Rogers Smith
University of Pennsylvania, Political Science, Faculty Member
- Rogers Smith is a political scientist whose interests center on citizenship and peoplehood, American constitutionalism, American political thought, and racial politics.edit
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Most modern Western political theories embrace equal citizenship as a normative ideal. Many scholars, however, focus on “legal citizenship” and conceive of equal citizenship as uniformity of legal rights and duties. Others focus on... more
Most modern Western political theories embrace equal citizenship as a normative ideal. Many scholars, however, focus on “legal citizenship” and conceive of equal citizenship as uniformity of legal rights and duties. Others focus on experiences of “lived citizenship” and conceive of equal citizenship as achieving sufficient economic, political, and social standing for persons to be seen as civic equals. Using the United States as its example, this article offers a unifying framework for mapping the relationship of legal citizenship to lived citizenship. It illustrates the value of this framework by using it show why realistic efforts to achieve equal citizenship must aim for not uniform legal rights and duties but instead equity in the possession of economic resources, political representation, and social recognition among different categories of citizens.
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The Perestroikan movement in political science has never sought to have a unified program or agenda or any formal organizational existence. It has instead provided venues—public letters, conference panels and receptions, and especially a... more
The Perestroikan movement in political science has never sought to have a unified program or agenda or any formal organizational existence. It has instead provided venues—public letters, conference panels and receptions, and especially a listserve—through which political scientists could air and debate their dissatisfactions with and their aspirations for the profession. Many concerns have surfaced, but the three most persistent have been calls for broader recognition of the contributions of non-quantitative methods, exhortations to pursue more substantively significant research topics, and advocacy of competitive elections in the American Political Science Association.
M any, perhaps most, adults today who were born and educated in advanced industrial societies grew up with a picture of the world that seemed commonsensical and oft en comforting. For them, the world's territory was divided up among... more
M any, perhaps most, adults today who were born and educated in advanced industrial societies grew up with a picture of the world that seemed commonsensical and oft en comforting. For them, the world's territory was divided up among sovereign states, each with its own unique, generally stable body of citizens who received protection from their state and owed it exclusive allegiance. Th ose states were expected to recognize and respect each other's sovereignty in ways conducive to peaceful coexistence. While struggles over borders and sovereignty fl ared up even under these conditions , wars were mostly seen as aberrations to the generally stable state of aff airs. One state, one territory, one citizenry with one allegiance— that was the way the world mostly was and should be. Much post– World War II scholarship in many disciplines endorsed these views. To cite one infl uential instance: in 1948, Leo Gross, a scholar born in Austria-Hungary who became a prominent internationa...
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women and candidates of color” (p. 205). Even briefly raising doubts about the potential negative electoral impact of identity politics easily steered primary voters toward candidates more insulated from such criticisms. Biden’s... more
women and candidates of color” (p. 205). Even briefly raising doubts about the potential negative electoral impact of identity politics easily steered primary voters toward candidates more insulated from such criticisms. Biden’s nomination was obviously overdetermined. His status as Obama’s vice president alone might have been sufficient to ensure his nomination, but Biden also allayed the party’s anxieties about electability as a white male who had been fixture in the Democratic Party for decades. In this sense, Biden’s victory was not a product of chance, as portrayed by journalists Jonathan Allen and Amie Parnes in their 2021 book, Lucky: How Joe Biden Barely Won the Presidency. Masket’s analysis shows that Biden was always ahead in the “invisible primary,” even though he did not emerge as the party’s dominant choice until after the South Carolina primary. From a low baseline, Biden always led in endorsements by elected Democrats, in contributions from campaign donors loyal to th...
The American Quest for a Democratic, Scientific Political Science. Rogers M. Smith [58-87]. American political science has always been shaped by two often conflicting desires: to serve American democracy and to be a true «science». Today,... more
The American Quest for a Democratic, Scientific Political Science. Rogers M. Smith [58-87]. American political science has always been shaped by two often conflicting desires: to serve American democracy and to be a true «science». Today, after an era characterized by the dominance of a «scientific» rational choice theory, it is now entering a period of transition an uncertainty. But certain possibilites for new convergence, specially around a «neo-institutionnalist» approach and a turn back to history, seem on the whole promising. As a ...
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4 The Good Society amendments popularly authorized, through processes that demand greater deliberation and more widespread agreement than ordinary majoritarian decision-making (and thus are infrequently executed). The system endures... more
4 The Good Society amendments popularly authorized, through processes that demand greater deliberation and more widespread agreement than ordinary majoritarian decision-making (and thus are infrequently executed). The system endures because it provides both substantial, predictable stability and meaningful avenues for necessary changes. The appeal to constitutional texts serves both as a common set of terms and understandings that can bind together a diverse polity and as a reminder of the system's original principles and ...
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Controversies over Mexican immigrants and undocumented aliens in Arizona and elsewhere show the need for fresh approaches to immigration. The “principle of constituted identities” holds that the more a government has coercively... more
Controversies over Mexican immigrants and undocumented aliens in Arizona and elsewhere show the need for fresh approaches to immigration. The “principle of constituted identities” holds that the more a government has coercively constituted the identities of non-citizens in ways that have made having certain relationships to it fundamental to their capacities to lead free and meaningful lives, the greater the obligations that government has to facilitate those relationships–all else being equal. The U.S. has coercively constituted the identities of many persons of Mexican descent, inside and outside its boundaries, in ways that have fostered aspirations for dual economic, cultural, and political “citizenships.” It has also shaped the identities, values, and interests of many whites in immigrant-receiving states in ways that make Mexican immigrants seem threatening, even as it has made those states pay most of the costs of absorbing immigrants. In consequence, the U.S. should adopt po...
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With Chief Justice Rehnquist and Associate Justices O'Connor, Scalia, and (it now appears) Bork at the apex, President Reagan has populated much of the federal judiciary with “judicial conservatives.” It is therefore timely... more
With Chief Justice Rehnquist and Associate Justices O'Connor, Scalia, and (it now appears) Bork at the apex, President Reagan has populated much of the federal judiciary with “judicial conservatives.” It is therefore timely to ponder what the nature, merits, and deficiencies of “judicial conservatism” are. Two recent publications, Richard A. Epstein's Takings:
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1. The Challenge of Analyzing Ideas and Institutions. This essay addresses one of the central challenges of institutional analyses, and particularly of contemporary “historical institutional” analyses, and particularly of my own efforts... more
1. The Challenge of Analyzing Ideas and Institutions. This essay addresses one of the central challenges of institutional analyses, and particularly of contemporary “historical institutional” analyses, and particularly of my own efforts to contribute to such analyses. I have been prompted to write on this topic especially by a growing, uneasy awareness of unresolved tensions in my efforts. But in the course of working on this essay, I have been greatly influenced (that is to say, an earlier plan got derailed) by two important discussions ...
Page 1. 1 Constitutional Democracy and the Obligation to Include Rogers M. Smith Written behind closed doors by less than five dozen white Christian men who lacked explicit authorization to do so, America's Constitution... more
Page 1. 1 Constitutional Democracy and the Obligation to Include Rogers M. Smith Written behind closed doors by less than five dozen white Christian men who lacked explicit authorization to do so, America's Constitution nonetheless begins, “We the People of the United States...do ordain and establish this Constitution.” Akhil Amar has credibly defended this language by arguing that in its ratification, if not its writing, the creation of the Constitution was “the most democratic deed the world had ever seen” ...
I. Introducticn. The canon of major writings on politics includes a considerable number that claim to offer a new science of politics, or a new science of man that encompasses politics. Arlc, totle, Hobbos, Hume, Publius, Con~ te,... more
I. Introducticn. The canon of major writings on politics includes a considerable number that claim to offer a new science of politics, or a new science of man that encompasses politics. Arlc, totle, Hobbos, Hume, Publius, Con~ te, Bentham, Hegel, Marx, Spencer, Burgess, Bentley, Truman, East. on, and Riker are amongst the many who have clairr, ed, more or less directly, that they arc founding or helping to found a true palitical science for the first tlme; and the rccent writcrs lean heavily on the tcrni" science." 1 Yet very recently, sorno of ...
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Acknowledgments: Research for the paper was made possible by the generous support of the Weatherhead Initiative of the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs at Harvard University. We are grateful to those who commented on earlier... more
Acknowledgments: Research for the paper was made possible by the generous support of the Weatherhead Initiative of the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs at Harvard University. We are grateful to those who commented on earlier versions of this paper: Identity as a Variable [abstract] As scholarly interest in the concept of identity continues to grow, social identities are proving to be crucially important for understanding contemporary life. Despite—or perhaps because of— the sprawl of different treatments of identity in the social sciences, the concept has remained too analytically loose to be as useful a tool as the literature's early promise had suggested. Our paper proposes to solve this longstanding problem by developing the analytical rigor and methodological imagination that will make identity a reliable variable for the social sciences. Such work is important and, indeed, long overdue. Social identity scholarship suffers from two sets of problems: conceptual is...
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Critics charge President Donald Trump with racism, but he insists he opposes bigotry and is an American nationalist, not a white nationalist. We use analysis of Trump’s campaign rhetoric, his administration’s policies, and their reception... more
Critics charge President Donald Trump with racism, but he insists he opposes bigotry and is an American nationalist, not a white nationalist. We use analysis of Trump’s campaign rhetoric, his administration’s policies, and their reception to assess these rival claims. In his campaign, Trump narrated American identity as a tale of lost greatness in which a once-unblemished America gave way to globalist elites who have victimized many Americans, particularly traditionalist, predominantly white Christian Americans. His policies have systematically expanded protections for such Americans and sought to increase their share of the American electorate and citizenry, while reducing or eliminating initiatives designed to assist and increase the numbers of non-white, non-Christian American voters and citizens. The evidence thus shows that although Trump does not explicitly endorse white nationalism, his rhetoric and policies articulate not a consistent race-blind nationalism, but a vision of ...
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At a time when authoritarian regimes are on the rise around the world, higher education in general and political science in particular are facing declining support and sharper political pressures in many places. Political scientists have... more
At a time when authoritarian regimes are on the rise around the world, higher education in general and political science in particular are facing declining support and sharper political pressures in many places. Political scientists have long promised that their discipline can add to knowledge about politics and educate citizens. However, doubts have grown about whether our increasingly pluralistic discipline collectively generates useful knowledge and communicates it effectively in teaching and in broader public communications. Political scientists need to do more to place their particular studies within big pictures of how politics and the world work, and to synthesize their results. They must focus more on the politics of identity formation that has generated resurgent nationalisms and deep social divisions. They must strengthen their understanding and their community contributions through civically engaged research. They must also place greater emphasis on improving teaching. In...
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Abstract Some scholars see contemporary American politics as characterized by “strange bedfellows” on racial issues and by polarization driven by economic, not racial, views. The authors argue instead that on most issues with racial... more
Abstract Some scholars see contemporary American politics as characterized by “strange bedfellows” on racial issues and by polarization driven by economic, not racial, views. The authors argue instead that on most issues with racial dimensions, political actors and institutions are aligned into two racial orders, one favoring “color-blind” policies and the other “race-conscious” measures. Coalitions on two issues—affirmative action in employment and majority-minority districting—are explored to support this “racial orders” ...
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The founding generations of Americans saw themselves as undertaking experiments in government that included creating constitutional democratic republics and promoting commerce, science, and religious freedom. As Tocqueville recognized,... more
The founding generations of Americans saw themselves as undertaking experiments in government that included creating constitutional democratic republics and promoting commerce, science, and religious freedom. As Tocqueville recognized, their efforts fostered a society in which, for a time, there was extensive agreement on what James Ceaser has termed “foundational concepts,” despite sharp policy differences, and a society in which commerce, science, and religion all flourished. Yet as they did, they created a national ...
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What does it mean to say," I am an American citizen?" The law supplies dry technical answers: the statement means that one falls under a constitutional or statutory category conferring full membership in the... more
What does it mean to say," I am an American citizen?" The law supplies dry technical answers: the statement means that one falls under a constitutional or statutory category conferring full membership in the American polity. The chief ones are, with minor exceptions, birth within the United States, which confers citizenship under the Fourteenth Amendment, plus birth to American parents overseas, and naturalization, categories regulated by federal statutes.
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... Waismel-Manor and Theodore J. Lowi's stimulating essay, Politics in Motion: A Personal History of Political Science,1 1 Israel Waismel-Manor and Israel Theodore J. Lowi, Politics in Motion: A Personal History of Political... more
... Waismel-Manor and Theodore J. Lowi's stimulating essay, Politics in Motion: A Personal History of Political Science,1 1 Israel Waismel-Manor and Israel Theodore J. Lowi, Politics in Motion: A Personal History of Political Science, New Political Science 33:1 (2011), pp. ...
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The canon of major works on politics includes a considerable number that claim to offer a new science of politics or a new science of man that encompasses politics. Aristotle, Hobbes, Hume, Publius, Comte, Bentham, Hegel, Marx, Spencer.... more
The canon of major works on politics includes a considerable number that claim to offer a new science of politics or a new science of man that encompasses politics. Aristotle, Hobbes, Hume, Publius, Comte, Bentham, Hegel, Marx, Spencer. Burgess, Bentley, Truman, Easton, and Riker are among the many who have claimed, more or less directly, that they are founding or helping to found a true political science for the first time. This aspiration has usually been expressed via criticism of earlier" unscientific" approaches. Thus, William ...
La reproduction ou représentation de cet article, notamment par photocopie, n'est autorisée que dans les limites des conditions générales d'utilisation du site ou, le cas échéant, des conditions générales de la... more
La reproduction ou représentation de cet article, notamment par photocopie, n'est autorisée que dans les limites des conditions générales d'utilisation du site ou, le cas échéant, des conditions générales de la licence souscrite par votre établissement. Toute autre reproduction ou représentation, en tout ou partie, sous quelque forme et de quelque manière que ce soit, est interdite sauf accord préalable et écrit de l'éditeur, en dehors des cas prévus par la législation en vigueur en France. Il est précisé que son stockage dans ...
Abstract Michael Sandel's Democracy's Discontent traces America's woes to an erosion of community and a loss of a sense of collective self‐governance. He recommends a more communitarian, republican... more
Abstract Michael Sandel's Democracy's Discontent traces America's woes to an erosion of community and a loss of a sense of collective self‐governance. He recommends a more communitarian, republican public philosophy as the cure. His book illuminates many important historical and contemporary issues, particularly the link between systems of political economy and visions of citizenship. His methods are, however, too impressionistic to support his empirical claims. He particularly neglects the role of civic republicanism in ...
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The two books that have occasioned this symposium represent efforts to research thoroughly, think rigorously, and argue honestly about complex and significant issues of race and ethnicity in America. There is much to be learned from them... more
The two books that have occasioned this symposium represent efforts to research thoroughly, think rigorously, and argue honestly about complex and significant issues of race and ethnicity in America. There is much to be learned from them on many topics. I read them chiefly for insights about whether and how a defensibly democratic politics of egalitarian change can be achieved by, for, and with racial minorities in a country whose majorities, like most majorities, have long been reluctant to pursue policies that did not ...