Newswise — Following the election of Donald Trump as America’s 45th president, campaign slogans have given way to official statements and cabinet nominations indicating the contours of future policy decisions. The following University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee faculty members have expertise that can inform news reports about the administration’s transition and early initiatives.

Economics/Labor

Scott Adams, health care, fiscal policy, education policy [email protected] (414) 229-4812 (office) (414) 403-0347 (cell) Professor of economics Scott Adams served as a senior economist on the President’s Council of Economic Advisers in 2008-’09. His research interests include health economics and labor economics. He can address efforts to roll back the Affordable Care Act and redirect U.S. education policy.

John Heywood, labor, education policy [email protected] (414) 229-4310 (office) John Heywood is a UWM distinguished professor of economics and director of UWM’s Master of Human Relations and Labor Relations program. An expert in the economics of personnel, he has held appointments in the United Kingdom, Germany, Hong Kong and Australia. His research examines performance pay, earnings discrimination, the labor market for older workers, the determinants and consequences of a company’s family friendly practices, public sector labor markets and the economics of trade unions.

Owen Thompson, health policy, education policy [email protected] (612) 723-2263 Owen Thompson, an assistant professor of economics, researches health economics, labor economics and the economics of education. He can comment on proposed changes to health care policy, as well as Secretary of Education nominee Betsy DeVos' general ideas on charter schools and vouchers.

Finance

Kevin Spellman [email protected] (608) 334-2110 Kevin Spellman is a senior lecturer of finance and director of the Investment Management Certificate Program in the Lubar School of Business at UWM. A former analyst, portfolio manager and director of research, he continues to consult for various sell-side and buy-side investment firms in the areas of behavioral finance, asset pricing, investment strategy and quantitative investments. As Trump’s first term gets underway, Spellman can discuss how the 45th president’s economic-policy decisions affect the economy and financial markets. He can also speak in general about President Trump’s real-estate holdings, as Spellman’s first job in finance was as an analyst in real estate stocks.

Foreign Relations/International Trade

Robert Beck, international law and use of force [email protected] (414) 229-3713 (office) UW-Milwaukee Chief Information Officer Robert Beck is also a political scientist whose research interests include international relations, international law and foreign policy. He is working on a new edition “International Law and the Use of Force: Beyond the U.N. Charter Paradigm.

Christine Evans, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump in Russian media and pop culture [email protected] (414) 979-1402 An assistant professor of history, Christine Evans’ research interests include modern Eurasian mass culture, communications, play, leisure and consumption. She’s the author of “Between Truth and Time: A History of Soviet Central Television,” in 2016 by Yale University Press. She travels to Russia yearly for research, and was a recent guest on “Sean’s Russia Blog Podcast.” She can speak about Trump and Putin’s pop-culture appeal in Russia, and analyze how the Russian entertainment industry, fake news and contemporary Russian propaganda portray that nation’s complicated, evolving relationship with America and its 45th president.

Ora “John” Reuter, Vladimir Putin or US/Russian relations [email protected] (931) 312-9132 An assistant professor of political science and senior researcher at the Moscow-based International Center for the Study of Institutions and Development, Ora “John” Reuter’s research interests include comparative political institutions and political economy, elections, democratization, bureaucracy, authoritarian regimes and Russia and the former Soviet Union. He can speak about the potential for a new American/Russian partnership and analyze the key differences between the Russian and American political systems that will shape relations between the two countries over the next four years.

Jeffrey Sommers, Russia, Baltic economies [email protected] (414) 988-9670 A professor and senior fellow at UWM’s Institute of World Affairs, Jeffrey Sommers’ research centers on austerity economics in Europe and the United States. Regional focuses include the role played by the Baltic states as the drain for both commodities and capital from the former Soviet Union, and global markets in the context of a wider international political economy. His writings have appeared in the New York Times and the Financial Times. He can speak to shifts in U.S. relations with Russia in a Trump administration.

Leadership Style and Executive Behavior

Stanislav Dobrev [email protected] (801) 712-8155 Stanislav Dobrev is the Robert L. and Sally S. Manegold Chair in Strategic Management in the Lubar School of Business at UWM. Dobrev’s research interests include business and corporate strategy, organizational change, managerial careers and incentives, and entrepreneurship. He can speak to how the president elect’s entrepreneurial background might shape his management style in the Oval Office, and he can comment on the appeal of Trump’s unorthodox, nonconformist communication/impression management style.

Politics/Government

Sara Benesh, Judicial decision making [email protected] An associate professor of political science, Sara Benesh researches judicial decision making and the legitimacy of courts and institutions. She can discuss the impact of likely Trump nominees on American jurisprudence.

Thomas Holbrook, voter behavior [email protected] (414) 939-4207 (Google voice to text) A professor of political science, Thomas Holbrook can talk about voter behavior, political campaigns, campaign spending and forecasting national elections. He is the author of “Do Campaigns Matter?” and the recently published “Altered States: Changing Populations, Changing Parties, and the Transformation of the American Political Landscape.” His views on Trump’s unexpected appeal to voters appeared before the election in The Daily Caller .

Mordecai Lee, government [email protected] (414) 227-3282 (office) (414) 962-0270 (residence) (414) 559-0271 (cell) A professor of urban planning, Mordecai Lee served in the Wisconsin State Assembly from 1977 to 1983 and State Senate from 1983 to 1989. He is the author of “A Presidential Civil Service: FDR's Liaison Office for Personnel Management” and “Nixon's Super-Secretaries: The Last Grand Presidential Reorganization Effort.” Lee can speak about presidential appointments, presidential staffing, the politics of presidential transitions, and presidents and civil service.

Blain Neufeld [email protected] Blain Neufeld is an associate professor of philosophy at UWM, where he works on public reasoning, religious and moral pluralism, and the relationship between economic inequality and political freedom. He can speak to the nature of Trump’s political rhetoric, especially with respect to the growing religious and cultural diversity of American society, and to Trump's appeal to economically disenfranchised voters.

Paru Shah, race and politics [email protected] (651) 324-8797 (cell) An associate professor of political science, Paru Shah works in the areas of race, ethnicity and politics, urban governance and politics, public policy analysis and outcomes in the educational arena. Her article “The Centrality of Racial and Ethnic Politics in American Cities and Towns,” will appear in the forthcoming “Oxford Handbook on Local Politics.” She can address issues involving immigration policy, the Voting Rights Act and states’ rights.

About UWM

Recognized as one of the nation’s 115 top research universities, UW-Milwaukee provides a world-class education to 26,000 students from 89 countries on a budget of $667 million. Its 14 schools and colleges include Wisconsin’s only schools of architecture, freshwater sciences and public health, and it is a leading educator of nurses and teachers. UW-Milwaukee partners with leading companies to conduct joint research, offer student internships and serve as an economic engine for southeastern Wisconsin. The Princeton Review named UW-Milwaukee a 2017 “Best Midwestern” university based on overall academic excellence and student reviews, as well as a top “Green College.”