/if-we-dont-l...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

10 months ago

The backstory for presidential power grabs - Niskanen Center President Trump is claiming power over independent agencies and trying to redirect the administrative state, saying he is its unitary executive.

The backstory of presidential power grabs

Reagan controlled civil rights agencies, building the unitary executive theory. 1st Trump admin controlled immigration courts, but by building them up

New #ScienceOfPolitics with John Dearborn & David Hausman

www.niskanencenter.org/the-backstor...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

11 months ago

Can liberals stop Trump in the courts? - Niskanen Center Can liberals succeed in limiting Trump through the courts or are American courts an inevitably conservative institution?

Can liberals stop Trump in the courts?

Democratic AGs are checking Trump by selecting venues & winning standing. But court limits on government power might help conservatives in long run

New #ScienceOfPolitics podcast with Paul Nolette & Brian Highsmith
www.niskanencenter.org/can-liberals...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

11 months ago

How the 1st term trade war hurt Trump - Niskanen Center Thiemo Fetzer finds that China, the EU, Canada, and Mexico reacted to the first term tariffs strategically, trying to hurt Trump’s constituents. Omer Solodoch finds that the first term trade war annou...

How the 1st term trade war hurt Trump

China & the EU hurt Trump’s constituents in their retaliation last time. But the trade war announcement also immediately hurt Trump politically, before economic effects

New #ScienceOfPolitics podcast/transcript
www.niskanencenter.org/how-the-1st-...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

1 year ago

Building a science of political progress - Niskanen Center How can science can be deployed to improve the American political process, and how much does the Progress Studies movement depend on successful politics? This is the 200th episode of the Science of Po...

Building a science of political progress

Now available: my @niskanencenter.bsky.social #ScienceOfPolitics video & transcript with @tylercowen.bsky.social
www.niskanencenter.org/building-a-s...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

1 year ago

Is Trump redirecting or deconstructing the administrative state? - Niskanen Center Nicholas Jacobs and Sidney Milkis find that we have overestimated conservative efforts to reduce the size and scope of government and underestimated their usage of the enlarged state to pursue conserv...

Is Trump redirecting or deconstructing the administrative state?

New @niskanencenter.bsky.social #ScienceOfPolitics podcast/transcript with Nicholas Jacobs and Sidney Milkis
www.niskanencenter.org/is-trump-red...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

1 year ago

Are the parties too focused on policy programs? - Niskanen Center Katherine Krimmel finds that the American parties became extensively programmatic as they lost vestiges of clientelism and became national parties after federal growth and civil rights.

Are the parties too focused on policy programs?

We have the parties we said we wanted, competing over the issues with clear alternatives. But how did they get here and have they now gone too far?

New #ScienceOfPolitics podcast with Katherine Krimmel:
www.niskanencenter.org/are-the-part...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

1 year ago

Can judicial review stop a lawless executive? - Niskanen Center Courts are pausing dozens of Trump administration actions—from mass firings to agency shutdowns. But does the judiciary have a real enforcement mechanism?

Can judicial review stop a lawless executive?

Americans have faith in rule of law & respond to courts that invalidate executive action, even with partisanship

New #ScienceOfPolitics pod/transcript with Amanda Driscoll, Michael Nelson, Jay Krehbiel
www.niskanencenter.org/can-judicial...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

1 year ago

Why some Latinos support the Trump immigration agenda - Niskanen Center While promising mass deportation and an immigration crackdown, Donald Trump gained Latino support in 2024, just as he had in 2020. Why do some Latinos support anti-immigration policies and candidates?

Why Some Latinos Support the Trump Immigration Agenda

New #ScienceOfPolitics podcast/transcript with Loren Collingwood
www.niskanencenter.org/why-some-lat...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

1 year ago

Counterproductive interest group polarization - Niskanen Center American interest groups are increasingly lining up behind the Democratic or Republican Party and trying to build coalitions within those parties rather than across them. But historically, that has no...

Counterproductive interest group polarization

Us interest groups are increasingly taking positions on issues outside their areas & becoming more partisan. But that doesn't help pass legislation.

New #ScienceOfPolitics podcast/transcript with Jesse Crosson
www.niskanencenter.org/counterprodu...

Matt Grossmann

@mattgrossmann

1 year ago

How racial realignment ignited the culture war - Niskanen Center How did Americans become politically divided on culture war topics like guns, abortion, women’s role, gay rights, and environmentalism?

How racial realignment ignited the culture war

Because racial views were already tied to other cultural views in the public, civil rights divided the parties based on other cultural issues

New #ScienceOfPolitics podcast/transcript with Neil O'Brian
www.niskanencenter.org/how-racial-r...