Alan J. Borsuk – Page 96 – Marquette University Law School Faculty Blog

“Playing Offense from the Center” Urged as a Step to Increase Civility in Governing

Post author:Alan J. Borsuk
Post published:June 11, 2012
Post category:Marquette Law School Negotiation Political Processes & Rhetoric Public Speakers at Marquette

Keynoting the annual Restorative Justice Conference at Marquette University Law School on Friday, news commentator and author John Avlon called for those who want to see more civility and cooperation in government bodies to assert themselves.

“You have to play offense from the center,” said Avlon, a columnist for Newsweek and The Daily Beast and a frequent commentator on CNN. “Part of the problem with moderates is that they’re moderate.”

Avlon told a capacity audience in the Appellate Courtroom in Eckstein Hall that there is more that unites Americans than divides them, but some act like the opposite is true. He said people in both the Republican and Democratic parties need to take stronger stands against those who oppose working with people of differing views in reaching solutions to problems facing the nation.

“Principled compromise is the basis for a functioning democracy,” he said.

Avlon’s remarks were part of the day-long conference, “Restoring Faith in Government: Encouraging Civil Public Discourse,” which included discussions about the state of political campaign advertising, media coverage of politics and policy, and what, if anything, can be done about frequent expression of political hostility in comments on the Internet.

An Intense, Historic Debate Between Walker and Barrett in Eckstein Hall

Post author:Alan J. Borsuk
Post published:May 31, 2012
Post category:Marquette Law School Political Processes & Rhetoric Public

An intense, face to face, fast-paced hour of the candidates in Wisconsin’s recall election for governor making their strongest pitches – you can bet this was the debate many people were waiting to see.

And it was brought to people statewide – in fact, nationwide and in some foreign countries – from the Appellate Courtroom of Eckstein Hall, home of Marquette Law School.

The extraordinary debate between Republican Gov. Scott Walker and his Democratic challenger, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, was moderated by Mike Gousha, the Law School’s distinguished fellow in law and public policy. Make your own conclusions about the candidates, but here’s a vote for how Gousha handled the session: He kept it focused on key issues, let the candidates talk to each other and attack each other, and made it a great opportunity for people to get fresh knowledge of each of them, just five days before the election. He was, as all who know him expected, the consummate professional.

Walker Maintains Lead Over Barrett, New Law School Poll Results Show

Post author:Alan J. Borsuk
Post published:May 30, 2012
Post category:Political Processes & Rhetoric Public

Republican Gov. Scott Walker leads Democratic challenger Tom Barrett 52% to 45% among likely voters in next week’s recall election, according to results of the Marquette Law School Poll released Wednesday.

The seven point margin is not statistically different from a six point margin in a Law School Poll conducted two weeks earlier, said Charles Franklin, a visiting professor of law and public policy at the Law School and director of the poll. The difference between Walker and Barrett is within the margin of error for the poll, which is 4.1 percentage points.

The poll was conducted May 23 to 26, with most of the 720 people in the sample interviewed before a televised debate between Walker and Barrett, the mayor of Milwaukee, last Friday. Franklin said that it is possible things have changed in the light of the debate or other developments. In releasing the results, he and Mike Gousha, the Law School’s distinguished fellow in law and public policy, showed results of 16 polls this year of the recall race. The Law School Poll results were in line with other results, which have generally shown a small Walker lead in recent weeks. However, a poll also released Wednesday found the two candidates tied at 49%. That poll was conducted by Democratic pollster Celinda Lake.

In other results of the Law School Poll, Democratic President Barack Obama led Republican challenger Mitt Romney 51% to 43% in Wisconsin. Two weeks earlier, the poll found the presidential race to be tied. Franklin said there is still a lot of time for the presidential race to develop.

Full results from the new poll and previous polls can be found by clicking here.