Politics, International Relations & Philosophy

My first degree was a B.A. in Modern History at Magdalen College, Oxford, but I decided I really wanted to focus on politics and went to Essex University to take a Masters in American Government and Politics. My interest in the American Presidency really took off at that point and I went to Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge to complete my doctoral dissertation on that topic (specifically, how presidents-elect and presidents in the early months of their presidency take policy decisions). During that period, I also spent a great year at the University of Pennsylvania. I was appointed to the American Studies Department at Keele in the 1990s, but have since moved to SPIRE, although I still contribute to the American Studies programme.

My primary focus is the American Presidency, although I have broader interests in both public policy and US government as a whole. I’m particularly interested in how presidents choose to govern and what constrains their ability to get things done. Particularly, I’m working on ideas concerning the relationship between presidential policy-making, presidential agendas and political strategy. I publish on other subjects (recently on the conservative movement in the US and US foreign policy) but the presidency is the thing I always come back to. Obviously, the Obama presidency is my main focus right now. I’m a member of Keele’s Research Institute for Law, Politics and Justice.

• PIR-10039: Debates in American Politics
• PIR-20054: U.S. Government and Politics
• PIR-20059: U.S. Presidency
• PIR-30087: U.S. Presidency and Public Policy

I also contribute to core modules in politics and American Studies, plus a first year elective on the mass media in the U.S. (PIR-10048).