Fall 2025: Thurber Dialogues on Democracy

It was standing room only for a timely discussion about money in politics with former Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI). Feingold was a co-sponsor of campaign finance reform legislation with then-Senator John McCain (R-AZ) in the early 2000s. Pictured L-R are: Feingold, Thurber Dialogues on Democracy founders Dr. and Mrs. James Thurber, CCPS Interim Director Tom Kahn, and former CCPS Interim Director Ron Elving.

Please plan to join us in-person November 10 on American University's NW DC campus for another important conversation with prominent thought leaders about how to strengthen democracy in the US and abroad.

• Monday, November 10 @ 6:30 pm 'The Struggle for Democracy: Challenges and Global Responses' with Norm Eisen and Jonahan Katz, The Brookings Institution

Watch Prior Thurber Dialogues

CCPS Director Argues for More Transparency on Federal Budget

The New York Times, 08/23/2025 — "For the past half-century, presidents of both parties have, almost without exception, released a comprehensive federal budget proposal to Congress each year. The Trump administration is poised to break that tradition.

In May, months after a full proposal would be typically released, the administration offered what it called a “skinny budget”: an outline of spending priorities that detailed only a small fraction of proposed expenditures. But the administration has declined so far to release a full proposal. In addition to being an extraordinary departure from tradition, this budgetary secrecy is unlawful and a betrayal of the trust citizens place in their government. Taxpayers have a right to know how the government intends to spend their money."
Read Guest Essay by Tom Kahn

NEH Grant to Taylor-Fillmore Correspondence Project Celebrates U.S. 250th Anniversary

On August 1, the National Endowment for the Humanities announced $34.79 million in grants for 97 humanities projects across the country to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the United States of America. The two-year, $197,322 grant supporting the Correspondence of Zachary Taylor and Millard Fillmore, which is housed in the School of Public Affairs, American University, will enhance access to primary historical documents by the twelfth and thirteenth presidents and their correspondents, and offer the ability to teach and learn history from those who made it.

The project, led by CCPS faculty fellow Michael David Cohen and CCPS fellow Amy Larrabee Cotz, aims to locate all letters written to or from the twelfth and thirteenth presidents between 1844 and 1853, the decade leading up to and including their administrations, and to publish three print and digital volumes of selected and annotated letters. Launched in 2020, it is also funded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission and The Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation. For more information on the project, visit the ZTMF website.

Seeking submissions for Congress & the Presidency Journal

The Congress & the Presidency Journal is actively seeking new journal entries that aim to broaden perspectives on the executive and legislative branches. We're committed to broadly studying American governance and want your input to help shape a more inclusive future of research. Visit Congress & the Presidency for more information and to submit entries. NOTE: The editorial office of C&P will be closed the weeks of July 28 and August 4, 2025.

Is U.S. Democracy Really at Risk? A Framework for Assessing Threats

ICYMI please revisit this early-July conversation about the most important threats to democratic norms and institutions in the U.S. today, and the seriousness of those threats. CCPS was proud to co-host this presentation with the Democratic Erosion Consortium and the Trust, Accountability, and Inclusion Collaborative.
Watch the Presentation on YouTube

Madison Prize Recognizes Legislative Collaboration, Cooperation

CCPS and the School of Public Affairs held an award ceremony on April 29 to recognize the 2025 winners of the Madison Prize for Constitutional Excellence: Representative Stephanie Bice (R-OK) and former Representative Derek Kilmer (D-WA). The U.S. Capitol Historical Society hosted the ceremony at the VFW, followed by a reception in the Hart Senate Building. Initiated by former US Representative David Skaggs (D-CO) and his wife, Laura, The Madison Prize celebrates US lawmakers (one Democrat and one Republican) who are willing to cooperate and compromise for the sake of the common good, instead of folding their arms in obstinate service to partisan interests. The awards ceremony was attended by Bice, Kilmer, USCHS President Jane Campbell, American University President Jonathan Alger, AU School of Public Affairs Interim Dean Alison Jacknowitz, AU Professor Emeritus James Thurber, AU Adjunct Professor Ron Elving, the Honorable David Skaggs and family, the Honorable Dick Gephardt, and other invited guests. Pictured: Jacknowitz, Alger, Kilmer and Skaggs.
Watch the Event on YouTube

2025 Bryce Harlow Winner

Rachel Zelicof (SPA/BA '25) was recently named winner of best essay for the Bryce Harlow Ethics and Lobbying Workshop. Every year the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies and the Bryce Harlow Foundation jointly sponsor the Bryce Harlow Workshop on Ethics and Lobbying. In conjunction with this course, students write a paper about the topic of ethics in lobbying and are encouraged to submit their papers for the workshop essay contest, which features a $250 prize for the best essay. Led by CCPS Director Emeritus James Thurber, students analyze the transcendent issues of values, the law, conflicts of interest, the foundation of ethics, and the meaning of integrity in political advocacy. Read more about the award and winners here.

Congress On Demand: Platform to Easily Witness Congress

Congress On Demand was conceived so that what is public can finally reach voters in a familiar and engaging way. Though sessions in Congress are filmed, Congress on Demand delivers videos in the short, single-click on-demand format to which we've all grown accustomed. As part of American University's commitment to civic engagement, the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies is proud to contribute to this innovative tool.

The 2024 Senate Election Edition of Congress On Demand followed thirty-four races that would determine the balance in the U.S. Senate. In those races, 25 incumbent U.S. Senators ran for re-election and eight House Representatives ran for eight of those Senate seats. In time to be of use to voters across the country, Congress On Demand streamed segmented videos of every floor appearance from the 118th Congress of the 25 U.S. Senators running for re-election and every floor appearance of the eight U.S. House Representatives running for Senate seats. Congress on Demand also included all floor appearances of Sen. JD Vance - the Republican Vice-Presidential nominee. Additionally, users can access the 2020 Presidential Election Edition of Congress on Demand to view all appearances made by Kamala Harris in the 116th Congress, her last as Senator.

For more information, please contact COD founder and CCPS Fellow Eve Silberberg at info@congressondemand.us.