Spring Quarter 2024

Congress and other branches of the U.S. government were designed nearly two and a half centuries ago under circumstances and reflecting values and philosophies that bear little relationship to contemporary America. All of these institutions have evolved over time in response to changing conditions domestically and internationally; and the American electorate had undergone significant change as well, especially in the last half century. All of these developments place dramatic and consequential pressures on government, elected officials and voters alike. How are they responding and what can we anticipate, based on historical analysis, will change as a result of these unprecedented, simultaneous crises? What is the appropriate level of idealism, pragmatism and collaboration as ways to govern a diverse and divided democracy?

This course will focus on the performance of Congress, the American government and the electorate during a period in which four historic forces are colliding simultaneously:

The coronavirus pandemic and related societal disruptions; the widespread political/social responses to systemic racism affecting policing and other public institutions and policies; the electoral season that elevates partisan anger through the campaigns across the nation; and lastly, the diminished confidence of the American people in the structure and performance of their own government.             

About the Instructor: Professor John Lawrence served as a senior staff person in Congress for nearly four decades, the last eight as Chief of Staff to Speaker Nancy Pelosi. He also served as staff director of two committees and on personal staff. He has taught at UCDC since 2013, and at Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy and has lectured widely on history and contemporary American politics at Columbia, Princeton, Oberlin and other venues. Professor Lawrence holds a Ph.D. in American History from the University of California (Berkeley), and an undergraduate history degree from Oberlin College.

This course is designed to help you, the student, better understand and analyze the evolution of U.S. Foreign Policy past, present, and future. It sets the stage for a comprehensive approach to how key foreign and defense policy and strategy actors in Washington develop, coordinate, and implement foreign policy decisions in support of America’s national and international security principles and interests. The course also introduces relevant conceptual frameworks to highlight current foreign policy challenges facing the United States, its allies, and coalition partners whether dealing with China and Russia or confronting terrorism and illicit networks to mitigate risks emanating from threats and vulnerabilities to U.S. national and international security interests. It sets out to highlight the inherent mismatches between U.S. principles and interests and between strategy and policy utilizing a series of historical case studies beginning with World War I. Moreover, this course will provide you with the necessary U.S. practical foreign policy and strategy skills and tools that will last you a lifetime as you map your future national and international security career paths following graduation. The course will also address the following select topics including general theories related to international politics and U.S. Foreign Policy; relations between U.S. Foreign Policy and international security; Grand Strategy; U.S. counterterrorism and terrorism financing; countering international criminal organizations and illicit networks; the nexus between policy and national intelligence; the nexus between U.S. defense Intelligence and US. national Intelligence; private security contractors; Guantanamo and Combat Detentions; War, alliances, and coalition-buildings; national security law; congressional and presidential roles in Foreign Policy; The role of the U.S. National Security Council staff; the impact of think tanks and advocacy special interests on U.S. foreign policy; the role of the U.S. media in shaping public policy; and diplomacy and peace-building.

About the Instructor: Professor Kamal A. Beyoghlow (BEY-O-LOU) received his PhD degree in Political Science from the University of California, Berkeley. His Master’s degree in International Relations from Tufts University, and his Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from San Diego State University.

He served as a Foreign Affairs Officer in the Office of the U.S. Coordinator for Counterterrorism at the U.S. Department of State (DOS) initiating and implementing U.S. counterterrorism policy and strategy and was also the Principal Representative of DOS to President Obama’s Periodic Review Board for the Guantanamo Combat Detention facility in Cuba where he helped resettle detainees abroad. He taught national security and international relations at the Marine Corps University in Quantico where he also served as Director of the Strategic Level of War course. He started his U.S. Government career as an analyst of psychological military operations for the U.S. Army.

He also served as a political analyst at the CIA and was a tenured faculty of Grand Strategy and Chair of the Department of Culture and Regional Studies at the U.S. National War College, the highest military academy in the United States.

No issue will command more attention in Washington, D.C. this year than the 2024 election. Its outcome may define the nation’s future for decades to come.   This course will explore the campaign in real time, using developments as a backdrop to gain a broader understanding of the changing nature of American politics. We will explore widening political divisions, the growing role of social media and fake news, the convoluted primary, caucus and Electoral College system, the role of money and polls, and reforms which might produce better outcomes.  This is a course for those who enjoy politics and will require keeping up with campaign developments. Classes will combine lecture, discussion, guest speakers and exercises with an emphasis on current developments. Students should emerge with a sophisticated understanding of American elections, the ability to go beyond media reports in assessing campaign developments, and a strong background in the details of the 2024 campaign. The course will also provide UCDC students a place to share internship experiences, fostering a sense of community and support for experiential learning.

About the Instructor: Professor Marc Sandalow (msandalow@ucdc.edu) is a senior faculty member at the University of California’s Washington Program. He worked as a journalist for nearly four decades, traveling with and interviewing candidates, and attending multiple Democratic and Republican nominating conventions. He spent 21 years at the San Francisco Chronicle, the last 10 years at the paper’s Washington Bureau Chief. He is the author of three books, including “Madam Speaker,” a biography of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. He is currently a political analyst for KCBS radio in San Francisco and Hearst Television and writes a regular column for the San Francisco Examiner. He has been with UCDC since 2008.

Do Twitter or Facebook threaten democracy? What is the difference between “fake news” and journalism? Should the media report what people want to know or ought to know? Does objectivity exist?

This seminar examines the extraordinary changes to political communication and journalism over the past half century and the consequences for American democracy. The first year of Biden’s presidency and the aftermath of Trump’s are a great backdrop to assess the news media’s mission, goals, and biases. We will look at the media’s incentives to fuel controversy, politicians’ efforts to manipulate – or lie to -- the media, and how the digital revolution has fundamentally restructured – for better and worse -- the future of political communication. Classes will combine lecture, discussion, and exercises with an emphasis on current developments. Readings include scholarly articles, a book of your choice, and a steady diet of news and journal pieces to keep up with political developments.

Students will complete a major research project on a newsworthy topic which will be written in journalistic form in addition to shorter writing and speaking assignments. All assignments are aimed at sharpening research and writing skills, with a focus on identifying target audiences and communicating with clarity. Assignments may be adjusted to meet individual campus requirements. 

About the Instructor: Professor Marc Sandalow is an Associate Director of the University of California Washington Program (UCDC). He is the author of three books, including “Madam Speaker,” a biography of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. He has been a journalist for 30 years, including 21 years at the San Francisco Chronicle and more than a decade as the paper’s Washington Bureau Chief. He is a former columnist and contributing editor for the California Journal, and is a currently a political analyst for Hearst Argyle television stations and KCBS radio in San Francisco. Professor Sandalow has been the UCDC program since 2008.

Many Americans can name several presidents and even have opinions on “good” versus “bad” presidents. But what do presidents actually do, what resources and limitations do they have in their ability to act, and how do we measure their performance and our expectations for their leadership? With a divided Congress and record polarization, what can we expect during the next year and a half of a Biden/Harris administration? This course will put the modern presidency in historical and theoretical context, drawing on a variety of readings and approaches to determine which framework best explains presidential (in)action. At its core, this class is about the question of executive power in democratic government and how we understand what we see happening just down the street from the UC Washington Center. In addition to studying and reflecting on the theme of presidential power, we will also consider the limits to this power and how presidents achieve their goals. Ultimately, we aim to understand the work of the presidency and some of the different perspectives by which we might analyze or assess presidents and their administrations. 

About the Instructor: I am a Ph.D. of American government and politics with specializations in the American presidency, public policy, and polarization. My research focuses on presidential governance via executive orders and how political factors influence the ability of presidents to issue their most significant orders. I have taught UCDC’s presidency seminar since Fall 2017. While earning my degree at the University of Maryland, I taught classes about public policy and Congress to students who had internships related to those fields in a format similar to the UCDC program. Outside of the classroom, I work at Community Change & Community Change Action, non-profit organizations focused on building a movement led by everyday people to create change in their communities and across the country. As the Electoral Data Manager, I work with many different teams and partner organizations to identify target audiences and track the work we are doing in communities affected by injustice.