As President-elect Donald Trump prepares to take his oath of office during his Friday (Jan. 20) inauguration ceremony, many questions still remain about what he may face during his presidency and how he may react to them.
After making campaign promises such as building a wall between the United States and Mexico and repealing the Affordable Care Act without cutting Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid, it is still uncertain how he plans to accomplish those goals. Since the election, his somewhat unorthodox nominations for cabinet positions have left many people uneasy, both because of nominees’ previous stances and because some lack relevant experience. And in the face of mounting evidence of Russian interference in the American elections process, Trump has criticized the intelligence community and limited the daily intelligence briefings his predecessors received. Texas Tech University has experts available to talk about many of these issues, including race and immigration, the future of the Affordable Care Act, education policy, intelligence and national security, the energy-environment-climate change nexus, and the Trump administration as a whole.
Trump administrationSeth McKee, associate professor, Department of Political Science, (806) 834-1880 or [email protected] • McKee can talk about the presidential election and Trump’s administration.• McKee’s recently published research includes white conservative voting for minority Republican candidates in Senate and gubernatorial elections, voting behavior in different parts of the South, and factors influencing the passage of voter ID laws in states. To view more of McKee’s research, click here.
Education policyHansel Burley, professor, Department of Educational Psychology and Leadership, (806) 834-5135 or [email protected] • Burley can talk about the impacts of the Trump administration on education policy, particularly with Trump’s selection of charter school and voucher proponent Betsy DeVos as secretary of education.• Burley’s research focuses on higher education remediation, the resilience of developmental education students, diversity issues related to college access and success, and institutional effectiveness. He teaches courses on the introduction and foundations of educational research and the cultural foundations of education. He is a former editorial board member for the Journal of Developmental Education.
Environmental policy and energy developmentRobert Forbis, assistant professor, Department of Political Science, (806) 834-4047 or [email protected] • Forbis can talk about environmental politics and policy, particularly the connection between environmental protection and energy development.• Forbis’ research addresses political conflicts triggered by the hydraulic fracturing energy resource development process. He is a research fellow of Texas Tech’s Climate Science Center and teaches courses on public lands and resource management, sustainability, and energy and environmental policy.
Future of the Affordable Care ActLisa Gittner, assistant professor, Department of Political Science and the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center Department of Public Health, (440) 915-8831 or [email protected]• Gittner can talk about the Affordable Care Act; the difficulties and effects of repealing it, as Republicans have vowed to do; and how Trump’s campaign promise not to cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid may affect congress’s efforts.• Gittner’s areas of specialization include health policy, public health infrastructure and quality improvement in healthcare systems. She is an associate member of the Laura W. Bush Institute for Women’s Health and a member of The American Society of Public Administrators.
Intelligence and national securityCol. Dave Lewis, USAF (retired), director of strategic studies, Department of Political Science, (806) 787-9730 or [email protected]• Lewis can talk about veterans issues, military strategy, terrorism, intelligence, national security and Homeland Security.• Lewis was a career military officer and served as a professor of strategy at the United States Naval War College. He founded the Texas Tech Military and Veterans Programs office and operates a veterans program in Lubbock.
Race and immigrationMiguel Levario, associate professor, Department of History, (806) 834-8096 or [email protected]• Levario can talk about race, immigration and border issues.• Levario’s recent research includes the transnational context of immigration, militarization and race in the western United States and northern Mexico. His book “Militarizing the Border: When Mexicans Became the Enemy” explains current tensions and controversy over immigration and law enforcement issues near the U.S.-Mexico border.
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